New Delhi (Sputnik): India is a land of varied and colorful festivals. One among them is Chhat Puja where devotees rigorously fast for four days without even drinking water. Not only this, devotees stand in the water, usually river or lake, for long periods chanting prayers and making offerings to the Sun god thanking him for bestowing the bounties of life on earth.
Chhath Puja, one of the largest Hindu festival of North India, also celebrated in neighboring Nepal and Mauritius. #ChhathPuja @SputnikInt pic.twitter.com/YGRGq6FDD4
— Sindhu Singh (@SindhuIndus) November 13, 2018
Native to the Indian sub-continent, the ancient Hindu festival is also celebrated by the Indian Diaspora in the UK, the US, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and other parts of the world.
Chhath is an ancient Hindu Vedic festival historically native to the Indian subcontinent, more specifically, the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, and Uttar Pradesh as well as the Madhesh region of Nepal. The Chhath Puja is dedicated to the Sun and his wives Usha and Sangya pic.twitter.com/lTKj04NGIE
— NITESH (@srinitesh) November 13, 2018
The rituals are usually performed by the women folk clad in colorful attires. Each village communion has a water body designated for the purpose and the final day of the Chhat Puja offers visuals worthy to marvel at.
It happens right in front of my home.I was always curious n intrigued by d scale n enthusiasm of this festival. Now,after playing a Bihari,I know about d significance of Chhath Puja. My deep respect 4 those who keep this fast n I wish everyone a happy n soul cleansing Chhath Puja pic.twitter.com/j8UbqZHalm
— Hrithik Roshan (@iHrithik) November 13, 2018
Wishing Happy Chhath Puja: A festival wherein we worship Rising as well as Setting Sun! What’s a wonderful Culture 🙂 pic.twitter.com/ca6TswXMO6
— Pankaj Kumar, IAS (@pkumarias) November 14, 2018