Vat Savitri Puja Vidhiवट सावित्री पूजा विधि

The Vat Savitri puja vidhi is the method of worship that married women follow on the day of the Vat Savitri Vrat. The heart of the ritual is simple: worship of the banyan tree, prayers to Savitri and Satyavan, tying raw cotton thread around the trunk while walking around it, and listening to the story of Savitri. No priest is needed, and women often go to the tree together in small groups. The steps below follow common practice. Customs vary from region to region and family to family, so follow your elders wherever they differ.

In North India the puja is done on Jyeshtha Amavasya, while in Maharashtra, Gujarat and much of the south and west it is done on Jyeshtha Purnima as Vat Purnima. The method is broadly the same on both days.

Before the day

• Gather the items on the puja samagri list a day or two in advance.
• On the evening before, soak black gram (kala chana) in water so that it is soft by morning. Soaked gram is the main offering of the day.
• Find the nearest banyan tree and, if possible, a clean, shaded spot around it. In towns, many temples and parks have a banyan where women gather.
• Drink enough water the evening before, especially if you plan a waterless fast in the summer heat.

Morning preparations

1. Wake early and bathe: Rise early, bathe and put on clean clothes. Red, yellow or other bright colours are commonly worn; many women wear their wedding sari or a new sari.
2. Dress as a suhagin: Apply sindoor in the hair parting and wear bangles, bindi, mehendi and the other marks of a married woman, known together as solah shringar.
3. Take the sankalp: Before starting, sit quietly, hold a little water, akshat and a flower in the right hand, and resolve to keep the vrat and perform the puja for the well-being of your husband and family. Then let the water fall on the ground or in a plate.
4. Prepare the thali: Arrange roli, kumkum, sindoor, haldi, akshat, flowers, a diya, incense, fruits, soaked gram, puri or sweets, a hand fan (pankha), raw cotton thread (kachcha sut) and a lota of water on a puja thali.

The puja at the banyan tree

1. Clean the spot: Sweep or wipe the place at the foot of the tree and sit facing the trunk.
2. Place Savitri and Satyavan: Many women place a small picture or clay image of Savitri and Satyavan at the root. Some families also keep images of Yamraj and Brahma, following local custom.
3. Offer water: Pour water from the lota at the roots of the banyan.
4. Apply roli, haldi and sindoor: Apply roli, haldi and sindoor to the trunk and to the images, then offer akshat and flowers.
5. Light the diya and incense: Light the lamp and incense and wave them gently before the tree.
6. Offer the bhog: Offer soaked gram, fruits (mango, banana or seasonal fruits), puri and sweets. Some women also offer a few clothes or suhag items for Savitri.
7. Fan the tree: In many regions the women wave the bamboo or palm fan towards the tree, remembering how Savitri fanned and cared for Satyavan in the forest.
8. Do the parikrama: Walk around the tree clockwise, winding the kachcha sut around the trunk as you go. Most women complete 7 rounds; some do 11, 21 or 108. The parikrama and raksha sutra page explains this step in detail.
9. Hear the katha: Sit together and read or listen to the story of Savitri and Satyavan. Women often take turns reading, or an elder tells it aloud.
10. Pray: With folded hands, pray to Savitri and to the banyan for the well-being of the family. Many women recite a short Savitri prayer or banyan prayer; see the mantra page. You may also do the aarti.

After the puja

1. Touch the feet of elders: Return home and touch the feet of your husband, mother-in-law and other elders to receive their blessings.
2. Give the baya: In many North Indian families, the woman gives her mother-in-law a "baya", a gift of fruits, sweets, soaked gram, clothes and suhag items, with some money.
3. Charity: Some women give fruits, grain, clothes or a little money to a needy person or a Brahmin.
4. Paran (breaking the fast): When the fast is to end depends on family custom. Many women break it after the puja by swallowing a few soaked gram, and in some homes a tender banyan bud, with water. Others continue until evening. Read more on how to observe the vrat.

Puja at home if no banyan is nearby

Many women live far from a banyan tree. In that case the puja can be done at home in the same order. A small banyan branch is commonly brought from a tree and placed in a pot of soil or water, or a picture of the banyan with Savitri and Satyavan is kept on a clean chowki. Water, roli, flowers, thread and soaked gram are offered to the branch or picture, and the parikrama is done around it. Avoid damaging a living tree; take only a small twig, or use a picture. Devotees believe that sincere devotion matters more than the setting.

Fasting and health

Many women keep a nirjala (waterless) fast on this day. Pregnant or nursing women, women who are unwell, the elderly and anyone on medication should consult a doctor first and may keep a phalahar fast or a lighter fast instead. In the May and June heat, drink plenty of water before and after the fast and avoid standing long in the midday sun. This is not a substitute for medical advice.

Frequently asked questions