FOUR DAY CHHATH FESTIVAL BEGINS WITH NAHAY-KHAY

FOUR DAY CHHATH FESTIVAL BEGINS WITH NAHAY-KHAY

17-NOV-ENG 3

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

ARA--------------------------With ‘Nahay-Khay’ a four day long festival of Chhath of folk faith and sun worship, one of the most pious and purest festival particularly in Bihar started today. This festival will conclude with ‘kharana’ on November 18 and evening oblation to lord Sun on November 19 and oblation to the rising sun on November 20, 2023. All preparations for this festival have been completed. The wheat has also been washed and dried for the god. There is a huge crowd in the market to buy items to be used in Chhath Puja. People are buying puja items in large numbers.

The Chhath Vratis after having a holy in the river Ganga or the river Sone, other rivers, ponds or in their houses in the evening today and prepare rice, gram dal and pumpkin curry. They eat it themselves and feed their family members and also give the neighbours as Prasad. The whole atmosphere has become Chhath-like due to the Chhath fast. Chhath songs dedicate to god Sun are being sung everywhere and people are very happy with the spiritual atmosphere.

Chhath fast has great importance in Bhojpur district. Though this festival is celebrated all over India now, it is an important festival of Bihar and people celebrate it with purest spirit and people of every section of society cooperate wholeheartedly. Chhath, the great festival of folk faith, is such a festival in which there is tradition of offering oblation to the setting and rising Sun. On Shashthi Tithi, the devotees offer oblation to the setting Sun while facing west and is considered to be the end of back luck. Again offering oblation on Saptami Tithi to the rising Sun facing the east brings progress.