Karwa Chauth 2018: Look at how Beautiful women celebrate the festival of love, long lives and marriage!

Sargi: Mother to Daughter Love

The day begins by the mother in law gifting the daughter in law – the sargi. It consists of a plate that holds earthen pots, with food like sweets, fruits, mathri, and even dry fruits. This food needs to be eaten before sunrise and that is beginning of this special day.

Karwa Chauth Puja Items

For the puja, we need to ensure that the lady has small Karwa lamps, earthen pots, matthi, henna to decorate the hands, the Puja Thali (large flat plate).

Karwa Chauth Mehndi

Women beautify their hands with henna or mehndi designs as they believe that this is a symbol of prosperity and luck for their family life.

Karwa Chauth Dresses

On Karwa Chauth, women like to look their best. So, as per tradition, they choose red as their favourite colour. But there is no hard and fast rule to stick to this custom. Choose what looks good on you and that which helps you strike out in the crowd!

The Karwa Chauth Fast

Once the Sargi is consumed, then the fast begins once sunrise comes in. During the fast, wives, and even to be brides are not allowed to eat or drink anything. It is done so that their husbands live long lives and their married life goes on happily.

Baya: Daughter to Mother Love

Just like mother in laws gift their daughter in laws, the same is done viceversa and that is what is called Baya. The girls who fast prepare a large plate (thali) that contains a melange of gifts like namkeen or salty food items called mathri, sweet combinations like halwa and puri.

Preparing the Karwa Chauth Puja

Women first light diyas and then pour water into a small earthen pot called the ‘Karva’. Alongside, they take a sieve and take all these items to the terrace or any place where they can see the moon clearly.

Observing the moon

Once the moon is visible, the fasting lady offers water to the moon. This ritual is called ‘Arka’. Thsi is to seek the blessings from the Lunar diety named Chandra. As per mythology, with fasting and prayers, a woman can defeat Death (Yama) from asking her husband away from her.  The sieve is covered with semi transparent dupatta or cloth. 

Ritual states that the reflection of the moon should appear in the pot of water and that can be viewed with the help of this sieve (that is covered with a piece of coloured cloth). 

 

Breaking the fast

After this, she can look at her husband or to be husband through the same sieve. Also, the woman will pray for the long life of her husband, At this point, the husband will break the fast of the wife by making her sip some water and sometimes will serve a morsel of food like sweets.

The Katha

Katha is a special prayer wherein all women who are performing the Karwa Chauth Puja listen and recite a prayer called the ‘Katha’. An earthen pot of water is kept right in the center of a circle (formed by seated women). Each woman will have a prepared thali and after the thali, it will be exchanged in a pattern.