Chhath Puja

Chhath Puja is a festival of worship of Surya Dev and Chhathi Maiya (Goddess Shashthi). Gratitude is expressed by offering arghya to the setting and the rising sun. It is celebrated mainly in Bihar, Jharkhand, eastern Uttar Pradesh and the Terai region of Nepal, and people of Purvanchal settled across India and abroad observe it with the same devotion. It is a festival of purity, self-restraint and gratitude to nature. Devotees keep a demanding fast for the well-being of the family, the protection of children and good health.

Chhath Puja is observed on the Shashthi of the Kartik Shukla Paksha, about six days after Diwali. Chaiti Chhath is also observed in the Chaitra month. The four-day sequence: 1. Nahay-Khay (Chaturthi): a bath, then a pure sattvik meal, usually kaddu-bhaat (bottle gourd and rice) and chana dal. 2. Kharna (Panchami): a fast through the day, and in the evening prasad of jaggery kheer (rasiya) and roti. After this the roughly 36-hour waterless fast begins. 3. Sandhya Arghya (Shashthi): in the evening, arghya to the setting sun at a river, pond or ghat. 4. Usha Arghya (Saptami): arghya to the rising sun at dawn, followed by parana (breaking the fast). The days may shift slightly with the tithi, so check the dates given above.

• Bamboo soop and daura (baskets), lamps, clay stove and mango wood (for the Kharna prasad) • Thekua (jaggery and wheat-flour prasad), rice laddu (kasar) • Sugarcane, coconut, banana, water chestnut, apple, orange, lemon, ginger and turmeric plants, radish and other seasonal fruits • Suthni, sweet potato, paan, betel nut, sweets • Flowers, garland, sandalwood paste, roli, akshat, incense, lamp, camphor • New or clean clothes (women often wear unstitched or new clothes) • Pots (lota or kalash) filled with water, and milk

1. Clean the house and the puja spot thoroughly. Keep purity while preparing the prasad: bathe and wear clean clothes. 2. On Kharna, the devotee fasts through the day, offers jaggery kheer to Surya and Chhathi Maiya in the evening, and then accepts the prasad. The waterless fast begins after this. 3. On the evening of Shashthi the devotee goes to the ghat with the family. The soop is arranged with thekua, fruits and a lamp. 4. Standing in water and facing the setting sun, arghya is offered. The soop is raised toward the sun along with a stream of milk or water. 5. At night, in many homes there is a tradition of filling the kosi (worship within a circle of lamps and sugarcane) at home or at the ghat. 6. On the morning of Saptami, arghya is offered to the rising sun at the same ghat. 7. After the arghya, a prayer is made to Chhathi Maiya for the protection of the family, the prasad is distributed and the fast is broken.

• According to a popular story, the child of King Priyavrata and Queen Malini was not born alive. Through worship of Goddess Shashthi the child received life, and the worship of Shashthi Devi is believed to have become popular from then on. • In the Ramayana tradition it is said that after returning from exile, Shri Ram and Mother Sita worshipped Surya Dev. • In folk tradition drawn from the Mahabharata, Karna is mentioned as a devotee of the Sun, and Draupadi's Sun fast is also mentioned. The forms of these stories may differ from region to region.

• Surya arghya mantra: "Om Ehi Surya Sahasramsho Tejorashe Jagatpate | Anukampaya Mam Bhaktya Grihanarghyam Divakara ||" • "Om Suryaya Namah" or "Om Ghrini Suryaya Namah" • Remembering Chhathi Maiya: "Jai Chhathi Maiya" The full texts of the mantras are at the links below.

• Maintain purity throughout the festival. Do not enter the kitchen without bathing while preparing the prasad. • Keep the prasad sattvik: no onion or garlic, very little salt if not none, and complete avoidance of meat and alcohol. • Be mindful of water depth, slippery steps and crowds at the ghat. Keep children and elders safe, and do not enter the water alone. • Keep the ghat, river and pond clean. Avoid plastic and do not leave litter after the puja. • A very strict waterless fast is not suitable for everyone. Pregnant, ill or elderly devotees should take a doctor's advice and may keep the fast with water.