Misplaced Pages

Durga Puja দুর্গাপূজা (Bengali)
Devi Durga killing Mahishasura with her trident riding her vahana (mount), the lion. Lakshmi and Ganesha flank the left while Saraswati and Kartikeya flank the right.
Nickname	Durgotsava, Shaaradotsava
Status	Public holiday in Indian states of West Bengal, Odisha,Tripura, Bihar, Assam and the country Bangladesh and Nepal Optional holiday in Pakistan
Genre	Religious and cultural festival
Begins	Mahalaya
Ends	Vijaya Dashami
Frequency	Annual
Founders	Rama, according to the legends
Participants	Mainly Eastern, Northeast India and Hindus in Bangladesh and Nepal
Major events	Worshipping Hindu deities, family and other social gatherings, shopping and gift-giving, feasting, pandal visiting, and cultural events
Main observation	Ceremonial worship of Goddess Durga

Part of a series on
Shaktism
History
Deities Mahadevi (Supreme) Devi Shakti Parvati Durga Mahavidya Kali Lalita Matrikas Lakshmi Saraswati
Scriptures and texts Vedas Tantras Yogini Shakta Upanishads Devi Sita Tripura Devi Bhagavatam Devi Mahatmyam Lalita Sahasranama Tripura Rahasya Kalika Purana other texts Saundarya Lahari Annada Mangal Ramprasadi Abirami Antati
Schools Vidya margam Vamachara Dakshinachara Kula margam Srikulam Kalikulam Trika (Kashmir Shaivism) Kubjikamata
Scholars Bharatchandra Ray Bhaskararaya Krishnananda Agamavagisha Ramprasad Sen Ramakrishna Abhirami Bhattar
Practices Yoga Yoni Kundalini Panchamakara Tantra Yantra
Festivals and temples Navaratri Durga Puja Lakshmi Puja Kali Puja Saraswati Puja Teej Shakta pithas
Regional variations Caribbean Shaktism
Hinduism portal
v t e

Durga Puja (Bengali: দুর্গাপূজা) (ISO: Durgā Pūjā), also known as Durgotsava or Shaaradotsava, is an annual festival originating in the Indian subcontinent which reveres and pays homage to the Hindu goddess Durga, and is also celebrated because of Durga's victory over Mahishasura. It is the biggest festival of Bengali Hindus and the Indian state of West Bengal. A 2019 study by the British Council estimated the economic value of creative industries associated with Durga Puja in West Bengal at ₹32,377 crores (2.6% of the state's GDP in that financial year). West Bengal's capital city Kolkata's Durga Puja has been inscribed on the intangible cultural heritage list of UNESCO in December 2021.

In addition to West Bengal, Hindu Bengalis are native to Bangladesh and Indian state of Tripura, Assam (Barak Valley), Jharkhand and Bihar (Kosi-Seemanchal); Therefore, Durga Puja is performed with great devotion in these places as well.

The festival is observed in the Indian calendar in the month of Ashvin, which corresponds to September–October in the Gregorian calendar. Durga Puja is a ten-day festival, of which the last five are of the most significance. Even though Durga Puja and Navaratri are observed simultaneously dedicated to the Hindu goddess Durga, but they are not the same festival.

The puja is performed in homes and public, the latter featuring a temporary stage and structural decorations (known as pandals). The festival is also marked by scripture recitations, performance arts, revelry, gift-giving, family visits, feasting, and public processions called a melā. Durga Puja is an important festival in the Shaktism tradition of Hinduism. Durga Puja which is celebrated as Gosani Yatra in Puri. In this festival of Puri, several big clay idols of Mahisamardini Durga are worshipped every year in the month of Asvina (October).

As per Hindu scriptures, the festival marks the victory of goddess Durga in her battle against the shape-shifting Demon, Mahishasura. Thus, the festival epitomizes the victory of good over evil, though it is also in part a harvest festival celebrating the goddess as the motherly power behind all of life and creation. Durga Puja coincides with Navaratri and Dussehra celebrations observed by other traditions of Hinduism.

The primary goddess revered during Durga Puja is Durga, but celebrations also include other major deities of Hinduism such as Lakshmi (the goddess of wealth and prosperity), Saraswati (the goddess of knowledge and music), Ganesha (the god of good beginnings), and Kartikeya (the god of war). In Bengali traditions, these deities are considered to be Durga's children, and Durga Puja is believed to commemorate Durga's visit to her natal home with her beloved children. The festival is preceded by Mahalaya, which is believed to mark the start of Durga's journey to her natal home. Primary celebrations begin on the sixth day (Shasthi), on which the goddess is welcomed with rituals. The festival ends on the tenth day (Vijaya Dashami), when devotees embark on a procession carrying the worshipped clay sculpture-idols to a river, or other water bodies, and immerse them, symbolic of her return to the divine cosmos and her marital home with Shiva in Kailash. Regional and community variations in celebration of the festival and rituals observed exist.

Durga Puja is an old tradition of Hinduism, though its exact origins are unclear. Surviving manuscripts from the 14th-century provide guidelines for Durga Puja, while historical records suggest that royalty and wealthy families were sponsoring major Durga Puja festivities since at least the 16th-century. The prominence of Durga Puja increased during the British Raj in the provinces of Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, eastern Uttar Pradesh and Assam. However, in modern times, the importance of Durga Puja is more as a social and cultural festival than a religious one, wherever it is observed.

Over the years, Durga Puja has morphed into an inseparable part of Indian culture with a diverse group of people celebrating this festival in their unique way while on tradition.

Names

In West Bengal, Odisha, Assam, Jharkhand and Tripura, Durga Puja is also called Akalbodhan (literally, "untimely awakening of Durga"), Sharadiya pujo or puja ("autumnal worship"), Sharodotsab ("festival of autumn"), Maha pujo ("grand puja"), Maayer pujo ("worship of the Mother"), Durga pujo, or merely Puja(In Odisha, Bihar) or Pujo. In Bangladesh, Durga Puja has historically been celebrated as Bhagabati puja. Maa Durga is known as the Goddess of Power (feminine) which represents triumph of Goodness over evil.

Durga Puja is also referred to by the names of related Shakta Hindu festivals such as Navaratri, celebrated on the same days elsewhere in India; such as in Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Kerala, and Maharashtra, Kullu Dussehra, celebrated in Kullu Valley, Himachal Pradesh; Mysore Dussehra celebrated in Mysore, Karnataka; Bommai Golu, celebrated in Tamil Nadu; Bommala Koluvu, celebrated in Andhra Pradesh; and Bathukamma, celebrated in Telangana.

History and origins

Durga is an ancient goddess of Hinduism according to available archeological and textual evidence. However, the origins of Durga Puja are unclear and undocumented.

The name Durga, and related terms, appear in Vedic literature, such as in the Rigveda hymns 4.28, 5.34, 8.27, 8.47, 8.93 and 10.127, and in sections 10.1 and 12.4 of the Atharvaveda A deity named Durgi appears in section 10.1.7 of the Taittiriya Aranyaka. While the Vedic literature uses the word Durga, the description therein lacks legendary details about her or about Durga Puja that is found in later Hindu literature.

A key text associated with Durga Puja is Devi Mahatmya, which is recited during the festival. Durga was likely well established by the time this Hindu text was composed, the date of which scholars estimate as between 400 and 600 CE. The Devi Mahatmya scripture describes the nature of evil forces symbolised by Mahishasura as shape-shifting, deceptive, and adapting in nature, in form and in strategy to create difficulties and thus achieve their evil ends. Durga calmly understands and counters the evil in order to achieve her solemn goals.Durga, in her various forms, appears as an independent deity in the Indian texts.

In the Mahabharata, both Yudhisthira and Arjuna invoke hymns to Durga. She appears in Harivamsa in the form of Vishnu's eulogy and in Pradyumna's prayer. The prominent mention of Durga in such epics may have led to her worship.

Some versions of the Puranas mention Durga Puja to be a spring festival, while the Devi-Bhagavata Purana and two other Shakta Puranas mentions it to be an autumn festival. The Ramayana manuscripts are also inconsistent. Versions of Ramayana found in the north, west, and south of the Indian subcontinent describe Rama to be remembering Surya (the Hindu sun god) before his battle against Ravana, but the Bengali manuscripts of Ramayana, such as the Krittivasi Ramayana, a 15th-century manuscript by Krttivasa, mention Rama to be worshipping Durga. As per the legend, Rama worshipped Durga in the autumn to have her blessings before defeating Ravana. While he was preparing for the worship of the goddess, Durga hid one of the 108 flowers of lotus, very essential for her worship. Having found only 107 of 108 lotuses at the time of the worship, Rama decided to offer one of his eyes in place of that lotus. When he was about to offer his eye, Durga appeared and told him that she had only hidden the flower in order to test his devotion and she was satisfied with it. She blessed Rama and he continued with her worship. Since the gods are believed to be sleeping during autumn, the awakening rite of the Durga puja is also known as akāla bodhana.

Surviving manuscripts from the 14th-century provide guidelines for Durga Puja, while historical records suggest the royalty and wealthy families to be sponsoring major Durga Puja public festivities, since at least the 16th-century. The 11th or 12th-century Jain text Yasatilaka by Somadeva mentions an annual festival dedicated to a warrior goddess, celebrated by the king and his armed forces, and the description mirrors attributes of Durga Puja.

According to some scholars, the worship of the fierce warrior goddess Durga, and her darker and more violent manifestation Kali, became popular in the Bengal region during and after the medieval era, marked by Muslim invasions and conquests.

The significance of Durga and other goddesses in Hindu culture is stated to have increased after Islamic armies conquered regions of the Indian subcontinent. According to yet other scholars, the marginalization of Bengali Hindus during the medieval era led to a reassertion of Hindu identity and an emphasis on Durga Puja as a social festival, publicly celebrating the warrior goddess.From the medieval era up to present-day, Durga Puja has been celebrated as a socio-cultural event, while maintaining the roots of religious worship.

Rituals and practices

Texts

The puja rituals involve mantras (words manifesting spiritual transformation), shlokas (holy verses), chants and arati, and offerings. The worship begins with a reading of the Sanskrit Devī Mahātmya from the sixth-century Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa. The shlokas and mantras praise the divinity of the goddess; according to the shlokas, Durga is omnipresent as the embodiment of power, nourishment, memory, forbearance, faith, forgiveness, intellect, wealth, emotions, desires, beauty, satisfaction, righteousness, fulfillment and peace.

Relation to harvest

Durga Puja as a harvest festival

Om you are rice , Om you are life, you are the life of the gods, you are our life, your are our internal life, you are long life, you give life, Om the Sun with his rays (....)

Durga Puja is, in part, a post-monsoon harvest festival observed on the same days in the Shaktism tradition of Hinduism as those in its other traditions. The practice of including a bundle of nine different plants, called navapatrika, as a symbolism of Durga, is a testament practice to its agricultural importance. The typically selected plants include not only representative important crops, but also non-crops. This probably signifies the Hindu belief that the goddess is "not merely the power inherent in the growth of crops but the power inherent in all vegetation".

The festival is a social and public event in the eastern and northeastern states of India, where it dominates religious and socio-cultural life, with temporary pandals built at community squares, roadside shrines, and temples. The festival is also observed by some Shakta Hindus as a private home-based festival.

Before Durga puja there is Paata Puja, the ritual of making an idol on the day of the Rath Yatra, usually around July. 'Paata' is the wooden frame that forms the base for the idols.

Day One

Durga Puja is a ten-day event. The festival begins with Mahalaya, a day on which Hindus perform tarpaṇa by offering water and food to their dead ancestors. The day also marks the arrival of Durga from her marital home in Kailash.

The festival starts at twilight with prayers to Saraswati. She is believed to be another aspect of goddess Durga. This is also the day when the eyes are painted of the deities on the representative clay sculpture-idols, bringing them to a lifelike appearance. The day also marks prayers to Ganesha and visit to pandals and temples.

Day Two to Five

Day two to five mark the remembrance of the goddess and her manifestations, such as Kumari (goddess of fertility), Mai (mother), Ajima (grandmother), Lakshmi (goddess of wealth) and in some regions as the Saptamatrikas (seven mothers) or Navadurga (nine aspects of Durga). On the sixth day major festivities and social celebrations start. The first nine days overlap with Navaratri festivities in other traditions of Hinduism.The specific practices vary by region.

Day Six to Nine

The next significant day of the festival is the sixth day (Shashthi), on which devotees welcomes the goddess and festive celebrations are inaugurated. Rituals typically performed on the sixth day include:

Bodhana: Involves rites to awaken and welcome the goddess to be a guest. The amorphous sight of the goddess is consecrated into a ghata or noggin while the visible sight is consecrated into the murti or idol. These rituals are known as ghatasthapana and pranapratistha respectively.

Adhivasa: Anointing ritual wherein symbolic offerings are made to Durga, with each item representing a remembrance of subtle forms of her.

On the seventh day (Saptami), eighth (Ashtami) and ninth (Navami) days, the goddess along with Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ganesha, and Kartikeya are revered and these days mark the main days of worship with recitation of scriptures, puja, legends of Durga in Devi Mahatmya, social visits to elaborately decorated and illuminated pandals (temporary structures meant for hosting the puja), among others.

• Navapatrika snan: Bathing of the navapatrika with holy water done on the seventh day of the festival.
• Sandhi puja and Ashtami pushpanjali: The eighth day begins with elaborate pushpanjali rituals. The cusp of the ending of the eighth day and beginning of the ninth day is considered to be the moment when per scriptures Durga engaged in a fierce battle against Mahishasura and was attacked by the demons Chanda and Munda. Goddess Chamunda emerged from the third eye of Durga and killed Chanda and Munda at the cusp of Ashtami and Navami, the eighth and ninth days respectively. This moment is marked by the sandhi puja, involving the offering of 108 lotuses and lighting of 108 lamps. It is a forty-eight minutes long ritual commemorating the climax of battle. The rituals are performed in the last 24 minutes of Ashtami and the first 24 minutes of Navami. In some regions, devotees sacrifice an animal such as a buffalo or goat, but in many regions, there is not an actual animal sacrifice and a symbolic sacrifice substitutes it. The surrogate effigy is smeared in red vermilion to symbolize the blood spilled. The goddess is then offered food (bhog). Some places also engage in devotional service.

• Homa and bhog: The ninth day of festival is marked with the homa (fire oblation) rituals and bhog. Some places also perform kumari puja on this day.

Day Ten

• Sindoor khela and immersion: The tenth and last day, called Vijaya Dashami is marked by sindoor khela, where women smear sindoor or vermillion on the sculpture-idols and also smear each other with it. This ritual signifies the wishing of a blissful marital life for married women. Historically the ritual has been restricted to married women. The tenth day is the day when Durga emerged victorious against Mahishasura and it ends with a procession where the clay sculpture-idols are ceremoniously taken to a river or coast for immersion rites. Following the immersion, Durga is believed to return to her mythological marital home of Kailasa to Shiva and the cosmos in general. People distribute sweets and gifts, visit their friends and family members on the tenth day. Some communities such as those near Varanasi mark the day after Vijaya Dashami, called Ekadashi, by visiting a Durga temple.

• Dhunuchi naach and dhuno pora: Dhunuchi naach involves a dance ritual performed with dhunuchi (incense burner). Drummers called dhakis, carrying large leather-strung Dhaks, Dhols and other traditional drums depending on the region, to create music, to which people dance either during or not during aarati. Some places, especially home pujas, also observe dhuno pora, a ritual involving married women carrying dhunuchis burning with incense and dried coconuts, on a cloth on their head and hands,

Decorations, sculptures, and stages

The process of the creation of clay sculpture-idols (pratima or murti) for the puja, from the collection of clay to the ornamentation is a ceremonial process. Though the festival is observed post-monsoon harvest, the artisans begin making the sculpture-idols months before, during summer. The process begins with prayers to Ganesha and to the perceived divinity in materials such as bamboo frames in which the sculpture-idols are cast.

Clay, or alluvial soil, collected from different regions form the base. This choice is a tradition wherein Durga, perceived as the creative energy and material, is believed to be present everywhere and in everything in the universe. In certain traditions in Kolkata, a custom is to include soil samples in the clay mixture for Durga from areas believed to be nishiddho pallis (forbidden territories; territories inhabited by the "social outcasts" such as brothels).

The clay base is combined with straw, kneaded, and then molded into a cast made from hay and bamboo. This is layered to a fine final shape, cleaned, painted, and polished. A layer of a fiber called jute, mixed in with clay, is also attached to the top to prevent the statue from cracking in the months ahead. The heads of the statues are more complex and are usually made separately. The limbs of the statues are mostly shaped from bundles of straws. Then, starting about August, the local artisans hand-paint the sculpture-idols which are later dressed in clothing, are decorated and bejewelled, and displayed at the puja altars.

The procedure for and proportions of the sculpture-idols are described in arts-related Sanskrit texts of Hinduism, such as the Vishvakarma Sashtra.

Environmental impact

The sculpture-idols for the puja are traditionally made of biodegradable materials such as straw, clay, soil, and wood. In today's times, brighter colored statues have increased in popularity and have diversified the use of non-biodegradable, cheaper or more colorful substitute synthetic raw materials. Environmental activists have raised concerns about the paint used to produce the statue, stating that the heavy metals in these paints pollute rivers when the statues are immersed at the end of the Durga festival.

Brighter colors that are also biodegradable and eco-friendly, as well as the traditional natural colors, are typically more expensive compared to the non biodegradable paints. The Indian state of West Bengal has banned the use of hazardous paints, and various state government have started distributing lead-free paints to artisans at no cost to prevent pollution.

Animal sacrifice, symbolic sacrifice

Shakta Hindu communities mark the slaying of Mahishasura and the victory of Durga with a symbolic or actual sacrifice. Most communities prefer symbolic sacrifice, where a statue of the asura is made of flour or equivalent, is immolated and smeared with vermilion, symbolic of the blood that had spilled during the battle. Other substitutes include a vegetable or a sweet dish considered equivalent to the animal. In certain instances, devotees consider animal sacrifice distasteful, and practice alternate means of expressing devotion while respecting the views of others in their tradition.

In communities performing actual sacrifice, an animal is sacrificed, mainly at temples. In Nepal, West Bengal, Odisha and Assam, animal sacrifices are performed at Shakta temples to commemorate the legend of Durga slaying Mahishasura. This involves slaying of a fowl, pig, goat, or male water-buffalo. Large scale animal sacrifices are rare among Hindus outside the regions of Bengal, Odisha, Assam, and Nepal. In these regions, festivals are primarily when significant animal sacrifices are observed.

The Rajputs of Rajasthan worship their weapons and horses in the related festival of Navaratri, and some historically observed the sacrifice of a goat, a practice that continues in some places. The sacrifice ritual, supervised he the priest, requires slaying of the animal with a single stroke. In the past this ritual was considered a rite of passage into manhood and readiness as a warrior. The Kuldevi (clan deity) among these Rajput communities is a warrior goddess, with local legends tracing reverence for her during Rajput-Muslim wars.

Pandals and theme-based pujas

Months before the start of Durga Puja, youth members of the community collect funds and donations, engage priests and artisans, buy votive materials and help build pandals centered around a theme, which has rose to prominence in recent years. Such themes have included sex work, celebration of humanity, marginalization of queer persons and transgender persons, folk culture, celebration of cinema, womanhood, pro-environment themes, while others have chosen metaphorical themes such as celebration of maati (literally, soil or ash) and "finding one's own light". Pandals have also been replicated on existing temples, structures, and monuments and yet others have been made of elements such as metal scraps, nails, and turmeric among others. Durga Puja pandals have also been centered around themes to acknowledge political events such as the 2019 Balakot airstrike and to protest against the National Register of Citizens of India.

The budget required for such theme-based pujas is significantly higher than traditional pujas. For such theme-based pujas, the preparations and the building of pandals are a significant arts-related economic activity, often attracting major sponsors. Such commercialized pujas attract crowds of visitors. The growth of competitiveness in theme-based pandals has escalated costs and scale of Durga Puja in eastern states of India. Some segments of the society criticize the billboards, the economic competition, and seek return to basics. The competition takes many forms, such as the height of statue. In 2015, an 88-foot statue of Durga in Kolkata's Deshapriya Park attracted numerous devotees, with some estimates placing visitors at one million.

Regional celebrations and observances

There exists variation in Durga Puja worship practices and rituals, as is the case with other Hindu festivals, in the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism accepts flexibility and leaves the set of practices to the choice of the individuals concerned. Different localized rituals may be observed regionally, with these variations accepted across temples, pandals, and within families.

The festival is most commonly associated with Bengali Hindus, and with the community having variability and differences in practices. There may exist differences of practice between the puja of theme-based Pandals, family pujas (with puja of erstwhile aristocrat families known as bonedi puja), and community pujas (known as barowari pujas) of neighbourhoods or apartments.

The rituals of the puja also varies from being Vedic, Puranic, or Tantric, or a combination of these. The Bengali Durga Puja rituals typically combine all three. The non-Bengali Durga Puja rituals tend to be essentially Vedic (srauta) in nature but they too incorporate esoteric elements making the puja an example of a culmination of Vedic-Tantric practices.

Historical evidence suggests that the Durga Puja has evolved over time, becoming more elaborate, social, and creative. The festival had earlier been a domestic puja, a form of practice that still remains popular. But it had also come to be celebrated in the sarvajanin (public) form, where communities get together, pool their resources and efforts to set up pandals and illuminations, and celebrate the event as a "mega-show to share". The origins of this variation are unclear, with some sources suggesting a family in Kolkata reviving such celebration in 1411 CE. While other set of sources suggest that a Bengali landlord, named Kamsanarayan, held a mega-show puja in late 16th-century Bengal. Yet, this festival of Bengal is likely much older with the discovery of 11th and 12th-century Durga Puja manual manuscripts such as Durgotsavaviveka, Durgotsava Prayoga, Vasantaviveka and Kalaviveka. The rituals associated with the Durga Puja migrated to other regions from Bengal, such as in Varanasi, a city that has historically attracted sponsorship from Hindus from various parts of the Indian subcontinent including Bengal. In contemporary India, Durga Puja is celebrated in various styles and forms.

In Bishnupur, West Bengal, Durga Puja holds a unique and significant place. The district boasts the Rajbari Durga Puja, also known as the Mrinmoyee Maa er pujo, which dates back to 994 AD. This makes it the oldest Durga Puja in the entire Bengal region, encompassing present-day Bangladesh, Odisha, and Tripura.

Durga Puja is a widely celebrated festival in the Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh (eastern parts), Assam, and Odisha. It is celebrated over a five-day period. Streets are decked up with festive lights, loudspeakers play festive songs as well as recitation of hymns and chants by priests, and pandals are erected by communities. The roads become overcrowded with revellers, devotees, and pandal-hoppers visiting the pandals on puja days. It often creates chaotic traffic conditions. Shops, eateries, and restaurants stay open all night; fairs are also set up and cultural programmes are held. People form organizing committees, which plan and oversee the pandal during the festivities. Today, Durga Puja has turned into a consumerist social carnival, a major public spectacle and a major arts event riding on the wave of commercialisation, corporate sponsorship, and craze for award-winning. For private domestic pujas, families dedicate an area of their homes, known as thakur dalan, for Durga Puja where the sculpture-idols for worship is placed and decorated with home-dyed fabric, sola ornamentations, and gold and silver foil decorations. Elaborate rituals like arati are performed and prasad is distributed after being offered to the deities. As a tradition, married daughters visit their parents and celebrate the Durga Puja with them, a symbolism alluding to Durga who is popularly believed to return to her natal home during the puja.

Durga Puja is also a gift-giving and shopping season for communities celebrating it, with people buying gifts for not only family members but also for close relatives and friends. New clothes are the traditional gift, and people wear them to go out together during Durga Puja. During puja holidays, people may also go to places of tourist attractions while others return home to spend Durga Puja with their family. It's a common trend amongst youngsters and even those who are older to go pandal-hopping and enjoy the celebrations.

The organising committees of each puja pandal hires a purohita (priest) who performs the puja rituals on behalf of the community. For the priests, Durga Puja is a time of activity wherein he pursues the timely completion of Vedic-Puranic-Tantric ritual sequences to make various offerings and perform fire oblations, in full public view, while the socio-cultural festivities occur in parallel. The complex puja rituals include periods of accurate and melodic scripture recitation. The puja involves crowds of people visiting the pandals, with smaller groups visiting family pujas, to witness the celebrations. On the last day, the sculpture-idols are carried out in immersion processions across Bengal, following which they are ritually immersed into rivers or other waterbodies. The immersion ceremony continues till a couple of days after the last day of puja.

According to some scholars, the ritual of immersing the Durga sculpture-idol into the river attracted the attention of colonial era travelers to the Bengal region from Europe, such as Garcin de Tassy and Emma Roberts. In 1831, Tassy reported that similar rituals were annually observed by the Muslim community in Bengal. Shia Bengali Muslims observed Muharram over ten days, taking out processions in memory of the martyrdom of Imam Husayn ibn Ali, and then cast a memorial Imam's cenotaph into a river on the tenth day. Tassy further stated that the Bengali rituals of Muharram included the same offerings at the annual observation of Muharram that the Hindu rituals included during Durga Puja. According to yet other scholars, the ritual of immersion in water by Hindus for Durga Puja in Bengal and Ganesh Chaturthi in the western states of India, may have grown because members of the Hindu community attempted to create a competing procession and immersion ritual to that of Muharram, allowed by the colonial British Indian government in the 19th and early 20th-centuries.

In Maharashtra, the city of Nashik and other places such as CIDCO, Rajeevnagar, Panchavati, and Mahatmanagar host Durga Puja celebrations. While in Delhi, the first community Durga Puja was organized near Kashmiri Gate by a group of expatriate Bengalis, in 1910, a year before Delhi was declared the capital of British India. This group came to be the Delhi Durga Puja Samiti, popularly known as the Kashmere Gate Durga Puja. The Durga Puja at Timarpur, Delhi was started in the year 1914. In 2011, over 800 Durga Pujas were held in Delhi, with a few hundred more in Gurgaon and NOIDA.

In Odisha, Durga Puja is the most important festival of the people of the state. Durga Puja is a very important festival for Odias, during the 4 days of the festival, the streets of the city turns into a wonderland throughout the state, people welcome the arrival of their maa by rejoicing themselves, eating tasty food, wearing new clothes, seeing different pandals across the city, family gathering and gift givings. In 2019, ninety-seven pandals in Cuttack alone, Odisha were reported to bedeck respective sculpture-idols with silver jewelry for Durga Puja celebrations; such club of pandals termed regionally as Chandi Medha. The state capital is famous for the modern themes and creativity In the pandals, while the Western part of the state has a more retro decoration theme to the pandal. In the northern parts of the state particularly Balasore, Durga Puja is celebrated with much fervor and the Odia diaspora abroad especially in Australia, which originates 95% from the district of Balasore celebrates the puja in the same manner which is done back home in Balasore. In September 2019, 160 pandals were reported to be hosting Durga Puja in Cuttack.

While in Tripura there were over 2,500 community Durga Puja celebrations in 2013. Durga Puja has been started at the Durgabari temple, in Agartala by King Radha Kishore Manikya Bahadur.

Significance

Beyond being an art festival and a socio-religious event, Durga Puja has also been a political event with regional and national political parties having sponsored Durga Puja celebrations. In 2019, West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee announced a grant of ₹25,000 to all community-organised Durga Pujas in the state.

In 2019, Kolkata's Durga Puja was nominated by the Indian government for the 2020 UNESCO Representative list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Durga Puja also stands to be politically and economically significant. The committees organising Durga Puja in Kolkata have close links to politicians. Politicians patronize the festival by making donations or helping raise money for funding of community pujas, or by marking their presence at puja events and inaugurations. The grant of ₹25,000 to puja organizing committees in West Bengal by a debt-ridden state government was reported to cost a budget a ₹70 crores. The state government also announced an additional grant of ₹5,000 to puja organizing committees fully managed by women alone, while also announcing a twenty-five percent concession on total electricity bills for puja pandal. The government had made a grant of ₹10,000 each to more than 20,000 puja organizing committees in the state in 2018.

A 2013 report by ASSOCHAM states West Bengal's Durga Puja to be a ₹25,000 crores worth economy, expected to grow at the compound annual growth rate of about 35 per-cent. Economic slowdowns in India, such as in 2019, have hence affected corporate sponsorships and puja budgets for public celebrations. In August 2019, the Income Tax Department of India had allegedly sent notices to various Durga Puja organizing committees in West Bengal, against which the ruling party of the state, All India Trinamool Congress (AITMC) protested. The Central Board of Direct Taxes denied sending any such notices, to which AITMC politician Madan Mitra is reported to have said that the intention may have been to enquire if tax deducted at source had been deducted on payments to vendors for organizing community pujas.

Economic significance

Durga Puja directly affects the economy. In 2022, the economy of West Bengal was estimated to get a boost of 50,000 crore rupees. The annual GDP of West Bengal was expected to be expanded by 20-30 percent that year. The factors responsible for this economic boost are mainly the increase of earning in transport, tourism, industry, business, shopping and other fields. The Kolkata Metro Railway recorded an earning of ₹6 crore in just five days of Durga Puja in 2022.

The famous puja pandals get sponsorship from renowned companies and labels. Usually, the dress and jewelries of the idols, the material used to make the typically very elaborate pandals, decorations, lightings are sponsored.

Social significance

Durga Puja plays a great significance in the living of certain peoples. The kumors, those who make the idols with clay and also makes other clayey products, earns lakhs of rupees by selling a single set of Durga idol of average size. Hence, it makes their annual income because idols used in other festivals are a lot more cheaper. Other professions that receive the majority of their annual income are dhaaki (plays dhaak), priest and other small homecrafts. It is assumed that these profession based small classes would become smaller in population if Durga Puja was absent.

Media attention

The day of Mahalaya is marked by the Indian Hindu community of West Bengal with Mahishasuramardini — a two-hours long All India Radio program — that has been popular in the Bengali community since the 1950s. While in earlier days it used to be recorded live, a pre-recorded version has come to be broadcast in recent decades. Bengalis traditionally wake up at four in the morning on Mahalaya to listen to the radio show, primarily involving recitations of chants and hymns from Devi Mahatmyam (or Chandi Path) by Birendra Krishna Bhadra and Pankaj Kumar Mullick. The show also features various devotional melodies.

Dramas enacting the legend of Durga slaying Mahishasura are telecasted on the television. Radio and television channels also air other festive shows, while Bengali and Odia magazines publish special editions for the puja known as Pujabarshiki (Annual Puja Edition) or Sharadiya Sankhya (Autumnal Volume). These contain works of writers, both established and upcoming, and are more voluminous than the regular issues. Some notable examples of such magazines in Bengali are Anandamela, Shuktara, Desh, Sananda, Nabakallol, and Bartaman.

Celebrations outside India

Durga Puja is celebrated commonly by both Bangladesh's Bengali and non-Bengali Hindu community. Some Bengali Muslims also take part in the festivities. In Dhaka, the Dhakeshwari Temple puja attracts visitors and devotees. In Nepal, the festivities are celebrated as Dashain.

Beyond South Asia, Durga Puja is organized by Bengali communities across the world.

North America

In the United States Durga Puja is celebrated across the country in many cities. The oldest community Durga Puja in the US was held in Columbia University organized by the East Coast Durga Puja Association (ECDPA) in 1970. While many community pujas are typically held over a Friday-Sunday period, some pujas in the US e.g. organized by Bharat Sevashram Shangha, Paschimi, Women's Now and others follow the full 5 day schedule. While most major metropolitan centers have multiple Durga Pujas organized by multiple Bengali organizations, Saikat in San Diego, CA and SABCC in San Antonio, TX are two of the biggest American cities to have an unified Durga Pujas for the whole metropolitan area. In addition to the actual puja, most Durga Pujas in North America have a tradition of having elaborate cultural events involving both local artists and invited professional artists from India.

In Canada, Bengali Hindu communities both from Bangladesh and West Bengal, India organise several Durga Pujas. Greater Toronto Area has the most Durga Puja celebration venues organized by different Bengali cultural groups such as Bangladesh Canada Hindu Cultural Society (BCHCS), Bongo Poribar Sociocultural Association zetc. City of Toronto has a dedicated Durga Temple named Toronto Durgabari where Durga Puja is organized along with other Hindu celebrations. Most of the puja venues of Toronto area try to arrange the puja in the best way possible to follow the lunar calendar and timings.

South America

In Brazil, The Swami Vivekananda Cultural Center, São Paulo, organizes an annual Durga Puja.

Europe

Celebrations are also organized in Europe. The sculpture-idols are shipped from India and stored in warehouses to be re-used over the years. According to BBC News, for community celebrations in London in 2006, these "idols, belonging to a tableau measuring 18ft by 20ft, were made from clay,straw and vegetable dyes". At the end of the puja, the sculpture-idols were immersed in River Thames for the first time in 2006, after "the community was allowed to give a traditional send-off to the deities by London's port authorities". In Germany, the puja is celebrated in Cologne, and other cities. In Switzerland, puja in Baden, Aargau has been celebrated since 2003. In Sweden, the puja is celebrated in cities such as Stockholm and Helsingborg. The oldest and first puja in Sweden was founded in 1988 and is one of the oldest ones in Europe, and goes by the name Stockholm Bangiya Sanatan Samaj. In the Netherlands, the puja is celebrated in places such as Amstelveen, Eindhoven, and Voorschoten.

Africa

In South Africa, Durga Puja has been revived with celebrations in Johannesburg. In Ethiopia, in Addis Ababa Durga Puja is organized by the Addis Ababa Durga Pooja Committee

Australia

In Sydney, Durga Puja is celebrated in many community centers including at the Ponds Community Hub in Sydney where the Bengali Community Dorpon Cultural and Religious Association organized Durga Puja

Asia outside the subcontinent

Durga Puja celebrations have also been started in Hong Kong by the Bengali diaspora. In China Durga Puja has been organized in Shanghai and is organized by the Embassy of India in Beijing In Japan, Durga Puja is celebrated in Tokyo with much fanfare.

Footnotes

1. In the Shakta tradition of Hinduism, many of the stories about obstacles and battles have been considered as metaphors for the divine and demonic within each human being, with liberation being the state of self-understanding whereby a virtuous nature & society emerging victorious over the vicious.
2. Navratri Puja, Durga-puja.org
3. Kullu Dussehra, Durga-puja.org
4. Mysore Dussehra, Durga-puja.org
5. "Bommai-kolu", Durga-puja.org
6. Example Sanskrit original: "अहन्निन्द्रो अदहदग्निरिन्दो पुरा दस्यून्मध्यंदिनादभीके । दुर्गे दुरोणे क्रत्वा न यातां पुरू सहस्रा शर्वा नि बर्हीत्॥३॥ – Rigveda 4.28.8, Wikisource It appears in Khila (appendix, supplementary) text to Rigveda 10.127, 4th Adhyaya, per J. Scheftelowitz.
7. In the Shakta tradition of Hinduism, many of the stories about obstacles and battles have been considered as metaphors for the divine and demonic within each human being, with liberation being the state of self-understanding whereby a virtuous nature and society emerging victorious over the vicious.
8. Various versions of Devi mantra exist. Examples include: "We know the Great Goddess. We make a meditation of the goddess Durga. May that Goddess guide us on the right path." (Durga Gayatri Mantra, recited at many stages of Durga Puja); Hrim! O blessed goddess Durga, come here, stay here, stay here, take up residence here, accept my worship. (Durga Avahana Mantra); etc.
9. These nine plants specifically are: kadali (plantain), mana (broad-leaved plant), kacvi (black-stemmed plant), haridra (turmeric), jayanti (barley), sriphala (wood-apple branch with two fruit), dadimah (pomegranate), asoka (red-flowering shade tree), dhanya (rice paddy)

References

1. "Nepal Public Holidays". Edarabia.com. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
2. "Celebrating Durga puja across India: Top destinations for festive bliss". Business Insider India.
3. "Durga festival returns to indigenous village after 150 years". Dhaka Tribune. 17 October 2015.
4. "The Festive Season in Nepal Has Begun. One Month of Holidays- Durga Puja and Dipawali". 21 September 2017.
5. Campbell, R.J. and Little, V. (1989). Humanities in the Primary School. Falmer Press. p. 182. ISBN 978-1-8500-0544-5. LCCN 89036052.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
6. Ghosh, J. (2019). General Knowledge of Northeast India: For All Psc and Competitive Exams. Educreation Publishing. p. 152.
7. Rahman, M. (2018). The Political History of Muslim Bengal: An Unfinished Battle of Faith. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 240. ISBN 978-1-5275-2061-5.
8. ^ Lochtefeld 2002, p. 208.
9. ^ Bradley 2012, p. 214.
10. Devalla, Rani (3 October 2024). "Bengali families brace for grand celebration of 'Durga pujo'". www.thehansindia.com. Retrieved 15 December 2024.
11. Cosentino, Simona (7 October 2024). "Durga Puja festival: where it originated and how it's celebrated". The Conversation. Retrieved 15 December 2024.
12. Chatterjee, Shrabana (30 September 2024). "Kolkata's Durga Puja economy takes a major hit amidst ongoing R.G. Kar protests". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 15 December 2024.
13. Sarkar, Joydeep (6 October 2024). "Bengal's Economy Has Always Relied on the Durga Puja – Will This Prove Much Too Dear This Time?". The Wire.
14. "Durga Puja inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity". Archived from the original on 19 October 2022. Retrieved 15 December 2024.
15. "Bangladesh's Hindus celebrate despite violence against minority groups". South China Morning Post. 12 October 2024. Retrieved 20 December 2024.
16. "TRIPURAINFO : The first news, views & information website of TRIPURA". tripurainfo.com. Retrieved 20 December 2024.
17. "Himanta Biswa Sarma reaches out to Barak Valley, visits region for Durga Puja". Hindustan Times. 12 October 2021. Archived from the original on 30 November 2024. Retrieved 20 December 2024.
18. Story, Jharkhand (10 October 2024). "Jharkhand News: Durga Puja rituals commence in Dhanbad with a holy bath of 'Kola Bou'". The Jharkhand Story. Retrieved 20 December 2024.
19. "56 सालों से मधुबनी कॉलोनी में बंगाली विधि विधान से होती है दुर्गापूजा, 2 साल बाद लगेगा 4 दिन का मेला". Danik Bhaskar.
20. ^ Kinsley 1988, pp. 106–108.
21. ^ Encyclopedia Britannica 2015.
22. Doniger 1999, p. 306.
23. Parmita Borah (2 October 2011). "Durga Puja – a Celebration of Female Supremacy". EF News International. Archived from the original on 25 April 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2011.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
24. "Navratri And Durga Puja: Understanding The Differences Between The Two Festivals". Times Now. 7 October 2024. Retrieved 15 December 2024.
25. ^ Melton 2011, pp. 239–241.
26. ^ Amazzone 2011, pp. 82–83.
27. ^ McDermott 2001, pp. 172–174.
28. Foulston & Abbott 2009, pp. 162–169.
29. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 7–8.
30. ^ Daniélou 1991, p. 288.
31. ^ McDaniel 2004, pp. 215–219.
32. ^ McDaniel 2004, pp. 20–21, 217–219.
33. ^ Kinsley 1988, pp. 111–112.
34. Donner 2016, p. 25.
35. "Durga Puja (Durga Ashtami) 2020: Is Maa Durga Worthy to Worship?". S A NEWS. 24 October 2020. Archived from the original on 28 October 2020. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
36. Lochtefeld 2002, pp. 212–213.
37. ^ Jones & Ryan 2006, pp. 308–309.
38. ^ "Durga Puja | Traditions & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica. Archived from the original on 30 October 2020. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
39. "Dutta Chaudhuri Ancestry". 14 February 2021.
40. "Durga Puja". Assam Online Portal. Archived from the original on 17 August 2012.
41. "Durga Puja Festival". Durga-puja.org. Archived from the original on 27 October 2012. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
42. "Durga Puja in Bangladesh". The Business Standard. 3 October 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
43. Rocher 1986, pp. 191–195.
44. Lawrence A. Babb; John E. Cort; Michael W. Meister (2008). Desert Temples: Sacred Centers of Rajasthan in Historical, Art-historical, and Social Context. Brill. pp. 8, 65–68, 86–89. ISBN 978-81-316-0106-8. Archived from the original on 18 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
45. ^ Monier Monier-Williams (1899), Sanskrit English Dictionary with Etymology, Oxford University Press, page 487
46. Maurice Bloomfield (1906), A Vedic concordance, Series editor: Charles Lanman, Harvard University Press, page 486;
47. Scheftelowitz, J. (1906). Indische Forschungen. Verlag von M & H Marcus. pp. 112 line 13a. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
48. Kinsley 1988, pp. 95–96.
49. Brown 1998, p. 77 note 28.
50. Coburn 1991, pp. 13.
51. Coburn 2002, pp. 1–7.
52. McDermott 2001, p. 162.
53. McDermott 2001, pp. 162–163.
54. McDermott 2001, pp. 162–164.
55. Kinsley 1997, pp. 16–22, 30–35.
56. Brown 1990, pp. 280 note 50, 274 notes 103, 107, 109–110.
57. Simmons, Caleb; Sen, Moumita; Rodrigues, Hillary (1 August 2018). Nine Nights of the Goddess: The Navarātri Festival in South Asia. SUNY Press. p. 200. ISBN 978-1-4384-7069-6.
58. Bandyopadhyay 1993, p. 118.
59. Monaghan 2009, pp. 151–153.
60. McDermott 2001, p. 330 notes 98-103.
61. Bhattacharya, Tithi (November 2007). "Tracking the Goddess: Religion, Community, and Identity in the Durga Puja Ceremonies of Nineteenth-Century Calcutta". The Journal of Asian Studies. 66 (4): 919–962. doi:10.1017/S0021911807001258. JSTOR 20203237.
62. ^ Ghosa 1871, pp. 40–55.
63. Nicholas, Ralph W. (2008). Rites of Spring: Gā̄jan in Village Bengal. Chronicle Books. p. 8. ISBN 978-81-8028-035-1.
64. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 50, 150–151.
65. Brown 1990, pp. 143–147.
66. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 153–155, 63, 90, 177 etc.
67. Rodrigues 2003, p. 113.
68. Amazzone 2012, pp. 55–59.
69. Kinsley 1988, p. 111, Quote: "Durga Puja is celebrated from the first through the ninth days of the bright half of the lunar month of Asvin, which coincides with the autumn harvest in North India, and in certain respects it is clear that Durga Puja is a harvest festival in which Durga is propitiated as the power of plant fertility"..
70. Rodrigues, Hillary (2018). "Durga". Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism Online.
71. McLean 1998, p. 137.
72. "Paata Puja the process of Durga Idol making also Called Durga Maay Aagmon". The Statesman. Archived from the original on 19 October 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
73. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 71–74.
74. ^ Amazzone 2012, pp. 57–59, 63, 66.
75. Charles Russell Coulter & Patricia Turner 2013, pp. 148, 158–159, 256–257, 301.
76. Amazzone 2012, pp. 58–60.
77. Amazzone 2012, pp. 69–70, 83–84, 95–97, 115–117, 184.
78. McDaniel 2004, pp. 209–210.
79. Ellwood & Alles 2007, p. 126.
80. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 17–24, 31–39.
81. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 38–44, 84–87.
82. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 44–45, 120–127.
83. Kinsley 1989, pp. 19–25.
84. Kinsley 1988, pp. 106–115.
85. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 46–54, 132–136.
86. ^ Rodrigues 2003, pp. 277–278.
87. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 210–213.
88. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 62–63, 224–229.
89. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 244–245.
90. McDaniel 2004, pp. 168–169.
91. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 66–67, 236–241, 246–247.
92. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 67–68.
93. ^ Chitgopekar 2009, pp. 95–98.
94. Khanna 2015, p. 96.
95. Fahy, John (2 September 2018). "Samsara". Anthropology Now. 10 (3): 93–105. doi:10.1080/19428200.2018.1602407. ISSN 1942-8200. S2CID 218662621. Archived from the original on 25 September 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
96. Ahsanat, Moazzam Areeba (2014). "Identity catapult in a globalizing world: A critique". Journal of Politics and Governance. 3 (1): 16–22. Archived from the original on 5 August 2021. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
97. Amazzone 2012, p. 57.
98. Rao 1988, pp. 47–49, 209.
99. ^ Chapple 2000, pp. 490, 484–489.
100. Godfrey & Torres 2016, pp. 98–99.
101. Ipsita Pati (18 October 2012), Paint with toxic chemicals banned during Puja Archived 4 July 2020 at the Wayback Machine, The Hindu
102. McDaniel 2004, pp. 204–205.
103. McDermott 2011, pp. 204–205.
104. Katznelson & Jones 2010, p. 343.
105. Ghosa 1871, pp. 60–65.
106. Phillips, Kerrigan & Gould 2011, pp. 98–101.
107. Fuller 2004, pp. 83–84.
108. Harlan 2003, p. 22.
109. Hiltebeitel & Erndl 2000, p. 77.
110. Harlan 1992, pp. 61, 88.
111. Harlan 1992, pp. 107–108.
112. Das, Shreya (16 October 2018). "A Kolkata Durga Puja pandal pays tribute to sex workers". Indian Express. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
113. ^ Duttagupta, Ishani (25 August 2019). "Pandal Politics: Why this year's Durga Puja in Bengal is different". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 24 August 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
114. Das, Soumya (15 September 2018). "Durga Puja speaks for homosexuals, transgenders". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 12 December 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
115. ^ Dhar, Sujoy (12 October 2018). "Durga Puja theme & venues in South Kolkata". Times Travel. Archived from the original on 18 October 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
116. "Durga Puja in Delhi to bring alive 100-year journey of Bengali cinema". The Times of India. 18 September 2019. Archived from the original on 18 October 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
117. "Green themes abound in Durga Puja marquees". Business Standard. 14 October 2018. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
118. Roy, Ujjainee (20 September 2019). "Durga Puja special: Watch out for this 12 landmark Pujas in Kolkata". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
119. "Photos: From Facebook to Lego: 15 interesting Durga Puja pandal themes we've seen over the years". News18. 25 September 2014. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
120. Dhaor, Ashni (17 October 2018). "Your guide to pandal hopping in Noida". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 22 October 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
121. "Durga Puja: Pandal made from scrap, spare parts glitters in Kolkata". Business Standard. 11 October 2018. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
122. Bose, Rakhi (16 October 2018). "In Kolkata, a Durga Puja Pandal Crafted Out of Nails and Threads to Make it 'Visible' to the Blind". News18. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
123. Mehta, Puja (12 October 2018). "In West Bengal, a Durga Puja pandal made out of turmeric". DNA. Archived from the original on 7 November 2018. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
124. "Terrorists vs Abhinandan Varthaman: Balakot airstrikes becomes theme for Durga Puja pandal". India Today. 15 September 2019. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
125. Bhattacharjee, Satananda (18 September 2019). "Novel NRC protest at puja pandals". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
126. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 1–2, 10–11, 24–26, 351–352.
127. "Puja on the billboards". The Telegraph. Kolkata. 13 September 2009. Archived from the original on 10 October 2010.
128. "Have you ever seen a Durga Idol this tall". Rediff. 8 October 2015. Archived from the original on 2 November 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
129. "Near stampede shuts down Deshapriya Park Durga Puja". The Times of India. 19 October 2015. Archived from the original on 26 October 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
130. Rodrigues 2003, p. 17.
131. ^ Rodrigues 2003, pp. 17–18.
132. Rodrigues 2003, p. 18.
133. ^ Rodrigues 2003, pp. 18–19.
134. McDermott 2011, pp. 12–14.
135. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 20–27.
136. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 17–21.
137. Chandra, Manoranjan (2002). Mallabhum Bishnupur.
138. McDermott 2011, p. 11.
139. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 27–28.
140. ^ Rodrigues 2003, pp. 27–29.
141. McDermott 2011, pp. 138–143.
142. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 27–30.
143. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 27–30, 39–48, 58–64, 106–114.
144. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 27–32.
145. Rodrigues 2003, pp. 27–32, 64–75.
146. Alexander, Chatterji & Jalais 2016, pp. 190 note 76.
147. Jones & Marion 2014, pp. 97–98.
148. "Roots run deep". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 6 August 2009. Archived from the original on 5 November 2013. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
149. Sidhartha Roy (6 July 2011). "Making Delhi their own, religiously". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 13 May 2013. Retrieved 4 October 2011.
150. "Bamboo barricading in Yamuna to check water pollution". The Daily Pioneer. 4 October 2011. Archived from the original on 7 October 2011.
151. "Three more 'Chandi Medha' to adorn Silver City's Durga Puja celebration". New Indian Express. 13 September 2019. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
152. "Bad roads dampen spirit of Cuttack's Millennium City Durga Puja organisers". New Indian Express. 11 September 2019. Archived from the original on 13 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
153. "Odisha Decks Up For Navratri; Preparations For Durga Puja Reach Final Stages". OdishaTV. 20 October 2020. Archived from the original on 1 November 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
154. "Durga Puja begins in Tripura with traditional guard of honour to Goddess". Jagran Post. Archived from the original on 18 November 2018. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
155. "Durga Puja in West Bengal turns political battlefield between BJP and Trinamool Congress". Orissa Post. PPN and Agencies. 16 September 2019. Archived from the original on 23 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
156. "Kolkata Durga Puja nominated for UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list". The Statesman. 2 April 2019. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
157. Srivastava, Vanita (1 April 2019). "Kolkata's Durga Puja nominated for Unesco list". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 19 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
158. ^ Mehta, Pooja (31 August 2019). "Debt-ridden Mamata Banerjee govt 'gifts' Rs 70 crore to West Bengal Durga Puja organisers". Zee News India. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
159. Kundu, Indrajit (12 September 2019). "Bengal's Durga puja loses sheen due to economic slowdown". India Today. Archived from the original on 14 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
160. Rakshit, Avishek (14 September 2019). "Economic slowdown cloud on Bengal's Durga Puja; sponsorship takes a hit". Business Standard. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
161. "'No tax on Durga Puja committees': TMC on day-long protest as Mamata sets stage for fresh clash with Centre over I-T notices". Financial Express. 13 August 2019. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
162. "IT dept's taxation of Durga Puja irks Mamata". The Hindu. 11 August 2019. Archived from the original on 7 November 2020. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
163. "CBDT denies reports of issuing tax notices to Durga Puja committees in Kolkata". Business Today. PTI. 13 August 2019. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
164. Javed, Zeeshan; Niyogi, Subhro (7 October 2022). "Economy gets a Rs 50,000 crore Durga puja boost". The Times of India. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
165. "20-30% Bengal Durga Puja Economy Expansion Expected This Year". Businessworld. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
166. "Bengal Durga Puja economy in 2022 may expand by 20-30 pc - ET Retail". ETRetail.com. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
167. "Durga Puja 2022: Kolkata Metro earns over Rs 6 crore in just 5 days of festivities". TimesNow. 7 October 2022. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
168. "Kolkata Metro earns over Rs 6 crore in just 5 days during Durga Puja". India Today. 6 October 2022. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
169. "Mahalaya ushers in the Puja spirit". The Times of India. 19 September 2009. Archived from the original on 23 September 2009. Retrieved 19 September 2009.
170. "Sharodiya Pujabarshiki". Archived from the original on 3 September 2011.
171. Tripathi 2016, p. 5: "The intertwining of cultural traditions reinforced a society which was tolerant and the faiths borrowed from each other. (...) Many Bangladeshi Muslim women wear saris and bindis, or teeps, the dot on their forehead, usually seen only among Hindu women; they celebrate pujo, a Hindu festival for the goddess Durga, and they have no hesitation ushering in Poyla Baisakh, to celebrate the Bengali new year."
172. London 2004, p. 38.
173. Dates, Hindu Festival (19 September 2024). "List of Durga Puja 2024 Events in USA, Details of Date and Location". Hindu Festival Dates. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
174. "ECDPA". ecdpanewyork.com. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
175. Bagchi, Amitabha (6 October 2020). "Durga Puja In The US Cities And Suburbs - A Brief History". Retrieved 7 November 2024.
176. "Pashchimi". www.pashchimi.org. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
177. "Home". WomenNow. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
178. "Sharod Utsob 2024". Saikat. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
179. কমিউনিটি, SABCC-সান আন্তোনিও বাঙ্গালী কালচারাল. "SABCC-সান আন্তোনিও বাঙ্গালী কালচারাল কমিউনিটি". SABCC-সান আন্তোনিও বাঙ্গালী কালচারাল কমিউনিটি. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
180. ^ "Durga Puja celebrations in Canada". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 15 July 2022. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
181. ^ "BBC Thames immersion for Hindu sculptures". BBC News. 2 October 2006. Archived from the original on 30 October 2012. Retrieved 4 October 2011.
182. "Indische Kultur Verein e.V". www.durgapuja.de. Archived from the original on 28 January 2021. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
183. "Durga Puja in Switzerland". www.swisspuja.org. Archived from the original on 30 October 2016. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
184. "Home". Bengali Cultural Society - South Sweden. Archived from the original on 24 January 2021. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
185. "Bengali Association revives tradition of public celebration of Durga Puja in South Africa". The Telegraph. 25 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
186. "Diaspora celebrate Navratri in Sydney by worshipping all forms of Goddess Durga". New India Abroad. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
187. "Durga Puja". HK Yanto Yan. Archived from the original on 13 October 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
188. "shanghai adda". shanghaiadda. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
189. Pal, Suvam (6 October 2022). "How a former flight attendant from Kolkata held Durga puja in Beijing in turbulent times". The Telegraph. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
190. "Bengali Community of The Netherlands". Hoichoi. Archived from the original on 3 March 2021. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
191. "Home". Anandadhara. Archived from the original on 21 November 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2021.

Bibliography

• Alexander, Claire; Chatterji, Joya; Jalais, Annu (2016). The Bengal Diaspora. Rethinking Muslim Migration. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-53073-6.
• Amazzone, Laura (2012). Goddess Durga and Sacred Female Power. University Press of America. ISBN 9780761853145. Archived from the original on 17 March 2020. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
• Amazzone, Laura (2011). Patricia Monaghan (ed.). Goddesses in World Culture. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-313-35465-6. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Bandyopadhyay, Pranab (1993). Mother Goddess Kali. UW Press. ISBN 978-81-85328-15-7. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Banerji, Chitrita (2006). The Hour of the Goddess: Memories of Women, Food, and Ritual in Bengal. Penguin Books India. ISBN 978-0-14-400142-2. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Bradley, Cynthia (2012). Denise Cush; Catherine Robinson; Michael York (eds.). Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-18979-2. Archived from the original on 24 December 2016. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Brooks, Douglas Renfrew (1992). Auspicious Wisdom. State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0791411452. Archived from the original on 27 June 2014. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Brown, C Mackenzie (1990). The Triumph of the Goddess: The Canonical Models and Theological Visions of the Devi-Bhagavata Purana. State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-0364-8. Archived from the original on 26 December 2019. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Brown, Cheever Mackenzie (1998). The Devi Gita: The Song of the Goddess: A Translation, Annotation, and Commentary. State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-3939-5. Archived from the original on 24 December 2019. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Chapple, Christopher (2000). Hinduism and ecology: the intersection of earth, sky, and water. Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-945454-25-0. Archived from the original on 19 February 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
• Chitgopekar, Nilima (20 July 2009). Book Of Durga. Penguin Books India. pp. 111–. ISBN 978-0-14-306767-2. Archived from the original on 26 February 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
• Coburn, Thomas B. (1991). Encountering the Goddess: A translation of the Devi-Mahatmya and a Study of Its Interpretation. State University of New York Press. ISBN 0791404463. Archived from the original on 5 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Coburn, Thomas B. (2002). Devī Māhātmya, The Crystallization of the Goddess Tradition. South Asia Books. ISBN 81-208-0557-7. Archived from the original on 9 December 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Charles Russell Coulter; Patricia Turner (2013). Encyclopedia of Ancient Deities. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-96397-2. Archived from the original on 26 October 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Reid-Bowen, Paul (2012). Denise Cush; Catherine Robinson; Michael York (eds.). Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-18979-2. Archived from the original on 24 December 2016. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Daniélou, Alain (1991). The Myths and Gods of India: The Classic Work on Hindu Polytheism from the Princeton Bollingen Series. Inner Traditions / Bear & Co. ISBN 978-0-89281-354-4. Archived from the original on 17 March 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Doniger, Wendy (1999). Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions. Merriam-Webster. ISBN 978-0-87779-044-0.
• Donner, Henrike (2016). Domestic Goddesses: Maternity, Globalization and Middle-class Identity in Contemporary India. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-14848-7. Archived from the original on 18 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Ellwood, Robert S; Alles, Gregory D (2007). The Encyclopedia of World Religions. Infobase Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4381-1038-7. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Foulston, Lynn; Abbott, Stuart (2009). Hindu Goddesses: Beliefs and Practices. Sussex Academic Press. ISBN 978-1-902210-43-8.
• Fuller, Christopher John (2004). The Camphor Flame: Popular Hinduism and Society in India. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-69112-04-85. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
• Ghosa, Pratapacandra (1871). Durga Puja: with notes and illustrations. Calcutta: Hindoo Patriot Press. Archived from the original on 18 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Godfrey, Phoebe; Torres, Denise (2016). Emergent Possibilities for Global Sustainability: Intersections of Race, Class and Gender. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-57017-2. Archived from the original on 19 February 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
• Harlan, Lindsey (2003). The Goddesses' Henchmen: Gender in Indian Hero Worship. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-534834-7. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
• Harlan, Lindsey (1992). Religion and Rajput Women: The Ethic of Protection in Contemporary Narratives. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-07339-5. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
• Hiltebeitel, Alf; Erndl, Kathleen M. (2000). Is the Goddess a Feminist?: The Politics of South Asian Goddesses. New York University Press. ISBN 978-0-8147-3619-7.
• Katznelson, Ira; Jones, Gareth Stedman (2010). Religion and the Political Imagination. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-139-49317-8. Archived from the original on 21 July 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Jones, Constance; Ryan, James D (2006). Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Infobase Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8160-7564-5. Archived from the original on 23 March 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Jones, David; Marion, Michele (2014). The Dynamics of Cultural Counterpoint in Asian Studies. SUNY Press. ISBN 978-1-4384-5191-6. Archived from the original on 24 February 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2017.
• Kinsley, David (1989). The Goddesses' Mirror: Visions of the Divine from East and West. State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0-88706-835-5. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Kinsley, David (1988). Hindu Goddesses: Visions of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Tradition. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-90883-3.
• Kinsley, David (1997). Tantric Visions of the Divine Feminine: The Ten Mahavidyas. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-91772-9. Archived from the original on 31 December 2019. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Lochtefeld, James G (2002). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M. The Rosen Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-8239-3179-8.
• McDaniel, June (2004). Offering Flowers, Feeding Skulls: Popular Goddess Worship in West Bengal. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-534713-5. Archived from the original on 4 January 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Khanna, Vikas (2015). Indian Harvest: Classic and Contemporary Vegetarian Dishes. Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN 978-1-63286-200-6. Archived from the original on 19 February 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
• London, Ellen (2004). Bangladesh. Gareth Stevens. ISBN 978-0-8368-3107-8. Archived from the original on 24 February 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2017.
• McDermott, Rachel Fell (2001). Mother of My Heart, Daughter of My Dreams: Kali and Uma in the Devotional Poetry of Bengal. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-803071-3. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• McDermott, Rachel Fell (2011). Revelry, Rivalry, and Longing for the Goddesses of Bengal: The Fortunes of Hindu Festivals. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-12919-0.
• McLean, Malcolm (1998). Devoted to the Goddess: The Life and Work of Ramprasad. State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-3689-9. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Melton, J. Gordon (2011). Religious Celebrations: An Encyclopedia of Holidays, Festivals, Solemn Observances, and Spiritual Commemorations. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-59884-206-7. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Monaghan, Patricia (2009). Encyclopedia of Goddesses and Heroines. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-313-34990-4. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Monaghan, Patricia (2011). Goddesses in World Culture. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-313-35465-6. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Sree Padma (2014). Inventing and Reinventing the Goddess: Contemporary Iterations of Hindu Deities on the Move. Lexington Books. ISBN 978-0-7391-9002-9. Archived from the original on 16 August 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
• Phillips, Charles; Kerrigan, Michael; Gould, David (2011). Ancient India's Myths and Beliefs. The Rosen Publishing Group. ISBN 978-1-4488-5990-0. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Rao, Saligrama Krishna Ramachandra (1988). Pratima Kosha: Descriptive Glossary of Indian Iconography. IBH Prakashana. Archived from the original on 19 February 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
• Rocher, Ludo (1986). The Puranas. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. ISBN 978-3447025225.
• Sen Ramprasad (1720–1781). Grace and Mercy in Her Wild Hair: Selected Poems to the Mother Goddess. Hohm Press. ISBN 0-934252-94-7.
• Rodrigues, Hillary (2003). Ritual Worship of the Great Goddess: The Liturgy of the Durga Puja with Interpretations. SUNY Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-8844-7. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
• Tripathi, Salil (2016). The Colonel Who Would Not Repent: The Bangladesh War and Its Unquiet Legacy. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-21818-3. Archived from the original on 15 April 2017. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
• "Durga - Hindu mythology". Encyclopedia Britannica. 19 February 2015. Archived from the original on 7 May 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
• Isaeva, N. V. (1993), Shankara and Indian Philosophy, SUNY Press, ISBN 978-0791412817, archived from the original on 14 January 2020, retrieved 18 October 2020
• Pintchman, Tracy (2014), Seeking Mahadevi: Constructing the Identities of the Hindu Great Goddess, SUNY Press, ISBN 978-0791490495, archived from the original on 19 August 2020, retrieved 18 October 2020

Further reading

• Banerjee, Sudeshna (2004). Durga Puja: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. Rupa and Co, Calcutta. ISBN 81-291-0547-0.
• Bhattacharyya, BK (6 October 2008). "Earthen sculptures of Goddess Durga". The Assam Tribune. Archived from the original on 1 April 2012.
• Dutta, Krishna. (2003) Calcutta: a cultural and literary history Archived 27 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Signal Books, Oxford, United Kingdom. ISBN 1-902669-59-2.
• Muthukumaraswamy, M.D.; Kaushal, Molly (2004). Folklore, public sphere, and civil society. National Folklore Support Centre(India). ISBN 978-81-901481-4-6. Archived from the original on 27 April 2016. Retrieved 15 November 2015. (Chapter 6: "Of Public Sphere and Sacred Space: Origins of Community Durga Puja in Bengal.")
• Saraswati, Swami Satyananda (2001). Durga Puja Beginner, Devi Mandir. ISBN 1-887472-89-4.

External links

• Durga Puja at the Encyclopædia Britannica
• "Durga Puja - The Hindu Festival, Durga-Puja.org". www.durga-puja.org. Retrieved 25 September 2022.

Articles related to Durga Puja

v t e Festivals in the Hindu calendar Major festivals Ayudha Puja Chhath Diwali Durga Puja Ganesh Chaturthi Holi Krishna Janmashtami Maha Shivaratri Navaratri Rama Navami Thaipusam Vijayadashami Harvest festivals Bhogi Lohri Maghi Maghe Sankranti Makar Sankranti Makaravilakku Onam Pongal Pusnâ Shakrain New year's days Balipratipada Bohag Bihu Bisu Parba Chaitra Navaratri Cheti Chand Gudi Padwa Mesha Sankranti Mha Puja Jur Sital Navreh Nyepi Pana Sankranti Pahela Baishakh Puthandu Sajibu Nongma Panba Sankranti Ugadi Vaisakhi Vishu Other festivals Aadi Perukku Bhaubeej Datta Jayanti Dhanteras Gaura Parva Gowri Habba Hanuman Jayanti Kali Puja Karthika Deepam Karva Chauth Kashmiri Hindu festivals Lakshmi Puja Kumbh Mela Mahalakshmi Vrata Mahamaham Panguni Uthiram Pargat Diwas Raksha Bandhan Ratha-Yatra Savitri Vrata Teej Tulasi Vivaha Vaikasi Visakam Holy days Akshaya Tritiya Amalaka Ekadashi Amavasya Ananta Chaturdashi Ashadhi Ekadashi Guru Purnima Kamada Ekadashi Kartik Purnima Naga Panchami Naraka Chaturdashi Narali Purnima Nirjala Ekadashi Pausha Putrada Ekadashi Prabodhini Ekadashi Pradosha Rishi Panchami Sankashti Chaturthi Sharad Purnima Shayani Ekadashi Shravana Putrada Ekadashi Vaikuntha Ekadashi Varuthini Ekadashi Vasant Panchami Vat Purnima Balinese festivals Galungan Nyepi Holy periods Chaturmasya Pitru Paksha Uttarayana Dakshinayana Hindu festivals v t e Culture of West Bengal Cuisine Baingan bharta Bori Gohona Bori Chingri malai curry Kheer Khichuri Machh bhaja Machher Jhol Mishti doi Nabadwip-er lal doi Pithe Rasogolla Rice Sandesh Sorshe Ilish Abar Khabo Dance Classical dance Gaudiya Nritya Rabindra Nritya Natya Folk dance Alkap Brita dance Chhau Dhamail Dhunuchi Nritya Domni Gombhira Kalikapatadi Kushan dance Raibenshe Tusu dance Music Cultural songs Agamani-Vijaya Atulprasadi Sangeet Bishnupur Gharana Dwijendrageeti Nazrul Geeti Prabhat Samgiita Rabindra Sangeet Shyama Sangeet Folk songs Baromasya Song Baul Bhadu Song Bhatiali Bhawaiya Bolan Song Ghatu Song Gombhira Hapu song Kirtan Patua Sangeet Shreekrishna Kirtana Tusu Song Handlooms and handicrafts Handloom Baluchari Sari Nakshi kantha Kantha Tant sari Tangail Saree Handicrafts Bankura horse Chhau Mask Dhokra Santiniketan Leather Goods Shital Pati Wooden dolls Madurkathi Observations and festivals Darjeeling Carnival Dharmathakur Dola jatra Durga Puja Durga Puja Carnival Guptipara Rathayatra Jagaddhatri Puja Joydeb-Kenduli Mela Kali Puja Lakshmi Puja Mahishadal Rathayatra Makar Sankranti Nobanno Poila Boishakh Poush Mela Rathayatra Rathayatra of Mahesh Shakta Rash Sindur Khela Arts Alpona Bankura horse Manasa chali Chalchitra Dashabatar Cards Durga pot Kalighat Painting Patachitra Sholapith Terracotta Other Barowari Bônggabdô Dakshin Rai India portal Category v t e State of West Bengal Capital: Kolkata State symbols Emblem: Emblem of West Bengal Anthem: Banglar Mati Banglar Jol Animal: Fishing cat Bird: White-throated kingfisher Flower: Night-flowering jasmine (Shiuli) Tree: Devil's tree (Saptaparni) Fish: Ilish History Gauda Kingdom Shashanka Pala Empire Sena dynasty Mallabhum kingdom Cooch Behar State Sher Shah Suri Mughal Empire Nawabs of Bengal East India Company Battle of Plassey Bengal Presidency Great Bengal famine of 1770 Indian Rebellion of 1857 Bengal Renaissance Bardhaman Raj Nadia Raj Jhargram Raj Sovabazar Raj Partition of Bengal (1905) Revolutionary movement for Indian independence Anushilan Samiti Jugantar Bengal famine of 1943 Direct Action Day Noakhali riots Partition of Bengal (1947) Bengali Language Movement (Manbhum) Bangladesh Liberation War Naxalite–Maoist insurgency Geography Bengal Basin Darjeeling Himalayan hill region Terai North Bengal plains Dooars Rarh region Sundarbans Western plateau and high lands Ganges Delta Climate Sandakphu (Highest point) Protected areas of West Bengal Rivers of West Bengal Ganga Damodar River Brahmaputra River Teesta River Hooghly River Khoai Tiger Hill, Darjeeling Siliguri Corridor Governance Chief Ministers Governor Legislative Assembly Human Rights Commission Political parties (All India Trinamool Congress Communist Party (Marxist) Indian National Congress Bharatiya Janata Party) Parliamentary constituencies Assembly constituencies CID West Bengal Kolkata Police Rights groups Matua Mahasangha Bangla Pokkho Divisions and districts Burdwan division Birbhum Hooghly Paschim Bardhaman Purba Bardhaman Jalpaiguri division Alipurduar Cooch Behar Darjeeling Jalpaiguri Kalimpong Malda division Berhampore (declared) Dakshin Dinajpur Jangipur (declared) Malda Murshidabad Uttar Dinajpur Medinipur division Bankura Bishnupur (declared) Jhargram Paschim Medinipur Purba Medinipur Purulia Presidency division Basirhat (declared) Howrah Ichamati (declared) Kolkata Nadia North 24 Parganas Ranaghat (declared) South 24 Parganas Sundarbans (declared) Cities and towns Alipore Asansol Berhampore Balurghat Bankura Barasat Bardhaman Bishnupur Hugli-Chuchura Cooch Behar Darjeeling Durgapur Haldia Howrah Jalpaiguri Jaynagar Majilpur Jiaganj Azimganj Kalimpong Kharagpur Kolkata Krishnanagar Kurseong Malda Midnapore Murshidabad Purulia Raiganj Siliguri Siuri Tamluk List of cities in West Bengal by population Cities and towns by district Culture Bengal Renaissance Bengali calendars Patachitra Chalchitra Arts of West Bengal Baul Bhadu Gombhira Chhau dance Cuisine Bengali Rabindra Sangeet Rabindra Nritya Natya Holi Dol Purnima Prostitution in Kolkata Pohela Boishakh Durga Puja Bhai Dooj Raksha Bandhan Ratha Yatra Architecture of Bengal Bengal temples Bengali language Bengali literature Feluda Lalmohan Ganguly Professor Shonku Tarini Khuro Kakababu Kiriti Roy Pather Panchali (novel) Bengali cinema Jatra Ghosts in Bengali culture GI products Baluchari sari Banglar Rosogolla Banglar Muslin Bankura horse Bengal Patachitra Chhau mask Darjeeling tea Dhaniakhali Sari Dhokra Fazli (mango) Garad Saree Gobindobhog Himsagar Jaynagarer Moa Madurkathi Manasa chali Mihidana Nakshi kantha Santiniketan Leather Goods Shantipuri sari Sitabhog Sundarban Honey Tangail Saree Tulaipanji Demographics Bengali people Bihari people Economy of West Bengal Gurkha Adivasi Rajbanshi Anglo-Indian people Ethnic communities in Kolkata List of West Bengal districts ranked by literacy rate Discrimination against Bengalis in India People Rabindranath Tagore Satyajit Ray Kazi Nazrul Islam Anil Kumar Gain Ritwik Ghatak Subhas Chandra Bose Jamini Roy Bidhan Chandra Roy Jyoti Basu Nandalal Bose Jagadish Chandra Bose Meghnad Saha Bankim Chandra Chatterjee Sarat Chandra Bose Jnanadanandini Devi Abanindranath Tagore Satyendranath Tagore Satyendranath Dutta Raja Ram Mohan Roy Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar Rani Rashmoni Ramakrishna Swami Vivekananda Sarada Devi Dwarkanath Tagore Sukumar Ray Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury Michael Madhusudan Dutt Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay Sister Nivedita Mother Teresa Amartya Sen Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay Nihar Ranjan Gupta Image gallery at Wikimedia Commons v t e Bengali Hindus Society Groups Babu Bangal Bhadralok Ghoti Castes Aguri Bagdi Baidya Baishya Kapali Baishya Saha Barujibi Bauri Brahmin Chunaru Dom Gandhabanik Suvarna Banik Hari Kaibartya Kansabanik Karmakar Kayastha Kulin Maulika Mahishya Malla Namasudra Namassej Avarna Sadgop Shunri Yogi Religion Books Bhagavad Gita Chandi Panchali Matuasmritokotha Sects Brahmo Kartabhaja Shaiva Shakta Vaishnava Orders Adi Brahmo Samaj Ananda Marga Bharat Sevashram Sangha Brahmo Conference Organisation Brahmo Samaj Gaudiya Math Gaudiya Mission International Society for Krishna Consciousness Matua Mahasangha Ramakrishna Order Self-Realization Fellowship Sri Aurobindo Ashram Vedanta Society Yogoda Satsanga Society of India Festivals Poila Baisakh Rabindra Jayanti Akshaya Tritiya Buddho Purnima Shashthi Savitri Brata Ambubachi Mela Dhamrai Jagannath Roth Jhulan Purnima Janmashtami Bhadu Ganesh Chaturthi Vishwakarma Puja Durga Puja Lakshmi Puja Diwali Kali Puja Bhai Phonta Shakta Rash Nabanna Jagaddhatri Puja Kalpataru Day Swami Vivekananda's Birthday Makar Sankranti Maghotsab Saraswati Puja Maha Shivaratri Dol Purnima Holi Gajan Culture Music Rabindra Sangeet Shyama Sangeet Kirtan Bishnupur gharana Dance Gaudiya Nritya Rabindra Nritya Natya Literature Vaishnava Padavali Mangal-Kavya Panchali Kallol Hungry generation Folk culture Folk art Dhokra Sholapith Folk dance Raibenshe Chhau Paika Dhamail Alkap Gombhira Kavigan Others Bengali Hindu mythology and culture Bengali Hindu diaspora v t e Tourist attractions in Kolkata Colonial Currency Building Howrah Railway Station Metropolitan Building Fort William National Library Victoria Memorial Shaheed Minar St. John's Church Raj Bhavan New Market Kolkata High Court Shobhabazar Rajbari Prinsep Ghat Geographical Hooghly River Rabindra Sarobar Maidan Religious places Kalighat Kali Temple Dakshineswar Kali Temple Belur Math Kripamayee Kali Temple Baranagar Math Alambazar Math St. John's Church St. James' Church St. Paul's Cathedral Tipu Sultan Mosque Church of the Lord Jesus South Park Street Cemetery Cultural Durga Puja Barowari Pujos Saraswati Puja Kali Puja The Asiatic Society Dol Yatra College Street Esplanade Chowringhee Metro Kolkata Film Festival Jorasanko Thakur Bari Poila Boisakh Chhau dance Football Rabindra Sangeet Kumortuli Sondesh Kolkata Book Fair National Library General Post Office Vintage & Classic Car Rally Boulevards AJC Bose Road & APC Road Amherst Street Ballygunge Circular Road Bowbazar Street Camac Street Chittaranjan Avenue College Street Eastern Metropolitan Bypass Gariahat Road Gurusaday Dutta Road Grey Street The Chowringhee Lansdowne Road Mahatma Gandhi Road Mirza Ghalib Street Park Street Prince Anwar Shah Road Rabindra Sarani Raja Nabakrishna Street Raja SC Mullick Road Netaji Subash Chandra Bose Road Rashbehari Avenue Shakespeare Sarani Southern Avenue Strand Road Sudder Street V.I.P. Road Vivekananda Road Jawaharlal Nehru Road B. T. Road Shopping New Market College Street (Books) Mani Square South City Mall Quest Mall Forum Mall Other shopping malls Barnoporichoy Parks, riverfront, zoos and stadiums Alipore Zoo Central Park Millennium Park Mohor Kunja Aquatica Nicco Park Science City, Kolkata Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden (The Great Banyan) Maidan New Town Eco Park Eden Gardens Salt Lake Stadium Race Course Pavilions Netaji Indoor Stadium East Bengal Ground Mohammedan Sporting Ground Category v t e Culture of Odisha Dance Classical Gotipua Mahari Odissi Folk Bagha Nacha Chadheia Chaiti ghoda Chhau Chutkuchuta Dalkhai Danda Nata Dhan Koela Dhuduki Ghumura Jhumar Jodi sankha Karma Kandhei nacha Kathi Kandhei Keisabadi Nachni Naga nrutya Pala Rasarkeli Ranapa Sambalpuri Samprada Laudi nata Lankapodi Lila Tamasa Pasu nrutya Patua Sakhi Nata Suanga Tribal Desia Gadaba Kandha Koya Onra Paraja Saura Music Odissi Khanjani Kendara Dhumpa Play, theatre and puppetry Play and theatre Bharata Lila Dasakathia Dhanu Jatra Jatra Prahallada Nataka Puppetry Ravana chhaya Sakhi kandhei Wedding Odia Hindu wedding Festivals Bali Jatra Boita Bandana Deepabali Dola Jatra Durga Puja Nuakhai Gamha Purnima Kumar Purnima Makar Sankranti Manabasa Gurubara Pana Sankranti (Maha Vishuba Sankranti) Pousha Purnima Prathamastami Ratha Jatra Raja Samba Dashami Savitri Brata Sitalsasthi Snana Jatra Martial arts Paika akhada Handlooms Baleswari bandha Berhampuri Bomkai (Sonepuri) Dhalapathar Gopalpur Tussar Habaspuri Kotpad Ikat Pasapali Sambalpuri Arts and Handicrafts Arts Pattachitra Jhoti chita Saura painting Idital Handicrafts Chandua Tarakasi Ganjapa Clay Stoneworks Wooden crafts Bronze & Bell metal works Dhokra Architecture Kalinga architecture Deula Calendar (Panjika) Odia calendar Anka year Category

• Durga Puja
• Bengali festivals
• Festivals in West Bengal
• Festivals in Odisha
• Festivals in Assam
• Hindu festivals
• September observances
• October observances
• Public holidays in Bangladesh