Puja vidhi — step by step
1. Sargi and morning preparation
Where sargi is customary, receive it before sunrise. Bathe, wear clean clothes and clean the worship area.
2. Make the sankalp
Remember the Lord. Hold a little water and resolve in your own words: O Gauri Mata, I shall observe Karwa Chauth and worship you for my husband’s long life, marital auspiciousness and our family’s welfare. Accept my worship. Release the water into a clean vessel.
3. Observe restraint and remembrance
Observe the fast according to your capacity and family tradition. Remember the Mother, speak gently and maintain harmony. Prepare the evening offerings.
4. Arrange the image and karwa
Cover a platform with a clean cloth and place the Karwa Chauth picture or an image of Gauri and the Shiva family. Follow any customary clay Gauri or wall-drawing practice. Fill the karwa with water and tie sacred thread around it. Place grain on its lid where customary.
5. Evening worship
Light the lamp during the local worship period. Remember Shri Ganesha and worship Gauri Mata, Lord Shiva, Kartikeya and Shri Ganesha. Offer roli, rice and flowers, and sindoor and customary adornments to the Mother.
6. Offer bhog and hear the katha
Offer sweets, fruit and customary festive food. Hear the Karwa Chauth katha with the family or other women observing the vrat. Holding wheat, exchanging karwas and passing plates are observed according to household custom.
7. Aarti and prayers
Perform aarti. Pray for the husband’s health, love within the marriage and the family’s welfare. Seek forgiveness for shortcomings and bow to the Mother.
8. Moon sighting and arghya
After moonrise, view the moon from a clean place. Where customary, view the moon and then the husband through a sieve. Offer water to the moon from the karwa or arghya vessel. Add milk only where this is the family practice.
9. Blessings, bayana and charity
Receive the elders’ blessings. Make customary bayana and karwa offerings according to your means. Follow the family’s practice for their order, recipients and contents.
10. Complete the fast
After moon worship, receive prasad and water. Where customary, accept water and a sweet from the husband’s hand. Then share a meal with the family and distribute prasad.
