The Chronicles of Devipaksha

" Dhaak e kathi pore gelo je! "
(The festive instruments Dhaak are being played already.)

Listen to Dhaak here. Let it play in the background while reading this for the feel of it.

Shubho Maha Nabami. The grandest of the festivities is here. The festivities that each & every Bengali looks forward to throughout the year; the biggest of the biggest in Eastern India & Bangladesh. The festivities that makes each Bengali let go of their sorrows fill their hearts with happiness for the coming five days - our very own Durga Pujo.

Every nook and corner of the entire city is covered with vibrant lighting

Durga Pujo is more of a sentiment for a Bengali than anything else. Every nook corner of the City of Joy is decked up like a new bride. People put on their best dresses (read : new), put aside their differences & go pandal hopping. Since it's Maha Nabami today (the nineth day of Devi paksha), here's an nine pointer guide regarding various facts &popular folklore surrounding our very own Pujo. Happy reading & Happy Pujo! :)

1. Akal Bodhon

When one says "Durga Puja", it has become synonymous with the celebrations that we have during autumn or "Shorot Kal". Time travel to some hundreds of centuries back, i.e. before the time of Rama, Durga Puja was performed in Spring which was & continues to be known as "Basanti Puja" - "Basanti" referring to "Basanta" or spring.

Legends have it that before waging a war with Ravana to free his wife Sita from his demonic clutches, he performed Durga Puja to seek Maa Durga's blessings who is also known as  "Maha Shakti" , i.e. the source of the greatest power. This period of time is known to be the time when Gods & Goddesses are asleep.  Hence Lord Rama's puja was like an untimely awakening or "Akal Bodhon" of the divine.

2. Chokkhu Daan and Mahalaya

Mahalaya marks the end of Pitri Paksha & the beginning of Devi Paksha. It is in fact, the last day of Pitri Paksha. Bengalis follow some distinctive traditions on the day of Mahalaya which is considered to be extremely auspicious. 

Almost in every Bengali household, in keeping with customs & traditions, the radio is turned on at 4 a.m. to hear "Mahishashuro Mardini" - a description of how Maa Durga was created by the Gods to defeat Mahishashura, the demon who was wrecking havoc as he assumed power over all the three worlds & how she killed him. It is Bir Krishna Bhadra's chanting of the entire saga (Chandi paath)& Dwijen Mukhopadhyay's "Jaago, tumi jaago" that marks the beginning of the Puja vibes for each & every Bangali. Mahalaya starts a countdown of seven days to the commencement of Durga Pujo.

Birendra Krishna Bhadra in the AIR India studio

Many Hindus take a dip in the holy Ganges to offer prayers to their ancestors on this day, also known as tarpan. 

Devotees performing tarpan on the morning of Mahalaya.

Artisans draw the idol's eyes on this day which is known as "Chokkhu Daan". It is usually done in the presence of a single artisan, symbolic of giving life and expression to a lifeless idol.

Chokkhu Daan

3. Significance of Devi Paksha

Devi Paksha marks the end of Pitri Paksha & beginning of a fortnight dedicated to the worship of the Devi or feminine energy. It starts with the next day of Mahalaya & ends with Kojagori Lakshmi Puja. From the day after Mahalaya, Navaratri is celebrated in North India. In this festival, each day is dedicated to each of the forms of Naba Durga which highlights various aspects of feminine energy. From the sixth day of Devi Paksha, that is Maha Shasthi , Durga Puja festivities begin.

The nine forms of Maa Durga & an overview of Navaratri

4. Kumortuli and making of the idol

Although there are various sculptor's colony in the city, Kumortuli is the most famous of them all. It is a place where generations of artisans have been residing and have been sculpting idols. A potter's colony existing from the British times, it is popular hotspot for photo walkers. From the year 2004, artisans are also exporing e-options with them exporting overseas online.

Kumortuli

An interesting fact about the making of the idol is that clay from nine places is required to make the idol of Maa Durga. Clay from the households of nine daughters is taken, i.e. from 

- Nartaki/Abhinetri (Dancer/Actor)

- Kapalik (wife of a magician)

- Dhopani (washer woman/ wife of a washerman)

- Napitani (wife of a barber)

- Brahmani (priestess/wife of a priest)

- Shudrani (wife of a janitor)

- Goyalini (wife of a milkman)

- Malini (wife of a gardener)

- Potita (sex worker)

While one can figure out some theories about how each community was chosen, the last one appears to be an odd choice. According to folklore, it is believed that when a man enters a brothel, he leaves behind all his virtues at the doorstep of the brothel, thus making the soil in front of a brothel extremely pure. Thus the soil in front of a brothel is used to make the idol of the goddess.(source)

5. Daaker Shaaj (Decoration of the idol)

Nowadays with the introduction of theme pujas (Each pandal picks up a theme, like Madhubani paintings, or some event like the World Cup, the pandal & idol decoration is done accordingly.) But traditionally only two kinds of idol decoration existed, namely : Sholar Shaaj & Daaker Shaaj. 

Sholar Shaaj is primarily the decoration using Shola which is a thin paper like material made from the pith of a plant called Shaol, found in abundance in South Asia & India.

Sholar Shaaj

The other was more of an extravagant affair. Durga Puja is not only emotion for Bengalis but also a matter of pride. The then Zamindars, each extremely proud of the puja of their house had a sense of competition amongst them, whose would be a more pompous affair than the rest. Hence, they started importing a special silver foil to make the decorations of the idols which at that point of time was only available in Germany. As these decorations would come by post or daak in Bengali, this kind of decoration was known as Daaker Shaaj. This was introduced by the Sovabazaar Rajbari family.(source)

Daaker Shaaj at Baghbazaar Sarbojonin

6. Maha Shashthi

Theme Puja : Bosepukur Talbagan Sarbojonin's theme in 2016 was Manipur

The sixth day of Devi Paksha, it is the day when the face of the Goddess is unveiled as she has descended from the heavens to visit her father's house or "Baaper Bari". Goddess Parvati (one of Devi Durga's forms) is known to be the daughter of the Himalayas, hence she is deemed as the daughter of Earth. During this time, it is said that she leaves her husband, Lord Shiva's abode for five days and arrives on Earth with her four children, Lord Ganesha, Goddess Lakshmi, Saraswati & Lord Kartik. She is known to make her journey on one of her four vahanas apart from her favourite, the lion : i.e. Gaja (elephant), Ghotok (horse), Nouko(boat), & Palki(palanquin). Each of these have their own significances as well, but let that story be for some other day ;)

7. Nobo potrika snan

Kolabou Snan at one of the ghats  by the Ganges in Bengal.

On the seventh day of Devi Paksha, i.e. on Maha Saptami, at the crack of dawn, "Nobopotrika Snan" or "Kola Bou Snan" is conducted. As the plant is placed next to Lord Ganesha, a common myth that one can hear is "Kola Bou" being referred to as Lord Ganesha's wife. But that is so not true.

"Nobopotrika" or Nine Plants, as the name suggests is a collection of twigs & leaves of nine plants, tied together with a yellow thread. The Goddess is said to have nine forms & these nine plants are symbolic of the said "Nabadurga". The representations are as follows :

• Banana plant: Goddess Brahmani
• Colocasia plant: Goddess Kalika
• Turmeric plant: Goddess Durga
• Jayanti plant: Goddess Kartiki
• Bel leaves: Lord Shiva
• Pomegranate leaves: Goddess Raktadantika
• Asoka leaves: Goddess Shokarahita
• Arum plant: Goddess Chamunda
• Rice paddy: Goddess Lakshmi

This collection of nine plants is bathed in the river Ganges or any holy water body, draped in a sari, & is placed on the right side of Goddess Durga. As Lord Ganesha happens to be placed at extreme right, most of the times, Nobopotrika is placed on the right side of Lord Ganesha, giving rise to the myth of his wife. Many researchers think that Nobopotrika is a way of representing the Goddess of Food & Agriculture. 

8. Kumari Puja

Kumari Puja at  Ramakrishna Mission, Belur Math

Kumari Puja is the tradition of worshipping young girls believing them to be forms of the Divine. Kumari is believed to be the earthly representation of Maa Durga. An unmarried girl, who is yet to hit her puberty is chosen to be the Kumari. She is bathed in the river Ganga, decked like a goddess, and is worshipped as the Holy Divine. Kumari Puja is an age old tradition whose mentions can be found in the Puranas & the Mahabharata. Ramakrishna Paramhansa, himself performed Kumari Puja where he imagined Maa Sarada as the kumari. 

The different forms in which the Goddess is worshipped through Her Earthly daughters are :

• A one year old girl is worshipped in the Sandhya form of the Devi
• A two year old is worshipped in the Saraswati mould of the Devi.
• A three year old girl is worshipped in the Tridha form of Durga and
• A four year old is worshipped in the Kalika mould of the Devi.
• Subhaga and Uma are the forms of Durga for a five and a six year old respectively.
• Malini form of the Goddess represents a seven year old
• Kujjika represents a eight year old girl.
• Kalsondarbha and Aparajita stands for a ten year old girl and an eleven year old girl.
• Bhairavi is represented by a twelve year old girl
• Mahalakhmi by a thirteen year old girl.
• Pitnayika, Khetragya and Ambika by a fourteen, fifteen and sixteen year old girl respectively. (source)

Ramkrishna Paramhansa worshipping Maa Sarada

I know, a lot of questions might be peeping in your mind, but looking at the bright side, respecting & honouring the feminine energy has been an age old tradition. Miscommunications & chinese whisper of knowledge has led to the distortion of some very beautiful & significant traditions. One of the things that this blog aims to do is the preservation of some traditions that is fast finding it's way to the world of oblivion.

9. Barowari Puja

Enthusiastic people queuing to enter and see a pandal 

Durga Puja is primarily a community affair and there are primarily two types of pujas - Barir Pujo & Barowari Pujo. Barir Pujo is the one which is held in one's house. Barowari Pujo is the one that is for the public. The word Barowari means 12 friends, coming from "Baro" (twelve) & "Yaari" (friendship). This happens to be the term coined as the first community puja was organised by 12 friends.The Sabarna Roy Choudhury family has been celebrating Durga Puja since 1610 in their ancestral home at Barisha. It is possibly the oldest organised festival in the Kolkata region. The first Barowari Puja was organised by 12 Brahmin friends in Guptipara, Hoogly in 1790.

The Aatchala Bari pujo  of the Roy Chowdhury family in Barisha in current days.