Durga Puja: All you need to know

What is it? Durga Puja is a nine-day Indian Hindu festival celebrated in worship of Goddess Durga, the epitome of divine strength or ‘shakthi’. The festival is celebrated differently across the country based on various versions of the story and depending on the inherent beliefs of the people in that region.

Good to know Indian Hindu scriptures hold place for the equally powerful Devas and Asuras. The interesting part is that there is no evil or good pre-stamped on these powerful deities and they are part of a duality. However, in most myths and stories, the ones on the good side are Devas and the evil ones are Asuras.

The Mother Goddess The story starts with the creation of Goddess Durga in the face of great threat to gods and men from a devil king or Asura named Mahishasura. He was very powerful and had received a boon from Lord Shiva which indicated that no man, beast or God could kill him. He brought upon great evil upon the worlds and the gods approached the supreme three, Lord Vishnu, Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva for help.

Together the three created a woman and the gods gave her all of their combined powers. She was filled with pure strength or ‘shakthi’. She then proceeded to fight a great battle with Mahishasura lasting nine days, finally killing him with her trident.

Akal-bodhan The puja for Goddess Durga is conventionally in spring as per the above legend. The story leading to the autumnal celebration of Durga Puja comes later. Before setting out to save Sita and defeating demon king Ravana, Lord Ram invokes the blessings of Goddess Durga, worshipping her and fasting for nine days. This was not the right time for her puja and is also known as ‘Akal-bodhan’ roughly translated to ‘untimely worship’ leading to this autumnal festival.

There are small tribes in Bengal called the Asur tribes who believe they are descendants of Mahishasura and for them the time of Durga Puja is a time to mourn the defeat of their martyr Asura king by the power-hungry Devas.

As per the Asura side of the story, Goddess Durga did not wage a battle and instead hoodwinked the great Mahishasura with her beauty, finally slaying him on the ninth day.

Durga Puja is the ultimate worship of femininity and as per Hinduism the universal creative forces are feminine. Young girls are dressed up as Durga and worshipped as they portray strength, femininity and innocence.

The first clay to make the idols of the Goddess has to be taken from the doorstep of a courtesan’s home. It is believed that this mud is ‘punya matti’ or ‘pristine clay’ because every man who has visited one of these homes leaves his virtue in the mud outside as he crosses the threshold into sin. It is therefore believed that this mud holds the combined purity and virtue of hundreds of men. Another fascinating custom is that this mud cannot simply be taken from outside one of these homes; it has to be begged for and given as a gift or blessing by the courtesans.

In the small town of Kulasekarapattinam in Tamil Nadu, Durga Puja is like a Halloween party with people of all ages and genders dressing up as various characters including deities, freedom fighters and Mother India. Some people also become ‘sami’ and take a vow to be as like a God as humanly possible by abstaining from all things considered evil for 41 days.

The main celebrations are in the form of a dance festival, ‘dandiya’or ‘garbha’ which hails from Gujarat. People dress up in bright clothes and dance with colourfully painted bamboo sticks. Families conduct pujas at their homes but the final immersion of the idols is not allowed in the UAE, so these are carefully packed away. Bengali families and associations celebrate the festival in grand fashion after procuring necessary ministry permissions. Hindus also visit the Shiva and Krishna Mandir located west of the Dubai Creek in Bur Dubai.