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Hindu women in Nepal have been celebrating the Teej festival on Friday, sharing sorrows and pain through songs along with a fast wishing for prosperous life and perpetual luck.
Thousands of women who are fasting thronged the Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu, paying obeisance to Lord Shiva following the age-old tradition. Women on this third day of the dark half of the lunar month that falls in the Nepali month of Bhadra observe fasting and wish for a prosperous life while observing the festival. Speaking to ANI, Kopila Siwakoti, a devotee who performed rituals at Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu, said, "Goddess Parbati, when she was 8 years old, had kept a fast praying for God Shiva to marry her. Following that legend, women fast on this day since ages." Soon after performing rituals at the temple, hundreds of fasting Nepali women gathered in the outer square for singing and dancing. Through the songs, women shared their pain and sorrow about the hardships they have been facing with the blend of melody. Speaking to ANI, Gauri Ghimire, a devotee, said, "The festival of Teej for all the females of the society is a moment of celebration. On this day, all the females gather together, return home, share their pain and sorrows, dance and cherish together." The 'Teej' festival is also celebrated as 'Haritalika'. Hindu women in Nepal offer prayers and worship at Pashupatinath Temple and other temples of Lord Shiva in other parts of Nepal. According to the 'Skanda Puran' -- a religious scripture of the Hindus, this festival got the name 'Haritalika Teej' as it was on this very day in the 'Satya Yug' (golden epoch of truth) that the daughter of the Himalayas, Parvati, was hidden by her maids because of her refusal to marry Lord Vishnu. A day before 'Teej' on the night of the second day of the fortnight in the month of Bhadau, women enjoy a variety of delicious dishes known as 'Dar' at their parental home, where they are especially invited for this purpose. The women on the day of 'Teej' are seen engrossed in jubilant dancing and singing in a carefree mood. Women put on bangles, 'Pote' (a necklace made of glass beads), 'Tilahari', and 'Sindoor' considered the symbols of good luck and dress themselves up in red sarees or other red outfits and adorn themselves with different kinds of ornaments. Women in the morning today take ritual baths and pray, while in the evening, they pay homage to Lord Shiva, light lamps, and spend the night awake. The next day, the last day of the festival, is marked by the women performing religious and traditional rituals such as the use of 108 stems of 'Datiwan' (a kind of holy plant) while bathing using mud. They also worship the legendary 'Saptarishis' (seven sages) and offer alms, thus completing the fast. Both married and unmarried women perform various 'pujas' and observe fasting, praying for fulfillment of their wish for a happy and prosperous conjugal life. As per the tradition, married women celebrate this festival wishing long life for their husband, while the unmarried women who worship Lord Shiva and Parvati are believed to find an eligible groom. (ANI)
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