The only Vedic Festival dedicated to the Hindu Sun God, Surya –Chhath – begin on Friday. The festival of Chhath is celebrated five days after Diwali and is dedicated to the sun god. It is one of the most popular festivals of Bihar and parts of eastern Uttar Pradesh. On the first day of the four-day-long festival, millions of devotees offered early morning prayers at river banks for the ritualistic bath, before preparing the traditional meal of boiled rice and pumpkin.