Achamaniya

(“to be sipped”) The fifth of the sixteen
traditional upacharas (“offerings”)
given to a deity as part of worship, on
the model of treating the god as an honored guest. In this upachara, the deity is
offered water for rinsing and cleaning
the mouth. The actual act of offering can
be done in various ways and often
depends on the worshiper’s inclinations.
In some cases the water vessel will simply be presented before the deity’s
image, with the understanding that the
water has been taken, whereas in other
cases the devotee (bhakta) will actually
rinse the image’s mouth. In either case
the underlying motive is to show love for
the deity and to minister to its needs.