Parvati & Shiva
Hariyali Teej
The green Teej — swings in the monsoon, mehndi on the hands, Parvati reunited with Shiva.
Tithi: Shravana Shukla Tritiya
In the simplest words
The green festival of the monsoon — swings on trees, mehndi on hands, and Parvati's joy at winning Shiva after her long, patient tapasya.
The story & purpose
When the monsoon has turned everything green, Teej celebrates the day Parvati, after long tapasya, was accepted by Shiva. Swings go up on mango and neem branches, and women in green lehariya sing the Teej songs of longing and reunion.
Married daughters receive the sindhara from their parents' home — clothes, sweets, bangles, mehndi — the old bond renewed every monsoon. The vrat is kept for the beloved's long life, in Parvati's own name — Teej Mata.
What is done
Teej Mata puja
Parvati worshipped with mehndi, bangles, and green cloth; Shiva beside her.
Jhoola
Swinging and singing in gathered company — joy as worship.
Sindhara & shringar
Gifts from the maternal home; full solah shringar for the day.
Gauri jaap
Sarva-mangala-mangalye or Om Parvatyai Namah.
Best timings
Puja in the morning; swings and songs through the afternoon.
Exact muhurat varies by city and tradition — for the precise hour, consult a local panchang for your location.
Worth knowing
Jaipur's royal Teej procession carries Teej Mata through the old city for two evenings.
The three Teejs — Hariyali, Kajari, Hartalika — ladder across the monsoon a fortnight apart.
Ghewar is Teej's sweet — monsoon's own honeycomb.