Chhattisgarh
Festivals, Fairs and Special Traditions
Teej and Women's Festivals
Teeja, Kamarchhath, Bhojli, Gaura-Gauri, Sua and Jawara: Chhattisgarh's women-centred festivals with dates, rituals and GS-IV analysis for CGPSC.
Prerequisites
- Harvest and Agrarian Festivals: Pola, three days before Teeja, sets the scene
- Folk Music, Dance, Theatre and Crafts: Sua and other women’s songs and dances
- Basic Concepts of Sociology: kinship, marriage and gender roles, for the Mains angle
The Hook: The Week Every Daughter Goes Home
Connect
Around Pola, buses and trains out of Raipur and Bilaspur fill with married women heading to their parents’ homes. Fathers and brothers travel to bring them back, because in Chhattisgarh a daughter spends Teeja (तीजा) at her maika (मायका). The night before the fast she eats karu bhat (करू भात), rice with bitter gourd, and the next day she keeps a fast without even water.
What are Chhattisgarh’s women-centred festivals, when do they fall, and what do they reveal about family and society?
Why it matters: Prelims asks which festival involves sagri, pasahar rice, karu bhat or wheat seedlings. Mains GS-IV can ask about women’s role in sustaining culture, or about ritual friendship and kinship.
The Monsoon Sequence
All the major women’s festivals except Gaura-Gauri and Sua cluster in the monsoon months of Shravan and Bhadrapada (dates follow the north-Indian purnimanta calendar used in Chhattisgarh).
graph LR
A["Bhojli sown
bright half of Shravan"] --> B["Raksha Bandhan
Shravan Purnima"]
B --> C["Bhojli immersed
day after Rakhi"]
C --> D["Kamarchhath
Bhadrapada Krishna Shashthi"]
D --> E["Pola
Bhadrapada Amavasya"]
E --> F["Teeja
Bhadrapada Shukla Tritiya"]Teeja (तीजा): Hartalika Teej in Chhattisgarh
| Point | Detail |
|---|---|
| Date | Bhadrapada Shukla Tritiya, the Hartalika Teej (हरतालिका तीज) date, three days after Pola |
| Who | Married women (and many unmarried girls) |
| Where | At the maika (parents’ home). A father or brother comes to escort the daughter (lewaiya, लेवईया) |
| Eve | Karu bhat: rice with bitter gourd (करेला) eaten the night before |
| Fast | Nirjala (without water), for the husband’s long life and family well-being |
| Worship | Shiva and Parvati, recalling Parvati’s penance for Shiva |
| After | The fast is broken the next day; women receive new clothes from the parental home |
Why Teeja is special in Chhattisgarh
Elsewhere Hartalika Teej is mainly a fast. In Chhattisgarh its defining feature is the return of the daughter to her parents’ home. It renews the bond between a married woman and her natal family, which is otherwise weakened by patrilocal marriage. Folk songs of Teeja speak of longing for the maika.
Kamarchhath / Halshashthi (कमरछठ / हलषष्ठी): Mothers’ Fast
| Point | Detail |
|---|---|
| Date | Bhadrapada Krishna Shashthi, also the birthday of Balarama (हलधर), whose weapon is the plough |
| Who | Mothers, for the long life and well-being of their children (traditionally sons; today children in general) |
| Ritual | Women dig a small symbolic pond called sagri (सगरी) and worship around it together |
| Food rules | Because the day honours the plough-bearer, women avoid food grown in ploughed fields. They eat pasahar rice (पसहर चावल), which grows wild without ploughing, along with certain leafy vegetables, and use buffalo milk and curd rather than cow’s milk |
Link the name to the rule
Hal = plough; shashthi = sixth day. On the plough-bearer’s day, nothing from a ploughed field is eaten, which is why pasahar rice is used.
Bhojli (भोजली): Seedlings and Friendship
- In the bright half of Shravan, girls and women sow wheat (sometimes barley) in baskets of soil and manure and keep them in the shade. The pale yellow seedlings are worshipped as Bhojli Devi (भोजली दाई) with Bhojli songs.
- The seedlings are carried in procession and immersed in a pond or river on the day after Raksha Bandhan.
- Seedlings are exchanged and tucked behind the ear to seal a lifelong friendship, called “Bhojli badna”. Such ritual friends address each other as Bhojli for life (see Rites and Traditions).
- The prayer is also for good rain and a good crop, so Bhojli is both a women’s festival and an agrarian one.
Gaura-Gauri, Sua and Jawara
| Festival / custom | When | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Gaura-Gauri (गौरा-गौरी) | Diwali night (Kartik Amavasya) and the next day | Clay images of Gaura (Shiva) and Gauri (Parvati) are made and their marriage is celebrated with women’s songs (gaura geet) and a night procession; the images are immersed the next day. Strong among the Gond and many other communities. |
| Sua (सुआ) song and dance | Kartik, in the weeks before Diwali | Women and girls dance in a circle around a basket holding a clay parrot (सुआ), singing songs of separation, love and daily life. It traditionally culminates around Gaura-Gauri. |
| Jot-Jawara (जोत-जवारा) | Chaitra and Kwar (Ashvin) Navratri | Wheat sprouts (jawara) and lamps (jot) are kept for nine days in temples and homes for the Devi, then taken out in procession and immersed. |
| Karma | Bhadrapada Shukla Ekadashi | Women and girls play a central part in Karma songs and dance around the karam branch (covered in Harvest and Agrarian Festivals). |
The “Why”: Analysis for Mains
- Women as carriers of culture: songs (Bhojli, Sua, Gaura), ritual knowledge and food rules are passed from mother to daughter.
- Natal bonds in a patrilocal society: Teeja formally restores a married woman to her parents’ home every year.
- Mutual support networks: Bhojli and other ritual friendships create bonds outside kinship that women can rely on.
- Ecological knowledge: pasahar rice and seedling worship reflect awareness of uncultivated foods and germination.
- Critical view: many fasts are for the husband’s or son’s welfare, which reflects patriarchal priorities. A balanced answer notes that practices are changing, for example Kamarchhath now being observed for daughters as well.
- Public recognition: the state increasingly celebrates such festivals officially as part of Chhattisgarhi identity; mention the trend without inventing scheme details.
Memory Tricks
Order of the monsoon women's festivals: B-K-P-T
“Bhojli Kept, Pola Passed, Teeja Taken”: Bhojli (after Rakhi) → Kamarchhath (Bhado Krishna 6) → Pola (Bhado Amavasya) → Teeja (Bhado Shukla 3).
Karu before the fast
Karu bhat before Teeja: the bitter meal comes first, then the sweet return home.
Don’t Confuse
| This | vs | That |
|---|---|---|
| Teeja: wife’s fast for husband, at the maika, karu bhat | Kamarchhath: mother’s fast for children, sagri, pasahar rice | |
| Bhojli: wheat seedlings, immersed the day after Rakhi, friendship | Jawara: wheat sprouts for the Devi during Navratri | |
| Gaura-Gauri: marriage of Shiva-Parvati on Diwali night | Sua: women’s parrot dance in Kartik | |
| Kamarchhath (Bhado Krishna Shashthi) | Chhath of Bihar/eastern UP (Kartik Shukla Shashthi, Sun worship) |
Common Mistakes
Trap 1: Kamarchhath is not Chhath Puja
The names sound alike. Kamarchhath is Halshashthi, a mothers’ fast in Bhadrapada with sagri and pasahar rice. Chhath is the Sun festival in Kartik.
Trap 2: Bhojli immersion day
Bhojli is immersed on the day after Raksha Bandhan, not on Raksha Bandhan itself and not on Nag Panchami.
Trap 3: where Teeja is kept
Statements saying women keep Teeja at their in-laws’ house as the defining custom are wrong for Chhattisgarh. The distinctive custom is going to the maika.
Practice
These are original practice questions written in CGPSC style. They are not previous-year questions.
Level 1: Foundation
- The night before Teeja, women eat ________, rice with bitter gourd.
- During Kamarchhath women dig a small pond called ________ and eat ________ rice.
- Bhojli seedlings are immersed on the day after ________.
Answers
- Karu bhat
- Sagri; pasahar
- Raksha Bandhan
Level 2: Prelims MCQs
Q1. Consider the following statements about Kamarchhath:
- It is observed on Bhadrapada Krishna Shashthi.
- Women eat pasahar rice, which grows without ploughing.
- It is a festival of Sun worship observed in Kartik.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only (b) 2 only (c) 1 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer and explanation
(a) 1 and 2 only. Kamarchhath (Halshashthi) falls on Bhadrapada Krishna Shashthi, and the food rule is to avoid produce of ploughed land, hence pasahar rice. Statement 3 describes Chhath Puja, a different festival.
Q2. Match List-I (Festival) with List-II (Feature):
| List-I | List-II |
|---|---|
| A. Teeja | 1. Clay parrot in a basket |
| B. Bhojli | 2. Marriage of Shiva and Parvati on Diwali night |
| C. Gaura-Gauri | 3. Wheat seedlings and ritual friendship |
| D. Sua | 4. Karu bhat and stay at the maika |
(a) A-4, B-2, C-3, D-1 (b) A-4, B-3, C-2, D-1 (c) A-1, B-3, C-2, D-4 (d) A-4, B-3, C-1, D-2
Answer and explanation
(b) A-4, B-3, C-2, D-1. Teeja: karu bhat and the maika. Bhojli: wheat seedlings and friendship. Gaura-Gauri: the divine marriage on Diwali night. Sua: the women’s dance around a clay parrot.
Q3. Teeja in Chhattisgarh falls on which day?
(a) Shravan Amavasya (b) Bhadrapada Amavasya (c) Bhadrapada Shukla Tritiya (d) Paush Purnima
Answer and explanation
(c) Bhadrapada Shukla Tritiya, the Hartalika Teej date, three days after Pola. Shravan Amavasya is Hareli, Bhadrapada Amavasya is Pola and Paush Purnima is Cherchera.
Q4. Which of the following festivals of Chhattisgarh is most directly associated with forming a lifelong ritual friendship?
(a) Kamarchhath (b) Bhojli (c) Teeja (d) Akti
Answer and explanation
(b) Bhojli. Exchanging Bhojli seedlings seals a friendship for life, and the friends call each other Bhojli. The others are fasts or agrarian rites.
Level 3: Mains Answer Writing
Q1. Discuss the role of women’s festivals in the social life of Chhattisgarh. (150–200 words)
Model answer outline
Intro: Chhattisgarh’s festival calendar has a distinct set of women-centred festivals, concentrated in the monsoon months of Shravan and Bhadrapada.
Body:
- Teeja: a married woman’s annual return to her maika; karu bhat and a nirjala fast. It sustains natal ties in a patrilocal society.
- Kamarchhath: mothers’ collective worship at the sagri for children’s welfare, with pasahar rice; a rule rooted in ecological knowledge.
- Bhojli: seedlings, songs and lifelong ritual friendship, a women’s support network outside kinship.
- Gaura-Gauri and Sua: women’s songs and dances in Kartik keep oral tradition alive.
- Critical note: many fasts centre on husbands and sons; practice is slowly widening (daughters included in Kamarchhath).
Conclusion: Women are the main transmitters of Chhattisgarh’s festival culture. Recognising this matters for cultural policy and for women’s empowerment that builds on, rather than erases, local tradition.
Quick Revision Table
| Festival | Date | Key feature |
|---|---|---|
| Teeja | Bhadrapada Shukla Tritiya | At the maika; karu bhat on the eve; nirjala fast |
| Kamarchhath | Bhadrapada Krishna Shashthi | Mothers; sagri; pasahar rice; buffalo milk |
| Bhojli | Shravan; immersed day after Rakhi | Wheat seedlings; friendship |
| Gaura-Gauri | Diwali night (Kartik Amavasya) | Shiva-Parvati marriage; gaura geet |
| Sua | Kartik, before Diwali | Women’s dance around a clay parrot |
| Jot-Jawara | Chaitra and Kwar Navratri | Wheat sprouts and lamps for the Devi |
Key Takeaways
Key Takeaways
- Teeja (Bhadrapada Shukla Tritiya) is defined by the daughter’s return to her maika, karu bhat and a nirjala fast.
- Kamarchhath (Bhadrapada Krishna Shashthi) is the mothers’ fast with sagri and pasahar rice; it is not Chhath Puja.
- Bhojli seedlings are immersed the day after Raksha Bandhan and seal lifelong friendships.
- Gaura-Gauri (Diwali night) and Sua (Kartik) are women’s song-and-dance traditions.
- For Mains, present women as the carriers of festival culture, with a balanced note on patriarchal elements.
What’s Next
- Fairs (Melas) of Chhattisgarh: Rajim, Shivrinarayan, Giraudpuri and the Bastar madais
- Rites and Traditions: mitan friendships, marriage forms and godna
- Social Legislation and Human Rights: laws on women’s rights for the GS-V angle
- Literature, Chhattisgarhi Language, Idioms and Riddles: the language of festival songs
Advertisement