It is celebrated by the Hindu community all over the world, but it is especially popular and traditionally celebrated in the Indian state of West Bengal and other states like Bihar, Assam, Tripura, Odisha, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh. (eastern part) and some other countries like Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka. The festival is celebrated in the month of Ashwin in the Indian calendar, which corresponds to September–October in the Gregorian calendar.
Durga Puja is a festival of ten days, of which the last five are the most important. The puja is performed in homes and public places, with a temporary stage and structural decorations (known as a pandal). The festival involves recitation of scriptures, performing arts, revelry, gift-giving, family gatherings, feasts and public processions called melas. Durga Puja is an important festival in the Shaktism tradition of Hinduism. Durga Puja in Kolkata has been included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List in December 2021. The festival involves recitation of scriptures, performing arts, revelry, gift-giving, family gatherings, feasts and public processions called melas. Durga Puja is an important festival in the Shaktism tradition of Hinduism. Durga Puja in Kolkata has been included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List in December 2021.
According to Hindu scriptures, this festival marks the victory of Goddess Durga in the battle against the shape-shifting demon, Mahishasura. Thus, this festival symbolizes the victory of good over evil, although it is also a harvest festival that celebrates the Goddess as the maternal power behind all life and creation. Durga Puja coincides with the Navratri and Dussehra festivals celebrated by other traditions of Hinduism. The primary goddess worshiped during Durga Puja is Durga, but the festivities also include other major deities of Hinduism such as Lakshmi (goddess of wealth and prosperity), Saraswati (goddess of knowledge and music), Ganesha (god of good beginnings, ), and Kartikeya (god of war). In Bengali traditions, these deities are considered to be the children of Durga, and Durga Puja is believed to celebrate Durga’s visit to her ancestral home with her beloved children. This festival is celebrated before Mahalaya, which is considered to mark the beginning of Maa Durga’s journey to her birthplace. The primary festivities begin on the sixth day (Shashthi), on which the goddess is welcomed with rituals. The festival ends on the tenth day (Vijayadashami), which is considered to mark the beginning of Maa Durga’s journey to her birthplace. The primary festivities begin on the sixth day (Shashthi), on which the goddess is welcomed with rituals. The festival ends on the tenth day (Vijayadashami), when devotees set out on a procession and carry the worshiped clay idols-murtis to a river, or other water body, and immerses them, symbolizing her return to the divine universe and her marital home. With Shiva in Kailash. Regional and community variations exist in the rituals performed and celebrations of the festival.
Durga Puja is an old tradition of Hinduism, although its exact origins are unclear. Surviving manuscripts from the 14th century provide guidelines for Durga Puja, while historical records show that royalty and wealthy families were sponsoring major Durga Puja festivals from at least the 16th century. Durga Puja increased in prominence in the provinces of Bengal, Odisha and Assam during the British Raj. However, in modern times, wherever it is celebrated, the importance of Durga Puja is more of a social and cultural festival than a religious one.
Over the years, Durga Puja has become an inseparable part of Indian culture, with a diverse group of people celebrating the festival in their own unique way as per the tradition.