Chhath Puja- The Mahaparva of Bihar

Chhath is an ancient Hindu festival that has originated in Bihar, India. It is also celebrated in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and the southern sections of Nepal. 
It is celebrated on the sixth day after Diwali, on the sixth day of the lunar month of Karthika (October–November) in the Hindu calendar Vikram Samvat. The Chhath Puja ceremonies are performed over the course of four days. Holy bathing, fasting without consuming water (vrata), standing in water, and offering prasad and Arghya to the setting and rising sun are the rituals performed during Chhath Puja. 

Chhath Puja is one of the most eco-friendly religious festivals!!

Significance of the Festival:-

The sun is the god visible to every being. It is the source of life for all creatures on earth. During Chhath puja, prayers are offered to the Surya Devta, to express thanks for providing the blessings of life on earth and to request the fulfilling of certain wishes. The Goddess of the celebration during the puja is Chhathi Maiya, also known as Shashthi Devi. It is believed that Chhathi Maiya protects the children and provides longevity to them.

Shashthi Devi, the daughter of Brahma, has also been known as Manas in the Hindu religion. In the Puranas, she is also said to be the mother Katyayani, who is worshipped on Navratri on the Shashti date. Shashthi Devi is said to be Chhathi Maiya in the local language of Bihar.

The Chhath Puja has also been performed in Treta Yuga and Dvapara Yuga as mentioned in Ramayana and Mahabharata respectively.

• As in Ramayana, people celebrated Deepawali when Rama and Sita returned Ayodhya, and on its sixth day Ramrajya was established. On this day, Rama and Sita kept fast and Sita performed Chhath Puja. As a result, Rama and Sita were blessed with Luv and Kush as sons.
•  As in Mahabharata,
  • Chhath Puja was performed by Kunti after they escaped from Lakshagriha.
  • Chhath Puja was also performed by Karna, the son of Lord Surya and the king of Anga Desh, which is the modern-day Bhagalpur in Bihar.
  • Pandavas and Draupadi also performed the Chhath Puja to overcome obstacles in their lives and gain their lost kingdom.

The Festival’s Origin Tale:-

According to legends, King Priyavrat, the son of First Manu Swayambhu, had no children. He used to be really upset about this.  Maharishi Kashyap asked him to perform a Yagya. He performed a Yagya for a son in accordance with  Maharishis orders.  Following this, Queen Malini gave birth to a son, but the baby died shortly after birth. As a result, King and his family were upset. Just then a craft was spotted in the sky, where Mata Shashthi was sitting. When the king bowed to her, she presented herself as  Shashthi Devi, the manas daughter of Lord Brahma and she said that she protect all the children and give the blessings of children to the childless parents.

Goddess then blessed the lifeless kid with her hands, bringing him back to life. The king was pleased with the Goddess’s grace, and he worshipped Shashthi Devi. It is said that after this, Chhath puja is celebrated worldwide.

Rituals performed during Chhath Puja:-

Chhath Puja is a folk festival that lasts four days. It starts with Kartik Shukla Chaturthi and ends with Kartik Shukla Saptami. The main worshippers, known as “vratins” or “parvaitin”, pray for their family’s well-being and the prosperity of their kids.

These are some of the Samagris required for Chhath Puja-

• 1 large bamboo basket, 3 soop made of bamboo or brass, plate and glass.
• Rice, red vermilion, lamp, coconut, turmeric, sugarcane, suthani, vegetable, and sweet potato.
• Pear, big lemons, honey,milk, paan, whole herd, caravans, camphor, sandalwood, and dessert.
• banana, radish, green ginger, bottle leaves, and spices such as black cardamom and cloves.
• As prasad, take thekua, malpua, kheer-puri, semolina pudding, rice ladoos.etc

Day1:- Nahaaye-Khaaye(Bath-and-Eat):

The most important aspect of this festival is its cleanliness. On this day, the house and the surrounding area is cleaned and the devotees take a bath in a river, especially the Ganges. They bring Ganga Water home and cook the food with it. Prasad is commonly made in Pure Ghee using pumpkin, bottle-guard, and moong-chana dal. The Parvaitin cooks the most Satvik Kaddu Bhaat with utmost cleanliness. This preparation is served to the deity in the afternoon as Bhog. This initiates the Parv. The Vratti eats first, and then the rest of the family.  On this day, the vratin only eat once.

Day2:- Kharnaa:

On the second day of the festival, the Vrattis fast throughout the entire day, not drinking even a drop of water before sunset. The entire day is spent preparing for the festival, shopping for essentials like sugarcane, fruits, and other items. Later in the evening, vratins cooks a unique Prasad known as Rasiaav-kheer (made with jaggery, rice, and milk) and chapattis. Vratins worship Chhathi Maiya and serve this specially prepared prasad to her with other fruits such as banana, radish, green ginger, bottle leaves, and spices such as black cardamom and cloves. After puja, the vratin breaks their fast by eating Prasad, which is then distributed to family and friends. 

On Kharna’s midnight, people prepare Thekua, a special Prasad for Chhathi Maiya.

Day3:- Sandhya Arghya:

Sandhya Argya is also known as the Sanjhiya Ghat or evening offering. The entire day is spent preparing offerings (usually from early in the morning before sunrise). The daura is filled with all the offerings, including thekua and seasonal fruits, during the day. In the evening, the vratin and every family member gather on the bank of a river, pond, or reservoir that has been decorated for the puja. Vratti worships the setting sun from the ghat. Folk songs are sung that depict Festival’s culture.

Later in the evening, as the sun sets, vratin offers the Sandhya Arghya, worships the Surya Devta, and returns home.

Arghya Vidhi— Fill the Daura(bamboo basket) with all of the Chhath puja samagri . In a soop, place all of the prasad, a sinhora (wedding sindoor container), a burning Diya, and agarbatti. The vratins then stand in knee-deep water,holding traditional soop,to offer an arghya to the sun.

Kosi or Koshiya:-

After returning from ghat to home the vratins along with other family members, perform the ritual of kosi bharai. The sugarcane sticks are tied together through a cloth and the lighted lamps, earthen pots in the shape of an elephant are put under the mandap and beneath the shade of that mandap 12 to 24 earthen lamps are burnt and offerings like thekua and other seasonal fruits are offered. The lighted earthen lamps are symbolic to solar energy that sustains light. This ritual is conducted either in the courtyard of the house or in the angan or at the rooftop. Later the kosis are taken to the banks of the river and the same ritual is repeated in the ghat the next morning between 3:00 am to 4:00 am and afterward the vratis offer arghya or offerings to the rising sun.

Day4:-Bhor Arghya:

The offering given to the Surya Devta in the morning is called Bihaniya Arghya or Usha Arghya. The vratins and the family members again gather at the bank of the river early in the morning and sit until the sun rises. They sing and worship Chhati Maiya. When the sun rises, the morning arghya is offered by going into the water with arghyas kept in soop. After this, the protection of the child and the happiness of the entire family is sought from Chhatti maiyya. After morning offerings, the vratins distribute Prasad among each other and take blessings from elders on the ghat and then return back to home.

After returning from the ghat, vratins drink naariyal paani and tea, and eat a little prasad in order to break their 36-hour long fast. After that delicious food is prepared and offered to the vratti to eat. As they fast for a very long period, they usually take light food on that day. This is called Paran or Parana.

In this way the four-day long Chhath Puja is concluded.

Reference to the Images:-

• Chhath ghat
• Chhath_Kharna
• Thekua
• Vratins on Ghat Chhath-puja
• Sandhya Arghya