Rishi Shashthi Vratऋषि षष्ठी व्रत
Devoted to Saptarishi (Seven Sages) and Lord Kartikeya · Annually on Bhadrapada Shukla Shashthi (August-September)
Significance
Rishi Shashthi is observed on the sixth day of bright Bhadrapada to honor the seven sages — Kashyapa, Atri, Bharadwaja, Vishvamitra, Gautama, Jamadagni, and Vasishtha — who illuminate the Saptarishi constellation. The vrat seeks atonement for impurity sins of the year and is closely associated with Kartikeya. It cleanses karmic blemishes accumulated from inadvertent contact with menstrual or ritually impure substances during the year.
Who Observes
Married women across Gujarat, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh observe this vrat for family welfare, progeny protection, and atonement of menstrual-period karmic transgressions.
Fasting Rules (Upvas Niyam)
- •Strictly avoid grains cultivated by domestic plough or bull-drawn agriculture
- •Consume only wild-grown grains like samak rice (moraiyo) and unploughed fruits
- •Do not use cow milk, curd, or ghee — only buffalo milk products are permitted
- •Bathe with herbal water containing apamarga plant before sunrise
- •Maintain silence during meal preparation and consumption
- •Do not till soil, dig earth, or harm any plant on the vrat day
Rituals (Puja Vidhi)
- Draw seven small mandalas representing the Saptarishi on a wooden plank
- Worship with apamarga twigs, durva grass, white flowers, and unploughed grain offerings
- Light seven ghee lamps and offer naivedya of samak-kheer and buffalo curd
- Recite Rishi Shashthi Vrat Katha and Saptarishi Stotram
- Offer sankalpa for purification of menstrual-period accidental impurities
- Distribute samak-rice prasad among married women and Brahmin priests
Prasad
Samak rice kheer, buffalo curd, wild fruits, and singhara halwa
Benefits (Phal)
The vrat purifies women from accidental ritual impurities accumulated during menstrual cycles throughout the year. It blesses devotees with healthy progeny, protects children from disease, and grants longevity to the husband. Observers gain the grace of Saptarishi, ensuring wisdom, dharmic conduct, and ancestral satisfaction. Spiritually, it cultivates humility, ecological reverence by avoiding ploughed grains, and harmony with the cosmic order represented by the seven sages.
Primary Mantra
Vrat Katha (Story Origin)
The Bhavishya Purana recounts a Brahmin woman named Susheela who unknowingly cooked food during her menstrual cycle, accumulating grave karmic impurity. After her death she suffered torments, and her son sought remedy from sage Kashyapa. He prescribed Rishi Shashthi Vrat performed in her name. Upon completion, the seven sages appeared and granted her liberation, establishing this vrat as the supreme purifier of menstrual-period transgressions for all women henceforth.
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