On the purnima of the month of Pausa, Narayana, December/January (Srimad Bhagavatam 2:10:4: posanam tad-anugrahah), the last day of the astrological month (Pushyami nakshatra), one should bath the Deity in five seers (or pounds - 2.5kg approx.) of ghee. The Hari Bhakti Vilasa says that on this day, one should rub ghee on the Deity of Sri Krishna.
Pusya, of course, means nourishing and this act of devotion with ghee, which is very nourishing, is equivalent to the results of an asvamedha sacrifice. During the morning puja, the Deity or a salagrama is bathed in pure ghee.
Skanda Purana 2.2, chapter 42, describes Sri Krishna Pusya abhiseka as one of the festivals observed for Lord Jagannatha in Puri. This chapter gives an elaborate description of the rituals for observing at the festival.
In the 27th chapter, text 99 of the same section of Skanda Purana the Pusya naksatra is also mentioned. There it is said that it was on a Thursday, astami tithi during sukla-paksa of the month of Vaishakha, in conjuction with the pusya-naksatra, that Lord Jagannatha was installed in the original temple in Puri Dhama.
Srila Prabhupada once explained the festival this way: "Krishna was just a toy in the hands of the Gopis, so one day the Gopis decided that we shall decorate Him. Pusyabhisheka means a ceremony to decorate the deity profusely with flowers, ornaments, cloths. After there should be lavish feasting and a procession through the streets, so that all the citizens should see how beautiful Krishna appears."
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