Karwa Chauth - The Fast for Long Life and Prosperity

The Indian cultural fabric is a rich one with people of various faiths and from different backgrounds mingling together as one. It is a societal canvass of many colours of lifestyles, languages, social practices, traditions, rituals and more. One of the most interesting chapters of this beautiful heritage is the festival of North and North western India called Karva Chauth.

Karwachauth is an occasion when married Hindu women pray to God for their husband's long life. Karva Chauth date falls about nine days before Diwali on the Kartik Ki Chouth - the fourth day of the waning moon or the dark fortnight, some time in October or November. Karva Chauth 2010 is on 25 October, Monday.

This occasion is considered more special for women who are observing their first Karva Chauth fast after marriage. A newly married woman is given utmost importance by relatives and immediate family members when she observes her first fast. She is showered with blessings for a blissful married life and loads of Karva Chauth gifts by her husband, mother-in-law and other relatives.

'Karwa Chauth' is a ritual of fasting observed by married Hindu women seeking the long life, well-being and prosperity of their husbands. Married women keep a strict fast and do not take even a drop of water. It is the most important and difficult fast observed by married Hindu women. It begins before sunrise and ends only after offering prayers and worshiping the moon at night. No food or water can be taken after sunrise. The fast is broken once the moon is sighted and rituals of the day have been performed. At night when the moon appears, women break their fast after offering water to the moon.

Honoring The Divine Goddess on Durga Puja and Navratri

Late september/early October each year is marked as the time for Durga Puja festivities. The dates of the festival are determined as per the Lunar calender. Durga Puja celebrates Goddess Durga as a form of Shakti. She is revered for her graciousness and her intolerance for any wrong and unfair deed. Durga is the Mother of the Universe and is a symbol of female dynamism. Durga, in Sanskrit means "She who is incomprehensible or difficult to reach." The manifestation of Goddess Durga is said to emerge from Her formless essence and the two are inseparable.

She is also called by many other names, such as Parvati, Ambika, and Kali. In the form of Parvati, she is known as the divine spouse of Lord Shiva and is the mother of Her two sons, Ganesha and Kartikeya, and daughter Jyoti. Destroyer of demons, she is worshiped during an annual festival called Durga puja, especially popular among Bengalis.

While earlier Durga was worshiped alone, now it is, more often than not, the goddess with her family. Durga is portrayed as the supreme head; and the presence of Ganesha, Kartikeya, Shiva etc marks a wholesome picture of divinity. In southern India, celebrations constitute a display of images of God and toys at home for nine days. However varied the nature of Durga Puja celebrations, what remains common is the reverence towards Maa durga.

Durga Puja festival has now taken a larger than life form, it is an extravaganza spread over the last five days of Navratri culminating in Dussehra. Age-old conch shells and drums have given way to loud film songs and expensive Durga Puja gifts are exchanged among loved ones. On the flip side, animal sacrifices, a must earlier, have been dispensed with at many places.

Send Flowers and Make Every Occasion Count

Whenever we want any celebration or remembrance to be etched in our memories forever we choose flowers as gifts. We can express any range of emotions by choosing just the right kind of flowers. From exotic to unique to elegant and common yet loved, the variety is endless.

Personal celebrations or public functions, grievance or happiness, kindness or love, everything can be said through them. One can send flowers for every form of expression. They leave a fragrance which lingers and stays with the recipient for a long time to come. There are some popular flower types but it is always better to read up or listen more to understand more about the other rare or exotic varieties and then decide on the ones to be gifted.

The advantage with flowers are many fold, one of which is that these can be clubbed with other gifts as chocolates, cakes, soft toys, collectibles, jewelry and many more. These are the most versatile of any gift idea. Flowers are a must have as Birthday gifts, Anniversary gifts, Wedding gifts, Congratulations gifts or Housewarming gifts etc.

Ganesha Chaturthi

Celebrate the birthday of Lord Ganesha, the god of wisdom and prosperity, on Sep 11, 2010.

Chaturthi or the birthday of Lord Ganesha is celebrated as per the cycle of the moon on August or September. The festivities last for 11 days following Ganesh Chaturthi and end on Anant Chaturdashi day.

This deeply loved elephant-headed God of Hindus is known by as many as 108 names. Some of these being Vignaharta, Vinayaka, Siddhivinayaka, Umaputra, Vigneshwara, Yashvasin, Vakratunda, Shweta, Nandana, Mangalamurti, Gaurisuta, Ganapati, Gajanana, Ekadanta, Akhuratha, Avighna, Buddhividhata etc. Lord Ganesha is popular for his ability to overcome obstacles and bring prosperity and fortune to those who love him. He is worshiped as the Lord of new beginnings and the guardian of entrances as well.

This festival is predominantly celebrated in Maharashtra, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The festivities begin with installation of Ganesha statues in homes and public diases. One should not look at the moon on this night. It is because of the belief that moon laughed at Lord Ganesha when he fell from his vehicle, the rat on which he was riding.

To invoke the holy presence of Ganesha into the statue, the ritual called as the Pranapratishhtha Puja is undertaken with recitation of mantras. Sweets, flowers, rice, coconut, jaggery and coins are then offered to Him and red chandan is applied on His forehead. On every day till Chaturdasi, prayers are held in homes and at public gatherings in the name of Lord Ganesha.

The statues are paraded through the streets with much fun filled joviality in the form of song and dance on Anant Chaturdashi. This journey ends with immersing the Lord into His resting place, a water body. This final act is to remind everyone that change is a universal truth and that in the end form dissolves and leads to a state of formlessness and only energy remains.

Id-Ul-Fitr

One of the most important occasions of the Islamic calendar is Eid-Ul-Fitr or Id-Ul-Fitr festival, commonly known as Eid. Eid denotes the end of 'Ramadan', the month of fasting and beginning of the new month of Shawwal.

Eid is an Arabic word which represents "festivity" and Fiṭr means "to purify". A fast is to be kept every day during the month of Ramadan. The fasting represents the fact that the spiritual being is superior to the physical. Eid date is decided by the appearance of the new moon. Prayers are offered in mosques and Idgahs and elaborate festivities are held.

On Id-Ul-Fitr, muslims wake up before sunrise and offer Salatul Fajr, an early morning namaz, clean one's teeth, take a shower, put on new clothes and apply perfume. A small breakfast is suggested on Eid day of sweet dish preferably the date fruit. Then a special Eid prayer, Salah, is to be attended in a congregation in open areas and mosques. After the prayer, everyone embraces the person sitting on either side of oneself while greeting them. Then everyone visits their near and dear ones with Eid gifts and prepared delicacies are distributed among friends and neighbours.

Common greetings on this day are ‘Īd mubārak ("Blessed Eid") or ‘Īd sa‘īd ("Happy Eid"). As per local languages and traditions there can be additional form of greetings as well. The festival of Eid is devoted to the omnipresent virtues of love, peace and brotherhood.