Chhath Puja History: Chhath festival has special significance in Hindu religion. It is mainly celebrated in Bihar, Jharkhand and eastern Uttar Pradesh, but now this festival has become popular throughout the country. In Chhath Puja, Sun God and Chhathi Maiya are worshipped.
The answer to when and how Chhath Puja started is found in mythology. It is believed that in Satyayuga, Lord Shri Ram, in Dwapara Yuga, the philanthropist Karna and Draupadi worshiped the Sun. Apart from this, the worship of Chhathi Maiya is also mentioned in the legend of King Priyamvad, who observed this fast for the first time.
Chhath Puja is associated with the ancient tradition of Sun worship, which is not only a symbol of religious faith but also invokes happiness, prosperity and health in life.
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1. Chhath Puja was performed to save the life of the son.
According to a legend, King Priyamvad was childless. He told his sorrow to Maharishi Kashyap. In such a situation, Maharishi Kashyap had performed Putreshti Yagya to have a child. During this time, the kheer prepared for the Yagya was given to King Priyamvad’s wife Malini to eat. By consuming it, Queen Malini gave birth to a son, but her son was born dead.
Seeing this, the king became very sad and took the body of his dead son to the crematorium and also started giving up his life. Then Brahma’s mental daughter Devasena appeared and said to King Priyamvad, I am born from the sixth part of the basic nature of creation, hence my name is also Shashthi. You worship me and propagate it among the people. After this, King Priyamvad, wishing to have a son, observed a fast for his mother as per the rituals on the Shashthi of Shukla Paksha of Kartik month. As a result, King Priyamvad got a son.
2. Shri Ram and Sita also worshiped Surya.
According to mythology, Lord Shri Ram returned to Ayodhya after killing Lankapati Ravana. But Lord Rama had the sin of killing Ravana, to get rid of which Rajasuya Yagya was performed on the orders of sages. Then sage Mugdal called Shri Ram and Mother Sita to his ashram for the yagya.
According to Mugdal Rishi, Mother Sita worshiped Sun God and also observed a fast on the Shashti Tithi of Kartik Shukla. During this time, Ram ji and Sita Mata stayed in the ashram of Mugdal Rishi and worshiped for six days. In this way, the history of Chhath festival is linked to the Ramayana period.
3. Draupadi had observed Chhath fast
According to mythology, the beginning of Chhath fast is also linked to Draupadi. It is believed that Draupadi had observed Chhath fast and worshiped Lord Surya for the better health and happy life of the five Pandavas. As a result of this, the Pandavas got back their lost kingdom.
Danveer Karna did Surya Puja
According to Mahabharata, Danveer Karna was the son of Surya. He used to worship the Sun every day. If seen this way, Karna was the first to start worshiping the Sun. Every day after bathing he used to go to the river and offer water to the Sun. ,Chhath Puja History