Vrat Katha · Savitri & Yama; the Vat (banyan) tree
Vat Savitri Vrat Katha
Married women keep the Vat Savitri Vrat for the long life of their husbands, tying a thread around a banyan tree. The katha recalls Savitri, whose devotion and sharp wit won back her husband's life from Yama, the lord of death.
When It Is Kept
On the Amavasya (in some regions Purnima) of the month of Jyeshtha.
The Story
Savitri, a princess of great virtue, chose Satyavan as her husband knowing a sage had foretold that he would live only one year. Undeterred, she married him and served his blind, exiled parents with devotion in the forest.
When the appointed day came, Savitri fasted and followed Satyavan as he went to gather wood. As the hour arrived he grew faint and lay down; Yama himself came to take his soul. Savitri would not turn back and followed Yama on the long road, speaking to him with such wisdom and grace that he was pleased.
Yama offered her boons — anything but her husband's life. She asked first for her father-in-law's sight and kingdom to be restored, then for sons for her own father, and at last, cleverly, for many children of her own. Bound by his own word, Yama saw that this last boon could not be fulfilled without Satyavan, and so he returned his life.
Satyavan awoke as if from sleep, and the couple returned home to find every blessing come true. Ever since, married women keep this vrat, circling the banyan tree — long-lived and ever-green — and praying for the same steadfast bond.
A devotional retelling of the traditional legend in our own words.
The Meaning
Devotion joined with courage and intelligence can prevail even over death. The vrat celebrates a wife's steadfast love and the enduring strength of the marriage bond.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Vat Savitri Vrat Katha about?
Married women keep the Vat Savitri Vrat for the long life of their husbands, tying a thread around a banyan tree. The katha recalls Savitri, whose devotion and sharp wit won back her husband's life from Yama, the lord of death.
When is the Vat Savitri Vrat kept?
On the Amavasya (in some regions Purnima) of the month of Jyeshtha.
What is the moral of the Vat Savitri Vrat Katha?
Devotion joined with courage and intelligence can prevail even over death. The vrat celebrates a wife's steadfast love and the enduring strength of the marriage bond.