Durga Puja Celebration in Assam

Epitomizing victory of good over evil, Durga Puja is celebrated in Assam with grandeur and fervor. It is a festival dedicated to worship of Goddess Durga, an incarnation of Goddess Shakti. It is five days festival, which is celebrated annually during the Ashwin month of the Hindu calendar. This festival is celebrated to mark the victory of Goddess Durga over the demon Mahishasura, whose life was inside a buffalo. It is one of the biggest festivals of Assam after Bihu, which is celebrated across the state in a grand scale with huge pomp and show.

The festival of Durga Puja coincides with the festival of Navratri, which is celebrated in Northern India and Gujarat. The Goddess is portrayed as a warrior having ferocious look and ten arms, each of which holding different weapons, which symbolizes power and anger. According to Hindu mythological scriptures, Goddess Durga defeated the demon named Mahishasura after 9 days longs ferocious battle; hence marking the victory of Good over Evil. Mainly celebrated in the state of Bengal, which gained prominence during the rule of British Government and after India’s Independence, Durga Puja festival has become one of the greatest festivals celebrated in West Bengal, Assam, Jharkhand, etc.

Durga Puja Celebration in Assam

 Durga Puja in every Assam, especially in urban areas where hundreds of colorfully decorated and illuminated pandals are set up every year to welcome the great festivity that people waits for the entire year. It is celebrated in a grand scale and the pandals are swarmed by devotees who come to offer prayer and homage to Goddess Durga. One month before the actual puja day the environment in the entire state brightens up with festive mood. People go for shopping as new clothes are worn on each day of the Puja. It is mainly a five day festival, which starts with Shashthi, followed by Maha Saptami, Maha Ashtami, Maha Nabami and Dashami or Vijayadashami. During the day time, people visit the temples to offer prayer to Maa Durga and seek her blessings for prosperity. In the evening, people dress up in their new attire and visit the pandals that are set up displaying the idols of Godess Durga killing Mahisasura. It also comprises the worship of Shiva, the consort of Goddess Durga, Lakshmi, Ganesha, Saraswati and Kartikeya, who are deemed as her children.

During the festival of Durga Puja, the whole environment is filled with zest and enthusiasm. According to the chronicles of history, the festival in the state of Assam was started by Susenghphaa or Pratap Singha, the Ahom rulers of Assam. The festival is celebrated in every part of the state with grandeur and fervor; however, the celebration in the Barak Valley region, which is dominated by the Bengali community, is worth watching. In Silchar, over 300 pandals are decorated with lights and competitions are held between the pandals.