Kojagra

See also: Madhushravani

Kojagra (Maithili: कोजगरा) is a special festival of the Mithila region in the Indian subcontinent. It is a sanskar ritual for the newly married couples among the communities of the Maithil Brahmins and Kayasthas. It is celebrated on the occasion of Sharad Purnima in the Hindu month of Ashvin.^[1][2][3]

Kojagra
Also called	कोजगरा
Observed by	Maithil Brahmin, Maithil Kayasthas
Type	Ethnic
Date	Sharad Purnima
Frequency	Annual

Description

Kojagra is a sanskar ritual associated with the tradition of the Maithil Vivah among the communities of Maithil Brahmins and Maithil Kayasthas. It is a Lokaparva of the Mithila region. In the festival of Kojagra, a Bhaada of fruits, sweets, Mithila Makhana, Batasha and Paan, etc is sent from the house of newly married brides to the house of newly married grooms. The rituals of the festival are performed at night. After the completion of the rituals procedure of the Kojagara festival, there is a tradition of distributing Makhana, Batasha and Paan (betel leaves) among the people of the society in the night. The festival of Kojagra is treated as the symbol of social harmony in the region.^[1]

Legend

The main deity of the Kojagra festival is Goddess Lakshmi. In the festival, Annapurna form of the Goddess is worshipped. According to legend, the Goddess Annapurna starts residing in the house from the night of Kojagra festival of Ashvin month. It is said that worshipping the Annapurna form of the Goddess sincerely in the night of Kojagra, there is happiness, prosperity and peace in the house and food crisis never comes in the house. With this belief, the Goddess Annapurna is worshipped in every house of the Maithil people in that night.^[2]