The First Durga Puja in Kolkata

The First Durga Puja in Kolkata

The biggest annual religious festival for the Bengalis, Durga Puja celebrates the victory of the Hindu goddess Durga over the evil demon Mahishasura. The occassion is also known by various names such as Durgotsab ('Festival of Durga') and Sharodotsab ('Autumn festival').


Following the Hindu scriptures, the actual worship of Goddess Durga takes place in the Hindu month of Chaitra (corresponding to March or April of the Gregorian calendar). But this worship is observed only by a handful in some places of West Bengal. The autumnal celebration of Durga Puja, known as "Sharadiya", is more popular and takes place in the month of Sharat (September or October according to the Gregorian calendar).


The "Sharadiya" Durga Puja is said to have first started in the year 1757 with the Durga Puja of Sovabazar Rajbari. The oldest puja in Kolkata, it came to being due to the efforts of Maharaja Naba Krishna De, the founder of the Shobhabazar royal family. It is said that after emerging victorious in the Battle of Plassey, Colonel Robert Clive wanted to pay a thanks to the divine forces for his success. The Battle of Plassey was a landmark in the history of British domination in India as the victory of the British forces in this war gave the East India Company control of Bengal. Robert Clive was the then chief officer of British East India Company and he led his forces to victory in this crucial battle, that too with minimum casualties. As the only church in Calcutta at that time was destroyed by Siraj-ud-Daulah, Clive was unable to show his gratitude to God.


When Raja Nabakrishna Deb came to know of Clive’s desire, he invited the latter to his house at Durga Puja and offer his thanks at the feet of Goddess Durga. Initially Clive had some hesitations to attend the puja as in those days Christians were not allowed by the Hindus to take part in Hindu festivities. However, the mighty Nabakrishna Deb managed it all and Robert Clive paid a visit to the Shobhabazar Rajbari to offer his thanks to Goddess Durga. Thereafter, the Shobhabazar Durgotsab(Durga Puja ceremony) came to be known as the "Company Puja".


The Shobhabazar Sharodotsab proved a trendsetter in Durga Puja festivities of Bengal. From this time until the independence of India in 1947, inviting Englishmen to Durga Puja ceremonies became a fashion. The number of Englishmen attending the family Durga Puja became an index of prestige and a status symbol among the upcoming merchant class of Kolkata. After this trendsetting puja of 1757, many British Officers of the East India Company were invited as guests of honour in the Pujas by various wealthy mercantile and Zamindar families in Bengal. The hosts vied with one another in arranging the most sumptuous feasts and organising lavish decorations and entertainment for their white guests. This was a way of pleasing officials of The East India Company which was in charge of a large part of India including Bengal after the battles of Plassey and Buxar.


With time, the "barowari" (community) pujas took over in a big way. The coming of corporate sponsorship helped these public puja ceremonies far surpass the grandeur of the private pujas. However, the Durga Pujas of the old zamindar families in and around Kolkata still attract crowds. These still survive even after the downfall of royalty in India. In 2008, Shovabazar Rajbari organised the 252nd Durga Puja.

Durga Puja Celebrations Around the World

Durga Puja Celebrations Around the World

Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, Durga Puja is celebrated with great fanfare. It forms the biggest religious festival for the Hindu community, who form a minority in Bangladesh. The festival is observed in almost every district of the country, despite the dominant religion being Islam. Numerous Durga Puja pandals are erected and decorated beautifully in every corner of Bangladesh, including the villages. According to a 2007 census, the approximate number of Puja Mandap in Bangladesh for that year was a staggering figure of 20,649. In Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh, local residents seat a virgin(generally a little girl) in the local temple during Durga Puja festival. The virgin is regarded as a symbol of purity and worshippers offer prayers to the virgin as a symbolic representation of worshipping Goddess Durga. Here Bijoya Dashami, the concluding day of the Durga Puja festivities, is a government holiday. The five-day Durga Puja festival ends on this day with the immersion of idols in the rivers and sea across Bangladesh.

Nepal

In Nepal, Durga Puja is known as "Dashain" and observed as a ten-day festival that celebrates the triumph of Goddess Durga over the evil force represented by Mahishasura. Nepal being predominantly a Hindu nation, Durga Puja is the biggest festival of the nation as it is in India. Both nations follow the same Hindu calendar and hence, the date of the "Dashain" festival coincides with the "Durga Puja" in India. The "Dashain" festivities not only witness religious observance by the people of Nepal but also find them visiting their families and having a joyous time. The King of Nepal plays a key role in the festivities, particularly during Saptami (the Seventh day of the pujas). Inspite of the overthrow of monarchy in Nepal, the Royal Family still has a significant cultural role in the nation. During "Dashain", banks and government offices are closed and most of the activities in the country come to a halt. Most buses do not ply during the festive days.

Australia

In Australia, Durga Puja is observed by the Indian immigrants with great gusto. In Sydney, the capital city of the country, thousands of Bengali immigrants and other members of the Indian diaspora gather on Maha Sasthi (the first day of the Puja) to provide a warm welcome to Goddess Durga and her four children. The women drape themselves in in dazzling Baluchari, Dhakai, Tangail and Kantha saris while the men wear kurta and dhoti in keeping with the festive tradition. Clay idols of the Goddess and her divine family are sculpted and painted by local Indian artists and set up inside the colourful pandals (marquees) adorned with spring flowers and other embellishments. Kids are encouraged to enter into a drawing and painting competition while adults take part in or enjoy musical performances consisting of traditional Rabindra Sangeet and modern fusion music. In Melbourne, Durga Puja is celebrated in the southern suburb of Keysborough. It is attended by a large number of Bengalis from across the state and as far as Canberra. The puja here is a community affair with everyone taking part in the process, from men looking after the management to women preparing the sweets and teenagers cutting the fruits for prashad(offering). Throughout the festive week, Indians (especially Bengalis) gather at the puja pandals after work.

Europe

Here Durga Puja is organised by the residing Indian community with great fervor. In Belgium, the Durga Puja celebrations began in 2006 with the efforts of Sarbajanin Puja Samity, Brussels. The “Durga Murti” (statue of Goddess Durga) is specially made in Kumortali (West Bengal, India) and flown to Brussels for this occassion. The Durga Puja(worship of Goddess Durga) is done in typical Bengali tradition for all the five days of the festival. Pandals may or may not be constructed in Europe; the idols are an absolute necessity. On Bijoya Dashami, the Durga idols are immersed in local waterbodies. Recently, the immersion of the Durga idol has been allowed in the Thames river for the festival which is held in London.

Germany

Germany witnesses fervid Durga Puja festivities by the residing Bengali community. In Stuttgart (the capital city of the state Baden-Wurttemberg in South Germany), Durga Puja is being celebrated since 1995. Bengalis from all over South Germany come to enjoy this Puja and even take part in the proceedings.

Different Names for Durga Puja

Different Names for Durga Puja

Check out how Durga Puja is known as in different places of India:


West Bengal - Durga Puja/Akalbodhan/Sharadiya Puja/Sharodotsab/Maha Puja


Gujarat - Navratri Puja.


Punjab - Navratri Puja.


Kerala - Navratri Puja.


Maharashtra - Navratri Puja.


Kullu Valley - Kullu Dussehra.


Himachal Pradesh - Kullu Dussehra.


Mysore - Mysore Dussehra.


Karnataka - Mysore Dussehra.


Tamil Nadu - Bommai Kolu.


Andhra Pradesh - Bommai Kolu.


Nepal - Dashain.


Bangladesh - Durga Puja/Bhagabati Puja.

Durga Puja Facts

Durga Puja Facts

Durga Puja is a celebration of the victory of Goddess Durga over the evil demon Mahishasura, as mentioned in Hindu mythology.

The first Durga puja ceremony is said to have taken place in 1606 in West Bengal and celebrated by Bhabananda, the ancestor of Maharaja Krishnachandra of Nadia.

The oldest Durga puja ceremony in Kolkata is said to have taken place in 1610 due to the efforts of the royal family of Barisha headed by Sabarana Chaudhury.

The first Barowari(community) Durga puja had reportedly been arranged in Guptipara (of Hoogli district in West Bengal) in the year 1761.

In Kolkata, the Barowari(organised by the public) Durga puja tradition commenced in 1860.

The term "Barowari"(meaning "organised by the public") was changed to "Sarbojonin"(meaning “for all people”), in 1924.

Durga Puja includes the worship of Goddess Durga as also of Lord Shiva, her four sons and even of Mahishasura.

In Hindu mythology, Lord Shiva is regarded as the husband of Goddess Durga. The four divine beings Lakshmi, Ganesha, Saraswati and Kartikeya are worshipped as the offsprings of the Goddess.

Durga Puja

Durga Puja

Have you ever wondered how many of the festivals we observe have their roots in religion? Christmas, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Passover, Yom Kippur, Buddha Purnima, Holi...all these occassions have their background in the religion of the people who observe them. We can safely say that most of our festive occassions wouldn't have existed but for our faith and religious practices.

The same can be said about Durga Puja, one of the greatest Indian festivals.

"Durga Puja", also known as "Durgotsab", actually means "The Festival of Durga" and is celebrated every year in September in India. The occassion is widely celebrated in Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Tripura, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, Kashmir, Karnataka and Kerala but it is in the state of West Bengal where it is observed with the greatest enthusiasm.

The most important socio-cultural event for the Bengalis, Durga Puja is a five-day festival in West Bengal that is dedicated to the worship of the Hindu goddess Durga. These five days are known as Maha Shashthi , Maha Saptami, Maha Ashtami, Maha Nabami and Bijoya Dashami. Including "Mahalaya", the day of initiation of the Durga Puja festivities (a holiday in West Bengal), the occassion can be extended to a six-day festive event. Every year, the dates of Durga Puja celebrations are fixed according to the traditional Hindu calendar. The fortnight corresponding the festival is called Debi Pokkho (meaning "Fortnight of the Goddess") which starts from the day after Mahalaya and ends on Kojagori Lokkhi Puja (the night of worship of Goddess Lakshmi, one of the greatest Hindu deities).

In West Bengal, preparations for Durga Puja begin a couple of months in advance. Pre-Puja sales and shopping activities are seen to increase in the days leading to the five-day extravaganza. This is the most prosperous period for most Bengali businessmen who are engaged in sale of commodities such as clothing, eatables, gifts, jewellry and the like. Business houses stock themselves with special products and start special advertisement campaigns announcing attractive offers during this time to draw in shoppers. Bengali newspapers and magazines publish special Puja issues, known as "Sharad Sankhya", that include compositions by many a budding author, apart from the works by well-known writers. Even music companies, big and small, bring out albums of reputed as well as new artrists during this time which are eagerly awaited by music lovers in the state. Shopping and furbishing for the home are a must for all Bengalis before Durga Puja. Hence, employees of different Govt. and private organizations are given extra money as Puja bonus to enjoy the festival.

The festival starts with Mahalaya, the first phase of the waxing moon in Aswin. The Mahalaya is the last day of "Pitri Pokkho" - a fortnight dedicated by Bengalis to the honour of their forefathers - and has thousands offering prayers to their ancestors at the city's river banks (ghats), a ritual called Tarpan. Millions in Bengal tune in to All-India Radio to listen to a special annual pre-dawn Mahalaya program consisting of readings from the Chandi and Aagamani songs welcoming Goddess Durga. This traditional program, conceived by Birendrakrishna Bhadra, has become an institution for Bengalis. Without it, the Mahalaya would be incomplete.

In the final days to the actual Durga Puja festivities (that begin on Maha Sasthi), elaborate structures made of bamboo and covered with cloth are erected and decorated very beautifully. These are known as "Pandal"s. On Maha Sasthi, the idol of Devi Durga accompanied by four other idols - that of her four children Ganesha, Kartik, Lakshmi and Saraswati - are set up inside the pandals with an "aroti"(worship ritual). Scores of people throng these pandals with their families from the Maha Sasthi evening to get a glimpse of the Goddess with her divine family. The worship of the Goddess continue for three more days - Mahasaptami, Mahaastami and Mahanavami with elaborate rituals performed by local priests.

The city of Calcutta wears a different look during these three days, specially at night. Millions of people, from the suburban areas and even from abroad, come to the city and form a queue before the pandals waiting endlessly for a "darshan" (glimpse) of the Goddess. Nearly every street is decorated with brilliant lights. It is the time for electricians to show their skill by displaying different kinds of light shows. All restaurants are packed and numerous temporary food stalls are opened though out the city. Special trains, buses are available for all hours of the day and night; even the underground metro rail runs beyond regular schedule. Schools, colleges, offices remain closed during the four days of Durga Puja celebrations. Some people use the holidays to go out of the state to visit various hotspots or even see their relatives living elsewhere.

On Maha Dashami, the last day of Durga Puja, a tearful farewell is offered to the Goddess. The idols of Goddess Durga and her children are carried in processions around the locality and is finally immersed in a nearby river or lake. Most of the community pujas postpone the farewell as long as possible and arrange a grand send-off. The evening sees the get-together of relatives performing the tradition known as "kolakuli" (embracing one another) and eating sweets and other delicacies. This day, known as "Vijaya Dashami", is celebrated all over India.

Bengalis all over the world try to celebrate this great event of their culture. These days, Durga images made out of 'shola' (light material) are flown to countries like the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, France and Kuwait by special order from the NRI Bengalis and Indians who arrange puja in foreign lands.

Apart from India, Durga Puja is also a major festival in Nepal and Bangladesh.