Gangaur Festival: Jaipur is one of the liveliest cities in India. It has all that a tourist wants and perhaps that is why so many tourists not only from Indian but all around the world visit Jaipur. Popular as the pink city this is a land that can charm you with its alluring historical architectures, spectacular views, mystic temples, and enthralling festivals. One such festival which is celebrated in Jaipur and tourists come especially to become a part of it is the Gangaur Festival.
Whether you are an Indian or a foreign national, you must not miss this festival as it offers you a remarkable jamboree of customs and rituals of Rajasthan, the colorful state of India. You get the real flavor of Rajasthan in this festival, but before you plan a Jaipur tour for Gangaur Festival, you must try to learn more about it.
So, push the start button and unfurl the secrets of the Gangaur Jaipur Festival.
What is the Gangaur festival?
The Gangaur festival is a special celebration of the state Rajasthan apart from Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat in India. Celebrated once in a year, this is a festival where the women folk participate to pay tribute to the Goddess Gauri. Being one of the most colorful festivals of Rajasthan, here you can find the women wearing a traditional Rajasthani dress full of vibrant colors that are one of the best festivals to try.
What is the story behind the Gangaur Festival celebration?
Just like the festival, its story related to the celebration is also very interesting. Once Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati (Gauri) along with Sage Narad visited a small forest and the news floated in the forest, thereby leading the women to prepare a feast for the Gods. Firstly, the women of higher caste came to serve their dishes to the Gods and the Gods after dining sprinkled the holy water on them. Later the women of lower caste came and the Goddess Gauri sprinkled blood after cutting her finger since she had no holy water left. To celebrate the love of the Goddess for all the women and showing that in God’s eye all are equal, this special Gangaur Festival is celebrated.
Why is the Gangaur Festival important?
The main reason for celebrating the Gangaur festival is marital bliss and fidelity apart from the harvest, as Lord Shiva and Goddess Gauri came together to bless the women. On one hand where married women perform the rituals and fast for the health of their husband and their well-being, there, on the other hand, spinsters take to perform the rituals to seek the blessing from the Goddess Gauri to get a husband like Lord Shiva who is famous for his love for his wife Goddess Parvati (Gauri).
When and where is the festival celebrated?
As aforementioned, Gangaur Festival is celebrated in Rajasthan in addition to Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. However, it is mainly a festival of Rajasthan and is celebrated after the Indian festival of color Holi. The rituals of the festival extend up to 18 long days where women take part in the Fiesta with full fervor. Jaipur is the center of the Gangaur Festival gala apart from its nearby areas such as Udaipur, Nathdwara, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, and Bikaner. If you take the Ultimate Pink package available on PinkPedia then you can cover all these places in your tour to Jaipur, the capital city of the state of Rajasthan in India.
Where is the Gangaur Festival celebrated particularly in Jaipur?
As far as Jaipur is concerned, then the procession of the festival of Gangaur commences from Zanani Deodhi in City Palace to the Talkatora after passing many other important stops that include the Tripolia market, Chhoti Chaupar, Gangauri market, and lastly Chaugan stadium before reaching Talkatora.
What are the rituals performed at the festival and how it is celebrated?
In Jaipur, Rajasthan festivals are celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm especially Gangaur, as it is a specialty of Rajasthan and has been celebrated since time immemorial. Starting on the first day of Chaitra, which is basically the next day of the Holi festival, the women of Rajasthan start their fast of 18 days and eat only once per day. Ending on the third day of Shukla Paksha, this festival is marked by the ending of the fast and the women also carry out their procession from Jaipur City Palace to Talkatora, Jaipur.
Dressed in their best clothes and jewelry, women of all ranks and caste participate in the celebration and pray for the welfare of their husbands. The most important day is the last one as it is executed with colorful procession taken out by women bejeweled idols of the goddess Gauri and moved from one end of the city to the other, thereby accompanied by the other people.
If you are in Udaipur then you can also enjoy a boat procession which is held on its famous Lake Pichola, and colorful fireworks. Balancing several brass pitchers on their heads, the women add a more delightful view to the tourists and with fireworks on the banks of the lake, the whole city appears so beautiful that you cannot forget its image from your mind even when you go back to your home.
The day starts early in Jodhpur and thousands of maidens dress up to carry out the procession. The whole time they keep singing and with grass and water in the pots on their head, they move forward.
You must know that the most interesting part of the Gangaur Festival in Jaipur is elephants which also take part in the festival procession and you can also find some of the most beautiful old palanquins, chariots, and bullock carts on which women perform folk performances all the way till the end.
Aside from enjoying the view, you can also buy souvenirs and masterpieces at an affordable price from the fair. You can also take pleasure in watching the images of the God and Goddess that are made out of clay and hold a special place for the rituals. You can also find some families of Jaipur using traditional wooden images, which they paint and prepare it for the last day. Women are not only dressed in conventional Rajasthani attire but also decorate their hands and feet by applying a special myrtle paste in a variety of figures, designs, and shapes.
Now, the spinsters of the city and villages on the seventh day from Holi, come out and carry small earthen lamps to walk around the streets in addition to singing the folk ghudlia songs. This is something which continues for the next ten days and the earthen pot is destroyed only on the 18th day of the Gangaur Festival and is drowned into a tank or a well. Once this procession is complete, the women break their holy fast of 18 days and enjoy a delicious feast.
If you are visiting Jaipur to attend this festival then you must remember that the last three days of the festival are the best as these days the locals are busy decorating their deities with ornaments and dresses. At an auspicious time, the locals form a procession with the deities on the head of married women. With the complete prayers and rituals on the last and the final day of the festival the idols of Goddess Gauri are drowned into the water, thereby bidding adieu to the Goddess only to return back the next year to shower her blessing on the women of Jaipur.
Conclusion
If you are someone who is fond of Indian festivals and want to be a part of it, then you must not forget the Gangaur Festival of Rajasthan which is celebrated in a special way in Jaipur. You just need to plan a Jaipur tour in accordance with the festival and you will be able to become a part of this amazingly splendid festival where women seek blessings from Lord Shiva and Goddess Gauri for a blissful married life and conjugal felicity. Therefore you are advised to choose the Ultimate Pink Jaipur tour package and have a delightful time in the city of festivals.