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Durga
Pooja: (September/October)
Festivities
commence on the first night of the new moon day of the month of Ashwin
(September
/ October). Nine nights are spent in worship and the tenth day is
devoted to goddess Durga, who occupies a special position in the
Hindu pantheon of gods and goddesses.
Durga
is Shakti, the cosmic energy that animates all beings.
According
to a Puranic legend believed even to this day, demon Mahishasur
vanquished the gods and their king, Indra, who approached the Holy
Trinity, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva (also called Mahesh) . They in
turn sought the help of the divine mother Durga who, equipped with
lethal weapons, riding a ferocious lion, in all her awesome
majesty, killed Mahishasur. This day, thus, also celebrates the
magnificence and omnipotence of Goddess Durga.
Durga
pooja is celebrated extensively in North India where beautiful
idols of the Mother Goddess are worshipped in elaborate pandals
for nine days, and on the tenth day, these
are
carried out in procession for visarjan (immersion) in a river or
pond.
The
immersion is done in water in the belief that the remains of the
idols flow away through the water into the oceans and hence do not
find their way under the feet of living beings as this is
considered disrespectable to the Almighty.
The
face of the goddess remains covered until the bodhon (unveiling)
ritual is performed on Sasthi - the sixth day of the moon.
It
is Sarat, or autumn, and Nature adorns herself to welcome the
advent of the Mother Goddess, Durga.
Rabindra
Sangeet, dances and various programmes form a part of the
celebrations.
The
Goddess is worshipped as a kumari or young girl, and reveals
herself in her true form on Mahasaptami
(the seventh day of the moon). On Mahastami (eighth day) and Mahanavami (ninth day) the celebrations
reach a fever pitch. On Dashami (tenth day) the idol of Durga is
immersed in water. The ten-armed goddess dazzles the devotees with
her splendour and appearance of fiery valour during her short stay
every year in this material world on earth.
In
the older days of zamindars (landed aristocracy) there used to be
a Barwari pooja (community pooja) financed by the local zamindar
who usually had a huge Nat Mandir or Mandap (out-hall) for pooja
purposes, where the entire village congregated. All found
employment of some kind - from the Brahmins performing the rites
to various artisans of lower castes. Even women had their share of
work in the preparations.
The
time of immersion is a sad occasion
and the Devi is repeatedly requested to return to shower bliss on
devotees whenever invoked.
The
festival sees a boom in pre-pooja sales. All trade and commerce
gears up to meet the challenge of coping with the frenetic
shopping spree. Whole communities of artisans spend their busiest
time to ensure the netting of a sizeable income that will sustain
them for several months to
come.
It is a time of activity and employment for all.
Artisans
build the mammoth pandal (a pandal constructed in 1994 as a
replica of the Belur
Math,
was almost 90 ft high, required 3500 bamboo poles, 5000 planks of
wood and over 2000 metres of cloth and cost Rs 5 lakh.). Weavers
are kept busy, as are the craftsmen who model the exquisitely
chiseled features and limbs of each figure in the pooja tableau
from clay; electricians who ingeniously devise the decorative
illuminations (everything of topical interest from the dinosaurs
of Jurassic Park to World Cup football, to nuclear testing is
portrayed); the dhaakis whose unsurpassed virtuosity finds
expression in frenzied pounding on huge barrel-shaped drums,
invoking an almost hypnotic rapture.
Everybody
is involved, and there is profit and fun for all. It is a time of
prosperity also for publishing houses - their pooja Editions
capitalize on the festive mood of the reading public. From big
established dailies to little magazines, all thrive this season.
There is also a big demand
for
audiocassettes, which are Pooja Hits.
Today
pooja pandals seem to sprout like mushrooms - practically one
every 100 yards. Apart from loudspeakers blaring forth pop and
Hindi film music and other forms of entertainment (there are also
cultural programmes), there is a fierce competition among
organisers to compete with and outdo each other in the extravagant
and lavish show they put up. pooja committees are known to spend
in lakhs on attractive pandal decor. Galaxies of twinkling lights
make Technicolor pageants out of the dingiest lanes.
The
para poojas become grander still each year, as the poojas are an
occasion people look forward to.
Money
is not a constraint, as people donate generously. poojas are a
convenient occasion for fun-loving denizens to forget their cares
and let their hair down. Multitudes throng the streets - people
from all communities are agog - shopping, gorging themselves or
gazing on Durga who is a shimmering vision – power personified -
tresses streaming, and also a flickering tongue of flame.
Durga
Pooja is celebrated with more fervour by Bengalis than by any
other community in India. With the Bengali, Bijoya evokes
sentiment. It is a time of renewal of ties of kinship with friends
and relatives.
Just
as Kolakuli echoes
the Id embrace among Muslims, Durga Pooja is a festivalBengalis
celebrate without religious inhibition.
The
nine days of pooja are synonymous with the Navratras of the
Gujarati’s and the Rajasthani’s and the tenth day is
celebrated as Vijayadashmi in some parts of India.
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