After Navaratri, Dussehra and Durga Puja comes the festival of Karwa Chauth, a tradition where married Hindu women keep a fast for their husbands’ long and healthy lives. This year, the Karwa Chauth ‘vrat’ will be observed on Wednesday, 4 November.
‘Karwa’ means clay pot, and ‘Chauth’ means fourth. The fast, or vrat, is observed on chauth, or the fourth day, after the Purnima (full moon night) of the month of Kartik in the Hindu calendar.
As per the tradition, married women keep a nirjala vrat (fast without consuming even water) throughout the day. The Karwa Chauth Vrat is ended by the sighting of the moon following the customary puja.
But what is this extravagant festival about? Read further to know.
Karwa Chauth 2020 Moonrise Time in India
| City | Karwa Chauth Time | |
|---|---|---|
| Delhi | 8:15 PM | |
| Punjab | 8:14 PM | |
| Haryana | 8:14 PM | |
| Bihar | 7:49 PM | |
| Jharkhand | 7:49 PM | |
| Jammu & Kashmir | 8:18 PM | |
| Himachal Pradesh | 8:18 PM | |
| Madhya Pradesh | 8:32 PM | |
| Chhattisgarh | 8:32 PM | |
| Rajasthan | 8:25 PM | |
| Gujarat | 8:44 PM | |
| Odisha | 7:55 PM | |
| West Bengal | 7:45 PM | |
| Chennai | 8:32 PM | |
| Bangalore | 8:40 PM | |
| Hyderabad | 8:33 PM | |
| Coimbatore | 8:45 PM | |
| Lucknow | 8:04 PM | |
| Varanasi | 7:58 PM | |
| Kanpur | 8:07 PM | |
| Gorakhpur | 8:09 PM | |
| Prayagraj | 8:02 PM | |
| Bareilly | 8:08 PM | |
| Agra | 8:16 PM | |
| Meerut | 8:14 PM | |
| Faizabad | 7:59 PM | |
| Jhansi | 8:18 PM | |
| Dehradun | 8:10 PM | |
| Gaya | 7:21 PM | |
| Muzaffarnagar | 7:47 PM | |
| Bhagalpur | 7:42 PM | |
| Ranchi | 7:52 PM | |
What is Karwa Chauth?
Karwa Chauth is a tradition where married Hindu women keep a fast for their husbands’ long and healthy lives. 'Karwa Chauth' conjures images of women standing on roofs, dressed in sarees, performing the puja on sighting the moon. This year, the Karwa Chauth vrat, or fasting, will be observed on 4 November.
How is the Karwa Chauth Celebrated?
Karwa Chauth is a Hindu festival celebrated mostly by women in parts of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Rajasthan. As per the tradition, married women keep a nirjala vrat (a fast without consuming any food or water) throughout the day. The Karwa Chauth Vrat is concluded by the sighting of the moon following the customary puja.
Women apply henna on their hands and dress up in their bridal attire to celebrate this day. They get up early in the morning to eat sargi and refrain from eating or drinking anything the rest of the day.
Why Does the Moon Rise Late on Karwa Chauth?
‘Karva’ means clay pot, and ‘Chauth’ means fourth. The fast, or vrat, is observed on the fourth day, after the full moon of the month, which rises at the same time as the sunset. With every passing day, the Earth orientations to the Moon shifts by 12 degrees and thus the Moon rise is 48 minutes late every day.
Karwa Chauth Puja Time
The Karwa Chauth puja muhurat, or an auspicious time for the puja, is from 5:34 pm to 6:52 pm. The time of fasting, or upavasa, is from 6:35 am to 8:12 pm. Moonrise on Karwa Chauth this year is at 8:12 pm.
The Chaurthi Tithi begins at 3:24 am on 4 November and continues till 5:14 am on 5 November.
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