The thing about fasting is that once you are over the initial hours of it you feel very surreal. You aren't hungry, exactly, anymore. Rather you feel light and mindful. I also happen to get very quiet, and for anyone who knows me this can be a disconcerting symptom.
I however felt very at peace for the most part, throughout the day.
Once we arrived at the pooja location we joined a large circle of ladies who were each beautifully dressed, with some more so than the others. This is an opportunity for ladies to pull out there bridal clothes as they often have no other chance to wear them after marriage. Perhaps I will remember to do so for a future Karwa Chauth.
One young woman was clearly there for the first time as she was be-decked in the most amazing lenga and was beautifully made up.
The heat however appeared to weigh heavily on her in a manner equal to her dressings. She, like all of us, had a vacant expression in her eyes that comes from a day of fasting.
The Brahmin woman arrived shortly after we had settled, bringing with her bags of incense and figures of gods whose blessings are requested on this day. She lead us in the singing of a traditional hymn and told the story of Karwa Chauth during each break in the passing of the thalis (plates).
All of the ladies seemed to be sharing such a personal, yet communal moment of honoring their marriage vows and praying for the long life and success of their husbands.
It was quite intimate watching the way some of the ladies touched their thalis to their cups of water then to their heads and sometimes to their lips. Can a prayer be stronger by a more intense devotion on the part of the applicant?
At the end of the fourth passing of the thalis (plates) a small thud-crack sound rang out. A piece of clay pottery had fallen from one of the upper balconies surrounding the driveway we sat on.
Not a moment passed before a large (baseball sized) piece came hurtling over the edge of the same balcony. Thank god no one was hurt, but the sound it made as it crashed into the ground confirmed that if it had hit anyone medical attention would have likely been necessary.
After the final thali passing we said our goodbyes and made our way home.
The landscape on the way back seemed so much more green than the last I remembered it being. Granted the rains were just a short while back so that explains much of it. However, it was most lovely in the brightness of the early part of the setting sun.
We waited until 8:45 that night for the moonrise. This was the time to break our fast. By this time I was far more tired than hungry, so took a simple meal and slept.
Some may say this a is a silly traditional observance because "why should the wife suffer so?"
But you must ask yourself: when thinking of your spouse or partner, what wouldn't you do to ensure a long and healthy life? Does one really need to wait until extreme moments of choice to show their devotion through sacrifice? It seems much more sensible in this way to choose to demonstrate this devotion through a routine and ritual sacrifice that is regular in its occurrence rather than an idiosyncratic one.
Besides, it is far more for the ladies' benefit to spend the day relaxing while thinking about her husband than some of the usual alternatives...(Smile and wink).
Karwa Chauth highlights.
Peace,
A Pink American
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