New Delhi: Karwa Chauth is a significant festival for Hindu women in India and is celebrated widely across north Indian states like Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. This year, it is being celebrated today on Thursday, October 13. Women adorn themselves in new clothes and ‘solah shringar’ and perform Karwa Chauth puja for a happy and blissful marriage. On this day, women observe a day-long nirjala fast, which means they avoid consuming water or food between sunrise and sunset on this day.
Though the festival stemmed originally from the Northern parts of India, it has been immensely popular in other parts of India as well. Right from Bollywood celebrities to every other Indian married woman could be seen participating in this auspicious occasion.
Karwa Chauth is a festival dedicated to the beautiful bond of marriage. It commemorates the unconditional love and support that holds the marriage together.
It is observed on the fourth day after the full moon or Poornima in the month of Kartik according to the Hindu lunar calendar.
The word Karwa or Karva means the ‘earthen pot’. While the word Chauth denotes the ‘fourth’.
Deriving its name from the earthen pot, the festival is also known as Kark Chaturthi (wherein Kark means an earthen water pitcher).
Married women observe a day long fast praying for the well-being and long lives of their husbands.
One of the hypotheses behind Karwa Chauth is that during military campaigns men used to leave their homes and go for war. Their wives as a result resorted to prayers for their safety and health. Some traditions also state that newly wed women observe this festival to bond with their in-laws, befriend another woman and celebrate the bond of friendship.
However, what remains common in these hypotheses is that the festival coincides with the wheat-sowing time (start of Rabi crops season). The earthen pots (karwas) were used to store wheat in them as a way of wishing for a good harvest.
Women usually celebrate this festival of Karwa Chauth together with other married women exchanging gifts, singing songs and performing pujas. They get ‘sargi’ from their mother-in-laws. Sargi consists of special nutritious food items that need to be eaten before sunrise.
Following which a day long fast is observed since dawn, and only after taking a look at the moon and the husband through the sieve can they break the fast. Throughout the day women engage in various rituals, dress up, do ‘shringar’ and pray for husband’s good health and prosperity. They break their fast by drinking a sip of water which the husband helps them drink.
Though it is predominantly observed by married women, unmarried girls and boys can also observe this auspicious festival seeking a blessed life partner.
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