“I am one of the many fortunate women who get to stay hungry and thirsty all day in order to magically lengthen my other half’s life,” quoted by Twinkle Khanna in her book Mrs Funnybones. This is the first thought that comes to our mind when we hear about this ancient ritual of Karva Chauth. We all have a rough idea about the story behind the ritual and there are numerous versions of it.

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The story revolves around a sister and her seven brothers. The only sister and youngest, she was loved and cherished by all her brothers. On the day of Karva Chauth, she came to her mother’s place and was fasting as per the ritual. Since she was hungry and thirsty, her brothers couldn’t bear the same. They begged her to eat but she denied as the moon was not out. Brothers came up with a plan and made her do pooja of a mirage flame and she did that unknowingly. As soon as she sat to eat, news arrived that her husband is dead. Heartbroken, she prayed to the goddess who told her about the trickery. Goddess asked her to do the pooja with all rituals and her husband will be back to life next year. She did the same and reunited with her husband.

Now the point remains, does the modern generation believe in this? So we asked a few ladies about their opinion about this ritual and the answers were quite surprising. We asked them what has changed over the years and if they would like to recommend it to their future generation.

Julie is an IT professional and does the fast every year. She says “It’s good as it makes the husband-wife bond stronger. I feel over the years feelings have remained the same. I would recommend it to the future generation but it’s up to them to follow or not. This fast is just a way to portray love towards your better half. There is no harm in keeping the fast for one day in a year.”

Rashmi works as a Creative Video Editor in a an well-known IT firm. She says, “This is the only fasting I do in a year, so I think it is good. The only thing that has changed is that nowadays people terminate the fast early in the evening. About recommending it to the future generation, I think it depends on the individual.”

Monika is a housewife and a professional Yoga practitioner. Who knows better about health than a Yoga practitioner herself. She observes the fast of Karva Chauth every year and here’s what she has to say “It is good and I strongly believe that the tradition and method of fasting have changed according to the individual’s comfort over the years. I would leave it up to the next generation because they will have their own thought process so that they can analyse and decide whether they want to continue or not.”

Neeru Sharma is a housewife and also a pet-sitter. She is a Delhiite and the ritual of Karva Chauth is more popular in Delhi as compared to Mumbai. “It’s always good to follow our traditions and culture, as long as it’s not harming our nature or anyone. Lots of things have changed and one of them is that earlier we were supposed to have only home-cooked food but now we do dinner in restaurants as no one wants to cook at home after a tiring day. Maybe i’ll recommend the future generation but there won’t be a compulsion, it’s up to them.”

According to Priyanka, “On the day of Karwa Chauth you have to wake up before sunrise for sargi (a small meal) and do fast for the whole day until moon rises in the evening. I feel it is good if you do it wholeheartedly. Earlier the festival was celebrated by women in north India but now I see many women from other regions and states are also celebrating this festival. I would definitely recommend this ritual because it is good for their husband’s life and this is our tradition and culture.

Every opinion is unique and different from the other. The only thing we would like to say here is that every ritual is meant for our well-being and it depends on every individual whether to follow or not. That being said, we would also like to know your opinion about this Karva Chauth in the comments section below.

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