ODIA CALENDAR

CHAITRA (MARCH-APRIL)

Chaitra month in the Hindu calendar falls between March and April. It is considered as an auspicious month for the people of Odisha.

Rama Navami is a Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of Lord Rama on the ninth day of the bright half (Shukla Paksha) of the Hindu month of Chaitra. After completion of Sandhya Dhupa (evening prayer ritual) in Jagannath Temple, representative idols of Lord Rama and Laxman are taken out in a decorative palanquin to Jagannath Ballava Matha, which is considered as the heavenly garden. The Sahi Jata or Sahi Yatrain Puri starts from Rama Navami. As per tradition, seven sahis usually organise street performance by selected people who play various puranic characters on stories from the Ramayana - from birth of Lord Rama to the killing of demon king Ravana.

Chaitra Purnima is celebrated on the full moon day in the month of Chaitra. The tribal festival Chaitra Parva is celebrated on this day in Odisha. This particular day is also highly auspicious for the fishermen and they offer special pujas for a better catch and safe fishing in the seas. On the eve of Chaitra Purnima, Chaiti Ghoda Nacha, a traditional dance form is practiced in different parts of Odisha. Chaiti Ghoda Nacha is a folk dance of Odisha, a unique dance form and confined to the people of Kaibarta or Keuta (fishermen) community only. Here the term 'Chaiti' represents the Chaitra month, 'Ghoda' means horse and 'Nacha' means dance. This festival is observed for eight days in honour of their caste deity Goddess Vasulei, the goddess possessing the head of horse. In Odisha, month-long special pujas dedicated to Goddess Mangala begins on Chaitra Purnima.

Below we have provided the Odia calendar for March and April months of the year, you can check Sunrise and Sunset times, dates of Purima and Amavasya, all the important dates for marriage, thread ceremony and as well as dates of other festivals.

MARCH MONTH ODIA CALENDAR