Vat Savitri Vrat is a sacred fasting observance practiced by married women for the longevity, health, and prosperity of their husbands and family. The festival draws inspiration from the timeless epic narrative of Princess Savitri, whose unyielding devotion, intellect, and dharmic righteousness compelled Yama, the Lord of Death, to restore life to her deceased husband Satyavan beneath a banyan tree.
The observance falls on the new moon day (Amavasya) of the lunar month of Jyeshtha in Gujarat, Maharashtra, and southern India (Amanta tradition), and on the full moon day (Purnima) of the same month in northern India (Purnimanta tradition, where it is called Vat Purnima).
Women dress in auspicious bridal attire, tie yellow or red sacred raw thread (moli) around the trunk of a sacred banyan tree (Vat Vriksha) while circumambulating it seven times, and offer seasonal fruits, wet soaked grams, and sweets. The banyan tree personifies the immortal Trimurti: Brahma at the root, Vishnu in the trunk, and Shiva in the canopy.