Teej Festival of nepali hindu women where song and dance is essential!!!!!!!!!

Teej (Nepali: तीज) also known as Haritalika  Teej is a fasting festival for Hindu women. It takes place in 3rd day of Shukla Paksha in Bhadrapada or Bhadra month of  Nepali calendar and Hindu calendar, normally falls in the month of August or early September. Dedicated to the Goddess Parvati, commemorating her union with Lord Shiva, the festival is celebrated for marital bliss, well-being of spouse and children and purification of own body and soul. The festival is a three-day-long celebration that combines sumptuous feasts as well as rigid fasting. Teej have other importance as women create  new songs about recent happening and  throw shutire over  males specially who dominate over their husband and daughter in laws.

Preparations for the festival begin well in advance. Fabric stores, sarees and suit outlets are stocked with the bridal red color fabric. Women spend most of the time shopping when Teej is near. Women mainly shops for golden ornaments, new clothes specially red one, bangles etc. Teej gives women an opportunity to dress like the newly wed. They worship the epitome of divine marriage - Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, for longevity and prosperity for their husband and family.

 Teej in Nepal is celebrated in three days. The first day of Teej is called Dar Khane Din. On this day the women, both married and unmarried, gathered together in a place and dance in special folk songs called teej song and eat delicious foods. In remote areas the married women goes at her mother’s place and dance and eat there.

     The second or the fasting day of the Teej festival is dedicated to pujas and prayers. The holy Pashupatinath temple is thronged by women in red sarees to offer prayers to Lord Shiva. Women gather in the temple and circumambulate the Lingam (phallic symbol of the Lord) adorned with flowers, sweets and coins. The beautifully decorated idols of Shiva and Parvati are offered fruits and flowers to seek blessings of the divine spirits. Lighting of an oil lamp is very important part of the puja ceremony. It is said that the oil lamp should be kept lit all night to avoid bad omen.   

The third day of the Teej Festival is called Rishi Panchami. On this day, the seven sages of the Hindu pantheon are worshiped by women in a belief that it will cleanse all sins of the previous year. Womenfolk take a holy bath with red mud found on the roots of the sacred Datiwan bush, along with its leaves. After three hours of rigorous cleansing, they come out purified and absolved from all sins. After this they sit in a semicircle while a priest sitting in the middle chants devotional prayers.

Posted in: Nepal