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Festival Profile

Vat Savitri

Married women pray for their husbands by the sacred banyan tree, honouring Savitri.

All festivals

Vat Savitri is a day when married women pray for their husbands by the sacred banyan tree, honouring the devotion of Savitri.

Stories behind the festival

Savitri and Satyavan

Dwapara Yuga
When Yama, the god of death, came to take her husband Satyavan, Savitri followed him and through her wisdom and devotion won her husband back. Her story is the symbol of a wife's devotion.
Mahabharata (Vanaparva)

Why we celebrate

Vat Savitri is a day when married women pray for their husbands by the sacred banyan tree, honouring the devotion of Savitri.
Mahabharata (Vanaparva); Savitri legend

When

Vat Savitri falls on the new moon (Amavasya) of the bright fortnight of Jyeshtha (May-June), or on the full moon in some regions.

Since when it is followed

The Savitri legend belongs to the Mahabharata (Vanaparva), and the Vat Savitri fast has been observed for centuries.
Mahabharata tradition

Who celebrates / for whom

Observed by married women in North India, Maharashtra and Nepal.

Origin

The origin is the story of Savitri, who through her devotion and wisdom brought her husband Satyavan back from death.
Mahabharata (Savitri-Satyavan)

Key deities

Lord Savitr (the Sun), and the devotee Savitri are honoured.

How to celebrate

Married women fast, circumambulate the banyan tree, tie threads around it, and pray for their husband's long life.

Rituals & offerings

Fasting, banyan tree parikrama, tying of threads, and the worship of the tree as a symbol of the husband.

Key facts

The banyan tree is considered sacred as it symbolises the husband's long life.
Regional tradition