The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hindusim vol 2
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Teej<br />
Teej<br />
Teej is a name denoting two different<br />
Hindu religious observances, both falling<br />
in the lunar month <strong>of</strong> Bhadrapada<br />
(August–September). Kajari Teej falls on<br />
the third day <strong>of</strong> the dark (waxing) half <strong>of</strong><br />
the month and Hartalika Teej two weeks<br />
later, on the third day <strong>of</strong> the bright<br />
(waxing) half. Both <strong>of</strong> these observances<br />
have a mythic charter connected with<br />
the god Shiva and his wife Parvati, but<br />
the latter is far more important. Kajari<br />
Teej is a festival marking the coming <strong>of</strong><br />
the monsoons, a season that once<br />
rendered travel impossible. For lovers<br />
who were together, the monsoon<br />
months were very sweet, but for those<br />
who were apart, the coming <strong>of</strong> the rains<br />
foretold a time <strong>of</strong> separation. One <strong>of</strong> the<br />
standard poetic images is the woman<br />
watching the darkening sky, wondering<br />
whether her beloved will make it home<br />
in time. On this day people sing songs<br />
in the Kajari raga, a melodic mode associated<br />
both with the rains and with<br />
songs <strong>of</strong> separation and longing. On this<br />
day people also welcome the rainy season<br />
by setting up swings and swinging on<br />
them. <strong>The</strong> festival is celebrated through<br />
much <strong>of</strong> India, but especially in the<br />
Benares and Mirzapur districts <strong>of</strong> the<br />
eastern part <strong>of</strong> Uttar Pradesh.<br />
Hartalika Teej (also known as<br />
Hariyali Teej) is a religious observance<br />
practiced by young unmarried women<br />
in order to gain a good husband and<br />
have a happy marriage. In Hindu culture<br />
the model for the ideal husband is the<br />
god Shiva, who despite his wild appearance<br />
and his unusual habits, is completely<br />
devoted to his wife. One sign <strong>of</strong><br />
this devotion is that Shiva and his wife<br />
Parvati are married only to each other,<br />
no matter which forms they take—as,<br />
for instance, when one or the other is<br />
cursed to be born as a human being. As<br />
the ideal divine couple, Shiva and<br />
Parvati are the patron deities <strong>of</strong> this religious<br />
observance. Women observing<br />
this festival should worship Shiva and<br />
Parvati (as the model couple whose happiness<br />
they hope to share), decorate<br />
their houses, put on new clothes, and<br />
pass the night singing songs <strong>of</strong> auspiciousness.<br />
This festival reveals the cultural<br />
importance <strong>of</strong> marriage for Indian<br />
women. Because the identity for many<br />
Indian women is still formed primarily<br />
through their traditional roles as wives<br />
and mothers, for many women their<br />
marriage is the most important event in<br />
their lives.<br />
<strong>The</strong> charter myth for Hartalika Teej<br />
not only underlines the importance <strong>of</strong> a<br />
happy marriage but also points to the<br />
woman’s role in gaining her husband.<br />
After the death <strong>of</strong> the goddess Sati, she is<br />
reborn as Parvati in the house <strong>of</strong><br />
Himalaya, the mountains personified.<br />
Very early in life, Parvati vows that she<br />
will have no husband except for Shiva.<br />
Her parents try to discourage her from<br />
this wish because Shiva has taken a<br />
vow <strong>of</strong> asceticism and passes his time<br />
deep in meditation on Mount Kailas.<br />
Undeterred, Parvati goes up into the<br />
mountains and begins to do harsh physical<br />
asceticism (tapas) <strong>of</strong> her own. <strong>The</strong><br />
power generated by her asceticism eventually<br />
awakens Shiva, and on Hartalika<br />
Teej he comes to where she is staying,<br />
disguised as an aged brahmin. He first<br />
tries to discourage Parvati by making disparaging<br />
remarks about Shiva’s lifestyle<br />
and personality, but Parvati refuses to listen<br />
and remains unshaken in her resolve.<br />
Eventually Shiva reveals his true form to<br />
her, and on that day they are betrothed to<br />
be married.<br />
Teli<br />
Traditional Indian society was modeled<br />
as a collection <strong>of</strong> endogamous, or intermarried,<br />
subgroups known as jatis<br />
(“birth”). <strong>The</strong>se jatis were organized<br />
(and their social status determined) by<br />
the group’s hereditary occupation, over<br />
which each group had a monopoly. In<br />
traditional northern Indian society, the<br />
Telis were a Hindu jati whose hereditary<br />
occupation was making vegetable oil by<br />
pressing oil seeds.<br />
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