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| Women opening her 'Vrat' - Fast |
The
Story of Queen Veeravati
A
long long time ago, there lived a beautiful girl by the name of
Veeravati. She was the only sister of her seven loving brothers, who
was married to a king. On the occasion of the first Karva Chauth
after her marriage, she went to her parents' house. After sunrise,
she observed a strict fast. However, the queen couldn't stand the
rigors of fasting and was desperately waiting for the moon to rise.
The seven brothers who loved her dearly, were very disturbed watching
the distress of their sister and decided to end her fast by deceiving
her. Then the brothers reflected a mirror through Pipal tree leaves.
The sister, taken it as moon rise, broke the fast and took food.
However, the moment the queen ate her dinner, she received the news
that her husband, the king, was seriously ill.
The
queen rushed to her husband's palace and on the way, she met Lord
Shiva and his consort, Goddess Parvati. Parvati informed her that the
king had died because the queen had broken her fast by watching a
false moon. However, when the queen asked her for forgiveness, the
goddess granted her the boon that the king would be revived. But to
achieve this, she would have to undertake the Karva Chauth fast under
strict rituals, then only her husband would come top life. Thus, by
strictly following all the rituals of Karva chauth, queen Veeravati
relivened her husband.
The
Legend of Mahabharata
The
belief in this fast and its associated rituals goes back to the
pre-Mahabharata times. Draupadi, too, is said to have observed this
fast. Once Arjun went to the Nilgiris for penance and the rest of the
Pandavas faced many problems in his absence. Draupadi, out of
desperation, remembered Lord Krishna and asked for help. Lord Krishna
reminded her that on an earlier occasion, when Goddess Parvati had
sought Lord Shivas guidance under similar circumstances, she had been
advised to observe the fast of Karva Chauth. Draupadi followed the
instructions and observed the fast with all its rituals.
Consequently, the Pandavas were able to overcome their problems. On
this day, fasting women listen to Karva Chauth legends with rapt
attention.
The
Story of Satyavan and Savitri
There
is the story of the Satyavan and Savitri. When Lord Yama, came to
procure Satyavan's soul, Savitri begged him to grant him life. When
he refused, she stopped eating and drinking and Yamraj finally
relented. He granted her, her husband's life. To this day, Karva
Chauth is celebrated with great faith and belief.
The
Legend of Karva
According
to another legend, a woman named Karva was deeply devoted to her
husband. One day while bathing, he was caught by a crocodile. Karva
came running and bound the crocodile with a cotton yarn. She then
went to Yama, the Lord of the death, and requested him to send the
offending crocodile to hell. When Yamarefused, she threatened to
curse him. Afraid of the power of a devoted wife, Yama readily
accepted and sent the crocodile to Yamalok or hell, and blessed
Karva's husband with long life.
