Teejparva (Teej festival) is a seasonal festival. Celebrated on the third day of Shuklapaksh in the month of Bhadau (Aug/Sep), this festival is awakening and organizing all Hindu sisters. On the special day of this festival, the second date (i.e. eating all together means balanced meal), the third date and the fifth date are important. This festival also welcomes the rainy season, welcomes greenery, grains, fruits, etc., and indicates the abundance of fruits, cow's milk, yoghurt and ghee. The connection of Teejparva, the birth of Krishna and Nawaran (name ceremony) as well as the fasting stories of Krishnalila and Parvati for Mahadev to get a husband are connected.
Krishna & Teej
In the case of Lord Krishna, according to the Mahabharata story, the uncle Kansa and nephew Krishna. Kansa's sisters-in-law are Devaki and Vasudev. Motherhood seems to have prevailed at that time as Devaki's son was likely to become king. Therefore, when Kansa went to take his sister-in-law home to Devaki, at the time thinking that if Devaki had a son, he would lose his power. Kansa returned the chariot to his Mathura palace and kept Vasudev and Devaki captive. All the children born in Mathura were killed by Kansa for this purpose.
It is customary to consider Krishna Janmashtami as the first day of fasting and to invite daughters and sisters to eat on this day. On the 11th day of Teej, Krishna is taken as Nwaran (name ceremony).
Teej's songs related to Krishna's birth, Vasudev Devaki's story and Radha Gopini are sung in Teej. Therefore, Teejparva is worshiped as fasting, festival songs are sung, Teejparva sages are worshiped.
Shiva and Teej
Hindus worship Shiva as an executioner. Since there is no origin without annihilation, the followers of Sanatan Dharma believe that all living beings must give up their bodies in the creation of Brahma. Although Shiva is an executioner, he is considered to be the owner of animals i.e. Pashupati. In times of calamity, Shiva is invoked by gods, demons, and humans. According to various myths, Lord Shiva is the basis of Nimukha (poor people). Studying the virtues of Shiva, it seems that our society has given protection to all those who are rejected.
According to the different Puran, Teej and Swasthani Brat Devi Parvati seems to have taken Brat with great desire to get Jagadishwar Lord Mahadev as a Swami. Therefore, the followers of Teej Vrat strictly follow the rules of fasting and worship.
In different districts and villages of Nepal, it is usual to celebrate, sing and dance in one's own style and manner. Nepali women have a tradition of fasting for good luck, prosperity, family happiness, peace, wishing for a good worthy husband and religious rituals and family gatherings for the full life of the husband. Aryan Hindu women of Nepal dance in Teej festival by stealing red clothes and red tika, pote. Similar to Teej Parva, Sangini Nachgan is celebrated in the eastern hills, Jitia Parva in the Terai and Gaura Parva in the western hills of our country.
In the end, even if festivals are started by a particular place, caste or gender, those festivals, cultures cannot be confined to any particular race, language, religion or place. Festival, culture breaks the cycle of narrowness. All castes, languages are connected. From a religious point of view, Teej festival is called the festival of Hindu women, but this festival has affected not only the common women of Nepal but also the men.
It is the tradition of the festival culture that such festivals are passed down from grandparents to parents, and from parents to their children. It seems that Nepali sisters have been keeping the importance of Teej Festival alive since time immemorial.
In our country, which is a common flower garden of all castes, each and every day falls the festival in Nepal. It is time for conscious citizens to move forward by modifying their culture, festivals and fasting practices while preserving various aspects of their culture as per the needs and demands of the society. Today, it is necessary to move forward in the face of the growing distortions in the society in the culture.
Amongst the incarnations of Lord Vishnu perhaps Lord Krishna
is the most charismatic and human of all. He has his share of faults, his share
of magnetism that drew followers and haters alike. His strong sense of moral
compass which led to the Mahabharata war and his distortions and interference
was all for the purpose of flushing out the evil and retaining the good.
In Duryodhana’s own words –
Krishna is a “smiling rogue if there ever was one. He can eat, he can drink, he
can sing, he can dance. He can make love, he can fight, he can gossip with old
women, and play with little children. Who says he’s God?”
Shri Krishna and his Birth
While the ever devoted brother Kamsa
decided to imprison his newly married sister Devaki
and brother in law Vasudev after the divine Akashvani (divine announcement) stated his end would
be by hands of the eight children of Devaki and Vasudev, the Lord had other
plans.
By the time the seventh child was conceived, the gods
decided to intervene. They reached out for Goddess Yogamaya and had her
transfer the fetus from the womb of Devaki to the womb of Rohini, Vasudeva’s
other wife who lived far away from the prison in a village of Gokul. The child
was then delivered through Rohini. He is known as Balarama.
महिना भाद्र अष्टमी बुध थियो * नक्षत्र त्यो रोहिणी।
जन्मेथे जगदिश्वर घोर निशमा * चारै भुजाका बनि।।
त्यो बेला ग्रह आदि उच्च स्थानमा* सारा बसेका थिए।
भूकोभार उतार्न मानिस बनि * गोविन्द पैदा भए।।
#कृष्णजन्माष्टमी
When the eighth child was due, Kamsa got really nervous. All
these days, they had been under house arrest, but now he shackled Vasudeva and
put Devaki in a proper prison. The child was born on the eighth day into the
dark half of the month, and it was pouring rain and thunder. A child was born
and a miracle happened. The doors of the prison opened up by themselves – all
the guards fell asleep – the shackles broke. Immediately, Vasudeva saw that
this was divine intervention. He picked up the child and as if by intuitive
guidance, he walked to the river Yamuna. Though the whole place was flooding,
he found to his surprise that the ford which crossed the river was sticking out
and he could clearly walk.
He walked across and went to the house of Nanda and his wife
Yashoda. Yashodha had just delivered a girl child. She had had a difficult
labor and was unconscious. Vasudeva replaced the girl child with Krishna, took
the girl child, and came back to the prison. Kamsa came and saw that it was a
girl. He picked up the child by her legs and wanted to crash her on the floor.
As he was about to do this, this child slipped out of his hands, flew out the
window, laughed at him, and said, “Your slayer is elsewhere.” Meanwhile, Krishna
was placed into the community of Gokula. In spite of being the son of a chief,
he grew up in an ordinary cow-herding community.
Lord Krishna and His Bal Leela
Shree Krishna and his Bal Leela are subject of fascination
for people of all ages. Such was his divine avatar even Lord Shiva came down in
the guise of a sage to get a glimpse of Lord Krishna. As a child, he had
everybody wrapped around his finger.
हरे कृष्ण हरे कृष्ण कृष्ण कृष्ण हरे हरे हरे राम हरे राम राम राम हरे हरे
Janai Purnimafalls on Shrawan Shukla
Purnima every year. It is called Rakshya Bandhan as
this festival observes the bond of purity and security. This
festival is celebrated by Hindus all over the world.
A day before Janai Purnima the persons
wearing Janai should make themselves 'clean' by shaving or cutting hair and
take a good bath. They undergo partial fasting, taking only one meal of foods
considered to be 'clean' - no meat, no onions or garlic. Before the big event
Hindus prefer to clean their body by keeping fasting. Satvic food is prescribed
for all Hindu rituals and festivals.
In the Purnima
morning men usually go to rivers and ponds nearby, to take secret bath dipping
himself thrice in the water. Men, then change their Janai. Break the old
ones.
Janai
Janai is a cotton string worn across
the chest by a Hindu male. This thread is only given to males during a long and impressive
religious ceremony called ‘Bratabandhan’. Bratabandhan is basically a formal
process of accepting someone in the religion. The Janai initiates the boy
into manhood and commands them to devotedly follow the religion and the path of
truth. The Janai must be worn every day of their lives after they listen to their
mantra from the guru during the Bartabandha.
Janai is the triple cord made of cotton. First three regarded as a symbol of the Brahma, Bishnu, Shiva, second three; Action, Meditation and
Knowledge. Someone believed that three loans that mean God loan, Forefather
loan, and Sage loan.
It is a symbol of body, speech and mind and
when the knots are tied the person wearing it is supposed to gain complete
control over each of them.
Rakshya
Bandhan Doro
Rakshya means "to protect"
and Bandhan is "tie" or "bond". Rakshya Bandhan is a bond
or tie of protection. This thread is which is tied around the hand is called
Doro.
In Raksha Bandhan day male, female,
children, and kids regardless of status and caste get tied a Doro (sacred
colorful thread) around their wrist. Generally, males get tied the thread
around their right and the women around their left wrist.
They believe Doro brings them good
luck when one believes, that always becomes true. People keep the Doro tied in
wrist till on Laxmi Puja day in Deepawali. This thread is then taken out from the wrist and tied on the tail of a cow in the cow worship day (Laxmi puja) in
about October.
Hindu believes that they have to cross a
river Baitarni after death to reach heaven. The cow will help him/her to cross
the river Baitarni, by allowing the dead to cling to her tail if he/she ties
the doro to the tail of a cow on Laxmi Puja day.
Rakshya Bandhan Mantra
"येनबद्धोबलिराजादानवेन्द्रोमाहावल:।
तेनत्वं प्रतिवध्नामीरक्षेमाचलमाचल।।"
Meaning:
“I tie on you (the devotee) the Raksha
which was tied on Bali, the King of demons.
Therefore Oh Raksha! Do not ever fail to protect this devotee, do not ever
fail.”
Rakhi Day
This festival is also marked by the tying of a rakhi, or
holy thread, by the sister on the wrist of her brother
Kwati Purnima or Gunhi Punhi
This day is also called Kwati Punhi, where Kwati is a
soup of different beans and Punhi means the full moon day. Newar people also
put the sacred threads around the wrists which are to be taken off on the day
of Laxmi Puja, another festival in Tihar.
Stories behind Rakshya
Bandhan
Krishna and Draupadi
Another incident is from the epic Mahabharat and concerns
Krishna and Draupadi, the wife of the Pandavas. She had once torn a strip of
silk off her sari and tied it around Krishna's wrist to stop the bleeding from
a battlefield wound. Krishna was touched by her action and declared her to be
his sister, even though they were unrelated. He promised to repay the debt and
then spent the next 25 years doing just that. Draupadi, inspite of being
married to 5 great warriors and being a daughter of a powerful monarch, trusted
and depended wholly on Krishna. Krishna repaid the debt of love during the
"Cheer-Haran" (literally "clothing-robbing") of
Draupadi, which occurred in the assembly of King Dhritarashtra when Pandavas
lost her to the Kauravas in gambling. At that time, Krishna indefinitely
extended her saree through divine intervention, so it could not be removed, to
save her honor. This is how he honored his rakhi-vow towards
Draupadi.
King Bali and Goddess Laxmi
According to a legend, the Demon King Bali was a great
devotee of Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu had taken up the task to guard his kingdom
leaving his own home in Vaikunth. Goddess Lakshmi wished to be with her lord
back in her abode. She went to Bali disguised as a woman to seek refuge until
her husband came back.
During the Shravan Purnima celebrations, Lakshmi tied the
sacred thread to the King. Upon being asked, she revealed who she was and why
she was there. The king was touched by her goodwill for his family and her
purpose and requested the Lord to accompany her. He sacrificed all he had for
the Lord and his devoted wife.
Thus the festival is also called Baleva that is Bali
Raja's devotion to the Lord. It is said that since then it has been a tradition
to invite sisters in Shravan Purnima for the thread tying ceremony or the
Raksha Bandhan.
