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Jivti is an incarnation of Parvati, a goddess who is
believed to protect children. On any one of the Fridays in the month of
Shravan (July-August), Jivti Puja is conducted. Married women perform this
Puja. Married women are invited for lunch by the female members of their
parental home. This person can even be her mother's sisters or cousins,
her own elder and married cousins or women from her father's side, as long
as the hostess is not from her husband's home. At this meal, among various
sweets and delicacies, puran poli is a must-serve.
In the evenings, after the Puja roasted 'Chana' (chickpeas) mixed with
milk and sugar are given to married women along with the traditional
offering of Haldi and Kumkum. Traditionally, on every auspicious occasion,
married Maharashtrian women personally apply haldi at the base and Kumkum
in the centre of the forehead of other women. This gesture (not extended
to widows, divorcees and unmarried women) is reciprocated and is typically
Maharashtrian.
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