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Women in North India deck up for Karva Chauth

     New Delhi: Women in North India, including Capital New Delhi, adorned themselves with traditional henna and ensemble of fancy bangles on the eve of Karva Chauth, that falls on Thursday. Tradition has it that if a woman fasts on the Karva Chauth day her prayers for the good health and long life of her spouse are answered. Henna or mehndi, considered auspicious for married woman, is part of the Karva Chauth ritual, and women get intricate henna designs applied on their hands before they get down to the elaborate rituals. The preparations though, begin a day or more in advance. Married women celebrate it by observing a fast for the long life of her husband. The fast, observed from sunrise to sunset, is broken only after the moonrise. The day is spent in the company of the family members. And above all is the 'Shringar' that includes applying henna and adorning the bridal makeup. The festival, falling nine days before the Hindu festival of Diwali, is considered very important by married women. "In this festival we make a votive prayer and seek God's blessings. After the prayer ritual in the evening, we give a gift to the mother-in-law. A day before that though, the mother-in-law gives us money to buy the special adornments, food stuff and things like that," said Bharti Chhabra, a working woman who skipped her lunch to get the henna done. Karen Clark, an Australian tourist who got henna designs done on her hands and was shopping for bangles said: " I love it. It's very interesting. I wish we could have some of this at home. I wish some of you could come over and we could do this in Australia, I think." Bangle sellers are also in great demand as bangles are a symbol of prosperity and zest for life. Unmarried adolescent girls too observe the fast, out of enthusiasm. Fasting has become a symbol of the sacrifice and hardship, a woman is ready to bear in her love for her husband. Karva Chauth is basically once a year festival to renew and celebrate the relationship between the daughter-in-law and the mother-in-law and symbolically had a tremendous social and cultural significance in the olden days, when the ways to communicate and move around easily were limited. Now, women receive gifts from their husbands and relatives.
-Oct 19, 2005