Patna. Kartik Chhath, the four-day festival of folk faith in Bihar, will start from tomorrow with Nahay-Khay. On the first day of this holy four-day great festival of Surya worship, Chhathvrat devotees, male and female, take bath in the pure and clean water of rivers and ponds with the resolution of not bathing or eating tomorrow for the purification of their conscience and consume Arwa food prepared in pure ghee. Will start the fast. Devotees have started preparations for the festival from today itself.
Preparations for the great festival Chhath are in full swing from home to ghat. Along with cleaning the house, the devotees are busy in purchasing puja material for the fast. Some fasting people are busy picking rice for bathing and eating in their homes while others are busy drying wheat on the terrace. Chhath puja committees and volunteers from different areas are also engaged in cleaning and decorating the Ganga ghats for the Chhath fasts. Along with this, archways are being built on the main roads leading to river Ganga and the entire route is being decorated with colorful bulbs.
On the second day of the festival, the devotees, after fasting throughout the day without taking water, perform puja at sunset and after that eat kheer made of milk and jaggery only once and drink water till the moon is visible. After this, their waterless fast of about 36 hours starts. On the third day of this great festival of folk faith, the fasting people stand in rivers and ponds and offer the first Arghya to the setting sun. The fasting people offer Arghya with fruits and roots to the setting sun.
On the fourth and last day of the festival, the fasting people again offer second Arghya to the rising Sun in the rivers and ponds. Only after offering the second Arghya to Lord Bhaskar, the 36-hour waterless fast of the devotees ends and they take food. One specialty of this fast, which is observed for the happiness and prosperity of the family and for the relief from troubles, is that no priest (Pandit) is required to celebrate this festival, nor is there any need for chanting mantras.
importance of chhath
Chhath Puja starts from Chaturthi date of Kartik month after Diwali. This is a special festival dedicated to Sun God. During this time devotees pray for the happiness, prosperity and long life of their loved ones. On the auspicious occasion of Chhath Puja, there is a ritual to worship Sun God and his wives Usha and Pratyusha. It is believed that by worshiping, the person gets the blessings of Chhathi Maiya. In Sanatan Shastras, Chhathi Maiya is considered the goddess who protects children. Therefore, worship of Chhathi Maiya on the day of Chhath Puja has special significance.
Also read- Chhath Puja 2024: Preparations for Dala Chhath, the festival of sun worship, started, foreigners started returning home.
