Kalava

Kalava (Sanskrit: कलावा) is the sacred Hindu thread also called mauli in Hindi. It is worn while performing Hindu rituals like Yajna or Puja. It is tied by a priest on the wrists of all the people attending the prayer ceremony. Kalava is tied on right hand of males and unmarried females, and on left hand of married females. Sometimes it has small yellow parts in between the mostly red string. It sometimes has knots which are tied up while reciting Sanskrit mantras to invoke Brahman and is worn to ward off evil from the person who wears this red thread.