Teej A FESTIVAL of JOY and Devotion -Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Bihar, UP, Punjab, Jaipur, Haryana and even Kathmandu

Teej is a major festival in Hinduism celebrated by married women in India. Teej, a three-day-long Hindu festival, is dedicated to Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. It falls in the month of Shravana or Sawan and Bhadrapada or Bhado, that corresponds to the Indian monsoon season of July - August - September. The exact day on which it is celebrated is determined by the moon’s cycle. There are four primary Teej – Akha Teej, Hariyali Teej, Kajari Teej and Hartalika Teej is celebrated every year in honour of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati.       
         This year Hartalika Teej will be celebrated on 23 july 2020 with married and single women observing fast (vrat) for marital bliss and getting an ideal husband respectively. Goddess Parvati is also known as Teej Mata. Just like other significant Hindu festivals, worshippers follow fasting rules (vrat vidhi) to carry out Hartalika Teej puja vidhi (rituals).

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Hartalika Teej puja is celebrated to mark the joyous reunion of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. Goddess Parvati observed strict fast years to please Lord Shiva, and finally, in her 108 birth, Lord Shiva accepted Goddess Parvati as his consort. Fasting is an integral part of Hartalika Teej Puja with women keeping vrat called Nishivasar Nirjala Vrat. The women not only abstain from food but also do not drink a drop of water for the 24 hours till they break the fast next day. Married women keep fasts for happiness in the marital relationship and long life of their husband. The unmarried ones observe the Hartalika fast to get a husband like Lord Shiva.

Hartalika Teej Puja Vidhi

The auspicious timings of Hartalika Teej Puja are in the morning which means the women get up early to take a holy bath, intended to purify their souls. Dressing up in new clothes and adorning is an important part of the festival as women wear elegant traditional attires, mostly sarees. In Maharashtra, women wear green clothes, green bangles, golden bindis and kajal along with applying henna (mehandi) on their hands. They visit temples to pray Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati who is also called Teej Mata while observing Nirjala fast. Upon returning from temples, they touch their husbands’ feet.

This festival is celebrated in different states - Rajasthan, Bihar, UP, Punjab, Jaipur, Haryana and even Kathmandu - and different religions with different names.  The Sindhi community also celebrates this festival by the name of Teejri.

Significance:

This festival is a symbol of dedication of goddess Parvati for Lord Shiva. Even today, women commemorate this mythological event by keep a ‘Nirjara Vrat’ for their husband’s well being and long life. This festival also helps in strengthening the bond between couples. This festival also welcomes the advent of Monsoon season.