King Priyavrata walked toward the cremation ground with his son in his arms. The boy was golden and perfect, and he did not breathe. Behind the king came Queen Malini’s wails; ahead of him lay a pyre that would end the hopes of years. Priyavrata had waited so long for this child, and he set the body down on the ground as if it might still wake.
Then the sky filled with light. A celestial chariot came down, and from it stepped a goddess, white as crystal, radiant as a champak flower. The king looked up through his tears and asked who she was. Her answer is the story of Chhathi Maiya, and it is why millions of women will stand in rivers at dawn this week.
Chhathi Maiya (Chhathi Mata) is Goddess Shashthi, also called Devasena, the Puranic protector of children, worshipped on the sixth day (Shashthi) of Kartik’s bright half together with Surya, the Sun god. Devotees believe she guards newborns and blesses families with children; Chhath Puja 2026 runs from 13 to 16 November.
| Goddess | Chhathi Maiya, Chhathi Mata, Shashthi Devi, Devasena |
|---|---|
| Known for | Protecting infants and children |
| Her story | Priyavrata and Malini (Brahmavaivarta Purana, Prakriti Khanda; Devi Bhagavata Purana 9.46) |
| Worshipped on | Kartik Shukla Shashthi, the main day of Chhath; also the sixth day after a birth |
| Chhath Puja 2026 | 13 to 16 November (Sandhya Arghya on 15 November, Usha Arghya on 16 November); check your local panchang for sunset and sunrise times |
| Worshipped with | Surya, the Sun god; in many folk traditions also Usha and Pratyusha |
Who is Chhathi Maiya? The goddess who came to the cremation ground
She told Priyavrata her name: Shashthi, the sixth part of Prakriti, primal Nature. The Puranas call her the mind-born daughter of Brahma and the wife of Skanda (Kartikeya), which is why she is also called Devasena, “the army of the gods”. She watches over every child from the moment of birth, and she counts among the sixteen Matrikas, the divine mothers.
Priyavrata had a long road to this moment. He was a son of Svayambhuva Manu who first refused to marry and gave in only when Brahma persuaded him. After years without a child, Malini conceived following a sacrifice, and the baby came into the world golden and lifeless. Since Shashthi’s husband is Skanda himself, you can meet him in Lord Kartikeya: seven fascinating facts.
What Shashthi told the grieving king
Shashthi did not simply wave her hand. She explained, gently, that karma is stronger than anything else: it decides lifespan, fortune and children. Then she touched the child, and he lived. She gave the boy back to his father, and the Purana names him Suvrata, who would grow into a wise and powerful yogi.
But she set a condition. Priyavrata must teach every household to worship her. The king agreed, and that is the Purana’s reason why Shashthi is honoured on the sixth day of each bright fortnight, in the birth chamber six days after a child is born, and at the twenty-first-day and rice-feeding ceremonies. Her mantra in that text is “Om Hrim Shashthi Devyai Svaha”.
Why the Sun is worshipped on Chhath
Here is the part the Puranic story does not spell out. Shashthi’s own worship is about children; the Sun joins the festival through the river-bank traditions of Bihar, Jharkhand and eastern Uttar Pradesh. Over time the two came together: Kartik Shukla Shashthi became “Surya Shashthi”, where the mother goddess and the giver of life are worshipped together. Many folk songs call Chhathi Maiya the Sun’s sister, and in some traditions Usha and Pratyusha (dawn and dusk) are named as his wives, which is why the evening and morning offerings matter so much.
The logic is simple for the devotee. Surya is the visible god who keeps every living thing alive, and Chhathi Maiya is the mother who guards the children of that life. The vrati stands in water, offers arghya at sunset and then at sunrise, and prays for the well-being of her family. For the four days step by step, see the festival of Chhath.
Sita at Munger: the Chhath on the Ganga
A river story is told in Munger, Bihar. After Ravana’s defeat, the tradition goes, Sita wished to thank the Sun god, and Sage Mudgal advised her to observe Surya worship. She is said to have performed it on a rock in the Ganga at Munger. A shrine known as Sita Charan Mandir is believed to hold her footprints, and the spot is honoured as one of the oldest places of Chhath.
This is a local tradition, not part of Valmiki’s Ramayana, and other tellings place Rama and Sita’s Surya vrat at their coronation in Ayodhya. Both are told with devotion, and we kept the second version in Chhath in Indian mythology.
Draupadi’s vrat in the forest
The Pandavas were in exile, with guests arriving at their forest hut and nothing in the kitchen. In the Mahabharata (Vana Parva), the priest Dhaumya teaches Yudhishthira the hundred and eight names of Surya; the Sun appears and gives him a copper vessel that keeps producing food until Draupadi has eaten. That story is in Ganguli’s translation of the epic.
Bihar’s Chhath tradition tells it with Draupadi at the centre: she observed Surya’s vrat on Dhaumya’s advice, and the family’s hunger ended. In the epic the one who prays is Yudhishthira, so this retelling is folk tradition rather than the text. Draupadi’s bond with Krishna appears in the rakhi story of Krishna and Draupadi.
Karna, the Sun’s son, standing in the water at dawn
The one man the epic shows worshipping the Sun every morning is Karna. The Mahabharata says he stood in the river each day, praying to his father Surya, and that until the worship ended he would give anything anyone asked. Indra used that vow, coming as a Brahmin to take his armour and earrings. Read that moment in why Karna gave away his kavach and kundal.
Local tradition in Anga (the Bhagalpur and Munger region of Bihar), Karna’s kingdom, says he began the custom of Chhath. That link is a folk belief; the epic mentions his daily Sun worship in the water, not Chhath by name. Yet when you picture a devotee waist-deep at sunrise, Karna is the image the region reaches for. His birth and Kunti’s choice are in why Kunti abandoned Karna.
How families remember Chhathi Maiya today
Women ask Chhathi Maiya for the health and long life of their children, and many thank her for a child already given. Folk songs in Bhojpuri, Maithili and Magahi name her with love: she is the mother who listens when an ordinary devotee asks. The sugarcane stalks, thekua and fruit in a bamboo soop are offered to her and the Sun. The 36-hour fast is the hardest part, and the whole family stands behind the vrati.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Chhathi Maiya?
Chhathi Maiya is Goddess Shashthi (Devasena), the Puranic goddess who protects children. She is worshipped on Chhath along with the Sun god. Folk songs speak of her as Surya’s sister.
Is Chhathi Maiya the same as Shashthi Devi?
Yes, devotees treat them as one goddess; “Chhathi” is the local form of “Shashthi”, the sixth. Some scholars see Chhath as a blend of older Sun worship with Shashthi worship, and that blend is part of the tradition itself.
Why is the Sun worshipped on Chhath?
Surya is the visible source of life and health, and Chhathi Maiya is the mother who guards children. The two are worshipped together on Surya Shashthi. Devotees also point to Karna, Sita and Draupadi as examples, though those links are traditions.
What is the Chhath puja katha?
The most quoted katha is King Priyavrata and Queen Malini’s story, where Shashthi revives their stillborn son. Families also tell the stories of Sita, Draupadi and Karna. Which one a family recites depends on its region.
छठी मैया की कथा (संक्षेप में)
राजा प्रियव्रत और रानी मालिनी का पुत्र मृत पैदा हुआ। राजा उसे लेकर श्मशान गए। तभी देवसेना, यानी षष्ठी देवी, विमान से उतरीं। उन्होंने कहा कि वे ब्रह्मा की मानसपुत्री और स्कंद की पत्नी हैं और बच्चों की रक्षा करती हैं। उन्होंने बालक को जीवित किया और राजा से अपनी पूजा फैलाने को कहा। बालक का नाम सुव्रत हुआ। यही षष्ठी देवी बिहार और पूर्वांचल में छठी मैया कहलाती हैं। कार्तिक शुक्ल षष्ठी को उनकी और सूर्य देव की पूजा छठ पर्व में होती है। सीता, द्रौपदी और कर्ण की कथाएँ लोक परंपरा में कही जाती हैं। छठ 2026 में 13 से 16 नवंबर तक है।
Sources and versions
- Priyavrata, Malini and Shashthi: Brahmavaivarta Purana, Prakriti Khanda (the Shashthi chapter), and the parallel text in the Devi Bhagavata Purana, Book 9, chapter 46 (sacred-texts translation).
- Dhaumya, Surya’s 108 names and the copper vessel: Mahabharata, Vana Parva, in Ganguli’s translation. Karna’s daily Sun worship and Indra’s request: the same Parva (Kundala-harana).
- Sita at Munger, Draupadi’s Chhath and Karna as the first Chhath vrati: Bihar folk traditions; they are not in Valmiki or Vyasa. Folk songs on Chhathi Maiya as Surya’s sister vary by region.
- Dates: Chhath Puja 2026 is 13 to 16 November; confirm times for your city on Drik Panchang.
More festival stories are in our Festivals section. Read next, in Hindi, छठ त्योहार की महिमा.