Jhulelal
Cheti Chand
The Sindhi new year — and the birthday of Jhulelal, lord of the waters.
Tithi: Chaitra Shukla Dwitiya — the new moon's first sighting of the Sindhi year.
In the simplest words
Sindhi New Year and Jhulelal's birthday — the water god who rose from the river to protect his people; lamps float where he is remembered.
The story & purpose
When the Sindhu community was threatened by the tyrant Mirkhshah, tradition tells, the people prayed for forty days on the banks of the Indus — and from the river rose Jhulelal, the child-saint on a palla fish, avatar of Varuna, who humbled the tyrant with the water's own patience.
Cheti Chand — the moon of Chet — begins the Sindhi year in his name. Behrana Sahib, a lamp-and-offering float, is carried in procession and given to the waters; 'Jhule Jhule Jhulelal' rings wherever Sindhis have made a home.
What is done
Behrana Sahib
A plate of jyot (lamp), misri, phota, fruit and akha taken in procession and offered to a river or sea.
Chhej & procession
The Sindhi folk dance and community fair — the year begins together, not alone.
Water veneration
Varuna thanked at the water's edge; new-year resolutions spoken over flowing water.
Best timings
Processions gather in the evening, after the new moon's sliver is sighted.
Exact muhurat varies by city and tradition — for the precise hour, consult a local panchang for your location.
Worth knowing
Jhulelal's cry 'Jeko chavando Jhulelal, tenhija theenda bera paar' — whoever remembers Jhulelal, their boat will cross — is the Sindhi blessing of safe passage.
For a community scattered by Partition, this day is homeland, calendar, and identity in one.
Jhulelal is honoured by both Sindhi Hindus and many Sindhi Sufis — a saint of the river between.