Dussehra Festival: Victory of Good over the Evil

-
One of the famous festivals celebrated in India, Dussehra is celebrated on the 10th day of the Hindu autumn lunar month of Ashwin, which is between September and October. Dussehra is an important festival in India for Hindus. All the corners of the country get sparked with enthusiasm for the festive season. Dussehra is known as Dasha-hara, Dassera, Durgotsav and famously known as Vijayadashmi in different states of the country. Dussehra festival in India is also known as "Dashmi", denoted by the word 'Ten'. This day is followed by nine-day festival, Navratri. During Navratri, nine forms of Devi (Goddess) are worshiped all around the country, with slightly different rituals. Dussehra marks the beginning of the harvest season in India and the 'mother earth' is invoked to reactivate the vigour and fertility in the soil. All this is done by performing rituals and religious activities on this day. The festival of Dussehra draws its origination from two sources, the basic theme being the same which is the victory of good over evil. It is originated from the Ramayana where Lord Rama killed the evil Ravana and wins his wife back from the demon's custody. Also Goddess Durga killed Mahishasur, which again marks the victory of a good over evil.
There is a wave of enthusiasm and liveliness in the air in the streets of India during the festival of Dusshera. It is the festival of Hindus, but is celebrated and attended by the followers of every other religion as well. There are family/community get-togethers in this day. There are different games, contests and plays takes place. With the arrival of Dussehra, comes arrival of legendary theatrical performances of Ram-Leela. The plays hold cultural reverence in India. The enactment of the mythological story enables young generation to get updated with the aspects of their religion. On the festival of Dussehra, in different parts of the India, massive models are set on fire. These models are of the devil Ravana and his brothers. The models are stuffed with crackers and are made with bamboo, papers, cloth and other things. The sight of Ravan and his brothers getting caught by fire denotes eradication of evil from the society and hearts of the people.

 Not many known that Dussehra is also celebrated as the 'Vishwakarma Divas', which is the National Labour Day of India.
Vijayadashmi is a day when weapons are worshiped which is famously known as 'Shastra Puja'. 
The traditional Dasara procession known as Jumbo Safari starts from Mysore Palace and end at the Bannimantap. The idol of Goddess Chamundeshwari is mounted on a golden mantapa, and placed on an elephant, which walks through the streets of Mysore. The major attraction of the procession are the colorful paintings, dance group, music band, decorated elephants, horses and camels. The Jumbo Safari procession is followed by torchlight parade in the evening at Bannimantap Palace ground.
-Jumbo Safari Procession
In Bangladesh and West Bengal, it is 5 days long festival and celebrated in different mandaps containing Maa Durga's clay statues. The largest festival is celebrated at Dhakeshwari temple. on the day of Dussehra, clay statues of Goddess Durga are submerged in rivers after pooja with turmeric and other pooja items.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Gudi Padwa: A New Beginning

-
Image
Gudi Padwa is the Marathi term that replicates the concept of Chaitra Shukla Pratipada or the first days of the Chaitra month(March-April) which also marks the New Year as per the lunisolar Hindu calendar. Gudi Padwa is believed to bring in prosperity and good luck into home. It is also considered an auspicious day to commence new projects and buy new things.  Gudi Padwa's most prominent symbol is elaborately decorated bamboo stick displayed proudly outside the window or main gate of a house, this is 'Gudi' and is created using a bright color cloth like red, orange, green, yellow adorned with zari work. This cloth is tied to a bamboo tip and is further decorated using neem leaves, mango leaves, a garland of red flowers and sugar crystals. A copper or silver pot is then placed atop of it. The 'Padwa' means 'first' and it has been derived from Sanskrit literature. Celebrated as the first day of the Hindu calendar, Gudi Padwa together, is a wonderful...
Read more

Shigmo: The Spring Festival of Goa

-
Image
Shigmotsav is a popular festival in Goa. The Hindus celebrate this 14 days long festival, the Goan Hindu traditions and mythology is showcased in this festival. Shigmotsav is celebrated to mark the farewell of winter. The Shigmo or Shigmotsav is celebrated in the month of Phalguna (March), it is the biggest festival for Hindus in Goa. In Goa, the land of temples, Shigmo begins with ' Naman'  or collective obeisance of villagers from 9th full moon day. During all these days, they avoid non-vegetarian food and alcohol drinks. From 11th to 15th moon day, villagers dress up in colorful dresses and embark with a festive mood along with multi-colored flags, beating drums and blowing flutes to gather at the village temples, dance and sing various folk songs in the temple court yard to the beat of the drums. -Ghode-Modni A eye-catching display of Goan Hindu ethnicity and mythology comprising of street dancers, traditional folk and floats depicting the themes from ancient Hi...
Read more

Diwali : The Festival of Lights

-
Image
The festival of lights,Diwali, is India's biggest religious celebration, when homes, institutions and entire neighborhoods are decorated with candles, earthen lamps and fairy lights on this auspicious moonless night. Diwali is celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains throughout the world. Diwali is celebrated in October or early November. It is the celebration of the victory of Lord Rama over Ravana and his victorious return to kingdom. In order to make the home coming of Lord Rama safe and as swift as possible the people of Ayodhya illuminated the way with twinkling diyas . This is why lighting of lamps has become such an inseparable component of this festival  It also foretells of fresh beginnings as we open new checkbooks and diaries as well as clean our homes. It is an invocation to search for light, knowledge and enlightenment and to banish the dark thoughts, desires and negative feelings. The festivity of Diwali last for 5 days :The 1st day of Diwali is ...
Read more