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Durga Puja or Durgotsab or Akalbodhan is widely celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm and passion in the most parts of India. It is the most important festival of the Indian states of West Bengal and Tripura. The amount of enthusiasm and passion for the festival is of more or less of the same level in some other Indian states also like Bihar, Orissa and Jharkhand.
Durga Puja is celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm abroad also, particularly in the neighbouring Nepal and Bangladesh. In fact, the festival is celebrated even in many western nations especially in US and in Britain where a large percentage of the NRIs consist of Bengalis.
Durgotsab is celebrated in the month of September and/or October every year. The festivity continues for 10 days at the end of which the idols of the Hindu Goddess Durga along with other some other Gods and Goddess including Shiva, Ganesh, Kartikeya, Saraswati and Lakshmi, and the demon Mahishasura, is immersed in ponds and rivers marking the end of the festival.
The last five days of Durgotsab, namely, Sashthi, Maha Saptami, Mahashtami, Maha Nabami and Bijoya Dashami attract huge crowds. To celebrate the Puja, large pandals are erected all over India under which the statues of the Goddess Durga and others are displayed.
During the festival, West Bengal and Tripura, besides many other Indian states, boast of thousands of pandals under which the statutes of all shapes and sizes are displayed and worshipped. In Kolkata alone over 2,000 pandals are erected.
Origins of Goddess Shakti
As per the mythological legend that surrounds the origins of Goddess Durga, a demon named Mahishasura, after years of concentrated prayers and worship, was able to take a boon from Lord Brahma that no male human, deity or demon could kill him. Thus, thinking of himself as invincible, he became drunk with power, transformed into a mighty buffalo demon, and started reeking havoc on earth. He killed many innocent people, followed by setting his eyes on the heavens and destroying the God's as well. It was then that all the three principle deities Lord Vishnu, Lord Shankar and Lord Brahma, along with other deities, combined their energies and gave birth to Goddess Durga. Each of her ten hands represents the powers she has and with them, she vanquished the demon and came to be known as Mahishasura mardini.
Durga Puja Celebrations
The vibrant and jubilant festival of Durga Puja is celebrated as per the auspicious Hindu religious calendar, which usually coincides with time between the months September to November, as per the Gregorian calendar. The festival is celebrated on a grand and panoramic level in the Northern and Eastern states of India, which include West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, and Tripura. Apart from these places, states like Delhi, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Kashmir, Karnataka and Kerala also celebrate the festival enthusiastically, especially the Bengali community living in these regions.
Although with great increase in the social and cultural revelry during the Durga Puja one may think that this is the basic essence of this festival, but one could not be further away from the truth. The real and core essence of the festival remain the religious values and teachings that have been passed down from one generation to another in the Hindu households and communities. Thus, Durga Puja remains a devotional celebration, which honors the divine Goddess Durga. The first four days of the ten-day long festival are designated for the ceremonies of Kalash Sthapana and Kalsh Pooja. The main rituals and prayer ceremonies start with the day of Mahalaya, when the goddess invoked in the idol.
On the last five days of the festival, devotees visit the puja pandals in large numbers and make offerings to the goddess in the form of 'Pushpanjali', Aarti and 'Bhog'. On each of these five days, different kinds of bhogs (sanctified food items) are offered along with special puja rituals. Usually, these rituals are performed by a priest in the community puja on behalf of the entire community. During the festivities, people visit their community pandals for observance of prayer rituals, music, dances, and food performances, but they also visit other pandals to pay respect to the goddess. In the diverse nation such as India, this festival binds together people of different regions with a sacred thread of devotion towards the Mother Goddess.
Delhi is the capital city of Indian Republic and thus has a vibrant culture. This is pretty evident from the fact that various kinds of fairs and festivals are held almost every now and then. No matter what time of the year you visit Delhi; you will find some or other fair or festival being organized. Most of these fairs or festivals are organized to showcase either the Indian culture or its technological advancement. They are organized in various parts of the city and are attended by people coming from different backgrounds and strata. Thus, besides reflecting the cultural, scientific, educational advancement, the fairs and festivals of Delhi bring cohesion among the people.
The foremost and the torchbearer among them is India International Trade Fair (IITF), popularly known as trade fair in Delhi. The Delhi Trade Fair is normally organized in the month of November (14-27). This trade pulls crowd in millions and is arguably one of the largest fair in the world in terms of footfall volume. Besides showcasing products from nearly all the states in India, it has pavilion from nearly 100 countries. This is a one-stop destination to shop whatever you like, literally, from a thing as miniscule as a needle to a thing as gigantic as an Aircraft. Then there is Art and crafts fair that showcases the vivid art and craft of India. There are stalls from nearly all the states with special emphasis on the Tribal art and crafts, fighting the war against extinction.
