7 Special things to notice about Durga Puja Celebration in Bengal!

Durga Puja celebration in West Bengal witnesses a special type of zeal and extravagance. In addition to the traditional rituals, the exclusively special trademark features of the festive celebration in Kolkata have something extraordinarily different.

Those who have got an opportunity to visit Kolkata during Durga Puja celebration; they must have noticed that incredible zeal people come up with. Those four days, irrespective of the caste, creed and gender, everyone’s heart gets gripped with the Puja fever. Goddess Durga is welcomed by every family with utmost love and exhilaration in heart.

The celebration zeal of Durga Puja in Kolkata is something different and the inexplicable emotions with which people welcome this reservoir of Shakti cannot be explained in words. Below are the special things, you will notice while visiting Kolkata during Durga Puja. Read below to find….

The most significant part of the festive celebration in Kolkata is the gigantic idols of Goddess Durga and her children. These extravagantly huge idols of Durga are shown killing Mahishasur, riding on her vehicle lion. Karthika and Sarswati are shown in her right, while Ganesha, two of her wives in the form of banana trunks and Laxmi are shown seated at her right. Lord Shiva idol is shown at top of the Durga idol. And, this whole set up is called as Durga Chala.

During the festival Maa Durga is worshipped in a variety of forms and one of the famous forms in which she is worshipped is that of Kumari girls. On the day of Ashtami, these Kumari girls are worshipped alongside Goddess Durga. Girls aged below sixteen are selected for the same and this whole tradition is believed to be the purest form of worship.

Offering eye of Goddess Durga is also called as Chokkhudaan and is believed to be one of the oldest rituals. To design the entire Durga Chala, it takes around 3-4 months and as per the rituals the eyes should be designed with the final stroke of paint. The rituals should be completed in darkness and only one sculptor should be present at that time.

This is the ritual of offering flowers to Goddess Durga in morning of Ashtami that is the eighth day of the festival. The incredibly breathtaking scene of people and even the strangers offer flowers to Maa Durga with immense love. This one is a significant part of the celebration of Durga Puja in Kolkata.

During Durga Puja, the day changes from one to another in the evening. And, every evening is welcomed with special zeal; dance, drums and brasses make for special welcome to every evening. The special charm of this evening celebration is the dhunuchi naach and this evening aarti is an important part of the celebration.

This one is the last day of the festival and it brings about sadness in every heart. On this very day, the Puja Pandals see unprecedented rush of married women smearing each other with Sindur femuch like in Holi and this whole thing is to mark the farewell of Maa Durga.

On last day of Durga Puja the entire scenario of streets gets transformed, and thousands of people move into flocks. People make preparations for bidding adieu to Goddess Durga and she sets herself off for the Himalayas. On the day, the idol of Maa Durga is immersed into the river. On this day, every Bengali household organize for big fat part with extended meal and everything.

These are some of the most enticing things that are done during Durga Puja by every Bengali community. These have become a fundamental part of this entire celebration. During Durga Puja, visiting Kolkata will make one feel something special of its kind.