Understanding The Background Of Karwa Chauth | Traditional Hindu Festival

Karwa Chauth is an ancient Indian tradition, which is one of India’s most celebrated festivals of the Hindu community. This is a festival that celebrates the pure bond shared between husband and wife. The festival is particularly celebrated in Northern India and is followed by almost all married Indian women. On this day, women keep fast for the whole day to show love and care to their husbands.

The fast starts with Sunrise in the early morning and lasts till moonrise. they break their fast only after seeing the Moon at night by drinking water from their husband’s hand. 

As per the Hindu calendar, the Karwa Chauth festival is observed on the fourth day of the Kartik month,9 days before Diwali. Karwa Chauth 2019 will be kept by all women in India and abroad on 17th October which is falling on Thursday.

Karwa Chauth Puja Muhurat

Karwa Chauth Muhurat for this year on 17th October 2019 for a time period of 1 hour and 16 minutes.

Karwa Chauth 2019 Pooja Start time:

5:46 PM

Karwa Chauth 2019 Pooja End time:

7:02 PM

For Karwa Chauth 2019, the estimated Moonrise timing is 08:20 PM. This timing has a great importance for women who keep fast on this day. As for the whole day, they keep fast and wait impatiently for the Moonrise to break their fast. As per the rituals, they can break the fast and could drink water only after seeing the Moon. The Karwa Chauth Fast is considered to be complete only after the women see the face of their husband and the moon together with Chalani decorated with Diya.

Karwa Chauth Shringar Items

Mehndi.

Fashionable and multicolored glass bangles.

Makeup items like bindi, kumkum or sindoor etc. 

Traditional and beautiful jewelry items like mangalsutra, maangtika, rings, necklaces, bangles, earrings, anklets, toe-rings, nose-ring, etc. 

Karwa Chauth Puja Items

Cow-dung to make the image of the goddess Gora or Parwati

Karwa Chauth storybook

Matthi for bhog

Sindoor or kumkum

A strand of red thread (called kalawa)

Karwa (a clay vessel containing water)

A plate for keeping puja samagri

Money for chadawa

Other miscellaneous puja items

The Puja Process

The preparations start from the day before Karwa Chauth, The women buy the shringar items and puja items like Karwa, Matthi, etc and start the preparations.

On the day of Karwa Chauth, they prepare food in the early morning and have it before the sunrise. 

The day goes in the preparation of puja thali, and other festive activities. The women gather in the evening at the temple or garden and start the Karwa Chauth rituals. The gathering starts with Karwa Chauth’s story narrated by pujaran or some elderly lady, followed by a special mud pot that is considered a symbol of Lord Ganesha, a metal urn filled with water, flowers, idols of Ambika Gaura Mata, Goddess Parwati and some fruits, matthi, and food grains, a part of which is offered to the deities during puja.

Earlier an idol of Gaura Mata was made using the earth and cow-dung. And now just an idol of Goddess Parwati is kept. Every one lights diya in their thalis while listening to the Karwa story. Kumkum, incense sticks, and rice are also kept in the thali.

At this time the women wear heavy sarees or chunries in red, pink or other bridal colors with all other symbols of a married woman like nose pin, tika, bindi, bangles, earrings, etc.

Once the moon rises, the women see its reflection in a thali of water, or through a sieve. By offering water to the moon, they seek blessings and pray for the safety, prosperity and long life of their husbands. This marks the end of the day-long fast.