Hariyali Teej 2026 - Vrat, Katha, Puja Vidhi & Significance

Hariyali Teej is a festival of married women that celebrates the union of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. The word Hariyali means greenery, and the festival arrives in the heart of the monsoon when the earth turns lush and green. Women fast, wear green clothes and bangles, apply mehndi, and swing on flower-decked jhulas while singing folk songs. It is a celebration of marital love, devotion and the renewing energy of the rainy season.

Hariyali Teej is observed on Shravana Shukla Tritiya - the third day of the bright fortnight of the month of Shravan (Sawan). In the Gregorian calendar this falls in the monsoon months of July or August. It comes two days after Hariyali Amavasya and about a fortnight before Raksha Bandhan. Because the exact date and the auspicious puja muhurat shift each year with the lunar calendar, please confirm the precise date and timings for your city on the Vandnaa Panchang before keeping the fast.

Married women keep the Hariyali Teej vrat for the long life, health and prosperity of their husbands and for lasting marital happiness. Unmarried girls also observe it praying for a good life partner. The festival honours Goddess Parvati, who won Lord Shiva as her husband through severe penance across many lifetimes. By fasting and worshipping the divine couple, women seek the same unwavering devotion and akhand saubhagya (unbroken married fortune) that Parvati earned.

The Hariyali Teej fast is traditionally nirjala - kept without food or even water from sunrise until the worship is complete the next morning, though many keep a phalahari (fruit-only) fast as per health and family custom. 1. Begin with sankalp (a vow) after a morning bath, resolving to keep the fast with devotion. 2. Avoid grains, salt and cooked meals through the day. 3. Apply mehndi, wear green clothes, bangles and full solah shringar. 4. Worship Shiva and Parvati in the evening and listen to the vrat katha. 5. Break the fast the next morning after worship, ideally with food blessed at the puja. Pregnant women, the unwell and the elderly should keep a fruit fast and prioritise health.

Perform the puja in the evening during the auspicious muhurat: 1. Clean the worship area and prepare an idol or image of Shiva and Parvati, often with a small idol of Parvati made from kaali mitti (black clay) or sand. 2. Place the deities on a wooden seat and offer green clothes and bangles to the goddess. 3. Light a ghee lamp and incense, and offer flowers, durva grass, bel patra, fruits and sweets. 4. Apply roli, kumkum and sandalwood, and offer sixteen shringar items to Parvati. 5. Chant Om Namah Shivaya and prayers to Parvati, then read or listen to the Hariyali Teej vrat katha. 6. Conclude with the aarti, circle the lamp clockwise, and seek blessings for marital happiness. Many women gather to swing, sing teej songs and share the joy of the festival together.

The katha tells how Goddess Parvati, in an earlier birth, longed to marry Lord Shiva and performed intense penance for him over countless years, surviving on leaves and then nothing at all. Moved by her devotion, Shiva finally accepted her as his eternal consort. It is said that on the third day of Shravan, Shiva granted Parvati the boon that any woman who keeps this vrat with true devotion will be blessed with the same fortune in marriage. This is why the day is remembered as the festival of reunion and unbroken marital love.

Devotees believe the Hariyali Teej vrat brings akhand saubhagya, harmony and love between husband and wife, and the blessings of Shiva and Parvati for the whole family. For unmarried girls it is kept for a suitable and devoted life partner. Beyond the spiritual rewards, the festival nurtures togetherness among women, gratitude for the monsoon's abundance, and a joyful pause filled with song, colour and shared devotion.