KATHMANDU, Nov 13: Various rituals associated with the Chhath festival are beginning today. The festival is observed with devotion and fervour in the Tarai-Madhesh, Kathmandu Valley and other parts of the country.
Dedicated to the Sun God, the festival involves offering prayers to both the rising and setting Sun. It is observed over four days, from Kartik Shukla Chaturthi to Kartik Shukla Saptami, according to the lunar calendar. It usually falls between October and November in the Gregorian calendar.
Chhath festival being observed today
The Sun, regarded as the god of energy and the source of life, is worshipped during Chhath to promote well-being, prosperity and progress. The rituals of Chhath Parba include taking holy baths, fasting, standing in water for extended periods, worshipping the Sun and offering prasad and arghya to the setting and rising Sun.
It is believed that worshipping the Sun during Kartik Shukla Paksha, the bright fortnight of the month of Kartik in the lunar calendar, fulfils devotees' wishes.
Chhath is a festival of bathing and worship that involves a period of abstinence and the worshipper's separation from the main household for four days. During this period, devotees observe strict purity and sleep on the floor on a single blanket.
Chhath is considered unique among Hindu festivals because its rituals do not require the involvement of a pandit (priest). Devotees first offer prayers to the setting Sun and then to the rising Sun, celebrating the cycle of life and the Sun's enduring significance.
It is regarded as one of the most elaborate forms of Sun worship.
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