Chhath Puja festivities are celebrated over a period of four days in the states of Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand, and Uttar Pradesh. Some regions of Madhya Pradesh, as well as Nepal, also celebrate this day with gusto, and this year, the festival will fall on 30th October.
Celebrated after the festival of Bhai Dooj, this auspicious day is native to the people of India and has been prevalent across centuries. References to this festival can be found in the ancient Vedas, expressing the significance of this day. The relevance of this festival can be found even in Ramayana when Lord Rama and Goddess Sita offered their prayers to Surya Bhagwan after their return to the kingdom of Ayodhya from exile that lasted for a period of 14 years. Hence, this festival is an integral part of the Indian culture and is celebrated far and wide with enthusiasm.
Other than the story of Lord Rama and Sita Mata praying to the Sun god, another tale from Hindu mythology sheds light on the deep significance of this day. According to the epic of Mahabharata, the Pandavas and Draupadi observed the festival of Chhath Maiya to find their way back to their lost kingdom. Similarly, Kunti’s first-born, Karna, performed the puja of this festival, offering prayers to the Sun god. As per the mythology, the belief is that just like Karna, the ruler of the Anga Desh, which is present-day Bhagalpur in the state of Bihar, fulfilled his wishes, devotees can also get their wishes fulfilled by observing this festival.
This festival holds a lot of importance in the eyes of the devotees, which is why one needs to be extremely detail-oriented regarding performing the puja for this day. Fret not! We have assembled a complete puja vidhi for this day below-
The Chhath Puja rituals are extremely important and are performed with a great deal of devotion by the worshippers. Let us look at some of these rituals in detail-
The puja performed on this festival holds a lot of significance, but it also has a lot of relevance from an astrological point of view. As per the science of astrology, those people who are experiencing the malefic influence of the Sun in their birth chart should perform this puja with deep devotion, especially while performing an arghya to the Sun god. People who want to increase the power of the Sun in their birth chart should especially perform this puja to reap its manifold benefits. It is believed that this puja is extremely powerful, and by performing it, one can remove all the hurdles in their life. It attracts abundance and prosperity in the lives of the devotees and brings health and well-being to their families.
As per the Brahma Vaivarta Purana, King Priyavrat, who was the eldest son of Manu Swayambhu, was without an heir. As a result, he was extremely distressed. To ease his woes, Maharishi Kashyap suggested that they should perform a yajna. The yajna was organized as per Maharishi’s instructions, and soon after, Queen Malini gave birth to a son. However, the baby died right after his birth. The King was disheartened, and the entire family was drowning in sorrow. Seeing this, Shashti Mata appeared in front of the family on a craft in the sky. The king sought the blessings of the Goddess who introduced herself as Lord Brahma’s daughter. She was the protector of all the children in the world and showered her blessings upon the kids as well as those parents who were childless. She gave life to the king’s dead son and blessed the entire family. The king, moved by the Goddess’s blessings, joined both his hands in gratitude, seeking her grace. Since then, the festival of happy Chhath puja has been celebrated all around the world.
Nature is at the center of this puja and its significance, reminding us all once again that we need to exist in harmony with our surroundings and its many bountiful blessings!
To learn more about this festival and its relevance, consult with the top astrologers only at Astroyogi!