Vijaya Dashmi is the tenth day from Navratri Sthapna. It is symbolized as the victory of good over evil, as Dusshera, when Ram won over Ravan and freed Seeta from Lanka. This day is also celebrated for Goddess Durga, who is worshipped during these nine days, is given a grand farewell by the devotees. Every year all the devotees of Goddess Durga become a part of grand procession, and with great enthusiasm, endeavor and devotion, the idols of the Goddess are immersed in water bodies.
It is believed that during Navratri, Goddess Durga and her kids visit us, at her home, or Maayka from her in-law home place (Sasural), and goes back from our world to her Sasural on the 10th day. Hence on the 10th day, the procession is similar to any farewell celebrations which happen after all marriages. After the deity is immersed, people wish each other with the greetings of Vijaya Dashmi, and return to their homes.
This year, I became a part of the Vijaya Dashmi celebration at Bengali Kalibadi Society, Hiran Magri Sec. 4. I could see crowd gathering and everyone preparing for the farewell to the Goddess.Women were beautifully dressed in traditional white Sarees with red borders. The ceremony was started by a ritual called Darpan Visarjan, followed by Sindur Khela, a ceremony only for women where they worship Goddess Durga, and then play with Sindoor. After that, the idols were loaded onto a truck, and the entire procession followed shouting slogans, with Dhols, Nagaadas, and huge amount of fireworks. Slowly and slowly the procession reached Swaroop Sagar, where keeping in mind the eco-friendly tradition, the non-biodegradable/plastic items were stripped off the idols, and with full devotion the deity was immersed into water, with an invitation to shower the blessings on us and come again in the next year.
Check out the pictures of the event, captured by (in alphabetical order) Aniket John, Gaurav Bhattacharya, Mujtaba RG, Prasun Bannerjee, and Sanjay Das.
