Santoshi Mata Vrat Kathaसंतोषी माता व्रत कथा (शुक्रवार)

संतोषी माता व्रत कथा (शुक्रवार) (हिन्दी में)

एक बुढ़िया के सात बेटे थे। छह बेटे कमाते थे, सातवाँ निकम्मा था। बुढ़िया छह बेटों को प्रेम से भोजन कराती और उनकी थालियों में बचा जूठन सातवें बेटे को खिला देती। सातवें बेटे की पत्नी यह देखकर दुःखी रहती थी। एक दिन बेटे ने स्वयं यह देख लिया और अपमानित होकर परदेस कमाने चला गया। जाते समय उसने पत्नी को निशानी के रूप में अँगूठी दी।

परदेस में उसे एक सेठ के यहाँ काम मिल गया। अपनी लगन से वह जल्दी ही सेठ का साझेदार बन गया और बहुत धन कमाया, पर काम में इतना डूब गया कि घर और पत्नी को भूल गया। उधर घर में उसकी पत्नी पर सास और जेठानियाँ बहुत अत्याचार करतीं। उससे जंगल से लकड़ियाँ मँगवातीं, भूसे की रोटी और नारियल के खोपरे में पानी देतीं।

एक दिन जंगल से लौटते हुए उसने कुछ स्त्रियों को संतोषी माता का व्रत करते देखा। उसने विधि पूछी। स्त्रियों ने बताया — "सवा आने का गुड़-चना लेकर हर शुक्रवार माता की पूजा करो, कथा सुनो और गुड़-चना प्रसाद बाँटो। उस दिन खटाई न खाना, न किसी को खिलाना। सोलह शुक्रवार के बाद उद्यापन करना और आठ लड़कों को भोजन कराना।"

बहू ने लकड़ियाँ बेचकर गुड़-चना लिया और श्रद्धा से व्रत करने लगी। कुछ ही शुक्रवार में पति का पत्र और पैसे आने लगे। फिर माता ने उसके पति को स्वप्न में दर्शन देकर घर की याद दिलाई। वह सेठ से हिसाब करके बहुत धन लेकर घर लौटा। उसने पत्नी की दशा देखी तो अलग घर बनवाकर उसे आदर से रखा।

अब बहू ने धूमधाम से उद्यापन किया और जेठानियों के आठ लड़कों को भोजन पर बुलाया। जेठानियाँ ईर्ष्या करती थीं। उन्होंने अपने बच्चों को सिखा दिया कि भोजन के बाद खटाई माँगना। बच्चों ने खटाई माँगी; बहू ने मना किया तो उन्होंने पैसे माँगे। भोली बहू ने पैसे दे दिए, और बच्चों ने उन पैसों से इमली खरीदकर खा ली। माता का नियम टूटने से माता अप्रसन्न हुईं — राजा के सिपाही आकर उसके पति को पकड़ ले गए।

बहू ने रो-रोकर माता से क्षमा माँगी। उसने फिर से नियम से व्रत किया और इस बार ब्राह्मणों के आठ बालकों को भोजन कराया, केवल फल दक्षिणा में दिए, पैसे नहीं। माता प्रसन्न हुईं; पति छूटकर घर आ गया। कुछ समय बाद उन्हें सुन्दर पुत्र हुआ। एक दिन माता स्वयं भयंकर रूप में उसके घर आईं; सास-जेठानियाँ डर गईं, पर बहू ने पहचान लिया और चरणों में गिर पड़ी। तब सबने माता की महिमा जानी और सब संतोषी माता का व्रत करने लगे।

जो कोई श्रद्धा से संतोषी माता का व्रत करता है और यह कथा पढ़ता या सुनता है, माता उसके सब दुःख दूर करके उसके जीवन में संतोष और सुख भर देती हैं।

॥ इति संतोषी माता व्रत कथा सम्पूर्ण ॥ बोलो संतोषी माता की जय!

The story of Santoshi Mata Vrat Katha in English

An old woman had seven sons. Six earned a living; the seventh did nothing. She fed the six lovingly and gave the seventh the leftovers from their plates. The seventh son's wife grieved to see this. One day the son saw it for himself and, humiliated, left to earn in a distant land. As he left, he gave his wife his ring as a keepsake.

Far away he found work with a merchant. Through hard work he soon became the merchant's partner and earned great wealth — but he became so absorbed in work that he forgot his home and his wife. At home his mother and his brothers' wives treated her cruelly: they made her fetch wood from the forest, and gave her bread made of husk and water in a coconut shell.

One day, returning from the forest, she saw some women keeping the vrat of Santoshi Mata and asked how it was done. They told her: "With jaggery and roasted gram worth a small coin, worship the Mother every Friday, hear the katha and share the gur-chana as prasad. On that day eat nothing sour and give nothing sour to anyone. After sixteen Fridays, do the udyapan and feed eight boys."

She sold firewood to buy gur and chana and kept the vrat with faith. Within a few Fridays, letters and money began to come from her husband. Then the Mother appeared to him in a dream and reminded him of home. He settled his accounts with the merchant and returned home with great wealth. Seeing how his wife had been treated, he built a separate house and kept her with honour.

Now she held a grand udyapan and invited the eight sons of her sisters-in-law to the meal. The jealous sisters-in-law told their children to ask for something sour after eating. The children asked for sour food; when she refused, they asked for money. Innocently she gave them coins, and they bought tamarind and ate it. Because the Mother's rule was broken, she was displeased — the king's soldiers came and took the husband away.

Weeping, the wife begged the Mother's forgiveness. She kept the vrat again properly, and this time fed eight brahmin boys and gave them fruit, not money, as dakshina. The Mother was pleased; her husband was released and came home, and in time they were blessed with a son. One day the Mother herself came to their house in a fearsome form; the mother-in-law and sisters-in-law were terrified, but the young wife recognised her and fell at her feet. Then everyone understood the Mother's greatness, and all began to keep the Santoshi Mata vrat.

Whoever keeps the Santoshi Mata vrat with faith and reads or hears this katha, the Mother removes their sorrows and fills their life with contentment and happiness.

Santoshi Mata worship spread in North India from the 1960s; the 1975 film "Jai Santoshi Maa" made this katha known across the country. Popular tradition calls her a daughter of Ganesha. This is the katha found in Hindi vrat-katha books. The katha is retold here in our own words; families and printed booklets tell it with small differences.

How to keep the Santoshi Mata (Shukravar) vrat

1. Sankalp. Start on a Friday in the bright half of the month. Bathe and take a sankalp for 16 Fridays.
2. Worship. Place a kalash with water and a bowl of gur and chana on top, before an image of Santoshi Mata. Offer flowers, incense and a ghee lamp.
3. Katha and aarti. Hear the katha holding gur and chana in your hand, then do the aarti "Jai Santoshi Mata". Share the gur-chana prasad and pour the kalash water around the house.
4. No sourness. On Fridays the person fasting eats nothing sour — no curd, lemon, tamarind, pickle or sour fruit — and gives nothing sour to anyone. Eat one meal after the puja.

Food: One meal without anything sour; gur and chana as prasad.

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)

On the 16th Friday (or the next one), do the udyapan: worship the Mother, make kheer, puri and chana-gur prasad, and feed eight boys. Give them fruit, not money, so that nothing sour can be bought — and serve nothing sour in the meal. That is the lesson of the katha.

Mantra and aarti

• Jai Santoshi Mata — aarti
• Santoshi Mata Chalisa
• Om Jai Lakshmi Mata — aarti

Frequently asked questions