Queen Veeravati and her seven brothers
There once lived a beautiful girl named Veeravati. She was the only sister to seven doting brothers. She was soon married off to a powerful king. She observed her first Karva Chauth fast at her parents' house. By evening, she was desperately waiting for the moon to rise, as she was unable to bear the thirst and hunger any longer.
Unable to see her suffer so much, her brothers reflected a mirror through the leaves of a Peepal tree, to give the illusion of a moon. Truly believing it to be the moon the sister breaks her fast. But the moment she eats, word arrives of her husband's death. Heartbroken, she weeps through the night. At this juncture, Goddess Parvati appears before her to tell her that she had been tricked by her brothers. She instructs Veeravati to repeat the fast with complete devotion. And as she does so, Yama is forced to bring her husband back to life.
There's yet another narrative around this story. The brothers build a massive fire behind a mountain and trick Veeravati into believing it to be the glow of the moon. She breaks her fast and soon receives the news of her husband's death. As she rushes to her husband's palace she meets Lord Shiva and his wife, Goddess Parvati, who reveals the truth. The goddess cuts her little finger to give Veeravati a few drops of the sacred blood. When Veeravati sprinkles this blood on her dead husband, he is restored to life.
Draupadi seeks help
According to folklore, the belief in Karva Chauth dates back to the times of Mahabharata. It is said that Draupadi had observed Karva Chauth when Arjuna went to the Nilgiris for penance. The Pandavas were facing problems in Arjuna's absence. Desperate to help, Draupadi sought Lord Krishna's advice. He told her that when Goddess Parvati had sought Lord Shiva's guidance on a similar occasion, she had been advised to observe the fast of Karva Chauth. Thus, Draupadi followed the fast with complete devotion and the Pandavas were soon able to overcome their difficulties.
Karva and Yama
In yet another tale, the fast began to be observed to celebrate the beautiful Karva's devotion to her husband. One day while taking a bath in the river, her husband was caught by a crocodile. Karva’s fealty to her husband had endowed her with supernatural powers. She bound the crocodile with a cotton yarn and asked Yama, the god of death, to send the animal to hell.
When Yama refused, Karva threatened to destroy him. Afraid of being cursed by a pativrata (a devoted wife), he sent the crocodile to hell and blessed the husband with a long life.
Savitri's ploy
When Lord Yama came to take Satyavan's soul, Savitri pleaded with him to spare his life. But her pleas fell on deaf ears. She stopped taking food or water, and followed Yama everywhere.
Pleased with her devotion, Yama urged her to ask for any boon except for the life of her husband. Clever Savitri asked him to bless her with children. As a pativrata, she would bear no man's child but her husband's. Thus, Yama was rightly tricked into bringing her husband back to life.
