Savitri Vrata | |
---|---|
Also called | Savitri Vrata, Sabitri Brata |
Observed by | Married Hindu women of Bihar, Nepal, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh |
Date | Jyeshtha Amavasya |
2023 date | 19 May |
Related to | Savitri and Satyavan |
Savitri Vrata (also Savitri Brata) or Savitri Amavasya is a fasting day, commemorating the pious act of Savitri who rescued her husband, Satyavan, from the god of death (Yama). It occurs on the new moon day in month of Jyeshtha. [1] Married Hindu women observe a fast to promote a long, healthy life for their husbands. [1] [2] It is celebrated in the Indian states of Odisha, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and in Nepal.
The same festival is observed on Vat Purnima, the full moon of Jyestha in other regions including Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka. [ citation needed ]
The story of Savitri is noted in the Hindu epic Mahabharata . The vrata was named after Savitri, the beautiful daughter of King Ashvapati. She selected Satyavan as her life partner, a prince in exile who lived in the forest with his blind father Dyumatsena. Before marrying him, she was foretold that Satyavan would only live for a year - although, this did not stop her decision. After a year, Satyavan, accompanied by Savitri, went to the forest to chop wood, but fell unconscious and died. Yama, the god of death, appeared to take away Satyavan's soul. Seeing this, Savitri followed them, believing it to be her duty as a wife. Yama, moved by the devotion of Savitri, returned the life of her husband. Soon Satyavan regained his lost kingdom, and his father, Dyumatsena, regained his sight. [1] [3]
Savitri's virtue of faithfulness and devotion towards her husband has made her an exemplary figure for Hindu women. [1] [3]
The rituals related to Savitri Vrata are collectively compiled under Vat-Savitri puja which is mainly derived from the Sanskrit text the Skanda Purana . [4] [5] Rituals are also noted in later literary works (such as the Chaturvarga Chintmani and Vratarka) inspired by and extracted from the Skanda Purana. [4]
During Savitri Vrata, reverence is offered to Savitri and a banyan tree - by watering and wounding a thread around it. [6] [7] Aside from its medicinal qualities and national symbolism, the banyan tree is offered homage because it is believed that Savitri attained spiritual prowess through its shade during her encounter with Yama. [8]
In Odisha, women offer worship to a grinding stone or sila pua which is considered to be a symbolic representation of Savitri. [9]
Jyeshtha or Jyēṣṭha is a month of the Hindu calendar. In India's national civil calendar, Jyestha is the third month of the year. Known as Joishtho in Bengali, it is the second month of the Bengali calendar.
Agrahayana or Margashirsha, is the ninth month of the Hindu calendar. In India's national civil calendar, Agrahayana is also the ninth month of the year, beginning on 21 November and ending on 20 December. Margashirsha means related to the Mrigashīrsha nakṣatra (asterism), which has been known since Vedic times. In Tamil, Margashirsha is also known as Margaḻi.
Vat Purnima is a Hindu celebration observed by married women in North India and in the Western Indian states of Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat. On this Purnima during the three days of the month of Jyeshtha in the Hindu calendar, a married woman marks her love for her husband by tying a ceremonial thread around a banyan tree. The celebration is based on the legend of Savitri and Satyavan as narrated in the epic Mahabharata.
Vrata is a Sanskrit word that means "vow, resolve, devotion", and refers to pious observances such as fasting and pilgrimage (Tirtha) found in Indian religions such as Hinduism and Jainism. It is typically accompanied with prayers seeking health and happiness for their loved ones.
Sharad Purnima is a religious festival celebrated on the full moon day of the Hindu lunar month of Ashvin, marking the end of the monsoon season. The full moon night is celebrated in different ways in various cultural regions across Indian subcontinent.
Karva Chauth or Karwa Chauth or Karaka Chaturthi is a Hindu festival celebrated by Hindu women of Nepal, Northern India and Western Indiain October or November on the Bikram Sambat month of Kartika. Like many Hindu festivals, Karva Chauth is based on a lunisolar variant of the Hindu Calendars. The festival falls on the fourth day after the full moon.
Savitri and Satyavan are a legendary couple in Hinduism. Savitri is a princess who marries an exiled prince named Satyavan, who is prophesied to die early. She saves her husband from the god of death, Yama, persuading the deity to restore his life.
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Yama, also known as Kāla and Dharmarāja, is the Hindu god of death and justice, responsible for the dispensation of law and punishment of sinners in his abode, Naraka. He is often identified with Dharmadeva, the personification of Dharma, though the two deities have different origins and myths.
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Shashthi or Shashti is a Hindu goddess, venerated in Nepal and India as the benefactor and protector of children. She is also the deity of vegetation and reproduction and is believed to bestow children and assist during childbirth. She is often pictured as a motherly figure, riding a cat and nursing one or more infants. She is symbolically represented in a variety of forms, including an earthenware pitcher, a banyan tree or part of it or a red stone beneath such a tree; outdoor spaces termed shashthitala are also consecrated for her worship. The worship of Shashthi is prescribed to occur on the sixth day of each lunar month of the Hindu calendar as well as on the sixth day after a child's birth. Barren women desiring to conceive and mothers seeking to ensure the protection of their children will worship Shashthi and request her blessings and aid. She is especially venerated in eastern India.
Pūrṇimā is the word for full moon in Sanskrit. The day of Purnima is the day (Tithi) in each month when the full moon occurs, and marks the division in each month between the two lunar fortnights (paksha), and the Moon is aligned exactly in a straight line, called a syzygy, with the Sun and Earth. Full moon is considered the third of the four primary phases of the Moon; the other three phases are new moon, first quarter moon, and third quarter moon. The full moon shows 100% illumination, causes high tides, and can concur with lunar eclipses.
Amalaka Ekadashi or Amalaki Ekadashi is a Hindu holy day, celebrated on the 11th day (ekadashi) of the waxing moon, in the lunar month of Phalguna (February–March). It is a celebration of the amalaka or amla tree, known as the Indian gooseberry.
Nirjala Ekadashi is a Hindu holy day falling on the 11th lunar day (ekadashi) of the waxing fortnight of the Hindu month of Jyeshtha (May/June). This ekadashi derives its name from the water-less (Nir-jala) fast observed on this day. It is considered to be the most austere and hence the most sacred of all 24 ekadashis. If observed religiously, it is said to be the most rewarding and granting the virtue gained by the observance of all 24 ekadashis in the year.
Tulasi, Tulsi or Vrinda is a sacred plant in Hindu tradition. Hindus regard it as an earthly manifestation of the goddess Tulasi; she is regarded as the avatar of Lakshmi, and thus the consort of the god Vishnu. In another iteration, as Vrinda, she is married to Jalandhara. The offering of its leaves is recommended in ritualistic worship of Vishnu and his avatars, like Krishna and Vithoba.
Sati Savitri is a 1978 Telugu-language Hindu mythological film directed by B. A. Subba Rao. It stars N. T. Rama Rao, Krishnam Raju, Vanisri and music composed by Ghantasala & Pendyala Nageswara Rao. It is produced by A. Sankar Reddy under the Lalitha Siva Jyothi Studios. The film is based on the story of Savitri and Satyavan.
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