TEEJ : A Festive Procession For Parvati 6th August

[Dipika]

TEEJ : A Festive Procession For Parvati

Right in the middle of the verdant monsoon, in the month of Shravan, occurs the royal festival of Teej. Dedicated to Parvati, this celebration is special to Rajasthan and is observed with pomp and pageantry by the people of Jaipur. TeeJis marked by a splendid procession of decorated elephants, horses and camels. The idol of Parvati is set atop a caparisoned elephant and taken around the streets of the Pink City. From far and near men and women come to see the procession, dressed in tie and dye turbans and ghagra cholis to match the gaiety of the procession. During this monsoon season, the environs of Jaipur turn lush and green. Women worship the Mother Goddess and distribute ghevar, churma laddoos and other sweets specific to this great festival of Rajasthan.

Teej is celebrated on 'Sawan Sudi' - 3 (Jul-Aug). It is celebrated to welcome 'Sawan' or the rainy season. After first showers of Sawan, a small red insect called 'Teej' in Haryana comes out from soil

The festival also marks the auspicious event when Parvati, the consort of Lord Shiva won him over after a long penance. The festival is also dedicated to Goddess Parvati and commemorates the day when she was united with Lord Shiva after a penance of a hundred years – making them a symbol of an ideal marriage. It is believed that invocation of Parvati’s blessings on this day results in continued marital bliss

 
Sai baba let your holy lotus feet be our sole refuge.OMSAIRAM

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[Dipika]

Teej fast, undertaken by married women help develop a healthy culture through their nobility, patience, forbearance and purity of character. There are three Teej festivals in a year that include the Haryali Teej, the Kajari Teej and the Hartalika Teej. What distinguishes one Teej from another differs on many parameters, but broadly, on Haryali Teej, the moon is prayed to, while on Kajri Teej there is a community pooja of neem and women gather to sing songs. The pooja is done with milk, curd and flowers. A three-day fast is kept for the Hartalika Teej, the more stringent fast being on the second day, when even water is not drunk.
Teej fast is widely popular in the northern region of India ranging from Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar to Orissa and Madhya Pradesh

Sai baba let your holy lotus feet be our sole refuge.OMSAIRAM

dipika duggal

[Dipika]

An unique festival for women, Teej is primarily celebrated in Rajasthan, parts of Uttar pradesh and Bihar with both fasts and delicious feasts. Falling on the Hindu month of Shravan (August), it also celebrates the arrival of monsoon after a season of oppresive heat. "Teej" is a small red insect that comes out of the soil during rains.

Legend of Teej
The Spirit of Teej symbolises "ideal marriage" highlighting the legend of Goddess Parvati uniting with Lord Shiva after a penance of over hundred years. It is believed that invocation of Parvati's blessings lead to marital bliss.

Rituals of Teej
Idols of Paravati are bedecked with new clothes, jewellery and worshiped. After a ceremonial worship at home, elephants are taken out in a ceremonial process escorted by camels , and horses.

Women undergo fasts, sing folk songs and dance in the name of Goddess Parvati. It is a belief that unmarried women fasting will luckily find a suitable husband. Fasting married women will also find their husband more faithful and bonds of love strengthened.

Three kinds of Teej are celebrated in Rajasthan.
Broadly,
» On Haryali Teej : The moon is prayed to.
» On Kajari teej : women gather to sing songs and a pooja of neem is performed.
» On Hartalika Teej : Fast for 3 days without any water on the second day.

Celebration of Teej
During Teej, swing ropes on the coutyards decorated with flowers are a common sight. Newly married girls return to their parents home, receiving clothes from their parents and other male kins. An ocassion to pamper for rural women by buying bangles, bindis bead-necklaces and having mouth-watering dishes. Celebration includes games such as turban-tying and bangle wearing competition.


Sai baba let your holy lotus feet be our sole refuge.OMSAIRAM







dipika duggal

[Dipika]

Teej is celebrated mainly by the women folk of Rajasthan. Married women who idolize Parvati for her devotion to her husband Shiva celebrate Teej. The festivity revolves around singing and dancing in praise of Parvati. The rituals allow the women to pamper and enjoy themselves, to feast, to dress in the best of cloths, finery and jewellery, in fact to look the stunning best.

All over Rajasthan, even in remote villages, Jhoolas (swings) are hung from trees and decorated with leaves and flowers. Ladies and girls can be seen enjoying on these swings, playing games, singing folk songs and applying Mehandi (henna) on their palms. In Jaipur an idol of Goddess Parvati (Teej Mata) is taken out in a royal procession from the city palace so that the general public can have a chance to pay homage to the Goddess. Antique gilt palanquins, bullock carts pulling cannons, chariots, gaily decorated elephants with silver haodas, horses, camels, brass bands, and group of dances all form a part of this grand spectacle. The Palanquin of Goddess Paravati is carried by 8 men dressed in red color. This kilometer long procession winds its way through the lanes of the old city. Local people come in huge numbers, dress in their best traditional clothes. Space is at a premium as people perch on top of building, windows even trees to catch a glimpse of Goddess. A huge band of urchins follows the Palanquin to grab these offerings.

A lot of merriment prevails during the Teej procession. Groups of men and women can be seen singing dancing and playing musical instruments. Men and women dressed as gods and Goddess also join in the procession.

According to Hindu mythology, on the 3rd day (teej) after the new moon in the month of Shravan Goddess Parvati went to the house of lord Shiva, her husband and was united with him. This day is celebrated as Teej all over India and especially so in Rajasthan. Apart from its mythological origins this festival also heralds the arrival of the rainy season. In the month of Shravan the long awaited monsoon finally arrives in Rajasthan bringing relief to the parched land. Like a magic wand it transforms the hot, dusty and barren summer landscape of Rajasthan into the fertile green beehive of activity. The Teej festivities also celebrate this rejuvenation.

Sai baba let your holy lotus feet be our sole refuge.OMSAIRAM



dipika duggal

[Dipika]

This festival is celebrated in the Shukla Paksha of Shravana, coresponding to the month of August. Women put on green clothes, wear green bangles, decorate their palms with green mehendi and sitting on swings, sing songs known as 'savan' and 'kajli geet'. Various types of food are prepared in the house and married women are sent to their parents' houses.
 
Those who cannot go to their parents' houses, express their feeling of melancholy through different songs. Hariyali Teej is the festival of married women and girls. This festival is dedicated to the Goddess Parvati, commemorating her union with Lord Shiva.

Sai baba let your holy lotus feet be our sole refuge.OMSAIRAM



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[Dipika]

Bundi Teej or Kajli Teej
Kajli Teej of Bundi is different in several ways from the Shravan Teej celebrated widely. The main difference is that while Shravan Teej is celebrated on the third day of the month of Shravana, in Bundi it is celebrated on the third day of the month of Bhadra.

The Kajli Teej festival starts with the procession of goddess Teej in a decorated palanquin from the beautiful naval Sagar in Bundi. It passes through the main bazaars and terminates at Azad Park. The procession has decorated elephants, camels, bands, performing artists and colourfully dressed people.

The people who gather here from surrounding areas also get to watch and participate in the cultural programmes that are organised in the evenings. It provides a very good chance to see performances by local artists from the Hadoti region. Though the main function of Teej is held only on two days, the celebrations continue upto Janmashtami, which marks the birth of Lord Krishna.

Ghevar & Choorma
What festival is complete without mouth-watering food? A favorite during Teej is Ghevar, a crunchy orange honeycomb like disc made from cottage cheese

Sai baba let your holy lotus feet be our sole refuge.OMSAIRAM


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