Essay the Durga Puja | Importance of Durga Puja | Paragraph on Durga Puja | Speech on Durga Puja
Durga Puja is the greatest Hindu festival in which God is adored as mother. It emphasizes the maternal aspect of God. Durga represents the Divine mother. Shakti is the omnipotent power of the Lord, or the cosmic energy. Without Durga, Shiva has no expression and without Shiva, Durga has no existence. Durga puja is marked by puja celebrations, new clothes, decor, puja songs and lots of roadside stalls, which altogether adds more to the fun fiesta. It is celebrated with a great pomp in places such as Kolkata, Assam, etc.
Puja is fun for everyone. Children are excited to have a bag full of toys picked from the roadside toy stalls. Especially the toy pistols are all time favorite. Red tapes with tiny bombs would lie curled in tiny round boxes and those will be put in the pistols for artificial firing. Tiny and big toy cars, singing dolls, toy cellphones, etc are in great demand. New clothes are collected for all 4-5 days functions at most and those lie desperate inside the Amirah to be worn during the festivities. It is vacation time for mist people and so it is also the right time for family and friends get together.
Durga puja starts seven days prior to the main events with a day called Mahalaya. It heralds the advent of Durga, the goddess of supreme power. It’s a kind of invocation to the Goddess to descend on earth. Goddess Durga is pictured as having ten arms holding a sword, conch, discuss, rosary, bell, wine cup, shield, bow, arrow and spear. She is dressed in red cloth and bedecked with jewels. Her tresses are long and open and she wears a crown named karundamukuta. The tools reflect the power that commands the universe.
Durga is worshipped along with her whole family comprising Ganesha, Kartikeya, Lakshmi, Saraswati makes it perfect picture of divinity. Durga Puja is the time for propitiating the goddess of power in her different manifestations.
The puja goes on for ten days in the temples but it is the concluding three days which are really important. These are mahasaptami, mahashtami and mahanavami. Mahasaptami is marked with Nabapatrika which is given a pre-dawn bath. It means the holy ritual of worshipping nine types of plants which are seen as symbol of the goddess. The main saptami puja follows Kalparambho and Mahasnan.
The ashtami puja begins with a recital of sanskrit hyms in community puja pandals as thousands of devotees offer anjali to the Goddess. Kumari puja is a ritual observed in traditional puja. Then comes the Sandhi Puja, which marks the inter-linkage of the Mahaashtami and Mahanavami. The main Navami Puja begins with end of Sandhi puja. The Navami bhog is offered to the Goddess.
The last day is called Mahadashami and it is the tearful farewell of all the preceding festivities observed since nine days. It is a grand sendoff marked by procession on the streets and great crowds. The idols are immersed in a nearby river.
Goddess Durga is the form of Shakti worshipped for her gracious as well as terrifying aspect. With the end of Puja and all the rituals, it is time to wait for another year again to enjoy these festivities.
Essay the Durga Puja | Importance of Durga Puja | Paragraph on Durga Puja | Speech on Durga Puja
