Mahalaya Tradition

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Mahalaya - Tradition

17^th - 21^st Oct'07

Mahalaya is a day to remember our forefathers, by offering them “tarpan”. Since dawn, people start flocking the banks of river Ganga to pay homage to their late ancestors. In the darkness of the dawn, notes of “Chandi Path” start reverberating through the atmosphere. The ghats of river Ganga get packed with people who wish to perform “tarpan” in remembrance of their forefathers. The priests gather by the riverside, and start performing rituals since the wee hours of the morning. The rituals that start early in the dawn have to be performed in empty stomach, and involve offering prayers. Devotees also offer new clothes and sweets to their forefathers. The whole atmosphere has an enchanting air about it, and the devotional songs only add to the divinity. The rituals are completed by midday, after which people assimilate and eat together.

Mahalaya Tradition

The eye of Goddess being painted on Mahalaya

Traditionally, Mahalaya was considered to be the day when the idol of Ma Durga was completed for worship during the Devi Paksha. The idol making that began months before the actual celebrations started, was completed on Mahalaya with the final step in the process – the painting of the eyes of Ma Durga – being executed on this day. Although the tradition has become somewhat extinct today, with demands of dispatching the idols before Mahalaya increasing, there are many idol makers in West Bengal who still follow the age-old tradition of painting the eyes of Ma Durga on Mahalaya, and thus add the final touch to her idol.