Śrāvaṇa ( sa, श्रावण) is the fifth month of the

Hindu calendar The Hindu calendar, Panchanga () or Panjika is one of various lunisolar calendars that are traditionally used in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, with further regional variations for social and Hindu religious purposes. They adopt a ...

. In India's national civil calendar, Śrāvaṇa is the fifth month of the year, beginning on July 23 and ending on August 22. In the Tamil calendar, it is known as Āvani and is the fifth month of the solar year. In lunar religious calendars, Śrāvaṇa begins on the new moon (according to the amanta tradition) or the full moon (according to the purnimanta tradition) and is the fifth month of the year. ''Srabon'' ( bn, শ্রাবণ; also spelt ''Sravan'') is the fourth month of the solar

Bengali calendar The Bengali Calendar or Bangla Calendar ( bn, বঙ্গাব্দ , , Baṅgābda), colloquially ( bn, বাংলা সন, Baṅgla Śon), is a solar calendar used in the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent. A revised version of ...

. It is also the fourth month of the Nepali calendar. Śrāvaṇa is also the second month of ''Varsha'' (the

rainy season The rainy season is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. Rainy Season may also refer to: * ''Rainy Season'' (short story), a 1989 short horror story by Stephen King * "Rainy Season", a 2018 song by Monni * '' ...

). The month of Shravana is very important for the entire

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographical region in Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geopolitically, it includes the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India ...

, as it is connected to the arrival of the south-west

monsoons A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscill ...

. For many Hindus, the month of Shraavana is a month of

fasting Fasting is the abstention from eating and sometimes drinking. From a purely physiological context, "fasting" may refer to the metabolic status of a person who has not eaten overnight (see " Breakfast"), or to the metabolic state achieved after co ...

. Many Hindus will fast every Monday to the Lord

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hin ...

and/or every Tuesday to the Lady

Parvati Parvati ( sa, पार्वती, ), Uma ( sa, उमा, ) or Gauri ( sa, गौरी, ) is the Hindu goddess of power, energy, nourishment, harmony, love, beauty, devotion, and motherhood. She is a physical representation of Mahadevi ...

. Fasting on Tuesdays of this month is known locally as "Mangala Gauri Vrat".

Festivals

Shravana is considered to be a holy month in the Hindu calendar due to the numerous festivals that are celebrated during this time. Also, special worship of Lord

and fasting is observed on Mondays.

Dashamaa Vart

Dashamaa Vart is dedicated to Lady Dashamaa and is observed on the first day of Shraavana as per

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the nin ...

i tradition.

Krishna Janmashtami

Krishna Janmashtami marks the birth of Lord Sri

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is on ...

on the eighth day after the full moon, which is the 23rd day of Shravana according to the amanta tradition, and is celebrated with great pomp by Hindus across the world, especially those of the

Vaishnava Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as ...

traditions.

Raksha Bandhan

Raksha Bandhan Raksha Bandhan Quote: m Hindi ''rakśābandhan'' held on the full moon of the month of Savan, when sisters tie a talisman (rakhi q.v.) on the arm of their brothers and receive small gifts of money from them. is a popular and traditionally Hi ...

also called Rakhi Purnima or simply Rakhi in many parts of

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

and

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is ma ...

, is a Hindu religious festival. The festival signifies and celebrates the bond between brothers and sisters. It is celebrated on Shraavana

Poornima Pūrṇimā () is the word for full moon in Sanskrit. The day of Purnima is the day (''Tithi'') in each month when the full moon occurs, and marks the division in each month between the two lunar fortnights (paksha), and the Moon is aligned exactl ...

(Full Moon). In simple words, Raksha bandhan means "Bond of Protection"

Naryal Poornima

In western India and parts of Maharashtra,

, and Goa, Shraavana Poornima (full moon) day is celebrated as Narali Purnima. On this day, an offering of a coconut ( in Gujarati, in

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

) is made to the sea, as a mark of respect to Lord

Varuna Varuna (; sa, वरुण, , Malay: ''Baruna'') is a Vedic deity associated initially with the sky, later also with the seas as well as Ṛta (justice) and Satya (truth). He is found in the oldest layer of Vedic literature of Hinduism, suc ...

, the God of the Sea. In the coastal regions of Maharashtra i.e.

Konkan The Konkan ( kok, कोंकण) or Kokan () is a stretch of land by the western coast of India, running from Damaon in the north to Karwar in the south; with the Arabian Sea to the west and the Deccan plateau in the east. The hinterla ...

, a coconut is offered to the sea for calming it down after the

monsoon season The wet season (sometimes called the Rainy season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. It is the time of year where the majority of a country's or region's annual precipitation occurs. Generally, the sea ...

. Narali Purnima is the beginning of the fishing season, and the fishermen, who depend on the sea for a living, make an offering to Lord Varuna so that they can reap bountiful fish from the sea. Fishermen start fishing in the sea after this ceremony.

Nag Panchami

Nag Panchami is also celebrated in many parts of India on the fifth day after Amavasya of Shraavana month. The snake god

Nāga The Nagas (IAST: ''nāga''; Devanāgarī: नाग) are a divine, or semi-divine, race of half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala), and can occasionally take human or part-human form, or are so depicted in art. ...

is worshiped. The last day of Shraavana is celebrated as Pola, where the

bull A bull is an intact (i.e., not castrated) adult male of the species '' Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e., cows), bulls have long been an important symbol in many religions, incl ...

is worshiped by farmers from Maharashtra.

Basava Panchami

In Karnataka Basava Panchami (Kannada: ) is celebrated on the fifth day after amavasya. In 1196 AD, on this day, Lingayat dharma guru Basava merged with God.

Avani Avittam

In southern and central parts of India including Maharashtra , Goa,

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South C ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to t ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil languag ...

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Kar ...

and

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of Sc ...

, Shraavana Poornima day is when many communities perform the rituals of

Avani Avittam Upākarma ("Beginning", sa, उपाकर्म), also called Āvaṇi Aviṭṭam ( ta, ஆவணி அவிட்டம்), Āvaṇi Aviṭṭam ( ml, ആവണി അവിട്ടം), Janivārada Huṇṇime ( kn, ಜನಿವಾರ� ...

or Upakarma.

Shri Baladeva birthday

Shraavana Poornima day is also celebrated as Shri Baladeva's birth ceremony. Lord

's elder brother Prabhu

Balarama Balarama ( Sanskrit: बलराम, IAST: ''Balarāma'') is a Hindu god and the elder brother of Krishna. He is particularly significant in the Jagannath tradition, as one of the triad deities. He is also known as Haladhara, Halayudha, Ba ...

was born on this Poornima.

Gamha Purnima

Gamha Purnima is celebrated in

. On this date, all the domesticated cows and bullocks are decorated and worshipped. Various kinds of country-made cakes called '' pitha'' and sweets, '' mitha'', are made and distributed within families, relatives and friends. In Oriya Jagannath culture, the Lord Krishna and Lady

Radha Radha ( sa, राधा, ), also called Radhika, is a Hindu goddess and the chief consort of the god Krishna. She is worshiped as the goddess of love, tenderness, compassion, and devotion. She is the avatar of goddess Lakshmi and is also d ...

enjoy the rainy season of Shravana starting from Shukla Pakhya Ekadashi (usually four days before Purnima) and ending on Rakhi Purnima with a festival called Jhulan Yatra. Idols of Radha-Krishna are beautifully decorated on a swing called Jhulan, hence the name ''Jhulan Yatra''.

Kajari Purnima

In central parts of India such as

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital city, capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar, and Rewa, India, Rewa being the othe ...

, Chhattisgarh and

Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ; ) is a state in eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north and Odisha to the south. It has an area of . ...

Shraavana Poornima day is celebrated as Kajari Purnima. It is an important day for farmers and women blessed with a son. On the ninth day after Shravana Amavasya, the preparations of the Kajari festival start. This ninth day is called Kajari Navami and varied rituals are performed by women who have sons until Kajri Purnima or the full moon day.

Pavitropana

In parts of

, Shraavana Poornima day is celebrated as Pavitropana. On this holiday, people perform the grand pooja or the worship of Lord

. It is the culmination of the prayers done throughout the year.

Pavitra Ekadashi

On Ekadashi Day 1th day Vaishnavas in Gujarat and Rajasthan celebrate it as the birth of Pushtimarga, the path of grace. On this day, Lord Krishna appeared in front of Shri Vallabhacharya. Shri Vallabhacharya offered him a thread (''soothan''), which was pious (''pavitra''). Since that day every year, Pavitra Ekadashi is celebrated. Such threads are offered from Ekadashi till Raksha Bandhan.

Jandhyam Poornima

''Jandhyam'' is Sanskrit for 'sacred thread', and ''Poornima'' denotes the full moon in Sanskrit. Jandhyala Purnima is observed on the full moon day (Poornima) in the month of Shraavan in Andhra Pradesh. Brahmins perform the sacred thread changing ceremony on this day and it is also known as Yajurveda Nutanasahitha Upakarma.

Salono

Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ...

and

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

, in addition to celebrating Raksha Bandhan, people observe the festival of Salono. Salono is celebrated by priests solemnly tying amulets on people's wrists for protection against evil The day is dedicated to local saints involving devotees receiving such amulets. In

, the festival of Salono also involves sisters tying threads on brothers to ward off evil. Despite the two festivals being similar in their practices, Salono and Raksha Bandhan are distinct observances with the threads tied for Salono being called ''ponchis''.

Pola

Pola is a festival respecting bulls and oxen which is celebrated by farmers in Maharashtra. Pola is a thanksgiving festival of farmers and their families for their bulls. It is celebrated in Maharashtra to acknowledge the importance of bulls and oxen, who are a crucial part of agriculture and farming activities. It falls on the last day or the new moon day of Shraavana.

Shravani Mela

Shravani Mela is a major festival time at

Deoghar Deoghar (pronounced ''Devaghar'') is a major city in Jharkhand, India. It is a holy sacred place of Hinduism. It is one of the 12 ''Jyotirlinga''s sites of Hinduism ( Baidyanath Temple). The sacred temples of the city make this a place for pi ...

with thousands of saffron-clad pilgrims bringing holy water around 100 km on foot from the

Ganges The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...

Sultanganj Sultanganj is a city located in the Bhagalpur district of the India state of Bihar. It is situated on the south bank of Ganga river, 25 km west of Bhagalpur city at . Demographics As per the Census 2011, the literacy rate of Sultanganj i ...

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

.Fasts and festivals of India by Manish Verma, page 41
/ref> Shravan is also the time of the annual Kanwar Yatra, the annual pilgrimage of devotees of

, known as ''Kanwaria'' make to Hindu pilgrimage places of

Haridwar Haridwar (; ) is a city and municipal corporation in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, India. With a population of 228,832 in 2011, it is the second-largest city in the state and the largest in the district. The city is situated on the ri ...

, Gaumukh and

Gangotri Gangotri is a town and a ''Nagar Panchayat'' (municipality) in Uttarkashi district in the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is 99 km from Uttarkashi, the main district headquarter. It is a Hindu pilgrim town on the banks of the river Bhagirathi � ...

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand ( , or ; , ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2007), is a States and union territories of India, state in the North India, northern part of India. It is often referred to as t ...

to fetch holy waters of Ganges River Hindu saint Sri Guru

Raghavendra Swami Raghavendra Tirtha () (1595 – 1671) was a Hindu scholar, theologian and saint. He was also known as Sudha Parimalacharya (). His diverse oeuvre include commentaries on the works of Madhva, Jayatirtha and Vyasatirtha, interpretation of the ...

, who advocated Sri Madhvacharya's Dvaita philosophy, achieved Videha Mukti on Sraavana Bahula Dwitiya in 1671 AD .

In popular culture

Being the period when the

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal osci ...

falls over the heated plains of India, the season is celebrated in various texts, such as the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...

text '' Meghaduta'' by Kalidasa. Many films too have been made with ''Sawan'' in their title, like '' Aya Sawan Jhoom Ke'', (1969), '' Sawan Bhadon'' (1970), '' Solva Sawan'' (1979), '' Sawan Ko Aane Do'' (1979), ''

Pyaasa Sawan Pyaasa Sawan () is a 1981 Hindi-language drama film, produced by Prasan Kapoor under the Tirupati Pictures Enterprises banner and directed by Dasari Narayana Rao. It stars Jeetendra, Reena Roy, Moushmi Chatterji and music composed by Laxmikan ...

'' (1980), etc. Also, in

Hindustani classical music Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, sit ...

, many songs are themed around

and

during the rainy season, and also

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

songs, e.g., ''Sawan ki Ritu Aai'', ''Sawan ka Mahina Pawan kare Sor and '''Rim jhim gire Saawan'.'' During Shraavana, the Hindu community in the regions of Goa, Maharashtra and

practice a

vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat ( red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetaria ...

diet. This is because during the monsoon season, it is difficult to get seafood; it is thought that most fish spawn during this period and abstaining from fishing in Shraavana will lead to increased fish throughout the year.

References

External links

Sawan somvar Vrat katha
{{Indian astronomy *05