Saath Catalogue

Hariyali Teej

Published 2026-09-04 · region: pan-Hindu · Saath Catalogue

Calendar timing

Aug (Lunar (Shravana Shukla))

  • 2026 · 2026-08-14 (scholar-2026-06-23)

Stories & history

Parvati's austerity rewardedpan-Hindu

The day commemorates Parvati being accepted by Shiva after a very long austerity — the tradition counts it in lifetimes. What is marked is the length rather than the union: the festival belongs to the waiting, which is why it is kept with a fast and why the songs sung on it are about absence more often than arrival.

Green, and the swingsRajasthani/Marwari · Hindi Belt

Hariyali means green, and the festival is named for what the monsoon has just done to the landscape. Women wear green, henna is applied, and swings are hung from trees — the swing is the image of the day, and in the regions that keep it a house without one is unusual. Married daughters are commonly sent for by their parents and spend the festival at their own family's home.

Symbolism & meaning

Core symbolism
The green Teej of the monsoon — Parvati's long austerity rewarded, kept with swings, henna and a fast.
Meaning
The third day of the bright fortnight of Shravana, when the rains have arrived and everything is green. Women wear green, apply henna the night before, hang swings, and gather to sing; a fast is kept, in the stricter form without water. Parents commonly send for married daughters, who spend the festival at their parents' home with gifts sent from the husband's family — the sinjara — arriving beforehand. It is a festival of the northwest and the Hindi belt; elsewhere it is little kept, and Kajari and Hartalika are separate days.

Procedure

  1. Henna the night before. Henna is applied on the eve, and in many families the gifts sent from the husband's household arrive the same day.
  2. The fast. A fast is kept through the day, in the stricter observance without water.
  3. Green and the swings. Green clothing and bangles are worn and swings are hung from trees or in the courtyard.
  4. Puja. Parvati and Shiva are worshipped together, with the narrative of the day read or heard.
  5. Singing and breaking the fast. The women of the household and the neighbourhood gather to sing, and the fast is broken after the evening puja.

Materials needed

  • Green clothing and green bangles
  • Henna
  • A swing, and rope to hang it
  • Images of Parvati and Shiva, or the clay figures some traditions make
  • Flowers, fruit, and the sweets of the region — commonly ghewar
  • A lamp and sandal paste

Family participation

  • Keeps the fast and performs the puja — Married women of the household
  • Send for their married daughters for the festival — Wife's parents (optional)
  • Gather to sing and swing — Women of the neighbourhood

From the Saath Catalogue — occasions documented for families, with regional tradition attribution.