How is the Tuesday (Maṅgalavāra) vrat for Hanumān kept, and for how many Tuesdays?

usually 21 or 45 Tuesdays, with one salt-free meal, red flowers, sindūra and Hanumān Cālīsā.

The Tuesday vrat is kept for Hanumān, and in some homes also for Maṅgala (Mars), for courage, removal of obstacles and protection. Begin on a Tuesday of the bright fortnight with a saṅkalpa for a fixed number of Tuesdays; 21 and 45 are the most common, though some simply keep it for a year.

On the day: bathe, wear red or saffron if you like, light a ghee or jasmine-oil lamp before Hanumān, offer red flowers and sindūra, and recite the Hanumān Cālīsā, Bajaraṅg Bāṇa or Sundarakāṇḍa as time allows. Food is taken once, after the pūjā or in the evening, and most families avoid salt that day; wheat with jaggery or boondi prasāda is typical.

Women keep this vrat as fully as men. Brahmacarya and a calm, non-quarrelsome day are part of the vow, because Hanumān is remembered as the ideal of self-control.

Common counts: 21 or 45 Tuesdays · Source: common family practice

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