Kathmandu, Nov. 7: Just three days after observing the festival of Tihar, the people are celebrating Chhath on Thursday by praying and making offerings to the setting sun in the evening. 

Chhath is celebrated for four days with the first day observing as Nahaya Khaya and the second day as Kharna. On the third day, the devotees offer prayers to the setting sun and on the fourth day, they offer prayers to the rising sun. 

On the first day, the devotees take a dip in holy rivers and ponds and clean their houses and surroundings. They also take food laced with ghee, and rice and milk, but refrain from consuming salt, onion, ginger and garlic. 

On the second day, worshippers fast for the whole day and offer rice porridge or Kheer, Puris and fruits to the sun god. They break their fast after the sun sets with one evening meal but then begin fasting again. For the next 36 hours, they will not even drink water.

The devotees spend the third day preparing the Prasad. As mentioned above, they offer prayer to the setting sun on this day standing knee-deep in water. 

Celebrators gather on the banks of rivers and ponds, decorated with flowers and colourful lights, in the evening and sing folk songs.

On the fourth and final day, they make offerings to the rising sun and break their fast. This is also done at the water bodies.

After returning home, they give the prepared Prasad to their family members and relatives.

This year, Chhath began on Tuesday and will conclude on Friday.

The dates for the festival are determined by lunar phases (Tithis). It starts on the fourth day of the bright fortnight of the Nepali month of Kartik (Kartik Shukla Chaturthi) and ends on the seventh day of the same fortnight (Kartik Shukla Saptami). These dates usually fall in October or November.

Although people in the hills have also started celebrating the festival in recent years, Chhath is marked most grandly in the Tarai region of the country. Nonetheless, various spots along the Bagmati and Bishnumati Rivers, including Gaurighat, Kupondole and Kalimati, as well as ponds including Kamalpokhari, have been fixed in the capital Kathmandu for devotees to come and offer prayers to the sun and Chhathi Maiya.

In Gaurighat, for instance, space has been managed to allow 567 families to pray, informed Chhath Puja Committee there. The committee informed that the main rituals of offering prayers to the Chhathi Maiya and the setting sun would occur on Thursday after President Ramchandra Poudel formally initiates the puja ceremony.

People observe Chhath for their family’s prosperity, progress and good health. They worship the sun to recognise it as the god of energy and life force.