Teej – Date, Muhurat, Timings

This year (2020) Teej festival (Hartalika Teej) is going to be celebrated on : Friday – August 21st , 2020

Time Starts = 02:13 AM on Aug 21, 2020
Time Ends = 11:02 PM on Aug 21, 2020

Significance of Teej Puja:

Teej  is celebrated in the monsoon season and celebrated primarily by girls and women. Festival of Teej is primarily dedicated to Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva. Goddess Parvati is also known as Teej Mata.   Ladies worship Maa Parvati and keep  Nirjala (without water) vrata throughout a day and night. This fast is observed for the well being of the husband. The monsoon festivals of Teej include Haryali Teej, Kajari Teej and Hartalika Teej.

Hariyali Teej:
Haryali Teej is celebrated on the third day of the bright half of the North Indian Lunar month of Shavana.  It is mainly celebrated in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra and also in some parts of Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh.  The greenery during the Shraavan month forms the perfect setting for performing traditional songs and dancing during Haryali Teej. The Hariyali Teej of Vrindawan is known for its festive air, as Krishna and Radha’s idols are especially decorated and the golden swing is displayed which attracts visitors from all over the world. The Hariyali Teej festival is also celebrated to remember the reunion of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, the day when Lord Shiva accepted Goddess Parvati as his wife.

Kajri Teej:
Kajari Teej also known as Badi Teej is celebrated on the third day of Krishna Paksha (dark fortnight) of the Hindu month of Bhadrapada. Kajri Teej gets its name from the blackish hue of clouds that signal the onset of rains. Kajri Teej is celebrated in Madhya Pradesh and in Uttar Pradesh, especially Mirzapur and Varanasi. Women who observe the kajari teej fast go without food and water. Kajari teej is also known as kajali teej which also involves praying to the moon. The fast is broken by eating sattu.

Hartalika Teej:
Hartalika is a combination of “harit” and “aalika” which means “abduction” and “female friend” respectively. The festival coincides with the first fortnight of the Bhadrapad month. It is native to the Northern and western parts of India and is celebrated in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Rajasthan and is some parts of Maharashtra. On this day women dressing up with ‘Solah Singar’.

Teej festival Story:

According to the legend of Hartalika Teej, Goddess Maa Parvati incarnated as Goddess Shailaputri. She was the daughter of Himalaya who promised her hand in marriage to Lord Vishnu at the suggestion of Narada. Upon hearing this, Goddess Parvati told her friend of her father’s decision whereupon the friend took Goddess Parvati to the thick forest so that her father would not marry her to Lord Vishnu against her wish.

On the third day of the bright half of Bhadrapud, Goddess Parvati made a Shiva lingam out of her hair and prayed. Lord Shiva was so impressed that he gave his word to marry Goddess Parvati. Eventually, Goddess Parvati was united with Lord Shiva and was married to him with her father’s blessing. Since then, the day is referred to as haritalika teej as Goddess Parvati’s female (aalika)friend had to abduct (harit) her in order for the Goddess to achieve her goal of marrying Lord Shiva.

Teej rituals and puja process:

On this day some women do fast by consuming only fruits and some do ‘nirjala’ means without a drop of water and also refrain from sleep. In some places, after the ‘puja’ women follow the custom of bathing themselves with mud around the Datiwan plant to be rid of their bad karma.  During Kajri Teej, women gather around the holy Neem tree and pay obeisance to the neem plant. Women gather in a place to install the idol of Ma Parvati and offer flowers, fruits, sweets, ‘sindoor’ or vermillion. One or two persons read out the Teej Vrat Katha. Unmarried girls also devotedly listen to the Katha. A very important ritual is to light an oil lamp that is supposed to be lit uninterruptedly through the night.

This festival is a testimony of a wife’s love for her husband.

Happy Teej to all the ladies out there.