Pintu
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With today being the 26th of Aswin , 1417 Bangabda, Bengali Year, the 13th day of October, 2010, the very day one of India's great festival Durga Puja begins, as it is known in Bengali দà§à¦°à§à¦—া পূজা (Durga Puja) or Durga Pujo, it is also known as দà§à¦°à§à¦—োৎসব (Durgotsab), while দà§à¦°à§à¦—া পূজা means worship of Goddess Durga , Durgotsab means 'Festival of Goddess Durga'. This is the annual Festival, while the 6 days those are observed, they are Mahalaya, Sasthi, Saptami, Ashtami, Navami, Vijaya Dashami.
Mostly it is celebrated in West Bengal, Tripura, Jharkhand, Assam, Orissa. Before we may wish Suvo Durga Puja , let me highlight about it:
As for the History goes, Durga Puja was popularised by King Kangsanarayan, however as Wikipedia goes: 'A considerable literature exists around Durga in the Bengali language and its early forms, including avnirnaya (11th century), Durgabhaktitarangini by Vidyapati (14th century), etc. Durga Puja was popular in Bengal in the medieval period, and records exist of it being held in the courts of Rajshahi (16th century) and Nadia district (18th century). It was during the 18th century, however, that the worship of Durga became popular among the landed elite of Bengal, Zamindars. Prominent Pujas were conducted by the landed zamindars and jagirdars, enriched by British rule, including Raja Nabakrishna Deb, of Shobhabajar, who initiated an elaborate Puja at his residence. Many of these old pujas exist to this day. Interestingly the oldest such Puja to be conducted at the same venue is in Rameswarpur, Orissa, where it continues for the last four centuries since the Ghosh Mahashays from Kotarang near Howrah migrated as a part of Todarmal's contingent during Akbar's rule. Today, the culture of Durga Puja has shifted from the princely houses to Sarbojanin (literally, "involving all") forms. The first such puja was held Guptipara - it was called barowari (baro meaning twelve and yar meaning friends)'source:Durga Puja - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia' .
Durga Puja resembles the Win of Good over Evil. as the Puranas tell us , the incarnation of Devi Durga:
''According to a narrative in the Devi Mahatmya story of the Markandeya Purana text, Durga was created as a warrior goddess to fight an asura (an inhuman force/demon) named Mahishasura. He had unleashed a reign of terror on earth, heaven and the nether worlds, and he could not be defeated by any man or god, anywhere. The gods went to Brahma, who had given Mahishasura the power not to be defeated by a man. Brahma could do nothing. They made Brahma their leader and went to Vaikuntha — the place where Vishnu lay on Ananta Naag. They found both Vishnu and Shiva, and Brahma eloquently related the reign of terror Mahishasur had unleashed on the three worlds. Hearing this Vishnu, Shiva and all of the gods became very angry and beams of fierce light emerged from their bodies. The blinding sea of light met at the Ashram of a priest named Katyan. The goddess Durga took the name Katyaayani from the priest and emerged from the sea of light. She introduced herself in the language of the Rig-Veda, saying she was the form of the supreme Brahman who had created all the gods. Now she had come to fight the demon to save the gods. They did not create her; it was her lila that she emerged from their combined energy. The gods were blessed with her compassion.
It is said that upon initially encountering Durga, Mahishasura underestimated her, thinking: "How can a woman kill me, Mahishasur — the one who has defeated the trinity of gods?''
''However, Durga roared with laughter, which caused an earthquake which made Mahishasur aware of her powers.
And the terrible Mahishasur rampaged against her, changing forms many times. First he was a buffalo demon, and she defeated him with her sword. Then he changed forms and became an elephant that tied up the goddess's lion and began to pull it towards him. The goddess cut off his trunk with her sword. The demon Mahishasur continued his terrorizing, taking the form of a lion, and then the form of a man, but both of them were gracefully slain by Durga.
Then Mahishasur began attacking once more, starting to take the form of a buffalo again. The patient goddess became very angry, and as she sipped divine wine from a cup she smiled and proclaimed to Mahishasur in a colorful tone — "Roar with delight while you still can, O illiterate demon, because when I will kill you after drinking this, the gods themselves will roar with delight".
"When Mahashaur had half emerged into his buffalo form, he was paralyzed by the extreme light emitting from the goddess's body. The goddess then resounded with laughter before cutting Mahishasur's head down with her sword.
Thus Durga slew Mahishasur, thus is the power of the fierce compassion of Durga. Hence, Mata Durga is also known as Mahishasurmardhini — the slayer of Mahishasur. According to one legend, the goddess Durga created an army to fight against the forces of the demon-king Mahishasur, who was terrorizing Heaven and Earth. After ten days of fighting, Durga and her army defeated Mahishasur and killed him. As a reward for their service, Durga bestowed upon her army the knowledge of jewelry-making. Ever since, the Sonara community has been involved in the jewelry profession" (Source: Durga - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
again through Chandi Path we may learn:
''Chandipath narrates that She is the primeval source of power, all qualities reside in her. She is one and yet known by many names. She is Narayani, Brahmani, Maheshwari, Shivaduti and She is the fierceful Chamunda, decked with a garland of skulls. The Goddess Chandika is eternal. She has no birth, no definite physical form. She assumes a manifestation of majestic might only to restore the process of Creation from the terrible Asuras or evil incarnates. Mahisasura, the terrible king of the Asuras had defeated the gods and driven them out of Heaven. The gods, dejected and humiliated went to Brahma, the god of creation Vishnu, the God of preservation and Mahadeva, the God of destruction, to report their defeat. These three Gods projected their energy and evoked a new form of energy. This energy then crystallised into the heavenly form of a Goddess. She was Mahamaya, the Mother of the Universe. The emergence of the goddess was an auspicious moment. The Goddess then emerged in full battle array to combat Mahisasura. The Himalayas gifted Her the lion to act as her carrier, Vishnu gave her the Chakra , Mahadeva gave her the trident, Yama gave her the danda, Brahma gave her the rosary and the container of sacred water. Armed with weapons of all kinds, the Mother Goddess defeated the Asuras, thus ending the rule of evil forces. The occasion of Mahalaya, thus, always goes on reminding mankind of the divine scheme of things that the Evil may have had its say, but it is ultimately the Good that has the last laugh." (Source: durga_puja : Mahalaya).
Durga Puja forms a mood of Festivity through out the Hearts and mostly Bengalies, all over the earth, be the any of religion he or she is , all the colour of religions just get diluted to a single Colour that is 'India'.
Evolution of Durga Puja:
The Durga Puja was celebrated by the effluent people mainly Zamindars and kings, but today in West Bengal , community Puja or Baroyari Puja, Baro means 'Twelve' (12) , Yari means Friends, so Baro Yari puja means Puja organised by Twelve Friends. How this community Puja has began ?
We may have to travel back to our time a little bit than 250 years. It was of some friends of a village of Gupti Para in Hooghly District , went to Calcutta (now Kolkata) , to see a 'Durga Puja' organised by a Zamindar family, but they were stopped in the gate , feeling extremely humiliated, the friends, returned to their village, and created a 'Community Puja' or Sarbojonin Puja at their village, with donations , it has no bar to anybody, everybody being welcomed here. Now , it is the Sarvojonin Puja or Barwari Pujas that are forms overwhelming part of the Puja. The Pandals gets erected , with light .
"Initially the Puja was organised by affluent families since they had the money to organize the festival. During the late 19th and early 20th century, a burgeoning middle class, primarily in Calcutta, wished to observe the Puja. They created the community or Sarbojanin Pujas.
These Pujas are organized by a committee which represents a locality or neighbourhood. They collect funds called "chaanda" through door-to-door subscriptions, lotteries, concerts etc. These funds are pooled and used for the expenses of pandal construction, idol construction, ceremonies etc. The balance of the fund is generally donated to a charitable cause, as decided by the committee. Corporate sponsorships of the Pujas have gained momentum since the late 1990s. Major Pujas in Calcutta and in major metro areas such as Delhi and Chennai now derive almost all of their funds from corporate sponsorships. Community fund drives have become a formality.
Despite the resources used to organise a Puja, entry of visitors into the Pandal is generally free. Pujas in Calcutta and elsewhere experiment with innovative concepts every year. Communities have created prizes for Best Pandal, Best Puja, and other categories.(Wikipedia)"
Below here an image of Godess Durga's puja celebrated in a Zamindar house during 19th Century during British Raj:
famous Pujas were of Sabarna Coudhury's Puja, HaatKhola's 'Dutta Bari's Puja, Raja Radha Kanta Dev's Puja.
As the Durga Puja is nearby we wish everybody a 'Very Happy' and prosperous Durga Puja, may the tear change into smile, may happyness bestowed upon all , Mother Durga, may it be showered upon all the people sanning Geo Political Boundary , Colour, Class , Religion, Nation.
Regards
Mostly it is celebrated in West Bengal, Tripura, Jharkhand, Assam, Orissa. Before we may wish Suvo Durga Puja , let me highlight about it:
As for the History goes, Durga Puja was popularised by King Kangsanarayan, however as Wikipedia goes: 'A considerable literature exists around Durga in the Bengali language and its early forms, including avnirnaya (11th century), Durgabhaktitarangini by Vidyapati (14th century), etc. Durga Puja was popular in Bengal in the medieval period, and records exist of it being held in the courts of Rajshahi (16th century) and Nadia district (18th century). It was during the 18th century, however, that the worship of Durga became popular among the landed elite of Bengal, Zamindars. Prominent Pujas were conducted by the landed zamindars and jagirdars, enriched by British rule, including Raja Nabakrishna Deb, of Shobhabajar, who initiated an elaborate Puja at his residence. Many of these old pujas exist to this day. Interestingly the oldest such Puja to be conducted at the same venue is in Rameswarpur, Orissa, where it continues for the last four centuries since the Ghosh Mahashays from Kotarang near Howrah migrated as a part of Todarmal's contingent during Akbar's rule. Today, the culture of Durga Puja has shifted from the princely houses to Sarbojanin (literally, "involving all") forms. The first such puja was held Guptipara - it was called barowari (baro meaning twelve and yar meaning friends)'source:Durga Puja - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia' .
Durga Puja resembles the Win of Good over Evil. as the Puranas tell us , the incarnation of Devi Durga:
''According to a narrative in the Devi Mahatmya story of the Markandeya Purana text, Durga was created as a warrior goddess to fight an asura (an inhuman force/demon) named Mahishasura. He had unleashed a reign of terror on earth, heaven and the nether worlds, and he could not be defeated by any man or god, anywhere. The gods went to Brahma, who had given Mahishasura the power not to be defeated by a man. Brahma could do nothing. They made Brahma their leader and went to Vaikuntha — the place where Vishnu lay on Ananta Naag. They found both Vishnu and Shiva, and Brahma eloquently related the reign of terror Mahishasur had unleashed on the three worlds. Hearing this Vishnu, Shiva and all of the gods became very angry and beams of fierce light emerged from their bodies. The blinding sea of light met at the Ashram of a priest named Katyan. The goddess Durga took the name Katyaayani from the priest and emerged from the sea of light. She introduced herself in the language of the Rig-Veda, saying she was the form of the supreme Brahman who had created all the gods. Now she had come to fight the demon to save the gods. They did not create her; it was her lila that she emerged from their combined energy. The gods were blessed with her compassion.
It is said that upon initially encountering Durga, Mahishasura underestimated her, thinking: "How can a woman kill me, Mahishasur — the one who has defeated the trinity of gods?''
''However, Durga roared with laughter, which caused an earthquake which made Mahishasur aware of her powers.
And the terrible Mahishasur rampaged against her, changing forms many times. First he was a buffalo demon, and she defeated him with her sword. Then he changed forms and became an elephant that tied up the goddess's lion and began to pull it towards him. The goddess cut off his trunk with her sword. The demon Mahishasur continued his terrorizing, taking the form of a lion, and then the form of a man, but both of them were gracefully slain by Durga.
Then Mahishasur began attacking once more, starting to take the form of a buffalo again. The patient goddess became very angry, and as she sipped divine wine from a cup she smiled and proclaimed to Mahishasur in a colorful tone — "Roar with delight while you still can, O illiterate demon, because when I will kill you after drinking this, the gods themselves will roar with delight".
"When Mahashaur had half emerged into his buffalo form, he was paralyzed by the extreme light emitting from the goddess's body. The goddess then resounded with laughter before cutting Mahishasur's head down with her sword.
Thus Durga slew Mahishasur, thus is the power of the fierce compassion of Durga. Hence, Mata Durga is also known as Mahishasurmardhini — the slayer of Mahishasur. According to one legend, the goddess Durga created an army to fight against the forces of the demon-king Mahishasur, who was terrorizing Heaven and Earth. After ten days of fighting, Durga and her army defeated Mahishasur and killed him. As a reward for their service, Durga bestowed upon her army the knowledge of jewelry-making. Ever since, the Sonara community has been involved in the jewelry profession" (Source: Durga - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
again through Chandi Path we may learn:
''Chandipath narrates that She is the primeval source of power, all qualities reside in her. She is one and yet known by many names. She is Narayani, Brahmani, Maheshwari, Shivaduti and She is the fierceful Chamunda, decked with a garland of skulls. The Goddess Chandika is eternal. She has no birth, no definite physical form. She assumes a manifestation of majestic might only to restore the process of Creation from the terrible Asuras or evil incarnates. Mahisasura, the terrible king of the Asuras had defeated the gods and driven them out of Heaven. The gods, dejected and humiliated went to Brahma, the god of creation Vishnu, the God of preservation and Mahadeva, the God of destruction, to report their defeat. These three Gods projected their energy and evoked a new form of energy. This energy then crystallised into the heavenly form of a Goddess. She was Mahamaya, the Mother of the Universe. The emergence of the goddess was an auspicious moment. The Goddess then emerged in full battle array to combat Mahisasura. The Himalayas gifted Her the lion to act as her carrier, Vishnu gave her the Chakra , Mahadeva gave her the trident, Yama gave her the danda, Brahma gave her the rosary and the container of sacred water. Armed with weapons of all kinds, the Mother Goddess defeated the Asuras, thus ending the rule of evil forces. The occasion of Mahalaya, thus, always goes on reminding mankind of the divine scheme of things that the Evil may have had its say, but it is ultimately the Good that has the last laugh." (Source: durga_puja : Mahalaya).
Durga Puja forms a mood of Festivity through out the Hearts and mostly Bengalies, all over the earth, be the any of religion he or she is , all the colour of religions just get diluted to a single Colour that is 'India'.
Evolution of Durga Puja:
The Durga Puja was celebrated by the effluent people mainly Zamindars and kings, but today in West Bengal , community Puja or Baroyari Puja, Baro means 'Twelve' (12) , Yari means Friends, so Baro Yari puja means Puja organised by Twelve Friends. How this community Puja has began ?
We may have to travel back to our time a little bit than 250 years. It was of some friends of a village of Gupti Para in Hooghly District , went to Calcutta (now Kolkata) , to see a 'Durga Puja' organised by a Zamindar family, but they were stopped in the gate , feeling extremely humiliated, the friends, returned to their village, and created a 'Community Puja' or Sarbojonin Puja at their village, with donations , it has no bar to anybody, everybody being welcomed here. Now , it is the Sarvojonin Puja or Barwari Pujas that are forms overwhelming part of the Puja. The Pandals gets erected , with light .
"Initially the Puja was organised by affluent families since they had the money to organize the festival. During the late 19th and early 20th century, a burgeoning middle class, primarily in Calcutta, wished to observe the Puja. They created the community or Sarbojanin Pujas.
These Pujas are organized by a committee which represents a locality or neighbourhood. They collect funds called "chaanda" through door-to-door subscriptions, lotteries, concerts etc. These funds are pooled and used for the expenses of pandal construction, idol construction, ceremonies etc. The balance of the fund is generally donated to a charitable cause, as decided by the committee. Corporate sponsorships of the Pujas have gained momentum since the late 1990s. Major Pujas in Calcutta and in major metro areas such as Delhi and Chennai now derive almost all of their funds from corporate sponsorships. Community fund drives have become a formality.
Despite the resources used to organise a Puja, entry of visitors into the Pandal is generally free. Pujas in Calcutta and elsewhere experiment with innovative concepts every year. Communities have created prizes for Best Pandal, Best Puja, and other categories.(Wikipedia)"
Below here an image of Godess Durga's puja celebrated in a Zamindar house during 19th Century during British Raj:
famous Pujas were of Sabarna Coudhury's Puja, HaatKhola's 'Dutta Bari's Puja, Raja Radha Kanta Dev's Puja.
As the Durga Puja is nearby we wish everybody a 'Very Happy' and prosperous Durga Puja, may the tear change into smile, may happyness bestowed upon all , Mother Durga, may it be showered upon all the people sanning Geo Political Boundary , Colour, Class , Religion, Nation.
Regards
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