Mahalaya marks the advent of Durga Puja, the bigest occasion of the Bengalis.
The stay of Goddess Durga on Earth is only four days long. But Mahalaya starts before
seven days with the chanting of ‘Mahisasura Mardini’ at dawn. ‘Debipaksha’ starts from
this day. Goddess Durga is invited on Earth by the chanting of “Jago Tumi Jago”.
Early at dawn people go to Ganga and pray for their demised relatives while standing
in the water. This entire process is known as Torpon. Mahalaya holds immense importance
for the Bengalis. At noon the rituals are brought to an end. New clothes and sweets are
offered by the devotees to their forefathers.
The Story
Mahishasura was a demon who had threatened gods to throw them out of heaven. He terrified
all staying in the heaven and was a big threat to the existence of the entire universe.
He was indomitable due to a boon bestowed upon him by Brahma. He had gained this after a
hard meditation. No God, be it Indra, the king of the Hindu gods, or be it Kumara, commander
of the armies in heaven, could defeat him. Being helpless the gods asked Vishnu to help them.
Vishnu first took the form of Narasimha and then that of Varaha, but failed to defeat Mahishasura. Shiva opened his third eye, which could destroy all the three worlds, to set free the fire of disaster. But that was also in vain. Suddenly then Brahma brought out a lightning stream from his mouth and Goddess Brahmi appeared on a swan with books of knowledge in her hand. Similarly Indrani, Kaumari, Vaishnavi, Varahi and Shivani came into being. They combined with each other and the beautiful Goddess Durga arose. All the gods gifted Durga with ten different weapons and then she prepared for the fight riding on a lion. After a great battle, Mahishasura was defeated by the Goddess when she stroked the demon’s heart with her
trident.
The stay of Goddess Durga on Earth is only four days long. But Mahalaya starts before
seven days with the chanting of ‘Mahisasura Mardini’ at dawn. ‘Debipaksha’ starts from
this day. Goddess Durga is invited on Earth by the chanting of “Jago Tumi Jago”.
Early at dawn people go to Ganga and pray for their demised relatives while standing
in the water. This entire process is known as Torpon. Mahalaya holds immense importance
for the Bengalis. At noon the rituals are brought to an end. New clothes and sweets are
offered by the devotees to their forefathers.
Mahishasura was a demon who had threatened gods to throw them out of heaven. He terrified
all staying in the heaven and was a big threat to the existence of the entire universe.
He was indomitable due to a boon bestowed upon him by Brahma. He had gained this after a
hard meditation. No God, be it Indra, the king of the Hindu gods, or be it Kumara, commander
of the armies in heaven, could defeat him. Being helpless the gods asked Vishnu to help them.
Vishnu first took the form of Narasimha and then that of Varaha, but failed to defeat Mahishasura. Shiva opened his third eye, which could destroy all the three worlds, to set free the fire of disaster. But that was also in vain. Suddenly then Brahma brought out a lightning stream from his mouth and Goddess Brahmi appeared on a swan with books of knowledge in her hand. Similarly Indrani, Kaumari, Vaishnavi, Varahi and Shivani came into being. They combined with each other and the beautiful Goddess Durga arose. All the gods gifted Durga with ten different weapons and then she prepared for the fight riding on a lion. After a great battle, Mahishasura was defeated by the Goddess when she stroked the demon’s heart with her
trident.
No comments:
Post a Comment