Post News Network
BHUBANESWAR: Thousands of Bihari community people residing in the city celebrated Chhath Puja on the banks of Kuakhai river here Thursday. They were joined by people from other communities also who took part in the festival with equal pomp and enthusiasm. People gathered in large numbers on the banks of Kuakhai river Thursday evening to offer prayers to the setting sun and would come back Friday morning. The celebrations were arranged by the Bihar Social Welfare Association Society (Biswas). The Chhath puja was observed with a daylong fast. People reached the river side to offer prayers by standing in waist-deep water and looking at the setting sun, called “arghya’’. After that they offered fruits and sweets, a ritual that they would repeat the next morning after returning to where people return to offer prayers to the rising sun, called “udaygami surya’’ .Sujata Singh, a local Bihari resident, said that they had prepared a kheer fruit and milk and offered it to the Sun God. “This Puja holds huge importance in our lives and we celebrate it with great devotion,” he added. “Chhath is a way to thank Sun, the powerhouse of energy, for showering its blessings on earth,” said Ashutosh Tiwari. “This is also a way to respect the environment and a reminder to the basic human existence. Through the Puja, we pray to god for maintaining balance in nature,” said Chandrasekhar Singh of Biswas.
