DURGA PUJA

ABOUT GODDESS DURGA
Goddess Durga or Parvati is said to be the re-incarnation of Goddess Sati, the first wife of Lord Shiva and daughter of Prajapati Daksha and granddaughter of Lord Brahma. Durga is the second wife of Lord Shiva and daughter of King Himavan and Queen Mainavati. Durga received her name after defeating a demon named Durgasur and she received her power and weapons from 10 different Gods to conquer the demon called Mahishasura as he couldn’t be defeated by any male God due to the boon he received from Lord Brahma. After killing Mahishasura she came to be known as Mahishasuramardini.

ABOUT DURGA PUJA
Durga Puja is celebrated twice a year. The first one falls in the months of March-April and is known as Basanti Puja which was first started by the demon King Ravana, but it is not too much celebrated unlike the second one which was started by Lord Ramachandra (Rama) in the month of Ashvina i.e. Sept-Oct also known as Sharadiyo Durgotsab, Sharadiyo Utsav or Akaal Bodhan, as it was performed in an untimely part of the year to seek blessings of Goddess Durga to defeat demon King Ravana who had captivated Sita, the wife of Lord Rama. This time of celebration is still prevalent and is widely celebrated all over the world.
It is said that, Durga Puja is the time when Goddess Durga goes to her parental home from Kailasha along with Saraswati, Karthika, Laxmi and Ganesha.

We all wait for Durga Puja for a whole long year, no matter whatever age we belong to. It is said to be the biggest festival mainly of the Bengalis though celebrated by people of almost every Hindu community not only in India but even in abroad. The puja is generally a 10 days long festival but its preparations starts months before the puja.
What makes this festival unique is its theme-based pandals (the temporary temples or structures where the idols are placed),

the shiuli and kaash flowers,

the mesmerizing decorations, beautiful idols, beating of the dhaaks

and I think each and every thing involved in it makes it unique.

Mahalaya, which falls 7 days prior to Durga Puja marks the end of Pitru Paksha and the start of Devi Paksha. It is the day from when we get the actual feeling of Durga Puja. Mahishasuramardini, a two-hours programme that used to be aired on the radios which was very popular since 1950 and it is still very popular as it is not only aired on radios but also on televisions is another attraction of Durga Puja. Earlier it used to be conducted live but later recorded versions began to broadcast. People mostly Bengalis wake up by 4 am on Mahalaya to listen to the voices of Late Birendra Krishna Bhadra and Late Pankaj Kumar Mullick, though the chanting of the latter is not very popular on All India Radio (AIR). The hymns they recite are from the Devi Mahatmyam or Chandi Path.
These days there are many Bengali and few other TV channels where they telecast special programs from Mahalaya till Dashami, the immersion day. They show puja preparations, pujas, shopping, puja special food programs and many more.
Some Bengali and Odiya weekly magazines bring out special editions of their magazines for the pujas known as “Pujo Barshiki” or “Pujo Shonkha”. Some of the popular magazines are “Anandamela”, “Shuktara”, “Sarodiya Anandabazaar Patrika”, “Naba kallol” and many more.
Mahalaya is the day when the puja starts in many places and it is the time when everyone has to give final touches to their preparations for the puja. The 5 main days of the puja are:
1. Shashti – After Mahalaya, the main puja starts from the sixth day known as Shashti. On this day, the idols are placed inside the pandals. The priests after reciting hymns/chants will place different weapons in the hands of the Gods and Goddesses. On this day no puja is offered in the day, it is done in the evening only. Bodhana, Adhivasa and Navapatrika Sthapna are done on this day.
Bodhana means the rites to awaken and welcome Goddess Durga along with her children.
Adhivasa means the ritual wherein many symbolic offerings are made to Durga, where every item represents a rememberance of her forms.
Navapatrika sthapna means giving a bath to nine different holy plants and placing them for puja.
2. Saptami – It is the seventh day of the puja. On this day the priest offers bath to the Goddess and then offers puja by reciting hymns which is followed by pushpanjali (devotees offering flowers and holy leaves to the Goddess followed by hymns).
3. Ashtami – It is the eighth day of puja where like saptami, more pujas, hymns and pushpanjali are offered to the Goddess. On this day in some places a ritual known as Kumari Puja is very popular where a young girl is dressed and decorated like a young Goddess and then puja is offered to her. In many places animals especially buffaloes are sacrificed. In the evening, sandhi puja is performed which is another important ritual. It is generally for forty-eight minutes. Mostly ladies fast on this day atleast till Sandhi Puja is over so that they can offer puja and prayers during the Sandhi Puja. 4. Navami – It is the ninth day of celebration. On this day too, puja and prayers are offered to the Goddess, the difference is that the celebration is after Durga’s victory over the demon Mahishasura and Vedic style homa (fire rituals) are now offered.
5. Vijaya Dashami – On this day a small puja is peformed unlike the other three days. All our enjoyments, fun and happiness comes to an end as it’s the last day of the puja, the time to bid adieu to Goddess Durga and her family. Though it is very difficult but with a heavy heart, maybe even with tears in our eyes we bid adieu which is done with Sindoor Khela (vermillion game) by married women in the morning. At first, the married women smear sindoor/kumkum (vermillion) to the Gods and Goddesses idols and then they play with all the other married women.

Later in the afternoon, processions are taken out from the puja pandals to the respective immersion rivers or seas with large number of devotees walking, dancing and singing on the streets to the beats of the dhaaks (drums) with slogans like “Bolo Durga Mai Ki Jai”, “Abaar Kobe, Bochhor Pore”, and many more. After the immersion is completed, it is now time to seek blessings from our parents and other elderly members of the family followed by eating sweets and snacks (Jalebi and nimkis preferably) and also tying holy thread (known as Aparajita) from the priest of the puja pandal and taking holy water (shanti jal). People also visit the homes of their relatives and friends.

Vijaya Dasami coincides with Dussehra the day when Lord Rama conquered Ravana and in many places after the Durga Puja immersion is over, people burn effigies of Ravana, his son Meghnada and brother Kumbhakarna to mark the victory of Lord Rama.
Durga Puja is incomplete without having Khichdi (rice mixed with legumes and spices)-Labda (mix veg)

and almost every puja pandal serves khichdi-labda for the devotees. Some may serve it on 1 day or maybe every day. Nowadays, some puja communities not only serve khichdi but even provide variations in food and they also serve 3 times a day.
Apart from Khichdi, what makes Durga Puja unique is, many communities organize cultural programs and various games during the festival which gathers a huge crowd in the pandal. Durga Puja is also incomplete without the famous Dhunuchi Naach (Dance).

In many parts of the world, during Durga Puja few organisations conduct competitions for the puja pandals which has not only brought competitiveness in the puja committee organizers but the level and quality of the pujas has also raised. Best idol, best pandal, best illumination, best dhaki (drum player), best immersion procession are some of the different categories where the puja committees are given prizes.
In many places like Gujarat, Maharashtra, etc, Durga Puja is celebrated in the form of Navaratri for 9 days worshipping a different form of the Goddess on each day.
Durga Puja resembles the win of good over evil. Keeping this spirit in mind we shall endeavour to devote ourselves to follow as well as to spread the spirit of peace, harmony and brotherhood in our society.

(Some of the photos have been taken from Google).

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