Durga Puja is grand festival for Kolkata ,Navratri

Durga Puja is one of the religious festivals of India which is celebrated throughout the country with great zeal and fervour. It is particularly celebrated in the state of West Bengal in Kolkata in the honour of celebrating the unfathomable power of Goddess Durga. This festival is celebrated during the span of whole period of Navaratri for a time span of 10 days. From the sixth day of Navaratri till the ninth day the huge pandaals of the Goddess Durga are open for the visitors. The tenth day of the Navaratri is called as Dashami and on this day the idols of the Goddess Durga are immerged into water and this process is called as Visarjan. This year in 2017, dashami is falling on 30th September

DURGA PUJA IN KOLKATA

As per Hindu mythology, Goddess Durga, who is also referred to as an embodiment of Shakti or a symbol of feminine strength, emerged as a collective energy to fight the devil Mahishasura, who had been blessed not to be defeated by any God or Man. Goddess Durga is believed to be a self-sufficient reservoir of energy. The people of Kolkata highly revere Goddess Durga for her unfathomable power and the festival of Durga Puja is observed with utmost grandeur and gigantic ceremonies. If you are visiting Kolkata during Durga Puja then it is for sure that you are going to witness one of the best celebratory moments in the most gigantic way in your life. The preparations before the celebration are not less enticing than the celebration itself. A week or so before the celebration, the whole of the city starts getting masked with a touch of excitement and eagerness. The overwhelming way with which the people out there in Kolkata welcome Goddess Durga is really heart-warming.

Durga Pooja Celebrations in Kolkata

Preparations for Durga Puja Fest

Durga Puja festival preparations commences one or two months in prior to the celebration dates. Just like Diwali bonus offered to employees in North India, in Kolkata Puja Bonus is offered to employees of both government as well as private organizations. In fact, many Pre-pooja bargain sales are also offered by shops in Kolkata as they get huge amount of sale during the festival. The festival is in fact welcomed with great enthusiasm by every household.

The Making of Durga Idol

Many years back, Durga Puja festival was celebrated within the families at home and now it has turned into a community festival which is celebrated at Puja pandals. Few months prior to the festival celebration in Kumartuli which is a place near to Kolkata, amazing idols of goddess Durga are given shape. It is a famous place for production of beautiful idols of gods and goddesses. Here the expert artisans show their talent in making idols of Goddess Durga, Lord Kartik, Goddess Saraswati, Lord Ganesha, Goddess Lakshmi and the demon Mahisasura which are required for the festival.

Magnificient Decorations of Durga Puja Pandal

On Durga Puja, pooja pandals are the main attraction. Many people are much talented in developing Puja Pandals (huge covered stage for Puja) with use of wood, paper, bamboos, plastic materials, clothes and other amazing stuffs. Innovative ideas of making Pandal set ups and goddess idols are done with great devotion and a lot of money is erected in Puja Pandals which are all decked with mesmerizing art work. In fact many pandals are also built in shape of world famous monuments or structures.

Durga Puja Celebration & its Main Days

The major days of the celebration of Durga Puja celebration are seventh, eight, ninth and the tenth day. Basically, the celebration of Durga Puja gears its pace on the 6th day of celebration that is on Maha Shashti. The major rituals of Durga Puja start on the 7th day. The priest is called upon to chant the mantras, shlokas of Puja and perform aarti at the pandal of the Puja. Moreover, there are many cultural activities held such as dance and song competitions as well as games are also organized during last few days of the festival celebration. Many professional artists like singers, dancers, musicians are also called for singing bhajan and stuti of Goddess Durga. Apart from pandal decorations, the city is also illuminated and decorated with displays of colorful and sparkling lights. Also educational institutions as well as offices are closed during four main days of Durga Puja celebration. Indeed, Durga Puja is the biggest nd most cheerfully celebrated festival of Kolkata.

DURGA PUJA CELEBRATIONS

The celebration of Durga Puja goes very far back in history and there are abundant references to it in India literature from 12th century onwards. However, today Durga Puja is generally a community festival. The Puja celebration over the years has changed color often. Earlier, it was the most expensive of all festivals and could only be performed by the rich and the powerful like feudal lords, rajas and big businessmen. However, it always evoked great enthusiasm and popular support.

But in today's ethos, The evolution of many clubs, associations and societies has made the Puja cosmopolitan in character. The social and ritualistic significance of the Puja has also been modified to a great degree. Today, this festival has become an occasion for pageantry and extravaganza. Age-old conch shells and drums have given way to loud film songs and sometimes the goddess is modeled on popular film actresses. On the flip side, animal sacrifices, a must earlier, have been dispensed with at many places and shrines.

While earlier Durga was worshiped alone, now it is, more often than not, the goddess with her family. Durga is portrayed as the supreme head; and the presence of Ganesha, Kartikeya, Shiva etc marks a wholesome picture of divinity. In southern India celebrations constitute a display of images of God and toys at home for nine days. But despite the various ways in which this festival is celebrated the feature that is common is that of the worship of the mother goddess.