Chhath concludes (Photo Feature)

KATHMANDU, Oct 27: Chhath, an ancient Hindu Vedic festival historically native to the Madhesh province and Mithila region of Nepal and Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh states of India has concluded on Friday.

The Chhath Puja is dedicated to the Sun and his wife Usha in order to thank them for bestowing the bounties of life on earth and to request the granting of certain wishes. On the final day of the festival, the worshipers reach the river banks or ponds and make offerings such as grains, and various home-made delicious foods to the rising sun.

Chhath is observed over the period of four days. Hindu devotees take holy bath, fast, stand in water for long periods of time, and offer prasad  and arghya to the setting and rising sun. The worshipers observe purity, and sleeps on the floor on a single blanket or on a separate bed.

Chhath starts on Kartika Shukla Shashthi, which is the sixth day of the month of Kartika as per the Nepali Calendar.

Main message of the Chhath festival is coordination, inclusion and sanctity. The festival is a collective resolution made under the leadership of women for the welfare of society and family-which is the crucial aspect of the festival.

The Sun considered as the god of energy and of the life-force, is worshiped during the Chhath festival to promote well-being, prosperity and progress as per the time-honored tradition.

The Chhath festival has been observed as common cultural symbol of the Tarai.

Here are some photos of the final day of Chhath at Kamalpokhari, Kathmandu.

Photos: Mukunda Kalikote