|
Celebrated with great fervor, the Gangaur Festival in Udaipur , is one of the famous festivals and events in Udaipur that bears a special significance for the people of Rajasthan. Celebrated in honor of goddess Gauri, it is a spring festival where the devotees offer their prayer to the goddess whom they consider as the mother of abundance. Though the celebrations take place in parts of Bikaner, Jodhpur, Nathdwara, Jaisalmer in a massive scale, the Gangaur Festival in Udaipur is celebrated with equally pomp and grandeur in other parts of the country as well. In the afternoon the idols of Isar and Gauri are taken out to a garden, tank or a well. Both the images are placed on the heads of the married women and are accompanied by songs. The theme of the songs is the departure of Gauri who is on the way to her husband's house. On the first two days of the Gangaur Festival at Udaipur, the image of Gauri is made to face backwards. On the final day the image is made to face the same direction as Isar. Finally the ceremonial procession comes to an end with the immersion of the images in the waters of the tank or the well. After the women bid farewell to Gauri they return to their homes with the hope to celebrate it the next year. Gangaur Festival of Udaipur is the most important festival that is mainly celebrated by the women folk of Rajasthan. Considered as main idol of the married women, Gauri, is the companion of Shiva and the symbol of virtue. Married women pray for the long life and the welfare of their husbands. It is also believed that if unmarried girls observe this festival they will get married to the male they like to. The festival that initiates on the first day of Chaitra and continues for the following 18 days reaches its climax in the last three days. Starting from the 7 th day girls carry earthen pots on their heads with a burning lamp inside it. This ritual continues for next 10 days after which it is finally broken. Images of Isar and Gauri are built of clay and dressed in their best. This festival carries a special significance for the women who wear bright clothes, fine jewelries and design their hands with mehendi.
|
