Since ages, Chhatth Puja has been celebrated with enthusiasm and devotion in equal parts by natives of Northern India. The inhabitants of Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Southern Nepal. These devotees offer prayers to the Sun God on the auspicious day of Chhatth. Sun God is hailed by the worshippers by singing hymns and prayers. Besides prayers, the natives of the aforementioned regions express gratitude to the Sun Lord for life on earth, healthy crops and for their wishes to be granted.
Over the centuries, the Chhath Puja rituals have been performed without any modifications. The excitement for the festival is such that women start prepping up for the Puja many days prior to the festival.
Chhath Puja 2023 Muhurat, Tithi and Timing:
This year Chhath Puja will be conducted on the 19th November 2023, Sunday- Sunrise on Chhath Puja Day- 06:05 AM
- Sunset on Chhath Puja- 05:29 PM
- Shashthi Tithi Starts- 05:49 AM on November 30 2023
- Shasthi Tithi Ends-03:27 AM on November 31, 2023
Meaning of Chhath Puja
The word ‘Chhath’ implies six which means that in the month of Kartika on the sixth day, Chhath Puja festival is celebrated. While the ‘Chhath’ Puja festival is on, the Sun God is worshipped.
Chhath Puja Vidhi & Rituals
On the auspicious day of Chhath puja, people who are observing a fast need to wake up early, take a bath and wear fresh clothes. Natives residing close to a holy river can take a dip in the sacred waters while those living away can pour a few drops of the Gangajal to their bathing water.
After bathing, ladies must start prepping up for the puja.
- 1-2 cane or bamboo baskets along with a winnow must be decorated. The red color is used for its decoration.
- All the offerings must be washed. Vegetables and fruits to be washed in tap water so that any contaminants are wiped out.
- Place a red cloth over the baskets so that the contents remain unseen by the family members.
- Add all the vegetables and fruits in the basket and the winnow. Cover all of them with a fresh red cloth. Keep one basket aside for performing the morning arghya rituals. For the ritual, you will require coconut, ginger, pumpkin, cucumber, bananas, yam, groundnuts,and sprouted chana.
- Then concoct the Thekua which requires wheat flour, jaggery or sugar ghee. Also, prep up the bhog. Once all the arrangements are made, gear up for the evening puja.
- Next, go towards the nearby lake, river, pond, whichever is nearbys to your home
- On reaching the puja location, pray to the water body and then create a Mandap with four solid sugarcanes.
- Plant the sugarcane roots in the mud forming a square and tie the tips above with rope to bring them together. Use kumkum and haldi to every sugarcane shoot.
- Subsequently, create a mold in the sugarcane mandap using mud/clay available on river banks and call upon Chhathi Mata.
- Offer seven oil/ghee lamps to the deity. Six of these lamps are reserved for Chhathi Maiya, and one is brought back home. The oil lamp must remain ignited throughout the night and taken to the puja spot the following morning.
- Afterwards, it's time to offer Akshat (raw rice mixed with turmeric paste), incense sticks,a generous amount of vermillion, bhog, flowers, a new saree and thekua.
- Also offered is the Saathi ka chawal which is harvested in 60 days.
- Offer prayers to Chhathi Maiya for the sound health and happiness of your family and slowly give all the sacred offerings from the basket.
- Offering prayers to the setting Sun is a must.
- After the ritual, return home and start prepping up for the next morning's puja.