The Leela Ceremonial Rituals

The Leela’s universe is India and we extend the graciousness of true Indian luxury to our guests globally. The Leela Ceremonial Rituals are a feast for the senses. As the day transitions to night, our hotels come to life with the traditional diya lighting ceremony that flows into an interactive cultural immersion with a distinctive sense of place. Guided by The Leela ethos, “Atithi Devo Bhava,” our palaces, hotels and resorts, perform ceremonial rituals that help in preserving our time-honoured traditions and provide an immersive cultural experience.

From the lighting of a ceremonial lamp that ushers light, happiness, and prosperity, to the feeding of Koi fish that are associated with perseverance, strength, good luck, and abundance, our rituals open up a world of wonder and enrich our guest experience with customs, ideologies and principles they venerate. We invite you to partake in these poignant and sensory rituals. 

The Leela Palace Bengaluru
Drawing inspiration from the grand architectural style of the Royal Palace of Mysore, The Leela Palace Bengaluru is built in an art-deco form, adorned with copper domes, arches, and ornate ceilings that reflect the grandeur of palaces of a bygone era. Our ceremonial ritual is a glorious spectacle that takes place in the lobby starting at the grand staircase and moving on to the Devi. It begins with the lighting of the Diya by four graceful ladies beautifully draped in Karnataka’s traditional attire, against the chanting of a prayer of peace, harmony and prosperity and transitions into a musical serenade of harmonious Carnatic music. 

The Leela Palace Chennai
Reminiscent of the Chettinad Palace style of architecture, the rich historic design influence imbues The Leela Palace Chennai with a deep sense of tradition. Our evening ritual begins with the blowing of the Sringa indicating that it is time to light the mashaals. Four elegantly dressed ladies, encircle the water body of the main courtyard to light the Mashaals in the water followed by a Carnatic music performance by masterful musicians which includes a violin, a mridangam and a tambura. This dramatic performance is set on a stage fabricated at the center of the water body illuminated by mashaals for an enthralling experience.

The Leela Palace New Delhi
The essence of the evening aarti ceremony is that God offers us light throughout the day – the light of the sun, the light of life, and the light of blessings. Aarti is a time when we say, “Thank You,” and we offer back the light of our thanks, the light of our love, and the light of our devotion. The ceremonial ritual at The Leela Palace New Delhi invokes “Blessings from the Trinity” Durga, Kali, Saraswati - three Indian goddesses of India.

The aarti is performed every evening just before sunset to the Devi that sits gloriously atop her throne in the inner courtyard of The Leela Palace New Delhi. Associates clad in special puja attire engage with guests to float candles in the lotus pond and make a wish just prior to the aarti. The ceremony concludes with the offering of a special beverage or prasadam from Jamavar. This prasadam is the traditional thandai which is offered to the almighty and then distributed to all devotees in various cultures throughout India. This beautiful ‘ceremony of light’ not only resonates with the essence of the country but is also a powerful ritual of expressing gratitude and uplifts the spirit with hope and positivity.

The Leela Ambience Gurugram
Come dusk, we invite you to experience the age-old tradition of lighting lamps that has been followed from time immemorial. At sunset, four ladies donned in traditional sarees in four distinct styles, descend the stairs on either side of our magnificent lobby with a salver of glistening diyas. A medley of Indian music strums enchantingly in the background, as the ladies decorate the four water bodies with diyas. The ceremony culminates with all four ladies coming together in the lobby to greet our guests with a humble namaste and wish them an enjoyable evening ahead. Guests can indulge in refreshing delectables after an arduous day at the office with an array of appetizers along with immunity boosters and other healthy drinks.

The Leela Mumbai
The hotel comes alight in the evening with a glorious ritual revolving around the grand ceremonial Kerala lamp that represents abundance and prosperity. This lamp symbolizes the deep-rooted tradition of our Indian culture. As our ceremonial ritual, this lamp with 1 wick is lit at sunset every evening in the Lobby and stays lit from the first rays of the twilight till 8 pm each night. The significance of lighting the lamp is that when darkness falls, the lamp facing the main door of a home [in this case, the main door of the Lobby] brings light, happiness, and prosperity to the house and its guests.

The Leela Palace Jaipur
Dharohar by The Leela Palace Jaipur brings together the finest from local arts and crafts to culinary delights unfolding heritage one art at a time. Held at the Kanishka Bagh, it’s truly a spectacle of tradition, music, and art that one should not miss.

The Leela Palace Udaipur
Experience the ceremonial evening ritual at The Leela Palace Udaipur that brings to life a mesmerizing performance of folk music and dance of Rajasthan. These rituals are an emotional representation of the rich and varied culture and legacy of Mewar and are inspired by performances in the royal courts depicting stories of victory, love and heroic deeds.  

The Leela Ambience Convention Hotel Delhi
Koi, meaning fish in Japanese symbolizes good fortune or luck. They are called “swimming flowers” for their physical beauty. Known for their ability to climb rushing streams and waterfalls until they reach their destination. They are determined fighters that do not give up and are therefore associated with perseverance, strength, good luck, and abundance. A school of koi fish is a welcoming sight at the entryway of our astounding Japanese speciality restaurant, Mei Kun. Feeding the fish early morning or at sunset is believed to rid you of all your adversaries and safeguard you from troubles.