Kattak

Kattak (Shahmukhi: کتک; Gurmukhi: ਕੱਤਕ, Punjabi pronunciation: [kət̪ːəkᵊ]), also spelt as Katik, and also known as Katte is the eighth month of the Punjabi calendar and the Nanakshahi calendar. The Nanakshahi solar month of Katik I begins on October 5th, after Asu I, and ends on November 14th, being followed by Maghar. The traditional Punjabi Bikrami lunisolar month begins on the day after the Assu full moon and ends on the Kattak full moon.

This month coincides with Kartik in the Hindu calendar and the Indian national calendar, and October and November in the Gregorian and Julian calendars and is 30 days long.

Important events during this month

October

October 15 (1 Kattak) - The start of the month Katak
October 20 (6 Kattak) - Joti Jot of Guru Har Rai Ji
October 20 (6 Kattak) - Gur Gadi of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji
October 20 (6 Kattak) - Gur Gadi of Guru Har Krishan Ji
October 21 (7 Kattak) - Joti Jot of Guru Gobind Singh Ji

November

November 14 (1 Magghar) - The end of the month Katak and the start of Maghar

Hindu Festivals Based on Lunar Dates

Kattak 4: Karwa Chauth (ਕਰਵਾ ਚੌਥ) - A day of fasting observed by women for the well-being and longevity of their husbands. The fast is broken in the night after seeing the moon. It is a festival originating from medieval Punjab when women fasted for their husbands during war time on this day.
Kattak 8: Chakri (ਚਾਕਰੀ) - A day of fasting dedicated to Goddess Ahoi observed by mothers for the well-being and longevity of their sons. The fast is broken in the night after seeing the stars. A festival originating from medieval Punjab when women fasted for their sons during war time on this day. It is also known as Ahoi Ashtami.
Kattak 13: Dhanteras (ਧਨਤੇਰਸ) - The beginning of the Deepavali festival when Goddess Lakshmi is invited into the home. Houses are cleaned on this day and new utensils or items of silver or gold are purchased on this day. Earthen lamps are lit on this day in honour of Yama for protection against early death.
Kattak 14: Choti Diwali (ਛੋਟੀ ਦੀਵਾਲੀ) - The day before Diwali when houses are decorated with rangoli and gifts are exchanged. Puja is performed to Hanuman. It is known as Naraka Chaturdashi in other parts of India.
Kattak 15: Diwali (ਦੀਵਾਲੀ) - The most important Hindu festival of the year commemorating the day Rama and Sita returned to Ayodhya. It is celebrated with the lighting of earthen lamps and the worship of Goddess Lakshmi. In Punjab, a small terracotta hut structure called a hatti containing terracotta idols of Lakshmi and Ganesha is worshipped in the evening. Firecrackers are set off in the evenings and throughout the night
Kattak 16: Govardhan Puja (ਗੋਵਰਧਨ ਪੂਜਾ) and Vishvakarma Puja (ਵਿਸ਼ਵਕਰਮਾ ਪੂਜਾ) - The Hindu festival celebrated the day after Diwali which honors both Lord Krishna's act of lifting the Govardhan Hill to save his people and the birth of the divine architect Lord Vishvakarma. In Punjab, it is celebrated with the building of miniature hills of food (Annakut) as an offering to Krishna or the worship of tools and machinery by artisans and factory workers in honour of Vishvakarma. Some families make earthen representations of Govardhan Hill to circumambulate around in the evening during a puja.
Kattak 17: Tika (ਟਿੱਕਾ) - The Hindu festival that celebrates the sacred bond between a brother and sister commemorating the day the god of death Yama visited his sister Yamuna who then performed a tilak ceremony for him. It is celebrated with the sister applying a ceremonial mark (tilak or tika) on her brother's forehead and marks the end of the Deepavali festival. It is known as Bhai Dooj in other parts of India.
Kattak 26-30: Tulsi Viah (ਤੁਲਸੀ ਵਿਆਹ) - A festival that celebrates the union of Vrinda and Vishnu. It is observed with a ceremonial marriage of the sacred Tulsi plant (Holy basil, personified as Goddess Lakshmi/Vrinda) to Lord Vishnu (often represented by a Shaligram stone or an idol of Krishna).
Kattak 30: Kattak Punnia (ਕੱਤਕ ਪੁੰਨਿਆ) - The full moon of the Kattak month which is the final day of the highly significant autumnal Hindu festival season. It is celebrated by taking baths in sacred water bodies, lighting countless lamps along riverbanks, and the observance of Satyanarayan Puja. It is also the holy day of Guru Nanak Dev Ji's birth (Gurpurab) for Sikhs.

References

↑ Mishra, Vinod K. (2020). "4.3 The Nanakshahi Calendar (Tropical-Solar) - Months of Nanakshahi Calendar". Calendars of India. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 34–35. ISBN 9788120842762.
↑ Melton, J. Gordon, ed. (Sep 13, 2011). "The Nanakshahi Calendar of the Sikhs". Religious Celebrations: An Encyclopedia of Holidays, Festivals, Solemn Observances, and Spiritual Commemorations. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 162–163. ISBN 9781598842067.

External links

www.srigranth.org SGGS Page 133 Archived 2007-03-11 at the Wayback Machine
www.sikhcoalition.org

[1] Mishra, Vinod K. (2020). "4.3 The Nanakshahi Calendar (Tropical-Solar) - Months of Nanakshahi Calendar". Calendars of India. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 34–35. ISBN 9788120842762.

[2] Melton, J. Gordon, ed. (Sep 13, 2011). "The Nanakshahi Calendar of the Sikhs". Religious Celebrations: An Encyclopedia of Holidays, Festivals, Solemn Observances, and Spiritual Commemorations. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 162–163. ISBN 9781598842067.