💍 Vivah Panchami (Ram-Sita wedding) Vrat Katha
The story
King Janaka of Mithila found a girl in the earth while ploughing and raised her as his daughter — she became Sita (Janaki). Janaka vowed that Sita would marry whoever could lift Shiva's Pinaka bow and string it. Kings came from every land; none could even move the bow; even Ravana and Banasura went back defeated.
Rama, who had come with Guru Vishwamitra, lifted the bow and it broke as he strung it — 'Bhare bhuvan ghor kathor rav'. Sita garlanded Rama. Dasharatha came with the baraat from Ayodhya; on Margashirsha Shukla Panchami Rama-Sita, Lakshmana-Urmila, Bharata-Mandavi and Shatrughna-Shrutakirti — all four brothers — were married in Janakpur.
Goswami Tulsidas sang this very episode in the Bal Kand — and reading or hearing this part of the Manas is believed to remove obstacles to marriage. By one view Tulsidas completed the Ramcharitmanas on this day, hence Manas Jayanti too.
Why this katha — the significance
The wedding of Rama and Sita is the symbol of the ideal marriage — the vrat of this day is kept to remove obstacles to marriage and to keep love between husband and wife. Unmarried girls keep it wishing for a husband like Rama.
The Dhanush-Yajna and wedding episode of the Bal Kand of the Ramcharitmanas is read on this day — with 'Mangal bhavan amangal hari' and 'Siya-Ram may sab jag jani'; completing a Manas reading is considered specially fruitful.
In Mithila this day is a festival of the sweetness between a daughter's home and her in-laws — Sita is Mithila's daughter, so here Rama is the 'son-in-law' and all the teasing of the baraat is in the folk songs.
How the katha is heard
- Hear or read the katha after the puja, before the aarti — the whole family sits together.
- The one keeping the vrat should listen with a calm mind; keep a lamp lit and a little akshat-flowers in hand.
- At the end, offer the flowers at the deity's feet and bow; share the prasad with everyone.
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Frequently asked questions
When is Vivah Panchami in {Y}?
The date at the top is this year's Margashirsha Shukla Panchami — from panchang calculations; the Abhijit and Godhuli muhurats (Delhi) are shown too.
Is it auspicious to marry on Vivah Panchami?
It is the wedding day of Rama and Sita, yet folk tradition avoids weddings on this day — because Rama and Sita had to bear separation; this belief is strong in Mithila and Awadh. See the muhurat page for auspicious dates.
Who should keep this vrat?
Married women wishing for a happy marriage, and unmarried girls wishing for a good husband; for obstacles to marriage, reading the wedding episode of the Bal Kand on this day is considered special.
What is Manas Jayanti?
By one view Tulsidas ji completed the Ramcharitmanas on this Vivah Panchami, hence Manas reading and remembrance of Tulsidas on this day.
What happens in Mithila and Ayodhya on Vivah Panchami?
At Janakpur (Nepal) the wedding procession of Rama and Janaki arrives from Ayodhya — the mandap, sindoor daan, kohbar, Maithili wedding songs, thousands of devotees; in Ayodhya the wedding tableau at Kanak Bhavan and the Ram temple, the wedding episode of the Ramlila; in the homes of Mithila Sita is regarded as a daughter and the songs of 'a daughter's farewell' are sung.
What remedy to do on this day if marriage is delayed?
Worship Rama and Sita in the morning and chant 'Om Janakivallabhaya Namah' 108 times, read the wedding episode of the Bal Kand of the Ramcharitmanas (from the bow sacrifice to the farewell), donate yellow clothes, fruit and suhag items to a married woman/girl, water a banana tree; it is believed that prayer on the wedding day of Sita and Rama removes obstacles to marriage — if the chart has Manglik/Venus-Jupiter dosha, a separate remedy from a priest.
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