"Karwa Chauth"

Today is "Karwa Chauth"...a day when Hindu married ladies from the North part of the country, fast from dawn till she sees the moon at night. I wouldn't have known..........unless I hadn't spoken to this colleague of mine whose hands were decorated with "mehndi"..........henna for all ye non urdu/hindi speakers!

My country is so vast.....and even though the majority are Hindus...the customs & the rituals & even the Gods & Goddesses that are worshiped are so different from one region to the other....from one state to the other. Hindus believe in one God....they believe One in many and many in One......if you know what I mean!

First the meaning of "Karwa Chauth"........chauth means the fourth day after the new moon and nine days later we will have "Diwali". Now this would be another post! So let me come back to where I digressed! Karwa is a clay pot with a spout which symbolizes peace & prosperity.

The ritual begins before sunrise and ends only after seeing the moon. No food or water is taken during this time. The ladies pray for their husbands longevity, well being and prosperity. At night after the sighting of the moon, that too through a sieve.... amidst prayers & offering of water and then seeing their husbands face, the fast is broken. Thanks to the many Bollywood movies that I have seen, I do know the elaborate arrangements which they make to make sure that it's their husband's face they see and not anyone else right after they have seen the moon......even if they have to close their eyes and walk back to the house where he would be .....waiting to be worshiped!

Post Technology............if the husband is far away...fast would be broken after seeing his photograph....or after a phone call and hearing his voice! Some unmarried girls even have started keeping this fast for their boyfriends or fiancés!

For all their effort.......prayers and all....the wives are showered with lavish gifts!