Aryan Chakraborthy
(Aryan, 11 years, loves sport and he is a Chelsea fan. He is an
active keyboard player and is quite active in Edinburghparticipated solo including Independence day celebration. He loves
reading and likes Maths. He loves potato and enjoys rice.)
The History Of Durga Puja
I have lived in UK till today and all my Durga pujas have been spent right here.
Undoubtedly, it is a wonderful place to celebrate 4 day extravaganza. As we all
know it is the biggest festival of Bengalis and we look forward to it every year
with utmost excitement.
Durga puja festival marks the victory of Goddess Durga over the evil buffalo
demon Mahishasura. Thus, Durga puja festival epitomises the victory of Good
over Evil. In Bengal, Durga is worshipped as Durgotinashini, the destroyer of
evil and the protector of her devotees. The mother took birth to be Goddess
Parvati, to be united with her lord, Shiva . That is why people celebrate Durga
puja all over India even though it is a Bengali festival. People celebrated Durga
puja since the middle ages.
Now this is celebrated by UK Hindus in London, Glasgow and now Edinburgh ,
where I live.
The day of Durga‘s victory is celebrated as Vijayadashmi in Bengali, and the
word you should be more familiar with is Dussehra in hindi. These words mean
the victory on the tenth day. In different parts of India she is worshipped as
different names. Durga puja also includes the worship of Lord Shiva and
Saraswati, Lakshmi, Ganesha and Kartikeya who are considered as Durga‘s
children.
I have been always enjoying Durga puja with my family and other social gatherings.
In 2006 a grand Durga puja was held in the great court of the British Museum.
The prominence of Durga puja increased gradually during the British Raj in Bengal.
After the Hindu reformists identified Durga with India, she became an icon for
the Indian independence movement. Durga puja lasts over 4 days, mainly Saptami
to Dashami, the mood of the Durga puja sets in much earlier in the life of the
people in Bengal. Starting with Devi, Durga the eyes of the idols are painted
on Mahalaya or the first day of the puja.
The idol of Goddess Durga has 10 hands which have 10 different weapons, are
used to fight the evil Asura. Ritual drummers or dhakis as they are commonly
known as, also add to the ambience of the Durga puja. Everyone tries to forget
at least for the 4 days the hard-pressing reality and utmost practicality of
everyday life as they take the welcome break from routine life.
Thus Durga Puja indeed plays a part in every Bengali‛s life, which every
Bengali however far from his motherland, feels at the bottom of his heart.
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