Written by akshita srivastava
Paryushan Parva, popularly known as the festival of forgiveness in the most important festival celebrated among the Jain community all around the world.
Paryushan Parva spans for a period of eight days and most of the individuals belonging to the community perform rigid fasts during the eight days. The fasts include Upvas; where an individual can only drink boiled water from sunrise till sunset on the day he or she performs the fast.
Food can only be eaten the next day after sunrise. Some people fast for two days in a row; which is called Bela in Jain terminology, some fast for three days; which is known as Tela, some for 8 days; which is known as Athai.
The rules of all these fasts are similar; whether you fast for one day or for 8 or more days in a chain, you can only drink water from the time when the sun rises till the time it sets -the longest fasts on Earth are conducted by the Jains of the Jain community throughout the world. Astonishing examples have been set by the Jains when it comes to fasting.
Thousands of Jains have set the example of fasting for 30 days in a row and this fast is more popularly known as Maas Khaman in Jain terminology.
The 13th day of September is yet another important day for the Hindu fraternity. Ganesh Chaturthi, also called Vinayaka Chavithi, is an auspicious Hindu festival which is celebrated for 10 days every year. The festival is celebrated in the Bhadra month as per the Hindu calendar which generally falls in mid-August to September. It marks the birthday of the beloved elephant-headed Lord Ganesha.
