The festival of Gangaur holds its own importance in Hinduism. It is performed by women in a few parts of India. This festival is all about worshipping goddess Gauri for the sake of good married life.

Both married and unmarried women keep fast for 18 days for half of the day. Gangaur is celebrated in Chaitra month, according to the Hindu calendar (March-April), every year. 

In 2024, Gangaur will be celebrated on 11-12th April.

What does Gangaur (Gauri Puja) mean?

Who doesn’t want to have a partner like lord Shiva and goddess Parvati? The love story of Shiva-Parvati is famously known among Hindus. There are few festivals where Lord Shiva is worshipped by Hindu women for the blessing of a partner like him.

Gangaur festival is among one them, but here, goddess Parvati is worshipped for a long life of marriage and husband. Gangaur is comprised of “Gan”, which refers to lord Shiva and “Gaur” refers to goddess Gauri and is performed by both married and unmarried women. 

What is the story behind Gangaur (Gauri Puja)?

Though the Ganguar festival shows the purity and austerity love between Lord Shiva and goddess Parvati, it is believed that Gauri was successful in drawing the attention of lord Shiva and won over him as her husband through her immense love, meditation and devotion towards him.

But there are different versions of Gauri Vrat Katha, and among them, one of the versions says that once goddess Parvati visited her parent’s house during the time of Gangaur.

Later, when the time of Parvati’s return to her husband Lord Shiva’s house came, Shiva came to accompany her back home. At that time, the goddess Gauri was gloriously send-off by her parents, and that is said to be one of the reasons for celebrating the Gangaur festival. 

Why it is important to celebrate the Gangaur festival?

Gangaur is the festival of Gauri’s winning over Lord Shiva as her husband with her great perseverance and devotion. Gangaur is performed by both married and unmarried womenfolk with great zeal and devotion to the goddess Gauri/Parvati to seek the blessing of the harvest and also for marital harmony.

However, this festival marks a special significance for unmarried women. On the contrary, unmarried women also take part in the blessing of a good husband and also for a prosperous married life ahead.

Though this is a festival of 18 days, both married and unmarried women keep fast for 16 days and are allowed to have one time meal a day. 

How Gangaur festival is celebrated in Rajasthan?

Gangaur is one of the important colour festivals of Rajasthan and is widely celebrated in Bikaner, Udaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Nathdwara. In these places, people prepare an idol of Gauri and Shiva.

Then a procession takes place with the idol of goddess Gauri which is followed by fireworks. On the other hand, women are traditionally dressed in the finest jewellery, adorning their hands with mehandi and can be seen balancing brass pitchers on their heads.

In Jaipur, Gangaur is important to celebrate for newly-wed women. Folk dance, song, games and cultural events are also performed with delicious Rajasthan cuisines. Apart from this, it is also celebrated in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and West Bengal. 

Conclusion

Gangaur is a most awaited festival for both married and unmarried women in Rajasthan. During these 18 days of celebration, women keep fast for a period of 16 days and are allowed to have a one-time meal.

If you want to eyewitness the best Gauri festival, then you should visit Rajasthan and get lost in this colourful and mesmerising festival. At this festival, a person can have an experience of Rajasthan culture with amazing Rajasthani events and cuisines. 

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. If you are curious to know about the Gangaur festival, then this is the article for you. If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We welcome your contributions to the conversation.

Thank you for your valuable time in reading this article, and we look forward to hearing from you.