Sabitri Brata

 Today (in India) and tomorrow (in USA) is the festival of SABITRI which is exclusive to Odisha. It is widely celebrated on the New Moon day of the Lunar month of JYESHTA, which per Gregorian calendar comes anywhere between mid May to mid June every year (it is to be noted that the Hindu festivals are celebrated per Lunar Calendar). On this day the married women pray for the long life and well being of their husbands. You can call Sabitri an Odia version of "Husband's day" though no such day exists in the  Western world, the closest would be Valentine's day.

In our PURANAs (ancient religious texts), it is mentioned that a young man named  SATYABAN died a sudden, unnatural death. His wife SABITRI who was a SATI (the pious and chaste one), ardently  prayed Lord YAMA (God of death) to restore her husband's life. Gratified by her devotion and penance, Lord YAMA duly obliged. Her husband woke up to life as if he just woke up from sleep.

Following this mythology our ladies do UPABAASA (fasting) on this auspicious day eating frugally; surviving mostly on fruits and yogurt. Parents send SABITRI BHARA (the gift bucket for Sabitri) to their married daughters, which apart from SINDOOR (vermillion) and Bangles symbolizing long marital life also contains a wide array of fruits, including but not limited to locally grown tropical fruits like Mango, Banana, Jackfruit, Lichi, Guava, Date, Palm and Pinapple. Now a days non native fruits, a la Apples, Oranges and Grapes have added taste and veriety to the traditional ones.

The presence of a SABITRI BHARA inside house can be identified by the  conspicuously strong scent of ripened Jackfruits, which are in season at this time of the year and can be smelt miles away. The jungles of Odisha are filled with Jackfruit trees and it is not unusual for this large size fruits cluster around the bottom of the tree, protruding from tree trunh like the sagging fat of a Sumo wrestler. Bears and Jackles who get attracted by their smell love to feast on them.

The downside of this festival is the prices of fruits and SAREEs (traditional attire of Indian women) skyrocket days before the festival, both due to their demand and hoarding by nefarious  merchants. Glad I don't face same situation here in USA as the prices of fruits are no different from other years. Last few years there was low key celebration of Sabitri due the nationwide lockdown imposed as a preventive measure against the ongoing pandemic. 

This year, this day falls on a weekend and when my Sabitri is too tired to cook dinner for me, the SATYABAN doesn't shy away from SHURAPAAN (help myself with few sundowner) and order take out of some exotic dish to end the auspicious day. Happy "Sabitri Brata" to all ladies.