Dussehra is celebrated throughout India with different rituals and activities. The Dussehra festivities involve lights, decorations, food, and colourful clothes. However, the celebrations vary across the different regions of the country.
The Kullu Dussehra, which is well-known all over the world, is held in the Kullu Valley of Himachal Pradesh. Around 200 local deities from nearby villages are brought to participate in a religious procession. Another unique aspect is that these celebrations in Kullu begin on Vijayadashami, the day when Dussehra festivities end in India. Further, on the last day of the celebration, a pile of thorn bushes is burnt to depict the burning of Lanka.
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Kolkata, West Bengal
The Bengali community celebrates Dussehra with Durga Puja, which transforms entire state into a dynamic and lively hub of culture. Vijayadashami is celebrated on the tenth day of the famous Durga Puja. On this day, married women offer vermilion and sweets to the goddess. They also put vermilion on each other’s cheeks. At night, the idols of the goddess are taken to nearby rivers or water bodies to be immersed.
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Bastar, Chhattisgarh
Dussehra is devoted to tribal deities and has nothing to do with the defeat of Ravana. The festival is celebrated for 75 days and is believed to be the longest festival in the world. The festival is held in honour of Goddess Danteshwari (the guardian deity of the tribal belt of Bastar in Chhattisgarh) other divinities. There are many rituals associated with this festival, including chariot processions, the tribal chieftains’ conference, and the thanks. of Lanka.
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Mysore, Karnataka
The Mysore Dasara has been celebrated for more than 400 years. The Mysore Palace is decorated magnificently and there are many cultural performances that take place during the Dussehra festivities. A procession with 12 trained elephants adorned with colourful attire are taken around the streets. One of them carries the idol of the Goddess Chamundeshwar atop a golden mandap. The procession starts from the mysore palace to Bannimantap.
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Almora, Uttarakhand
Almora celebrates Dussehra with a parade of demons. The mountain streets of this small town in Uttarakhand are filled with various villains from The Ramayana. They’re made by local people and are paraded across the town before burning them. A total of 33 effigies of Ravana’s family members are burned to celebrate Dussehra.
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Kulasekarapattinam, Tamil Nadu
The Dussehra celebrations at a 300-year-old temple of Goddess Kali, in the village Kulasekarapattinam are very unique. People are required to dress up as gods and goddesses. The people dance holding flaming clay pots throughout the night and end the festival with an enactment of slaying of Mahishasura on the beach.
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Did You Know?
Ravana is a symbol of evil for most people across India. However, in Mandore, Rajasthan, people celebrate him as a deity. It is believed that Ravana’s wife Mandodari is from this town. While people remember Ravana for his evil deeds, here he is celebrated for his genius achievements in the field of astrology and ayurveda.
There are some temples in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Andra Pradesh that worship Ravana as a deity.
1. Dussehra comes from the Sanskrit word Dash Hara, which means “the defeat of the Sun” in English. Vijayadashami, means victory on the tenth day.
2. Dussehra is celebrated in Ashwin, the 10th month of the Hindu Calendar. It falls sometime around October or November.
3. Dussehra marks the end of the summer season and the start of the winter season.
4. Dussehra marks the harvesting of Kharif Crops and sowing of Rabi crops. It’s an important occasion for farmers of all beliefs.
5. Dussehra also marks the homecoming of Pandavas from their exile of 13 years. When the Pandavas had lost their kingdom, they were in exile for 12 years. It was said that if they were discovered in the 13th year, they would have to start their exile all over again. So, on the commencement of the final year, they hid all their weapons inside the hole of a Shami Tree. After the end of the 13th year on the sacred day of Vijaydashmi, they retrieved their weapons to worship them along with the tree. Thus, the Shami Tree is considered to be a symbol of goodwill.
6. In Kerala, Dussehra is considered an auspicious day for introducing children to the world of letters. Children between three and five years of age are initiated into learning by making them write a mantra on a tray of rice grains. After the ceremony, study materials such as slates and pencils are distributed by those children. The ceremony is called Ezhuthiniruthu in Malayalam.
7. In northern India, barley seeds are sown on the first day of Navaratri. These sprouts are used and considered a good omen for good fortune and wealth on the day of Dussehra.
8. According to a popular legend, Goddess Durga, along with her children, Lakshmi, Ganesha, Kartik, and Saraswati came to her birth place on Earth to stay for some time. On the day of Dussehra, she returned to her husband Lord Shiva.
9. Dussehra is also believed to be the day when Emperor Asoka had converted to Buddhism.
10. The burning effigies signify the killing of all evils of the soul, which are represented by the ten heads of Ravana.
Kharif crops are typically sown at the beginning of the first monsoon rains and are usually harvested between October and November. Examples are rice, cotton and maize.
Rabi crops are harvested in the spring season while it is sown in winter. Examples are wheat, gram, and barley.
Mahabharata is a major Hindu Mythological epic. This great epic narrates the great war between the Kauravas and Pandavas. The Pandavas were the five brothers Yudhishtira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, and Sahadeva, who are the main characters of the Hindu epic Mahabharata.
This year Dussehra will be celebrated on October 24, 2023. Dussehra is one of the major Hindu festivals that marks the end of Navaratri (9 nights). Navaratri lasts for nine nights and Dussehra is celebrated on the tenth night of the festivities. Dussehra is also known as Vijayadashami or Durgotsav.
Dussehra celebrates the conquest of good over evil, light over darkness and wisdom over ignorance. The festival celebrates two victories, one, Goddess Durga over the demon king Mahishasura and the other of Lord Rama over the evil king Ravana.
The Legend Of Goddess Durga And Mahishasura
Mahishasura was a demon who invaded heaven defeating Indra and driving the devas out of heaven. The gods decided to combine all their powers to create a powerful being that would be able to destroy Mahishasura. The powerful being they created was called Goddess Durga and they bestowed upon her their super-weapons. Navaratri is said to be the 9 days of battle between Goddess Durga and Mahishasura where the goddess finally destroyed the demon on the 10th day.
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Lord Rama And Demon King Ravana
Lord Rama was a great warrior and noble king. The demon Ravana had ten heads. The demon Ravana kidnapped Rama’s wife, Sita and wanted her as his own wife. Lord Rama and the demon Ravana were equally strong and brave. After a fierce and mighty battle, lord Rama defeated and killed Ravana.
Halloween originated from an ancient harvest festival. Over 2,000 years ago, the Celts celebrated a Celtic festival called Samhain (pronounced “sow-in”).
Samhain signified the end of the summer and the beginning of winter. The Celts celebrated Samhain to make their gods happy so that the gods would protect them and their crops during the long and hard winter. Celts also celebrated New Year’s Day on November 1. They believed that the night before the New Year (October 31) was a time when the spirits visited the Earth. The Celts were worried that the evil spirits would cause them harm and damage their crops.
The Celts lit huge bonfires to keep unwanted spirits away from their homes and villag-es. The bones of dead cattle and sheep were cast into these fires.
The Celts asked their gods to protect cattle and food stores during the long, hard winter. They prepared huge feasts for both the living and the dead. The Celts ate the food that they had collected during the harvest, so the feast would consist of things like: nuts, berries, carrots, apples, and turnips. They also prepared offerings that were left outside villages, for the spirits of the deceased and for other beings such as fairies During the celebration, the Celts enjoyed storytelling around bonfires.
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How Halloween Got Its Name
Over one thousand years ago, the Christian church named November 1st as ‘All Saints’ Day, also called ‘All Hallows’, which was a traditional English term. This was a holy day to commemorate the saints. The night before All Hallows was named Hallows’ Eve Many years later, the name was changed to Halloween.
Halloween Spreads To The US
During 1845 and the years that followed, over a million people left Ireland due to a famine. As a result, the US had many new Irish im-migrants. These immigrants brought the Celtic traditions of Samhain to the US, which would eventually become Halloween.
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Word Check
The Celtic religion was polytheistic, meaning they worshipped more than one God. In fact, the Celtic religion is thought to have had over 300 gods. The Celts would sacrifice animals to their gods, and they believed in an afterlife.
The Celts were a group of people who spoke Celtic languages. They lived during the Bronze and Iron Age periods. The Celts were spread across Europe, living in areas including France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Spain, Britain, and Ireland.
Dressing Up On Halloween
The Celts also believed that the ghosts would walk among the living on Earth. They were worried that the evil spirits would cause problems. hurt or even kill them. So on Halloween night people wore costumes of ghosts or other wicked creatures. They believed if they dressed in frightening cos-tumes, their disguise would confuse the spirits and they would think they were also dead and not hurt them.
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Trick-Or-Treating On Halloween
To keep the ghosts away from their homes, people started keeping bowls of food outside their doors. Over time, people started eating these nice treats themselves. Some say this was the start of trick-or-treating. Some other stories claim that trick-or treating started when people started giving out cakes in return for prayers for their dead relatives.
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Carving Jack-O’-Lanterns
According to legend, Jack was a very mean person who played tricks on peo-ple. When he died, he was not allowed into heaven or hell. So he had to walk the Earth and he used a hallowed turnip with a light inside it to guide him. This is how “Jack of the Lantern” started, which is now popularly known as “Jack-o’-Lantern”. When the Europeans came to the US, they started using pumpkins instead of turnips to carve their Jack-o’ Lanterns.
Diwali is around the corner and we are gearing up for it. In this blog of The Junior Age, we have put together some unique stories, legends, and celebrations associated with this festival of lights.
Diwali, is a five day festival celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains across the world. Diwali or Deepavali gets its name from the Sanskrit word Dipavali, which means “row of lights”. Diwali marks the start of the New Year. Diwali is also a symbolic celebration of good triumphing over evil. The festival of lights honours the Hindu goddess of wealth, Lakshmi. People celebrate this festival by lighting little earthen oil lamps and decorating their homes with lights. The lamps and light are said to help Goddess Lakshmi find her way into peoples’ homes, bringing prosperity in the year to come.
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There are many different legends associated with Diwali.
For instance, in Jainism, Diwali marks the Nirvana or spiritual awakening of Lord Mahavira. In Sikhism, Diwali honours the day Guru Hargobind Ji, the sixth Sikh Guru was freed from imprisonment.
Hindus have many beliefs associated with Diwali, based upon where they live. But there’s one common theme: the victory of good over evil.
In northern India, Diwali is a celebration of the day Rama returned to Ayodhya with his wife Sita and his brother Lakshmana after defeating the demon Ravana in Lanka and serving fourteen years of exile. According to legend, when Rama returned to Ayodhya, the people of the city welcomed him by lighting thousands of rows of clay lamps.
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In southern India and even in Nepal, Diwali marks the day that Lord Krishna defeated the demon Narakasura, an evil demon. In western India the festival marks the day that Lord Vishnu, the Preserver (one of the main gods of the Hindu trinity sent the demon King Bali to rule the nether world.
Diwali is Celebrated Over Five Days
Day one: People clean their homes and shop for gold kitchen utensils to help bring good fortune.
Day two: People decorate their homes with clay lamps create design patterns called rangoli on the floor using colored powders or sand.
and Day four: This is the first day of the new year, when friends
Day three: On the main day of the festival, families gather for Lakshmi puja, a prayer to Goddess Lakshmi, followed by yummy feasts and fireworks festivities ( Although fireworks may not be the most eco-friendly).
Day Four: This is the first day of the new year, when friends and relatives visit with gifts and best wishes for the season.
Day five: Brothers visit their married sisters, who welcome them with love and a mouth-watering meal.
Celebrating And Embracing Diverse Diwali Celebrations In India
The festival of lights is an extremely significant and auspicious festival for India. India is a multicultural country and most Indians celebrate Diwali, based on their own beliefs and customs. Almost every region in India has distinctive traditions for celebrating Diwali. However, the triumph of good over evil remains the common belief. Read to find out about the unique ways different cultures celebrate Diwali in India:
Dev Deepavali in Varanasi
Dev Deepavali or Dev Diwali, also known as the festival of gods, is celebrated 15 days after Diwali in Varanasi on a full moon night. On Dev Diwali, millions of diyas are lit on the ghats of Varanasi. It is believed on this day, gods and goddesses come down to Earth to take a bath in the Ganges. Dev Diwali also marks Lord Shiva’s victory over demon Tripurasur.
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Kali Puja in West Bengal and Assam
In West Bengal and Assam, Diwali is celebrated as Kali Puja. Goddess Kali is worshipped on this day and worshippers offer her flowers, fish, sweets, and meat. While most of India, worships Goddess Lakshmi on Diwali, in these two Indian states, Goddess Kali is worshipped. It is interesting to note that the festival of Kali Puja became popular in Bengal only in the 18th century.
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Narka Chaturdashi in Goa
In Goa, Diwali is celebrated as Narka Chaturdashi. On Narka Chaturdashi, locals burn huge effigies of the demon Narakasura made from grass and hay. According to a legend in Goa, the demon Narakasura was the king of Goa. He was very arrogant and troubled people. He was ultimately killed by Lord Krishna.
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Kaunriya Kathi in Odisha
One of India’s most culturally diverse states, Odi-sha, celebrates Diwali differently. During Kaunriya Kathi, the people of Odisha burn jute sticks to invite their ancestors, who are said to descend from heaven on Diwali. The ancestors are invited to visit them on Diwali, to bless them and their families.
The burning of jute sticks is often accompanied by a prayer. During Diwali, people in Odisha worship Goddess Lakshmi, Lord Ganesha, and Goddess Kali.
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Significance Of Diwali In Sikhism, Jainism, And Buddhism
Sikhism, Jainism and Buddhism are different religions, with their own beautiful traditions, cultures, and customs. The festival of Diwali is celebrated differently by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, and Buddhists. Each of these religions celebrate Diwali for slightly different reasons.
Bandi Chhor Divas celebrated by Sikhs
Sikhs celebrate Band Chhor Divas on Diwali. Band Chhor Divas or Prisoner Release Day, celebrates the release of the sixth Sikh Guru, Guru Hargobind Sahib in 1619, from a prison in Gwalior. He was held captive by the Mughals. It is believed that Guru Hargobind agreed to be released from prison only if the 52 Hindu princes, who were imprisoned along with him, were allowed to go free. The day is seen as a triumph of right over wrong and a tribute to the Guru who saved the lives of 52 men without violence. On Diwali, the Golden Temple in Amritsar is illuminated with Diyas.
sikh24.comsikhsangat.org
Dipalikaya celebrations by Jains
For Jains, Diwali holds a great significance. On this day, the 24th and last Tirthan-kara of Jainism (a savior and spiritual teacher of dharma), Lord Mahavir attained moksha. Moksha is the freedom from the cycle of reincarnation. It is believed that heaven and Earth were illuminated with many lamps to mark the occasion of Lord Mahavir’s enlightenment. Jains celebrate the famous festival of Diwali to worship Lord Mahavir.
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Buddhists
Some Buddhists also celebrate the festival to honour their Emperor Ashoka’s decision to convert to Buddhism and follow a path of peace and enlightenment after winning the Kalinga war. On this day, Buddhists decorate their monasteries and temples and Lord Buddha is wor-shipped.
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Legend Of Lord Rama Is Global
Did You Know that Ramayana is popular not only in India but in many other Asian countries? It also has many different and diverse versions and adaptations.
The ancient Indian mythological tale, Ramayana is performed all over India during the festival of Dussehra and until Diwali. Ramayana was originally written in Sanskrit by sage Valmiki. It is estimated that there are approximately 300 different versions of Ramayana. This epic story is not only popular in India but in some other Southeast Asian countries as well. Other than India, different and diverse versions of Ramayana are found in Thailand, Myanmar, Indonesia, Japan, China, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, Mongolia, and China. Some of the versions in these countries are drastically different from the original.
The following illustrates the names of various versions of Ramayana that are popular outside India:
Thailand Ramakien or the Glory of RamaBuddhist Version Dasarata JatakaJain Version PaumachariyamLaos Phra Lak Phra RamMyanmar Yama ZatdawSri Lanka JanakiharanJapan Hobutsushu and Sambo-EkotobaIran Dastan-e-Ram O SireCambodia ReamkerPhilippines Maharadia LawanaIndonesia Kakawin RamavanaMalaysia Hikayat Seri Rama
Some Interesting Facts About Diwali
Diwali is also celebrated in Fiji, Guyana, Malaysia, Mauritius, Myanmar, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago. All these countries have a significant overseas Indian population.
It was on the day of Diwali that the foundation stone of the Golden Temple was laid in the year 1577.
Diwali is always celebrated in the Hindu calendar month of Kartik on a no moon night.
It is believed that Goddess Lakshmi, who is the goddess of wealth and prosperity, was born on Diwali.
Diwali, which is celebrated in the month of Kartik, marks the end of the harvest season in India. Farmers in India offer their harvest to Goddess Lakshmi on Diwali.
