Chhath, dedicated to the Sun God, also known as Lord Surya is an important four-day Hindu festival celebrated in many states in India annually in the Kartika month as per the Hindu calendar.

The occasion is here and celebrated with religious fervor and predominantly observed by people in the north Indian states like Rajasthan, Bihar, Jharkhand, and in some parts of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Chhattisgarh, and Mumbai.

People worship this religious festival, which begins October 28 of this year and ends October 31. The third day of this festival, (October 30), is the main day of the festival.

During Chhath Puja, devotees worship Surya or the Lord Sun and Shashthi Devi (Chhathi Maiya) and also offer Arghya to both deities.

On this day, the majority of women observe a 36-hour waterless fast and believe that worshipping them brings promotes the well-being, prosperity, and progress of their children and family. People also clean their homes to welcome positive energy.

CHHATH PUJA 2022: HISTORY & SIGNIFICANCE

The Chhath puja is said to be a festival of purity, devotion, and offering prayer to the Lord Sun. It is believed that the religious rituals of Chhath Puja date back to ancient times, and there are certain beliefs that connect to Hindu epics in which Ramayana and Mahabharata are the two major epics associated with Chhath Puja.

RELEVANCE IN MAHABHARATA

The festivity finds a reference in the Mahabharata, an epic story of Hinduism in which the famous Mahabharata character Karna is said to be the child of the Sun god and Kunti. It is believed that Karna usually use to offer prayer while standing in the water. However, there is another fact and story which mentions how Draupadi helped the Pandavas to get their kingdom back by performing a similar puja.

Draupadi is said to observe the same traditional rituals and it is believed that Draupadi performed Chhath Puja to help Pandavas come out of all her troubles and regain their lost kingdom. Draupadi did this on the recommendation of a noble sage named Dhaumya.

RELEVANCE IN RAMAYANA

Many popular legends are associated with the inception of Chhath Puja and the most popular one comes from the story of Ramayana, one of the epics of Hinduism, and the story of Lord Rama.

It is said that on this day, Lord Rama along with Lord Sita Mata kept fast together, and during ‘Kartik’, offered ‘puja’ to Lord Surya (Sun), at the time of their coronation in Shukla Paksha to get blessings from the Lord Surya (Sun) after returning to Ayodhya from an exile of 14 years as they were living in the forest that time. They took the fast in honor of the Lord Sun and broke it with the setting Sun. It is one such ritual that subsequently evolved into Chhath Puja.

Since then, Chhath Puja became an essential and traditional festival for people of the Hindu religion and they started celebrating this festival every year in the same month on the same date.

SCIENTIFIC & ASTROLOGY SIGNIFICANCE

The festival is celebrated to honor Surya Bhagwan (Lord Sun/Sun God), which people believe sustains life on the planet earth. The puja and rituals are performed to seek blessings from Surya to live a longer and healthy life.

Chhath Puja is also the best way to get your body detoxified as observing fasts and taking dips in the Holy water while exposing the body to the Sun enhances the flow of solar bio-electricity which improves the functionality of the human body.

Also, it is said that Chhath Puja helps to destroy harmful bacteria and prepares the body for the upcoming winter season. It is a Hindu people’s belief that early sunlight helps to cure many diseases and is a great source of healing too.

Chhathi Maiya is also worshipped on this day along with the Sun God.

As per Vedic astrology, Chhathi Maiya (or Chhathi Mata) not only protects kids from suffering, diseases, and problems but also gives them long lives and good health.

CHHATH PUJA 2022: DATE AND TIMINGS

The four days of Chhathh Puja celebrations, begin with Nahay Khay and end with Usha Arghya.

Chhath falls on the sixth day of Kartik Shukla and marks 6 days post-Diwali. Also, as per Drik Panchang, Chhath Puja will fall on October 30 this year.

The sunrise will happen at 06:43 am and the sunset at 06:03 pm. Additionally, the Shashthi tithi will begin at 05:49 am on October 30 and end at 03:27 am on October 31.

CHHATH PUJA 2022: THE FOUR DAYS RITUALS – SIGNIFICANCE AND PUJA VIDHI

The four-day festival has different rituals each day:

DAY 1: NAHAY KHAY

Starts October 28 (From Sunrise at 06:42 am; to Sunset at 06:04 pm)

The celebrations of Chhath Puja begin on the Chaturthi of Shukla Paksha of Kartik month and this day 1 is known as Nahay Khay, in which devotees take a holy dip in the river Ganga or any sacred water body. Women who eat only a single meal on this day observe Chhath. A sattvic meal is prepared on this day and devotees offer Kaddu Bhaat to the deity

DAY 2: KHaRNA

Starts October 29 (From Sunrise at 06:43 am; to Sunset at 06:04 pm)

On this second day known as Kharna, women observe a fast without drinking a single drop of water for the whole day (from sunrise to sunset). However, the fast is broken right after sunset and post-making food offerings to the Lord Sun. Later, women start fasting for the third day after having the second-day prasad.

DAY 3: CHHATH PUJA

Starts October 30 (From Sunrise at 06:43 am; to Sunset at 06:03 pm)

The third day of this occasion is Chhath Puja. Women devotees worship Chhathi Maiya and again observe a fast for the whole day without drinking a single drop of water maintaining proper discipline. The main ritual involves offering Arghya to the setting Sun along with the entire family and is considered the only time of the year when Arghya is given to the setting Sun. Usually, it has been observed that devotees stand in the river to offer arghya to the Lord Sun.

Also, during this day, a prasad for Chhath Puja is prepared and placed in a basket and taken to Chhath ghats near rivers or ponds.

DAY 4: USHA ARGHYA

October 31 (From Sunrise at 06:44 am; to Sunset at 06:02 pm)

The final day and four-day-long festival of Chhath end on October 31 and people offer prayers to the rising sun at the Chhath ghats. The 36 hours long fast comes to an end after giving Arghya to the Sun.

The day is also known as Usha Arghya, where devotees break their fast after giving arghaya to the rising sun in the morning. Devotees stand in the water before sunrise as a part of the ritual to see the Sun God and offer him prayers.

THINGS TO REMEMBER WHILE OBSERVING FAST

Devotees have to take a holy bath early in the morning.

Devotees should wear clean clothes and give prasad to the idols of Lord Surya.

At these crucial times, cleanliness is everything so whenever you get involved in any puja activity, make sure to maintain proper hygiene.

If you can drink water then also drink fresh fruit juices, buttermilk, or lassi to keep yourself energetic.

Try to stay hydrated but avoid caffeinated drinks or anything with preservatives.

Add protein-rich foods such as almonds, milk, nuts, and curd to your diet to keep you full for a longer time.

Also, make sure your last meal before observing the fast is something light such as roti, dal, and curd.

Sugar content is very unhealthy so avoid having things with such content.

Satvik food i.e. without onion and garlic is mandatory to eat for devotees and the prasad is not touched with salt.

During this time, fasting is observed for 36 hours, which lasts for 4 days and the fast continues for the entire night till the sunrise of the next day.

Happy Chhath Puja!