Gangaur 2023: Date, Significance, Rituals, Vrat Katha

Gangaur is a festival of Hindus celebrated with great pomp in India in the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal. In this festival, married as well as unmarried women observe fast and offer prayers to Gauri (Goddess Parvati) and Shiva for a happy and blessed marital life. Gangaur is made from the combination of two words- Gana which is a synonym for Lord Shiva and Gaur derived from Gauri, the wife of Lord Shiva, also known as Parvati. The festival is observed in the Chaitra masa which is the month of March or April in the Gregorian calendar. Complete details related to Gangaur 2023 such as its significance, ritual, celebrations, etc are provided here in this article.

Gangaur 2023 Overview

Gangaur 2023 Date

Gangaur 2023 Date in India Calendar: The festival of Gangaur starts on the next day of Holi and is observed for 18 days. In the year 2023, Gangaur festival is observed on 24th March. Tritiya Tithi begins at 6:20 PM on March 23, 2023 and ends at 4:59 PM on March 24.

Significance of Gangaur Festival

Gangaur fasting is observed by unmarried women to find a good and compatible life partner while married women do so to ensure the long life of their husbands and a happy married life. Newly married women worship Gana and Gauri and observe fasting for complete 18 days of the festival.

Even unmarried girls fast for the full period of 18 days and eat only one meal a day. For married women, the tradition is to worship the deities only on the third day of the festival.

Rituals of Gangaur

Women make designs of mehndi on their palms as a sign of good luck and get dressed in their best clothes and jewels. Earthen pots called as Ghudlias are made with holes all around and a lamp is lit inside the pot. On the evening of the seventh day after Holi, unmarried girls carry this pot on their heads and go around singing songs of ghudlia. People give these women presents in form of cash, sweets, jaggery, ghee, oil etc. This ritual is followed till the last day of Gangaur festival when the women break their pots and enjoy a feast with the collection made. Fairs, called as Gangaur Melas are held throughout the period of the festival, i.e., for 18 days.

Idols of Isar Gangaur are made of clay or wood especially for the festival and dressed in new garments and jewelry. At an auspicious hour in the afternoon, a procession of the idols, placed on the heads of married women, is taken out to a garden, well or pond. Women sing songs about the departure of Gauri to Shiva’s (her husband) house (vidaai). After this, they bid farewell to Gauri and turn their eyes away. This marks the end of the Gangaur festival. Women break their fast on the last day of Gangaur and eat traditional food like Kheer, choorma, halwa, puri, ghewar, etc.

Major festivities can be seen at the Gangaur Ghat of Lake Pichola located in the Udaipur city of Rajasthan. Processions carried from all over the city are bought to this ghat where the idols are immersed in the water.

Gangaur Vrat Katha

There is a story related to the celebration of Gangaur festival that goes as follows. Once upon a time, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati went for a small trip in a nearby village along with Narad Muni. When villagers came to know about them, women of the village began preparing feast for the deities. Some women of the village came first with their preparations and offered the food to Shiva, Gauri and Narad. Pleased with this, Goddess Parvati blessed those women and sprinkled “suhagras” on them for their long and happy married life.

When the other women of the village came with the food they had prepared, Gauri had already finished all the suhagras. Seeing this, Lord Shiva smiled and asked Gauri what will she do now. Goddess Parvati smiled and replied that she will bless these women with her own blood. She then scratched the tip of her finger and sprinkled the blood on these women and blessed them with marital bliss.

Summary

Gangaur is mainly celebrated in Rajasthan and Nimaar region of Madhya Pradesh. However, it is also celebrated in few parts of West Bengal and Gujarat.

Unmarried women worship for Maa Guari to get blessed with a good husband, while married women do it for the health, welfare, and long life of their husbands.

The celebration of Gangaur festival takes place for 16 days (18 days for a newly-wedded girl). Gangaur Melas are also organized.

 A similar festival named Gaura Parva is also celebrated in Uttarakhand, India and Nepal.

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