How the Preparations for Karwa Chauth Festival are done by Women in India!

Such festivals are symbol of the harmony and love that we Indian share with each other! Indian woman mostly in the Northern India keep fast on this day for the well-being of their husbands. The festival signifies the celebration of the belief of millions of Indians that they have shown in the institution of marriage.

We are in 2017 and once again it is the time of the year to celebrate this beautiful festival that is symbolic of the devotion of a woman towards her husband. Here is a short description of how the festival is celebrated:

1. Initial Preparations

The preparations for the festivity get started much before the festival and women start buying beautiful clothes and jewelleries in advance.

• They usually pick up bridal clothes to wear on the day. Red or pink colour is considered most auspicious to wear on Karwa Chauth.
• Picking jewelleries in tune with the clothes chosen is the other part of the preparation.
• Putting Mehandi on the previous night of the festival is an important part of the celebration.

2. KARWA CHAUTH FASTING RITUALS

The ritual starts by eating "Sargi" early in the morning!

• Sargi is the part of the ritual when every mother-in-law prepares food for their daughter-in-laws.
• Sargi is supposed to be eaten before the Sunrise, early morning.
• The food hamper includes Kheer, nuts, vermicelli, mathri and much more.
• Also, during Sargi women have to drink lots of water so that they could endure being without drinking water the whole day on Karwa Chauth.

3. KARWA CHAUTH PUJA

The Karwa Chauth puja is done in the evening by reciting Katha!

• Women prepare for a get together where they could organise for the puja ritual.
• They get themselves dressed in beautiful & colourful clothes like Sari or Lehenga. Somebody from the women flock or a Pujari recites the Katha aloud while women make a close circle.
• They pass on to each other the puja thali consisting of sweets, Diya, a glass of water and other Puja materials.
• The next step involves waiting for the Moon to appear.

4. BREAKING FAST

• As per the traditions, the ritual is broken by seeing the husband's face through a Chalni (sieve) and then drinking water from his hand.
• And, then everyone in the family enjoys mouth-watering food.

Although, the festival is only for the wives who keep fast for their husbands but these day many men out there also fast for their wives.

Here are the important date and timings of Karwa Chauth 2017:

Karwa Chauth 2017 Date – Saturday 8^th October 2017

Moon Rise: 8:02 PM

So, this is all about Karwa Chauth and how it is observed by women. Usually, the festival is celebrated by married women, but in some parts of the country, unmarried girls also keep fast praying for a desired life partner.