Bengali community readies for Puja with age-old rituals

Patna: Like every year, the Bengali community of Patna is all set to welcome Goddess Durga and her four children — Lakhsmi, Saraswati, Ganesha and Kartikeya — with its unique age-old traditions. From Bhikhana Pahari to Gardanibagh — a number of Bengali Durga Puja committees not only celebrate the community’s biggest festival but showcase the vibrancy of its culture, turning the occasion into a big fat annual get-together.Amid beats of ‘dhakh’ (traditional Bengali drum), the rituals for the community will begin on ‘Panchami’ (Saturday) with ‘bodhon’, the ceremonial awakening of the Goddess, followed by ‘aamontron’ (invocation) on ‘Shashthi’. The main puja starts with ‘adhibas’ and ‘Nabapatrika snan’ on ‘Saptami’. ‘Mahaashtami’ is all about fasting and feasting with ‘pushpanjali’ (floral offering to the Mother Goddess) and ‘bhog’ (edible offerings).One of the most important aspect of the Bengali community pujas is distribution of an elaborate platter of ‘bhog’, comprising khichdi/pulao, fried vegetables and vegetable sides among other items, among the devotees from ‘Saptami’ to ‘Mahanavami’.Another highlight is Sandhi Puja, performed at the cusp of ‘Ashtami’ and ‘Navami’, when 108 lamps are lit and 108 lotuses are offered to the Goddess, followed by symbolic ‘bali’ (sacrifice, mostly of ash gourd). The celebrations reach its highest point with ‘dhunuchi naach’ on Navami, and culminate on ‘Dashami’ with ‘Deviboron’ and ‘Sindoor Khela’, where married women smear each other with vermilion, before idol immersion.Though there are a few century-old Bengali Durga Pujas in the city, R-Block Durga Puja, in its 86th year, is among those from pre-Independence era. Organising secretary Dhruba Mukherjee said the puja started in 1940 on a small scale on Road no. 6 in R Block, before being shifted to Orthodox chamber in 1942. “We were the first to bring the unique Chandanagar lighting, which is now ubiquitous across the city,” he said.Likewise, Patna Kalibari, Yarpur, in Gardanibagh, is celebrating its 73rd Durga Puja. While a permanent ‘ashtadhatu’ (eight-metal) idol is worshipped year-round, for Durga Puja, separate clay idols are made. “This year, the committee has planned a grand ‘bhandara’ on Navami, when over four quintals of rice and pulses will be used to prepare ‘bhog’ for distribution among all passers-by,” said Ashok Chakraborty, general secretary.Meanwhile, Patna Recreation Club is celebrating its 62nd Durga Puja this year. Starting at Ajanta Press in 1964, the puja now takes place at PN Anglo Sanskrit Uchha Madhyamik School grounds. “People look forward to the cultural programmes that happen here almost every year,” said treasurer Shantanu Chatterjee.Apart from the big community pujas, a Sarbajanin Durga Puja is being held in a more intimate setting in a Bengali household in Mithapur B area for the last 77 years. Started in 1948, their idol is made on a single-frame chalchitra. Chandrani Ghosh, the granddaughter of one of the founders, said she grew up witnessing the Puja at her maternal home, and now she is carrying forward the tradition, along with other families in the locality, even after her marriage. “It started as a small puja, but over the years, people from the entire locality have become involved,” she said.