Durga Puja, the annual festival in honor of Goddess Durga, begins tomorrow, September 26 and continues until Saturday, September 30. It’s a moveable festival with dates coinciding with the sixth through tenth day of the bright lunar fortnight in the Hindu month of Ashvin. For five days revelers in Kolkata engage in pandal hopping, food, music, and cultural evenings to welcome Durga back to her paternal home.

Durga, consort of Lord Shiva, also manifests Parvati, Kali, Shakti, and Devi in her feminine pantheon. Durga is a warrior goddess. The Durga Puja festival marks her victory over Mahishasura, a shape-shifting demon. More holistically, Durga represents the victory of good over evil. Durga combines the powers of Goddesses Lakshmi (prosperity), Kali (time), and Saraswati (knowledge).

Like other goddesses, Durga has multiple arms;

most often she’s depicted with eight.

In each hand, she holds a weapon of her teachings on overcoming evil.

The chakra in her upper right hand is for dharma, the duties we perform in life. The conch in her upper left hand stands for happiness with which we perform our duties.

The sword in Durga’s second right hand represents the eradication of vices. Her second left hand holds a bow and arrow meaning we must retain our values in the face of difficulties.

The third lower left arm holds a lotus for detachment, while the club in her right hand is for devotion and surrender.

The trident in her fourth left lower arm is for courage to face challenges. The fourth lower right hand is for forgiveness of ourselves and others.

Durga’s vehicle is the lion symbolizing her unlimited power to protect virtue and destroy evils such as anger, arrogance, greed, jealousy, and the desire to harm.

Usually Durga is clothed in a red sari. The color red is for action.

Durga has three eyes. The left eye, symbolized by the moon, is desire. The right eye symbolized by the sun is action. And the middle eye symbolized by fire is for knowledge.

During the festival, temporary pandals (structures to venerate gods) are built. Within, workers construct tableaux of Durga with Lakshmi, goddess of wealth, to her right, and Saraswati (goddess of knowledge) on her left.

The video shows pandals at night – elaborate and glittering. I find the reference to Disneyland entertaining.

At the end of the festival, everything is dismantled, and the images taken to water where they at one time returned to their natural state. In modern times artists have been using non-biodegradable materials and lead-based paints to create more striking figures. Efforts now take place for a return to biodegradable materials.

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Photos by Author. All Rights Reserved.

Nivedita Ganguly. “Durga Puja, the Bengali Way.” The Hindu. Sept. 23, 2017.
Stay Kalra. “What does Geddes Durga Symbolize?” India Currents. Oct. 18, 2012.
Shri Ryan Rajahs. “The Goddess Durga is the Mother of the Hindu Universe.” ThoughtCo. Sept. 18, 2017.

The post Durga Puja 2017 first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

Durga Puja occurs in every autumn, immediately before Diwali, and is the largest festival in Calcutta. This year’s festival dates were October 7 through 11. Happily I was in the city a week before the event, and so was able to see the final stages of preparation.

Durga Puja is celebrated throughout India, but Calcutta has the largest event by far, because Goddess Durga takes special care of Bengal. People began arriving in the city while I was there, finding shelter wherever they could.

According to legend, Durga makes an annual visit to Calcutta from her home in the Himalayas where she lives with her consort Lord Shiva and their children. Of course other legends stress Durga as as the embodiment of shakti, the divine feminine energy that exists in a state of complete self-sufficiency. Either way, she is the means by which good triumphed over evil when she slew the demon Mahisa. [Here’s the story.]

Preparations for Durga Puja begin months in advance in Calcutta’s Kumartuli neighborhood, the traditional street of potters. When complete, Durga will take center stage. Durga’s lion stalks on her right, his golden mane a contrast with her red sari. On Durga’s left, the defeated demon. In her ten arms, Durga holds the weapons she used in her struggle.

The tableau includes Durga’s four children: Lakshmi (Prosperity) and Saraswati (Wisdom) on her right; Kartikeya (War), and Ganesha (Success) on her left. A small figure of Lord Shiva is painted above Durga’s head. Ganesha’s two wives are also present, represented by banana stalks.

Creating the images in their tableau is a lengthy and ritualistic process. The figures are made on a bamboo frame covered with straw and held together with jute string. Clay from the nearest river, preferably the Ganges (as is the case in Calcutta) is applied in three layers. The last layer is paster of Paris.

The figure can then be painted. The eyes are painted last. The images are varnished. Hair made from jute is glued as needed. Finally, the image is dressed and decorated with dazzling colors and ornaments.

It can take up four months to complete a single image, and the artisans of Kumartuli create hundreds commissioned by neighborhoods, private families and businesses.

The sponsors also build Pandals in which to house the images. These temporary temples are enormous structures built on bamboo poles and covered with fabric. Competitions are held between neighborhoods for the best pandals and puja themes. ‘Pandal-hopping’ is a popular pastime during the festival.

Durga Puja caught on as a popular festival in the 18th century. In 1857 Raja Nabakrishna Deb held a puja at his home in honor of Robert Clive’s victory over the French at the Battle of Plassey. The victory established British East India Company rule in Bengal.

Subsequently, other prominent Bengali families held pujas at which Company officers were guests of honor. Each family tried to outdo the others in the presentation of food, decoration, music and entertainments.

Less elite families originated community pujas. Twelve friends in West Bengal collaborated to collect contributions for local residents to hold the first community puja in 1790. The practice came to Calcutta in 1832. In 1910 larger community pujas took place as public celebrations. Over the years both the images and the pandals have become larger and more decorative.

On the last day of the Durga Puja, the idols are taken to the nearest body of water and immersed head first. Crowds come to bid Durga farewell as she returns to the Himalayas and then join their families and friends.

When the images were made with natural clay and vegetable dyes, the materials naturally dissolved into the water. When Durga Puja was a community event in which 2,000 people might produce one set of images, the number of idols immersed in the river was relatively small.

Today, worshippers take hundreds of images to the water. Most of these contain non-biodegradable materials which are also toxic. Plaster of Paris and paints containing mercury, cadmium, lead, and carbon create beautiful images, but they lower oxygen levels in the water.

To reduce pollutants, the City of Calcutta positions barges near the river banks in order to lift out the idols immediately after immersion.

Next year Durga Puja will be September 26-30.

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Once again, my gratitude to Chefs Mauhkh and Harmeet at the Oberoi Grand who prepared food for me that was gluten free.

Photos by Author.

“The Durga Puja Festival of Kolkata and West Bengal.” From Lost to Found Travel.

“What is so Special About Durga Puja in Bengal.” Indian Today Education. Oct. 16, 2015,

Anastasia Basu. “Where Durga Rides a White Lion.” The Telegraph Calcutta. 4 Oct. 2016. P. 19.

Soma Basu. “Idol Immersions after Durga Puja.” DownTo Earth. Oct 18, 2013.

Rama Chowdhury. 20 Photos of Durga Idol Making.

Sharell Cook. “When is Durga Puja?” About Travel.

Das, Subhamoy. “History and Origin of Durga Puja.” About Religion. Feb 28, 2016.

The post DURGA PUJA – THE GODDESS RETURNS first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.

One of the great things about the way I write historical fiction is the necessity of research travel. My current project took me first to London and Edinburgh to investigate written records [See blogs from July]. But a visit to the site of events in the story took me back to India, this time to the vibrant city of Kolkata [Calcutta] in the state of Bengal.

As very good luck would have it, I arrived as preparations were under way for this year’s Durga Puja, a festival honoring Goddess Durga. A fitting event from which to start my stories of this trip to India. In the featured image you see me gazing at one of the giant images of Goddess Durga’s lion being prepared for the festival.

Before describing the festival, let me tell you about Goddess Durga and the victory of good over evil she represents.

In the picture you see Goddess Durga with her vehicle, a lion, on the left and her defeated enemy, Mahisa, on the right.

THIS IS THEIR STORY

Once upon a time, there was a creature called Mahisa [buffalo] who had the head of a buffalo and the body of a man. How he came to be is a story for another day.

Mahisa wanted the god Brahma to give him the gift of immortality. To catch Brahma’s attention, Mahisa performed severe austerities. Mahisa’s devotion pleased Brahma who offered him a favor. When Mahisa requested immortality, Brahma promised no man would be able to kill Mahisa, which Mahisa thought was what he requested because no woman could kill a man like himself.

Assured of long life and gifted with immense strength and magical abilities, Mahisa became the demons’ leader and challenged the gods, robbing them of their offerings and defeating them in battle. To say the gods were angry would be an understatement. The gods came together and pooled their anger. Fire came from Brahma’s face; a flame from Shiva’s body, and dazzling blue light emanated from Vishnu. Tongues of fire appeared from the other gods. The ensuing mass of fire and light merged to create Goddess Durga. The god Himalaya gave Durga a lion for her vehicle; Vishnu gave her a discus as a weapon, and Shiva bestowed Durga with his trident. I could tell you about all the gifts each god gave Durga, but it would make the blog too long.

Suffice to say, Durga was extremely beautiful and each part of her body emanated energy from the gods.  When the gods told Durga the reason for her creation, the goddess laughed with such force that the earth trembled.

The earthquake’s roar terrified Mahisa and his demons. Mahisa sent men to find out the earthquake’s cause. They spied Durga in the forest wearing beautiful clothing and drinking wine from a golden cup. Awestruck, they immediately returned to Mahisa.

Excited by their descriptions of Durga’s beauty, Mahisa sent his prime minister with a marriage proposal. She refused Mahisa’s quest.

Mahisa sent a second messenger. Durga refused again. This time she became angry. Again the earth trembled. Durga was ready to fulfill the gods’ request. Mahisa sent his best soldiers to fight Durga. She defeated them. Mahisa decided to present himself to Durga. But instead of appearing as his true self, Mahisa transformed into a handsome man. Arriving at Durga’s hermitage, Mahisa told the goddess he was her true consort, saying: “I am the heroic buffalo, king of the demons, respected by gods; I hold this entire triple universe by the prowess of my own arms. I can assume any form I desire and can supply all sensual enjoyments. Choose me as your husband.”

Durga revealed her purpose was to kill him, and advised him either to flee to the netherworld or fight her. Mahisa continued his courtship. Durga repeated herself. Mahisa, believing himself immortal, chose battle.

IT WAS A BATTLE OF EPIC PROPORTIONS

Oceans overflowed.

Clouds broke into fragments.

Mountains fell from the sky.

Durga’s forces emerged victorious. Mahisa resumed his buffalo form. He struck men with his muzzle; trampled them with his hooves; lashed soldiers with his tail and used his breath to throw Durga’s fighters to the earth.

 DURGA BECAME ANGRY

She threw her noose over Mahisa to bind him.

Mahisa transformed into a lion. Durga cut off his head.

Mahisa became a man with a sword. Durga pierced him with her arrows.

Mahisa became an elephant and pulled Durga’s lion down with his trunk.

Durga cut off the elephant’s trunk.

Mahisa resumed his buffalo form and wounded Durga with his horns.

He used his tail to catch hold of the mountains and threw them at her.

Durga paused to fortify herself with a wine made from blood.

Her eyes became red and she laughed. “Roar and roar for a moment,” Durga said to her enemy, “while I drink this honeyed wine. The gods will soon roar when I slay you here.”

Durga leaped upon her enemy.

She kicked him in the neck with her foot

and spiked Mahisa with the trident given to her by Shiva.

When Durga struck Mahisa with her foot,

the demon began emerging from his own mouth.

Durga cut off his head and claimed her victory over evil.

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Next Week: Now that we know the reason for Durga Puja, next week we’ll look at the festival itself.

While in Kolkata, I stayed at the historic Oberoi Grand, of which more later, but I would like to take this opportunity to express gratitude to chefs Harmeet and Mayukh who were so mindful of my need for gluten free food.

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All photos property of Author.

Drawing of Durga Fighting the Demons, c.1785. Public Domain. Wikimedia Commons.

Hindu Myths translated from Sanskrit. Penguin Books. 1975

A. L. Dallapiccola. Hindu Myths. University of Texas Press. 2003

Bulbul Sharma. The Book of Devi. Penguin Books. 2013.

The post GODDESS DURGA SLAYS THE DEMON first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.