Dasara

From ArticleWorld


Dasara is a one of the chief festivals celebrated in Southern India. It is also known as Navratri. It is unlike “Dussehra” which is a 1 day festival. This is celebrated for a period of ten days. The main rituals of this unique festival include the worship of Goddess Chamundeshwari (a form of Goddess Durga), displaying vibrantly colored toys on the day of ‘Bommala Koluvu’ in Telugu or ‘bombe habba’ in Kannada.

[edit]

Ayudha Puja

Ayudha puja involves a ritual of worshipping weapons. In Karnataka, this is the ninth day of celebration. This is an old tradition and has been adapted in the modern world. People now worship their machinery and automobiles on this day.

“Tools of trade” have now replaced the original practice of worshipping “weapons”. The tools may include computers, cranes, carpentry tools, vehicles etc. All tools that assist a person in earing his livelihood is worshipped at the Ayudh Puja. A knowledge worker will worship pens, computers and books whereas a farmer will worship his tractor and other agricultural tools.

All such tools and vehicles are decorated with flowers and worshipped to earn the blessings of God in all endeavors made to earn money with those tools. It is believed that this is the best and luckiest day for purchasing a new property, starting a new venture and buying new household items.


[edit]

Vijaya Dashami

The tenth day of celebrations is called Vijay Dashami. A grand procession is held in the historic city of Mysore on this day. The central feature is an idol of Goddess Chamundeshwari sitting astride a golden Ambaari (elephant seat) on the back of an elephant.

This annual even was celebrated with much fanfare under the Wodeyar Maharajas of Mysore. It is an event that draws crowds from the World over. The Government of Karnataka has taken over the rsponsibilty and carries out the celebrations in the same way as the Old Mysore Kingdom.

[edit]

Food

Special food is prepared to celebrate the festival. Some items include :

  • Lucchi
  • Aloo Dum
  • Baigun Bhaja
  • Chholar dal

Some popular sweets prepared during this time are :

  • Payesh – usually made with milk, rice and sugar
  • Narkel Nadu – It is a coconut flavored sweetmeat
  • Sandesh – It is made from paneer and sugar and fashioned into various shapes.
Retrieved from "https://articleworld.org/index.php/Dasara"