Karwa Chauth 2018: Moon sighted in India; the wait is over!

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New Delhi: One of the most awaited festivals of the year, Karwa Chauth was celebrated today. The festival is observed by married women, especially of North India who observe a fast on this day and pray for the long life of their husbands. The festival is considered to be all about the unconditional love that a wife has for her husband.

Married women start fasting before sunrise and refrain from consuming food and water throughout the day. After moonrise, the fast is completed and the woman consumers water and food after offering 'ark' to the moon. This is why the most important part of the day is when the moon is sighted.

Well, the wait of many women out there has finally come to an end! The special Karwa Chauth moon has been sighted in parts of India including Delhi, Noida, Kolkata and Dehradun which means that women can now complete their fast by performing the rituals after moon-sighting. 

#Visuals: Women perform rituals on the occasion of #KarwaChauth after moon sighting in Delhi. pic.twitter.com/BjSi2BEaRZ — ANI (@ANI) October 27, 2018

Uttarakhand: Moon sighted in Dehradun. Women break #karwachauth fast after performing rituals. pic.twitter.com/8P4EyIYYg4

— ANI (@ANI) October 27, 2018

Usually, a woman's husband is expected to feed the first bite of food to his wife.

There are various traditional tales associated with the festival. One of the tales is of a Queen named Veeravati.

As per the legend, Veeravati was the only sister to her seven loving brothers. She was married to a King and celebrated her first Karwa Chauth at her parents' house. After the sunrise, she began a strict fast, devoted to the long life of her husband. However, the queen was unable to withstand the austerities of the fast and was desperately waiting for the moon to rise. Her brothers were appalled to see their sister in such distress and decided to end her hunger and thirst by creating a mirror in a pipal tree that made it look as though the moon had risen. 

Deceived by her brothers, Veeravati mistook the mirror for the moon and broke her fast. However, the moment the queen ate her dinner, she received the news that her husband, the king, was dead. Grief-stricken, she lamented through the night, compelling the Goddess to appear before her. On hearing her agony, the Goddess revealed the deception of her brothers and advised her to re-perform the Karwa Chauth rituals with complete devotion in order to revive her husband. On obliging to the words of the Goddess, the Queen performed the rituals again wholeheartedly which obligated the Yamaraja to revive her husband.

Many other variants of the same story exist. Apart from this legend, there are other stories too associated with the festival.

Here's wishing everyone a very Happy Karwa Chauth!