The festive season is here upon us. After celebrating the nine-day festival of Navratri and Durga Puja, the wait for Karwa Chauth and Diwali has already begun. Karwa Chauth is a Hindu festival that is mostly celebrated in the northern part of India, wherein married women observe nirjala fast from sunrise to moonrise. On this day, women consume pre-dawn meal known as sargi and drink or eat again straight after sighting and making offerings to the moon in the evening. According to the Hindu lunisolar calendar, Karwa Chauth is celebrated on the fourth day after the full moon in the month of Kartik. This year, the festival falls on Thursday, October 17, 2019.
Why Is Karwa Chauth Celebrated?
On this auspicious occasion, married women worship Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati and pray for their husbands' long life and well-being. They wear ethnic attire, adorn themselves with shringar items like sindoor and jewellery, and apply henna or mehendi, which signifies good luck. In the evening, before sunset, women dress up and gather in a group to read vrat katha.
(Also Read: How To Prepare For The Karwa Chauth Festival)
Women who observe Karva Chauth fast eat or drink only after sighting the moon
Puja And Moonsighting Timing
Moonrise time - 08:16 pm
Chaturthi Tithi - From 6:48 am on October 17, 2019 till 07:29 am on October 18, 2019
Karwa Chauth Pooja Muhurat – From 05:46 pm till 07:02 pm (1 hour 16 minutes)
Karwa Chauth Upavasa time – From 06:27 am till 08:16 pm (13 hours and 50 minutes)
(Source: drikpanchang.com).
(Also Read: Karwa Chauth: Don't Break Your Fast with Fried Foods and Caffeinated Drinks)
Eating sargi before fasting is an important ritual of Karwa Chauth festival
Karwa Chauth Feasting
Even though, women observing Karwa Chauth fast abstain from eating, food is an integral part of the festival. Eating sargi in the morning is an important ritual. Mothers-in-law prepare the thaali of sargi for their daughters-in-law, which they are supposed to eat before sunrise. The thaali consists of a range of foods to fill up the appetite and help the women keep the day-long fast ahead.
Small meal – A light savoury meal is consumed to supress the hunger and promote satiety. Dalia (porridge), khichdi, poha or upma are some of the meals usually prepared for sargi. Including mathri in the sargi thaali is also an important tradition.
Sweets – No festival is complete without eating some customary sweets. Pheni, halwa and seviyan are the most common sweet meals prepared for sargi.
Dry Fruits – Almonds, cashews, pistachios, walnuts – any of these nuts are consumed by women before fasting so that they can draw all the energy and nutritional value from these nutrient-rich nuts to manage without food the whole day.
Fresh Fruits – Since fruits have high water content, they help in keeping the body hydrated till the evening.
To all those who are going to celebrate this festival, we wish you a happy and prosperous Karwa Chauth!
About Neha GroverLove for reading roused her writing instincts. Neha is guilty of having a deep-set fixation with anything caffeinated. When she is not pouring out her nest of thoughts onto the screen, you can see her reading while sipping on coffee.