Mundan
The Hindu ceremony of a child's first head shave, usually in the first, third or fifth year.
Also: chudakarana, chaula, first haircut
Mundan, also called chudakarana or chaula, is one of the sixteen sanskaras, the Hindu rites of passage. The child's birth hair is shaved, often at a temple or on a riverbank such as the ghats of Varanasi or Haridwar, and offered to the deity or the river. It is believed to cleanse the child of past lives and to mark a new stage. A tuft, the shikha, may be left at the crown. Families choose an auspicious day with a priest.