Savitri Devi

On the evening before Vat Savitri, eat a light sattvic meal before sunset. Resolve to observe the vrat. Prepare all puja samagri and the sacred thread (kalava).

Wake before sunrise. Take a purifying bath. Wear a red or yellow sari and full saubhagya items (sindoor, bangles, mangalsutra, bindi).

Go to a banyan tree (vat vriksha). Clean the area around the tree. Place the water pot (kalash) near the roots. Take the formal sankalpa holding water and akshat.

Apply turmeric and kumkum on the trunk of the banyan tree. Offer flowers, akshat, and water at the roots. Light incense and a diya near the tree. The banyan tree itself is worshipped as the embodiment of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva.

Chant the Savitri mantra 108 times sitting before the banyan tree. Pray to Savitri Devi for the long life of your husband, just as Savitri won back Satyavan from Yama (the god of death).

Circumambulate the banyan tree 7 times, wrapping the sacred thread (kalava) around the trunk with each round. While wrapping, chant the Vat Vriksha mantra. The thread symbolises the binding of your husband's life to the eternal banyan tree.

Read or listen to the story of Savitri and Satyavan from the Mahabharata (Vana Parva). This narrates how the devoted wife Savitri followed Yama into the realm of death and, through her wisdom and devotion, won back her husband's life.

After completing the puja and katha, break the fast the next morning after sunrise. Begin with water, then fruits, then a light meal. Receive blessings from the husband and elders.