Cleanliness mainly. House and surroundings should catch the attention of Goddess Lakshmi Devi. That's why the front yard will be cleaned with cow dung water and beautiful designs of Rangoli/Kolam will be done daily. Goddess must feel happy to enter the house.
When I was working in Madras in1980s, we resided in a house in Mambalam. Upon opening the gate, one would find our living quarters in the front portion directly ahead; a family from North India occupied the upper floor, while the landlord's family lived in the rear portion on the ground floor. To reach the landlord's quarters, one had to enter through the gate, turn right and walk about 15 feet, then turn left and proceed toward the back of the property.
The landlord's ancestors hailed from Machilipatnam. He spoke both Telugu and Tamil quite fluently, albeit with a distinct accent. They chose to live in the rear portion because a hospital was being constructed on the vacant plot of land situated right next to it. His wife was a doctor, and he himself was a government civil engineer.
He was a deeply devout man. He had a large shed erected on the terrace of the house and established an "Om Shakti" shrine there; prayers and rituals were performed regularly.
They kept their cow tethered right next to our living quarters. Consequently, the very first thing we saw every morning upon waking up was the cow—a *Go-darshan* (sacred sighting of the cow)—which was a truly pleasant experience.
Eventually, the hospital was completed. For its inauguration ceremony, they invited the *Paramacharya* (the senior pontiff) of the Kanchi Peetham. The elderly pontiff, however, expressed his inability to attend personally and sent Jayendra Saraswati in his stead.
All the necessary arrangements were put in place. His Holiness indicated that he would arrive at 6:00 PM.
Since it was already evening, my wife decided to sprinkle a mixture of cow dung and water (*kallapi*) in front of our quarters and draw five or six large *muggulu* (decorative floor patterns). She did this out of habit, as it is a common custom in villages—particularly during festivals like Sankranti.
When His Holiness finally arrived, he delivered a shock to everyone present. It turned out that the hospital was a "Maternity Hospital"—and, as a matter of principle, he would not enter such an establishment. Therefore, the Swami said to the owner, "I will come into your home; lead the way." As everyone followed him, they arrived at the gate. The gate was open, and my wife was standing right there. The Swami paused for a moment to observe the *muggulu* (traditional floor patterns), then entered our home and proceeded further inside, asking, "Where is the prayer room?" In the evenings, we always keep the lights switched on in every room—it is a habit of ours.
Cleaning with cow dung water and rangoli caught the attention of His holiness and pleased him. His holiness automatically entered our house. All this was over in few seconds.