PUA JIUNTIA [ପୁଅ ଜୀଉନ୍ତିଆ]

(A group of mothers while doing PUA JIUNTIA ossa at Tehsil Chowk, Barpali on 1st Oct’ 2010)

No sooner a young girl attains puberty, she psychologically prepares herself to be a mother someday. On getting married her life starts revolving around the worldly affairs. And on being blessed with the motherhood, her most valuable possession would only be her children. So long she survives on this earth, every hour consiously she feeds the stomach of her children, while every moment sub-consiously she craves earnestly for their safety and welfare. It is only the mother who turns her life into a sadhana with the sole objective to safeguard the life of her up-spring from any short of dangers.

In Koshal region every mother observes a special kind of brata or ossa (penance) for the welfare of her children called Pua Jiuntia. Literally in Oriya “PUA” means a son, while “JIUNTIA” means a thread. This brata is observed during pitrupaksha on the day of Aswina Krushna Astami of the Hindu calendar year, which generally falls either in August or September. On this day ‘Dutibamana Ossa’ is performed. Dutibamana is the son of Lord Surya (Sun). Since the wee hours every mother observes a rigorous fasting entire day without even swallowing her own saliva, what to talk of drinking a drop of water or partaking food. The fasting continues till the next day to appease the almighty.

[ Juggar a sweet made with puffed-rice]

At evening in every street a group of mothers gather at an open space (as seen in the photograph) in their respective localities and perform the puja. A square mandap (platform) is made out of soil while four sides of it is digged and filled with water. In this stream jia macha (small fish) is released. At four corners of the mandap bamboos are digged and sugarcane alongwith ainla and mango leafs are tied to them. Every mother attends this brata while decorating herself beautifully with Sambalpuri sarees and carries a parad or chadua (a thali) filled with jiuntia (holy thread), dhuba-penda (bundle of grass), juggar (sweet made with puffed-rice or lia) and twenty kinds of vegetables.

[ dhuba-penda (bundle of grass) with juintia ]

The other important aspect of this ritual is the brata by issueless women. Those women who are childless observes it in a modified form. They sit near the mandap while holding the anchal of their saree open. The water in the stream is discharged. When the water level recedes, the fishes starts jumping for lack of oxygen. And it is believed the woman on whose anchal a fish jumps will be blessed with a child. When a woman gets a fish in her anchal, she runs quickly to the nearest pond or the river to discharge it in the water.

The following day at the wee hours every mother takes a holy dip in a nearby pond or river. On the bank of it they performs a set of rituals. A kanker (kukumber) is cut into eight circular pieces and rooted on sand with the help of Apamarga Kathi (sticks). On returning home they touch the Dhub-penda to their children from head to toe for seven times. This Dhub-penda is prepared out of 108 dhub-ghass (grass) along with 108 wholesome Arua Chaul (rice) and packed in a Rengal-pattar (leaf). It was worshiped and sanctified the previous day. Touching of dhub-penda for seven times by a mother is the most important aspect of this ritual. It wards-off her children from any short of dangers to their life. Afterward they put the jiuntia (holy thread with eight knots) on the neck of her children.

[ a group of mothers observing a ritual on the bank of  a pond the day following ]

On this day while every kid wears a new set of jama-kapad (dress matterials) gifted by her mother, the grown-up sons gives the return gifts like Sambalpuri sarees or ornaments to their mother for the penance she had undertaken for a life time for rearing them.

N.B. : The author of this article would like to express his gratitude to every MOTHER on this earth for the sacrifice she under takes for her children.

kiranbima@gmail.com

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E. KIRAN MOHAN,
C\o. Dr.E.R.Rao (M.D),
Tehsil Chowk,
At\PO – BARPALI – 768 029,
Dist. Bargarh, Orissa, India.