Kevada Trij

Kevada Trij is a Gujarati form of the Hartalika/Gauri tradition observed on Bhadrapada Shukla Tritiya. The day centres on Parvati’s determination to marry Shiva. In the familiar legend, Parvati’s father intended another marriage for her, but her companion took her away to the forest so that she could continue her chosen tapas. Parvati fashioned or worshipped a form of Shiva and remained steadfast until Shiva accepted her devotion and agreed to marry her. In Gujarat the fragrant kevada flower gives the vrata its popular name and is offered in worship. Married women pray for the well-being and harmony of family life, while unmarried women traditionally pray for a worthy life partner. Fasting, Shiva-Parvati puja, katha, aarti and offerings of flowers are common, with exact food rules varying by household.

Kevada Trij is valued for devotion, family tradition and the spiritual or seasonal meaning attached to the day.

Married women keep it without food and, in the strict form, without water, through the day and the night. Kevda, which flowers in the monsoon and is refused to Shiva in one story and offered to him in this one, is put on the linga. The fast is broken the next morning.