- Avarna Jain,
Chairperson RPSG Lifestyle Media
Why Are Married Hindu Women Fasting During May 2025’s New Moon?
Have you heard the fascinating legend behind the ritual of Vat Savitri?
In North India, married Hindu women observe a fascinating ritual on the new moon of the third month in the Hindu calendar...Getty Images
There are many rituals and traditions in Indian cultures that celebrate the bond between a wife and her husband. One such fascinating ritual is the Vat Savitri, or Vat Savitri Purnima. Celebrated across North India and the states of Odisha, Bihar, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa, this Hindu celebration is observed by married women and is considered to be a day of enormous religious significance.
Traditionally, married women observe a fast on this day and tie a knot around a banyan tree for their husband’s health. Women get dressed up in their finery and make their way to the temples to observe the ritual of tying the knot around the Vata, or banyan tree.
Vat Savitri 2025: Everything To Know About The Ritual
Vat Savitri occurs in the month of Jyeshta, the third month in the Hindu calendar. In North India, the day is celebrated during the new moon, or the Amavasya Tithi, and in the Western states, it’s celebrated on the full moon, or Purnima Tithi, of the month.
On Vat Savitri, married Hindu women observe a fast and tie a thread around a banyan treeGetty Images
Vat Savitri 2025: Date and Timings
In May 2025, the Amavanya Tithi begins on May 26 at 12:11 PM (IST) and ends on May 27 at 8:31 AM (IST).
Vat Savitri 2025: How it Originated
The legend behind the ritual and why Hindu women across the world celebrate this is fascinating. It stems from a chapter in the Mahabharata, particularly the story of Savitri and Satyavan.
Savitri, the beautiful daughter of King Asvapati, was beautiful and intimidating to suitors in the kingdom. After seeing that no man dared to ask for her hand in marriage, her father asked her to choose a husband with suitable qualities for herself. The princess and her ministers left on the quest to find her a husband. After searching endlessly, Savitri found Satyavan, the son of the blind exiled king Dyumatsena.
When she returned to her kingdom, she informed her father and his accompanying sage Narad that she would marry Satyavan. Narad acknowledged her good choice, as Satyavan was intelligent, righteous, generous and handsome, but he warned her that he was destined to die in a year. Despite her father’s pleas to choose another husband for herself, Savitri remained steadfast in her decision, and ultimately, the king conceded and arranged the marriage himself. Satyavan and Savitri lived happily for a year in the forest, but they couldn’t escape fate. A year from the date Narad had predicted Satyavan’s death, Savitri’s husband dropped dead.
An 1890 painting depicting Savitri arguing with Yamraj to save Satyavan's lifeWikimedia Commons
As Savitri sat under the shade of a banyan tree, cradling her dead husband’s head in her lap, the God of death, Yamraja, came down to Earth to take away his soul. Not willing to let this be the end of her story with Satyavan, Savitri decided to follow Yamraj to the ends of the Earth. Impressed by her dedication and purity of heart, the God of death decided to grant her three wishes. However, he asserted that Savitri could not ask for Satyavan’s life back as one of the wishes.
The clever and determined Savitri first asked for eyesight for her father-in-law. For her second wish, she asked Yamraj to return Kim Dyumatsena’s lost kingdom to him. And for the final wish, Savitri asked the God of death to grant her 100 children. Stumped by her final wish, as it would require him to give back her husband’s soul, Yamraj reluctantly agreed to bring Satyavan back to life.
Centuries later, Savitri’s dedication and wit in saving the life of her husband are celebrated by Hindu women on Vat Savitri, or Vat Savitri Purnima, across the world.
What do you think of the story?
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