Nuakhai Festival 2023 Odisha:Date and Time

Nuakhai Festival 2023 Odisha Date and Time|Nuakhai Festival 2023 Odisha Date and Time Pdf|nuakhai 2023 date and time:Nuakhai is one of the unique social festivals which gets its name from the word ‘Nua’, meaning ‘new’ and ‘Khai’, meaning ‘food’. This traditional festival has excellent significance for farmers and the agricultural community as it is performed to welcome the season’s newly harvested rice. Though celebrated throughout the state, the districts of Balangir, Sambalpur, Kalahandi, Sonepur, Bargarh, Sundargarh, Boudh, Jharsugudah, and Nuapada observe this festival with great pomp and splendour.

Nuakhai is celebrated precisely a day after Ganesh Chaturthi in the ‘Panchami tithi’ or the fifth day of the lunar fortnight that mainly falls in August or September. The Nuakhai festival 2023 date is 20th September.Nuakhai is an annual harvest festival in Odisha, celebrated to welcome the season’s new rice. Celebrated a day after Ganesh Chaturthi, Nuakhai is the most auspicious and important social festival in Western Odisha and the neighbouring areas of Simdega in Jharkhand. It is celebrated throughout Odisha and will be held on September 20, 2023.

Where is Nuakhai Celebrated?

Though celebrated throughout the state, the districts of Kalahandi, Sambalpur, Balangir, Bargarh, Sundargarh, Jharsuguda, Sonepur, Boudh and Nuapada are the best places to experience Nuakhai in Odisha. These places of rich history have a sizeable high tribal population, and hence, a great destination to experience the cultures.

Nuakhai Juhar happens every year between August and September. Every year the timing of Nuakhai is astrologically determined on the day after Janmashtami by the Brahmamandap Pandit Mahasabha at Brahmaputra temple in Sambalpur district. Therefore, the Nuakhai festival 2023 dates would be 20 September in Odisha. Since agriculture is the primary source of living for Odisha’s inhabitants, this auspicious occasion marks the gratitude for a bumper crop and abundant rain while nurturing the appreciation for rice cultivation, which is a symbolic manifestation of life.

Nuakhai – Activities and Highlights of the Festival

Nuakhai is a festival with quintessentially agrarian roots – the underlying belief behind the celebration is that to receive the blessings of mother earth, one has to worship the harvest. Preparations for the day begins 15 days in advance – at villages, elderly persons meet at holy places and blows a trumpet to mark the onset. On the day of the Nuakhai, the family head collects paddy from the field after offering milk and flowers to the crop and mother earth. It is then offered to the deity revered by the family or the village.

The preparations reveal elements of both tribal origins and the Hindu rituals – it is believed to have been adopted from the tribal communities of western Odisha, but now recognised as the festival for one and all in the state.The festive spirits are high in the districts of Kalahandi, Sambalpur, Balangir, Bargarh, Sundargarh, Jharsuguda, Sonepur, Boudh and Nuapada in Odisha. Huge ceremonies take place in the ‘pithas’ (temples) of Samaleswari, Pataneswari, Sureswari, and Manikeswari deities.

Community functions called “Nuakhai Bhetghat” are organised at various public places throughout the state. One can immerse in the local culture of Odisha, and witness traditional Sambalpuri dance forms like Rasarkeli, Dalkhai, Maelajada, Chutku Chuta, Sajani, Nachnia, and Bajnia.Traditional delicacies add a unique flavour to the season.

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Nuakhai festival is celebrated in which state

Odisha will be celebrating Nuakhai on September 20, which is also known as Nuankhai, stands as a significant agricultural festival deeply rooted in the cultural fabric of Odisha. This joyous occasion marks the arrival of the freshly harvested rice of the season and is celebrated with great enthusiasm. Nuakhai is traditionally observed on the fifth day, known as panchami tithi, of the lunar fortnight in the month of Bhadrapada or Bhadraba, typically falling in August or September. This auspicious day follows the Ganesh Chaturthi festival and is of paramount importance, particularly in Western Odisha and neighboring regions like Simdega in Jharkhand, where Odia culture holds sway.

The term “Nuakhai” is derived from the Odia language, where “nua” means “new,” and “khai” signifies “food.” Thus, the festival’s name signifies the moment when farmers proudly possess the newly harvested rice, symbolizing a fresh beginning and a ray of hope. Nuakhai holds profound significance for the farming and agricultural community, embodying their connection with the land and nature. A crucial part of the celebration is the “lagan,” a specific time of the day when the festivities commence. It involves the preparation of a special dish called “Arsaa pithaa,” which is central to the Nuakhai celebration.

Nuakhai also encompasses a series of customs associated with nine colors or rituals, each linked to specific rituals that precede the main day of celebration. These include:

1.Beheren (announcement of a meeting to set the date)

2.Lagna dekha (setting the exact date for partaking of new rice)

3.Daka haka (invitation)

4.Sapha sutura and lipa puchha (cleanliness)

5.Ghina bika (purchasing)

6.Nua dhan khuja (looking for the new crop)

7.The Prasad (the offering) to the deity

8.Nuakhai (eating the new crop as Prasad after offering it to the deity, followed by dancing and singing)

9.Juhar bhet (respect to elders & gift transfers)

Nuakhai Festival History

Although the festival’s origins have been lost over time, the oral history dates back to the 12th century AD, when the first Chauhan King Ramai Deo founded the princely kingdom of Patna, which is now part of Western Orissa’s Balangir district.

Raja Ramai Deo recognized the need for settled agriculture in his quest to establish an independent kingdom because the local people’s subsistence economy was mainly centered on hunting and food collecting. He concluded that this economy could not generate the surpluses needed to keep a state afloat.

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Nuakhai Festival Date

Nuakhai date is on 20 September 2023 Wednesday in Odisha

Nuakhai Festival Rituals 

People in Western Odisha start preparations for the festival 15 days in advance. Nuakhai is understood to have nine colors and as a consequence, nine sets of rituals are followed as a prelude to the actual day of celebration. These nine colors include:

1. Beheren – announcement of a meeting to set the date
2. Lagna dekha (setting the exact date for partaking of new rice)
3. Daka haka (invitation)
4. Sapha sutura and lipa puchha (cleanliness)
5. Ghina bika (purchasing)
6. Nua dhan khuja (looking for the new crop)
7. Bali paka (final resolve for Nuakhai by taking the Prasad (the offering) to the deity)
8. Nuakhai (eating the new crop as Prasad after offering it to the deity, followed by dancing and singing)
9. Juhar bhet (respect to elders)

On this occasion, folk song and dance events are organized to display the local culture and traditions of the society.

nuakhai festival 2023 odisha date and time

The ‘Navanna Lagna’ (auspicious time) for Nuakhai festival 2023 has been finalised between 10.27 am and 10.42 am on September 20. The auspicious time was fixed by the Brahmapura Pandit Mahasabha.The ‘Navanna’ means newly harvested rice will be offered to Goddess Samaleswari, the presiding deity of Sambalpur, during scheduled time, marking the beginning of the agrarian festival of Western Odisha

Following traditional puja at the Brahmapura temple at Jhaduapada in Sambalpur city, priests, astrologers went through the almac and determine the timing. As per the tradition, the Nuakhai is celebrated on ‘Panchami tithi’ of the Odia month of Bhadraba.Brahmapura temple trust board handed over the lagna timing to Samaleswari temple servitors.People offer the ‘Nabanna’ to the deity amidst ‘Hulahuli’, beating of drums, cymbals and sounds of conch shells on Nuakhai.