मंगलवार व्रत कथा (हिन्दी में)
प्राचीन समय में एक नगर में एक ब्राह्मण दम्पति रहते थे। ब्राह्मणी का नाम केशवी था। उनके घर में किसी प्रकार की कमी नहीं थी, पर सन्तान न होने से दोनों दुःखी रहते थे। ब्राह्मण पुत्र की कामना से वन में जाकर हनुमान जी की पूजा करने लगा, और घर में केशवी हर मंगलवार का व्रत रखने लगी। वह मंगलवार को हनुमान जी को भोग लगाकर ही भोजन करती थी।
एक मंगलवार किसी कारण केशवी भोग नहीं बना पाई। उसने प्रण किया — "अब अगले मंगलवार हनुमान जी को भोग लगाकर ही अन्न ग्रहण करूँगी।" वह छह दिन भूखी-प्यासी रही। अगले मंगलवार तक वह इतनी दुर्बल हो गई कि मूर्छित होकर गिर पड़ी।
उसकी अटूट श्रद्धा देखकर हनुमान जी प्रसन्न हुए और दर्शन देकर बोले — "मैं तुम्हारी भक्ति से प्रसन्न हूँ। तुम्हें एक सुन्दर पुत्र देता हूँ, जो तुम्हारी सेवा करेगा।" हनुमान जी ने उसे बालक दिया और अन्तर्धान हो गए। मंगलवार को मिलने के कारण केशवी ने उसका नाम मंगल रखा।
कुछ समय बाद ब्राह्मण घर लौटा और बालक को देखकर पूछा — "यह कौन है?" केशवी ने सारी बात बताई, पर ब्राह्मण को विश्वास नहीं हुआ। उसके मन में संदेह हुआ कि केशवी कुछ छिपा रही है। एक दिन ब्राह्मण कुएँ पर पानी भरने गया तो मंगल को साथ ले गया और उसे कुएँ में डालकर अकेला घर लौट आया।
केशवी ने पूछा — "मंगल कहाँ है?" ब्राह्मण कुछ उत्तर दे पाता, उससे पहले ही मंगल मुस्कुराता हुआ दौड़कर घर आ गया। ब्राह्मण आश्चर्य में पड़ गया। उसी रात हनुमान जी ने उसे स्वप्न में दर्शन देकर कहा — "यह पुत्र मैंने ही तुम्हारी पत्नी की भक्ति से प्रसन्न होकर दिया है। उस पर संदेह मत करो।"
ब्राह्मण ने अपनी भूल पर पश्चात्ताप किया और पत्नी से क्षमा माँगी। उस दिन से पति-पत्नी दोनों मंगलवार का व्रत करने लगे और सुखपूर्वक रहे। जो कोई मंगलवार का व्रत करता है और यह कथा पढ़ता या सुनता है, हनुमान जी उसके सब संकट हर लेते हैं।
॥ इति मंगलवार व्रत कथा सम्पूर्ण ॥ बोलो पवनपुत्र हनुमान की जय!
The story of Mangalvar Vrat Katha in English
Long ago a brahmin couple lived in a town; the wife was named Keshavi. They lacked nothing, but grieved that they had no children. The brahmin went to the forest to worship Hanuman for a son, and at home Keshavi began to fast every Tuesday. On Tuesdays she ate only after offering food (bhog) to Hanuman.
One Tuesday, for some reason, Keshavi could not prepare the offering. She vowed: "Now I will eat only after offering bhog to Hanuman next Tuesday." For six days she went without food or water, and by the next Tuesday she was so weak that she fainted.
Pleased by her unshakeable faith, Hanuman appeared and said: "I am pleased with your devotion. I give you a beautiful son who will serve you." He gave her a baby boy and vanished. Because the child came on a Tuesday (Mangalvar), Keshavi named him Mangal.
Later the brahmin came home, saw the boy and asked who he was. Keshavi told him everything, but he did not believe her and suspected she was hiding something. One day, going to the well to draw water, he took Mangal with him, threw the boy into the well and returned home alone.
Keshavi asked: "Where is Mangal?" Before he could answer, Mangal came running home, smiling. The brahmin was astonished. That night Hanuman appeared to him in a dream and said: "I gave this son myself, pleased by your wife's devotion. Do not doubt her."
The brahmin repented and asked his wife's forgiveness. From that day both kept the Tuesday fast and lived happily. Whoever keeps the Tuesday vrat and reads or hears this katha, Hanuman removes all their troubles.
This is the katha of the Tuesday fast found in popular Hindi vrat-katha books; it is a folk katha. Some books add a second story about Mangal (Mars) himself. The katha is retold here in our own words; families and printed booklets tell it with small differences.
How to keep the Mangalvar vrat
- Sankalp. On Tuesday morning bathe, wear red or orange clothes if you can, and take a sankalp — commonly for 21 Tuesdays.
- Worship Hanuman. Offer sindoor mixed with jasmine oil, red flowers, a ghee or mustard-oil lamp, and bhog of jaggery and roasted gram, or boondi or besan laddoos.
- Recite. Read the Hanuman Chalisa, Sankat Mochan Hanumanashtak or Bajrang Baan, then the Mangalvar katha and the aarti "Aarti Kije Hanuman Lala Ki".
- One meal. Eat once in the evening, after the puja. Many eat sweet food only, without salt — wheat and jaggery are traditional.
Food: One meal without salt, often of wheat and jaggery; fruit and milk during the day.
Children, the elderly, pregnant women and anyone with a medical condition should keep a lighter fast. Customs differ between families and regions — follow your own tradition.
Udyapan (completing the vrat)
After 21 (or the vowed number of) Tuesdays, do the udyapan on the last Tuesday: worship Hanuman and Rama, offer sindoor and a red cloth, do a havan if possible, and feed 21 brahmins or children, or the needy, with gifts and dakshina.
Mantra and aarti
Hanuman beej mantra
ॐ हं हनुमते नमः ॥
oṃ haṃ hanumate namaḥ ||
Om, salutations to Hanuman ("ham" is his seed syllable). Chant it 108 times on Tuesday.
Frequently asked questions
Why is Tuesday dedicated to Hanuman?
Tradition holds that Hanuman was born on a Tuesday; Tuesday is also ruled by Mangal (Mars), and Hanuman worship is believed to calm its harsh effects.
How many Tuesdays should the vrat be kept?
Commonly 21 Tuesdays, though some keep 11, 45 or all their lives.
Can women keep the Mangalvar vrat?
Yes — the katha itself is about a woman, Keshavi, who kept it. Women may offer flowers, lamp and prayers; some traditions ask women not to offer sindoor directly to the murti.