Teej festival is celebrated with great enthusiasm and devotion by the women in India. Since Teej fall at the outbreak of the monsoons, it is also popularly known as the 'Sawan Festival'. Teej is usually celebrated in the month of July-August. Festival of Teej is dedicated to the divine couple - Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. Though Teej is celebrated at various places in India and abroad, major Teej celebrations takes place in the highly cultural city of Jaipur. Here day-long processions and celebrations create a vivid atmosphere.
The three types of Teej Festival are:
Hariyali Teej: Hariyali Teej falls in the Shukla Paksha of Shravana. On this day, women worship moon with milk, curd and flowers.
Kajari Teej: It falls on Krishna Paksh Tritiiya. On this day, women sing and dance and perform sacred pooja of neem.
Hartalika Teej: Hartalika Teej falls on the third day of the first fortnight of the month of 'Bhadra'. At the time of Hartalika Teej, women keep 'Nirjala Vrat' for well - being of her husband.
Importance of Teej Festival
Teej festival is an important festival. Two very vital factors govern its celebration. One is that it is a monsoon festival and the other relates to the most popular legend of Shiva-Parvati.
Legend of Teej
According to Hindu mythology, in the month of Shravan, Goddess Parvati reunited with Lord Shiva after a penance of hundred years. In her 108th birth, Lord Shiva realized her devotion for him and accepted her as his wife. This legend is said to be the basis of Teej celebrations.
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Sawan Festival
Teej Festival heralds the beginning of monsoon season. It is celebrated in the month of Shravan which brings a great relief from the scorching heat of summers. Teej has special importance in the state of Rajasthan as it is celebrated in the rainy season which transforms the dry-parched lands of Rajasthan totally green. Teej becomes more auspicious and special if it rains on this day. With the arrival of monsoon, peacocks come out to dance while women enjoy themselves by swinging and dancing in the rain.
Teej Rituals
At the time of Teej, certain rituals and customs are followed by women so as to be blessed by Goddess Parvati. Married women return back to their parents house to celebrate the festival of Teej. It is considered very auspicious for married and engaged women to receive Teej gifts from their parents-in-law and to be parents-in-law. Future in-laws of engaged girls gift them 'Shrinjhara' (a gift pack) which consists of henna, lac bangles, a special laheria dress and ghewar (a sweet dish). Other gifts are also received by women from their relatives and in-laws.
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Ritual of Teej Henna
Applying henna to one's hands and feet is a special and most beautiful tradition of Teej. Special Mehndi designs are applied to match the mood of the festival. Women can be seen in the markets getting their palms decorated with henna. It is said, "the darker the henna, the more a woman is loved by her husband and in-laws". Sometimes, women also hide name of their husband in the mehndi design which later becomes part of the search game. Husbands search out their name and gift something to their beloved wife.
Tradition of Adorning Oneself
Women wear colorful clothes and gold-diamond jewelry to look like a new bride at the time of Teej. Some women even visit beauty parlors to look different on the special occasion of Teej. Many women especially the newly weds wear their wedding dress on the day. Most prominent colors of Teej are red, pink and green.
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Tradition of Vat Vriksha
Another important ritual is to worship Nyagrodha tree or Vat Vriksha. The tree is considered highly auspicious with its hanging branches reflecting knowledge. Women tie swings to the Vat Vriksha and dance while enjoying the showers of rain.
Tradition of Teej Fasting
Charmingly decorated idol of Goddess Parvati is kept at the center of the place where women gather to offer Teej prayers. Different Teej songs are sung praising Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. Women dance merrily on various Teej and sawan songs and enjoy the festive mood.
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Teej Celebrations
Teej is celebrated with extreme joy and craze in Rajasthan. Many tourists flock the princely state to be part of Teej celebrations. A few days before the festival, the image of Goddess Parvati is repainted and beautifully decorated with fine clothes and jewelry. Idol of Teej Mata is taken out in the special Teej procession. Thousands of devotees wait on streets for hours to have a glimpse of Parvati Ma.
Number of artists like folk singers, dancers and other performers follow the Teej procession and becomes the main attraction. Apart from this, there are caparisoned elephants, bullock carts, and chariots.
Significance of Teej
Rooted deep in Indian religious and cultural ethos - Teej plays a significant role in defining the true nature of relationship between a married couple. Besides, the festival provides much needed break to womenfolk from their daily household drudgery. Find out how Teej is significant in these and more ways to the women in India.
Religious Significance of Teej
Religious significance of Teej festival lies in devotion of Goddess Parvati for her husband Lord Shiva. It was on this day that the divine couple Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati reunited with each other after hundreds of years. Even today womenfolk commemorate this mythological event by observing 'Nirjara Vrat' for the well-being and long-life of their husband.
Climatic Significance
Teej celebrates the advent of monsoon season. Teej coincides with monsoon season and thus create a greater impact for its celebration. Taking full advantage of the beautiful climate at this time women enjoy themselves by swinging, singing and dancing in rain.
Break from Daily Humdrum of Life
Teej celebration has great significance for womenfolk as it gives them their much needed break from the daily humdrum of life. For married women it also brings a chance to visit their parents house and relive childhood memories. No wonder, women celebrate the festival with great mirth and enthusiasm. They pay special attention to their appearance and deck themselves in beautiful clothes and fine jewelry. Women also apply intricate patterns of mehndi on their hands and feet.
Strengthening Relationships
One of the foremost significance of Teej is that it helps in strengthening relationship between married couples. Women who observe fast for the long life of their husband in earnest devotion feel closer and more committed to their husband. While watching their wife straining themselves, husbands feel more special. They reciprocate by being more loving and caring towards their wife. Husbands usually express themselves by presenting gifts to their wife and being more sensitive towards their doting wives.
Legends Behind Teej
Teej is a major festival of women. It is celebrated every year in the month of July-August with great enthusiasm and verve. Festival of Teej dedicates the day's celebration to Goddess Parvati. The festival's theme is the devotion of women towards their husbands or to-be-husbands. Married and unmarried women adorn themselves to their best and pray for long life of their husband. Though Teej celebrates the advent of monsoon but there is a legend associated with it which makes the day more auspicious.
One of the most popular legend of Goddess Parvati led to Teej celebrations and women's devotion towards their husband.
Legend of Goddess Parvati
Teej celebrations originated from an age-old legend of Goddess Parvati. Hindu mythology states that Goddess Parvati reunited with Lord Shiva on this day. She went through hard-core tapasya or penance and took 108 births on the earth. The myth also states that she failed to have Lord Shiva as her husband till 107th birth. In her 108th birth, Lord Shiva realized her devotion and love for him and accepted as his wife.
It is said Goddess Parvati declared this moment to be highly auspicious for womenfolk and proclaimed that whoever invokes her on this day will be blessed with happy married life and whatever one desires. Women observe nirjala vrat and spend sleepless nights during the three day festival. This is symbolic to the penance which Goddess Parvati went through.
At the time of Teej, women dress up like a newly wed. They wear green, red and yellow attires, decorate their hands and feet with fascinating mehndi designs and sing devotional songs on Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva. Women express their happiness, thank and pray God for marital bliss.
Kajli Teej Vrat Katha
To celebrate the auspicious occasion of Teej, women fast for longevity and healthy of their husband. They refrain themselves from water and food whole day and perform various rituals associated with the festival. In the evening a special Vrat (fast) katha is chanted. These are stories based on Hindu legends which are narrated to ladies who gather to conclude their fast ceremony. Teej Vrat Katha is very crucial feature of Teej celebrations.
Teej Fast
The holy custom of fasting form an integral part of Teej celebrations. Hence Teej is also famous as 'women fasting festival'. For full 24 hours women refrain themselves from food and water to ensure long life of their husband. The tradition to fast for so long without water and food has a pious legend associated with it. According to Hindu mythology, Goddess Parvati underwent penance for 100 years to be accepted by Lord Shiva. Even till date women pay homage to Goddess Parvati and seek blessings for blissful marital life.
Teej fast is widely popular in Northern as well as North-West
Pre-Fasting Day of Teej
Teej fast is 24 hour-long and begins immediately after the first day of Teej. It is a pre-fasting day on which ladies gather to sing and dance. Mothers, grandmothers, sisters and daughters sit together to have a lavish feast because the rigorous fast begins at midnight. Married women keep fast for healthy life of their husband while unmarried girls keep it to marry a person who good and understanding. Women dress up in red colored clothes as it is associated with Hindu married women. One can see this holy scene every year as devotional women prepare themselves to undertake a day-long fast and prayers only for their husband.
Teej Fast – An Arduous One
Teej fast is a difficult one as women restrict themselves even from a morsel of food and drop of water for full 24 hours. Many women face health problems because of this.
It is especially very difficult for the newly wed women to keep the 24-hour-long fast without eating and drinking anything. One needs lot of patience and courage to keep such a long fast. Usually mother-in-law encourages their sweet bahus to drink juice or tea so that they don't fall sick on such an auspicious occasion.
Pregnant ladies are advised not to keep the fast and even if they observe the fast it is advisable to consult a doctor. Many pregnant ladies go on a diet of milk and fruits and fulfill their nutritional requirements.
To pass away the arduous day women also play a lot of games, watch movies and do many other activities to pass their time. Some even go off to sleep and don't involve themselves in any household activity.
After the day-long fast for longevity of their soul mate is over, women drink water and eat some healthy food. Many husbands make their wife drink water with their hands.
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