Katyayani vrata ends

What is Katyayani vrata?

Katyayani vrata is the vow that the young unmarried girls of Gokula kept in Margashirsha, the first month of winter. A vrata is a vow kept with fixed discipline, and for the whole month they worshipped goddess Katyayani every day. In 2026 the vow ends on Thursday, 24 December.

Significance

Srimad-Bhagavatam describes how the gopis, Lord Sri Krishna's dearest devotees in Vraja, kept this vow:

During the first month of the winter season, the young unmarried girls of Gokula observed the vow of worshiping goddess Kātyāyanī. For the entire month they ate only unspiced khichrī.

Srimad-Bhagavatam 10.22.1

In Chapter Twenty-two of his Krsna book, Srila Prabhupada explains that the gopis' plain food was mung dal and rice boiled together without spices, which purifies the body before a sacred undertaking. They wished for nothing but Krishna, and devotees remember their vow as a pattern of single-minded prayer.

How to observe it

As the vow comes to a close, read or hear the gopis' story in Chapter Twenty-two of the Tenth Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam, or in the same chapter of Krsna book. A simple khichri of rice and dal, offered to Krishna, makes a fitting meal for the day. Keep your chanting of the holy names steady, as the gopis kept their minds fixed on Krishna.