‘Chhath Mahaparva' of Bihar: A Historical Retrospect

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Chhath Puja, often termed as the Mahaparva (a mega festival) of Bihar, has its origin since vedic period.

During Vedic period, there lived an ‘asur’ called 'Gayasur' in 'Keekat Pradesh', a vast area spanning most of central India. Gayasur was an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu. Gayasur was huge in size. It is said that when he lay on the ground, his head would fall in northern India and his legs in the Andhra region. What is important is that his heart ("hriday sthal") would fall in what is today’s Gaya in Bihar.

The ‘devtas’ were very scared of Gayasur as he would trouble them for no reason. They wanted to get rid of him and so they approached Lord Brahma for relief. But Lord Brahma told them that He was helpless because Gayasur was among the greatest devotees of Lord Vishnu and nothing could be done to the supposedly atrocious asur.

Next, the ‘devtas’ approached Lord Vishnu, but He was very hesitant to end the life of His most ardent worshipper. The ‘devtas’ then suggested to Lord Vishnu that He could at least allow a ‘yagya’ (‘yagna’), invoking His name, to be performed on Gayasur’s heart, which lay in the Gaya region.

Lord Vishnu reluctantly agreed to the idea and approached Gayasur, who realised that the performance of the ‘yagya’ – that too in Lord Vishnu’s name – would lead to his instant death. But since he was a great devotee of Lord Vishnu, he accepted the request.

Lord Vishnu, in turn, gave a blessing to Gayasur so that his name would never be forgotten in all times to come. Lord Vishnu blessed Gayasur that the place where a ‘yagya’ was to be performed on his heart – that is, Gaya – would become the holiest of the holy places of Hindus, who would have to compulsorily perform “pind daan” of their ancestors in Gaya and Gaya alone. (The practice continues since then.)

Now, the ‘devtas’ started searching for priests who had to be great worshippers of Lord Vishnu and, thus, could perform the ‘yagya’, but none were to be found. They then approached Narada who told them that such priests could only be brought in from Shakya Dweepa in the ancient Iran region.

These priests were great worshippers of Surya (Sun God) and were also known as “Maga Brahmins” (Reference ‘Vishnu Purana’ 2, 4, 6, 69, 71). In ancient Irna language, “Maga” means ball of fire or Surya. The Sun God is also considered a “swaroop” of Lord Vishnu. (The name "Magadh" can also be traced to "Maga".)

Seven such Sun-worshipping priests were, therefore, brought in to the Gaya region to perform the ‘yagya’ on Gayasur’s heart. These priests, whose descendants survive even today in the Magadh region, were also known as “Shakdeepi Brahmins” (Reference ‘Mahabharata’, ‘Bheeshma Parva’ 12, 33/ ‘Bhavishya Purana’, ‘Brahma Parva’ 139, 142).

These seven Brahmins subsequently settled down in Gaya and its adjoining districts. Edicts found in 1937-38 AD in Govindpur of Gaya district mention this.

Following in the footsteps of the “Maga Brahmins”, the people of the region started the worship of Sun God. Surya is a “Pratyaksh Devta” (visibile deity) and “Surya Shashthi” (Chhath) has high scientific significance too. In due course, this came to be known as “Chhath Vrat”.

The worship was rather simple and could be performed by common people. Although it required a lot of rigour, it did need any intervention from the Brahmins. With time, the significance of Sun worship (Chhath Vrat) grew and the festival became popular. One reason was that performance of Chhath actually proved beneficial to the worshippers and their families.

The origin of Chhath Vrat, therefore, has to be traced in the Magadh (Magah) region from where it spread to other places. The Shakdeepi Brahmins established Sun Temples at seven places in Magadh, including Deo, Ulaar, Aungari, Gaya and Pandarak. (Chhath of Deo is considered extremely auspicious.) The Pandas of Gaya Dham – which is Hindu’s only "Pitri Teerth" – also call themselves “Agnihotri Brahmins”. Agnihotri is a direct reference to Surya.

During Chhath, “Usha” and “Pratyusha” are also worshipped along with Surya. Usha refers to dawn or the first light of the day. Pratyusha refers to dusk or the last light of the day. Both Usha and Pratyusha -- popularly known as "Chhathi Maiyya" -- are believed to be consorts of Surya. That is why during Chhath, the worshipper offers prayers to the setting as well as the rising Sun. Krishna's son Samb and Raja Priyavrat are also said to have performed Chhath Vrat in the same Magadh region and benefited.

Credits:

1. Priyaranjan Bharti, a senior Patna-based journalist and also a Shakdeepi Brahmin from the district's Bihta region

2. ‘Glories of Gaya: Glimpses of History and Archaelogy’, 42nd Indian History Congress Souvenir, Magadh University, Bodh Gaya, 28-30 December 1981

3. Upendra Thakur, MA, DPhil, Professor and Head, Department of Ancient India and Asian Studies, Magadh University, Bodh Gaya

4. Naseem Akhtar, MA, Curator, Gaya Museum, Gaya

5. Naresh Bannerjee, MA, PhD, Department of Economics, Gaya College, Gaya

6. Ashish Sinha, Journalist, New Delh

7. Capital Khabar, New Delhi  

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