------------------------------------------------------ Today – October 11, 2014 – is Karva Chauth Vrat ------------------------------------------------------ Karva Chauth is an annual Hindu fasting undertaken by women in northern and western parts of India on the fourth day of Krishna Paksha (waning phase of moon) in Kartik Month, as per North Indian Hindu lunar calendar. Karva Chauth 2014 date is October 11. Time of moonrise on October 11 is at 8:34 PM. Karva Choth in 2014 in USA, United Kingdom, Europe, Australia and Gulf countries is on October 11, 2014. In Canada, Hawaii and PST and MST timings in USA it is marked on October 11. Karwa Chouth Vrat is observed by women for a happy and prosperous married life and for the well being of the husband and is one of the most popular Hindu fast and ritual. Karva Chauth is dedicated to Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. It is believed that Goddess Parvathi had observed severe penance to get Lord Shiva as her husband. Women emulate the fasting practice observed by Goddess Parvati for her husband Lord Shiva. On the Karva Chauth day after an early morning bath married women eat food made from select grains and fruits. All this takes place before sunrise. After sunrise the women observe a strict fast. Women in the neighborhood gather in a house and take advice from elderly women on how to observe Karva Chowth fasting. They also listen to the significance to Karva Chouth, Katha (stories) and perform rituals together. The fast is broken after sighting the moon at night along with her husband. The moon is seen through a sieve. Women break the fast with an offering of water and flowers to the moon. ********************************************************************************************** ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- How to do or observe Karva Chauth Vrat? - How to perfrom Karva Chauth Fasting? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Karva Chauth is a popular fasting in Hinduism and is mainly observed in North India. In 2014, Karwa Chauth is on October 11. Here is a brief idea on how to do or perform Karva Chauth Vrat? It is performed by a married woman for the well being of her husband. The fast starts before sunrise and ends after worshipping the moon. Today, the fast is seen as a symbol of love. The simple way to fast on the day is to wake up early have a bath, offer daily prayers and consume some food before sunrise. In the evening, pray to Goddess Parvati, wait for the moonrise. Have a look at the moon and enjoy a good dinner with husband and family. Remember, all rituals are meant for the satisfaction of the ego, Gods don’t need rituals. Santana Dharma teaches to get over all rituals and understand the Brahman – the Supreme Force present in you and in everything. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> The traditional way contains several steps and it is as follows: >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> On the day, married women wake up before sunrise and take bath and offer their usual prayers. They then consume food. Foods consumed on the day are those which can help in maintaining the fluid level of the body - milk, fruits, juice, tea or coffee. Freshly prepared breakfast like puri and aloo is also consumed. Non-vegetarian food is avoided on the day. No food is consumed after sunrise. Women spend the day visiting friends and relatives. Many make use of the day to apply ‘henna’ on their palms and feet. The women dress in beautiful saris and other traditional garments. Working women head to work or take leave on the day. An important ritual on the day is the ‘baya’ send by the mothers for their daughters. The Baya (gift to the mother-in-law) usually consist of mathris, puas, halwa, clothes and some small amount of cash. This ritual and the items vary from region to region but in most places a ‘baya’ is send by mothers to their daughters. The most important part of the ritual is the Karva, an earthen pot with an outlet on the side and open from the top with a lid. If Karva is not available anything any utensil resembling Karva is used. The preparation for the puja starts early evening mostly by 1700 hrs. The room for puja depends on the number of people invited. The puja place is decorated with ‘kharia matti.’ A ‘chowk’ is decorated on the floor and atop it a seep chowk is decorated with ‘aipun.’ The chowk is placed against the wall and on a decorated ‘patta,’ Goddess Parvati is installed. This is the traditional form of decorating the puja room for Karva Chauth. A simple method is to install the picture or an idol of Goddess Parvati in the usual Puja room or at the designated place. An hour before moonrise those who have undertaken the vrat or participating in the puja gather in the puja room. The karva is decorated with kharia, aipun and roli. A red thread is tied around the neck of the karva. The karva is filled with water (a little) and seven broken pieces of pua. The thali consists of puas, puris, dry fruits, water, halwa and cash. The thali is kept over the karva. The items on the thali vary from region to region and also depend on what the person performing puja likes to have on it. Now each woman does the puja. This ritual is known as mansana. Women dress neatly and colorfully for the puja and apply sindhoor on the maang. The puja is quite simple. First, the person performing the puja applies a roli teeka or sindhur on the idol or forehead of Goddess Parvati. Then she dips the third finger of the right hand in water and sprinkles it with the help of thumb three times on the deity. The same ritual is repeated with aipun and roli. Finally, rice is showered on the deity and a little rice is kept in the hand. All the participating women can do this puja. One woman narrates the story of Karwa Chauth and others listen with the rice in the hand. At the end of the story, each woman exchanges her karva with her friend. The woman giving the karva says’ O Suhagan take my karva.’ The one receiving says O Suhagan give your Karva.’ The roles are then reversed. After this each woman present perform the baya manasana. The woman takes rice in the left hand and adds little water to it. The edge of the ‘pallu’ is taken in the right hand the index finger is dipped in the left hand. Both the hands are taken around the karva and the water is poured on the side of the karva. An elderly woman chants the mantra. The whole ritual is repeated a second time without the mantra. Then when the moon is sighted, the reflection of the moon is seen in the water in the puja thali or through a sieve. The woman holds a lamp in the left and offers water to the moon – pouring water on the ground seven times and also throwing seven broken pieces of freshly broken puas. The fast is broken by eating a pua broken into ten pieces and by drinking water in between. Note: If you are suffering from any disease or are taking medicines, consult your doctor before undertaking the fast. Do not torture your body in the name of any ritual. ********************************************************************************************** --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Karva Chauth Vrat Katha – The story listened to before breaking Karwa Chowth fasting ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Married women undertaking the fasting on Karva Chauth make it a point to listen to the Karva Chauth Vrat Katha (story) from elderly women. With changing times many women prefer to listen to the audio version of the story (CD or MP3) or read the story. There are numerous regional versions of Karwa Chowth Vrat Katha but the moral is the same and in fact in most stories only the social status of the characters change – the main story remains the same. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Karva Chauth Vrat Katha >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> A money lender had seven sons and a daughter. All the sons were married. The daughter who was married came to her father’s house to observe her first Karva Chauth Vrat. On the fourth day of Kartik Krishna Paksha, the money lender’s wife, the seven daughters-in-law and the daughter kept the Karva Chauth Vrat. The seven brothers did not like the idea of their sister starving, so they invited her to have food with them. But she did not accept the invitation and said that she will only eat after sighting the moon and after doing the needed pujas. The brothers decided to trick their sister, so that she will break her fasting. They used mirror reflection from a fire place to convince the sister that the moon has appeared on sky. The wives of the seven brothers who came to know about the trick informed the sister about the trickery. But the sister was not ready to listen to them and she accepted the words of her brothers and broke her fast by offering pujas to the reflection of fire thinking that it is the real moon. She also consumed food along with her brothers. A couple of hours later she received the news that her husband is terribly ill. She rushed to her husband’s home. She had to undergo several troubles but illness of her husband showed no respite. Soon she realized that all this was due to her not observing the Karva Chauth Vrat properly. She prayed to Lord Ganesh for forgiveness. She observed the Karva Chauth Vrat properly and soon her husband was cured and she was blessed with prosperity. In another version, the daughter is replaced with Queen Veeravati. But in the story her husband (the King) dies. When she repents, Lord Shiva and Parvati appear before her and forgive her. She is able to bring back her dead husband by strictly observing the Karva Chauth Vrat. ********************************************************************************************** ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Udyapan for Karva Chauth Fasting – Ujaman or Uddhyapan of Karwa Chauth ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Below is the procedure for Udyapan for Karva Chauth Fasting. Ujaman or Uddhyapan is performed after Karwa Chauth fasting. Woman can perform this Udyapan of Karva Chauth before or after marriage to wish god to bless them for a happy married life. Please note that this article was provided by a reader of the blog and might not be applicable in all regions in India. You can make necessary changes to fit into your region or community observance. 1) Place a set of four pooris at each 13 spots in a big plate 2) Put lumps of halwa on each set of pooris 3) Keep a saree and some money according to your financial statues. It is offered to the mother in law. It is called Bayana, the women doing Udyapan should give this Bayana to their mother in law respectably and should touch their feet to take blessing. 5) Then apply some roli and rice on the edges of the plate 6) Then give this plate to your mother in law respectfully and touch her feet to take her blessing. 7) The mother in law must keep the pair of clothing and money with them and then distribute the food stuff among the people around or neighbours or send it to the house of some other girl like sisters or daughters. 8) After doing this, feed thirteen Brahmin ladies for dinner and give them some donations etc according to your financial status and apply bindis on their foreheads so that you can get their blessing. Or instead of inviting them to howm we can send food box to them. ********************************************************************************************** -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Karva Choth fair and festival at Chauth Mata Temple at Barwada in Sawai Madhopur in Rajasthan ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Karva Choth fair and festival, which attracts more than 50,000 Hindu devotees, is annually observed at the Chauth Mata Temple at Barwada in Sawai Madhopur in Rajasthan. Karva Choth fair and festival at Chauth Mata Temple 2014 date is October 11. As per information provided by the official website of Rajasthan temples, the goddess worshipped in the temple is also known as Sheetala Mata. Karva Choth fair and festival is held annually on the 4th day during the waxing phase of moon in Kartik Month as per traditional Hindu calendar followed in Rajasthan. Karva Chauth Vrat and fasting also observed on the day in North India. Chauth Mata Temple is located in Barwada atop a hill and is around 25 km from Sawai Madhopur. A devotee needs to climb 700 steps to reach the temple. The temple was established during the 14th century. The temple is also an important destination for Ganesha devotees as the temple houses a Ganesh murti and large number of people visit the shrine on the fourth day after full moon and new moon to offer prayers. ********************************************************************************************** ----------------------------------------------- Rules of Karva Chauth Fasting ------------------------------------------------ Karva Chauth Fasting is observed from sunrise to sighting of the moon on the fourth day of the Krishna Paksha of Kartik Month as per traditional Hindu calendar followed in North India. Here are the important rules regarding Karva Chauth fasting. Unmarried women are not supposed to observe Karva Chauth. Women who are pregnant, working or are under treatment for any sort of medical problems should not observe fast. They should opt for partial fast. The fast begins early morning with sunrise. After self purification, one should prepare a thali (large plate) – in it one should keep a small pot filled with water, in a mud pot one should keep few wheat grains, in a small vessel one should keep sugar, and finally a token amount of money. One should then offer prayers to Ganesha with roli, rice and jaggery. Using the roli one should create a swastika symbol on the Karva and one should also keep 13 bindi on the karva. The person observing the fast should also stick a bindi on the forehead. Fasting is continued. In the evening or whenever the Karva Chauth Story is heard, the person observing fast should hold 13 wheat grains in her hand. The thali should be kept nearby. After hearing the story, the person should give the Karva, the grains in her hand and the token amount to eldest female member in the family or the person who narrated the story. The pot containing water and the wheat grains in the karva pot should be kept separate. On sighting the moon in the evening, the wheat grains should be put in water and offered to moon by raising your arms.The puja is complete and you break the fast. ********************************************************************************************** -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Karva Chauth 2014 date in United States and Canada – Karva Chouth Vrat and Fasting in United States and Canada in 2014 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Karva Chauth 2013 as per Hindu calendar followed in United States. Karva Chauth 2014 date is marked on October 11 in Canada and those regions in United States that follow PST and MST. Karva Chauth USA timings are – October 11, 2014 Eastern Standard Time in USA October 11, 2014 Central Standard Time in USA October 11, 2014 Pacific Standard Time in USA and Canada October 11, 2014 Mountain Standard Time in USA Karva Chauth is an annual fasting undertaken by women in North India on the fourth day of Kartik Month, as per North Indian Hindu lunar calendar. Karva Chauth Vrat (also known as Kadva Choth) is observed by women for a happy and prosperous married life and for the well being of the husband and is one of the most popular fast and ritual in North India. Karva chauth is dedicated to Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. It is believed that Goddess Parvathi had observed severe penance to get Lord Shiva as her husband. ********************************************************************************************** ---------------------------------------------- Karva Chauth Prayers and Songs ----------------------------------------------- Karva Chauth prayers and songs are chanted by those women undertaking the Karva fast. The Karwa Chauth song is sung while passing the Thali containing Baya during community puja by women. Another prayer is chanted after sighting the moon and before breaking the fast. This particular Song is sung women while passing thalis during community puja. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Karva Chauth Vrat Song >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> This particular Song is sung women while passing thalis during community puja. वीरा कुडिया करवाडा सर्व सुहागन करवाडा ए कटटी ना अटेरी ना खुम्ब चरखा फेरी ना गवन्डा पैर पायी ना सूई च धागा पाई ना रूठडा मनाई ना सुताडा जगाई ना बहन प्यारी वीरा चन चढे ते पानी पीना ले वीरा कुडीयो करवाडा लै सर्व सुहागन करवाडा >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Karva Chauth Vrat Prayer After Moonrise >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> This Karva Chauth prayer is chanted while offering Ark to Moon God or Chandrama. The prayer is usually chanted after the moon rises and before breaking the fast. सीर धडी, पैर कड़ी अकॅ देन्दी सर्व सुहागन चौबारे खड़ी
Posted on: Sat, 11 Oct 2014 05:02:56 +0000
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