Kumari Puja — the worship of a young girl as the living goddess — is performed on Ashtami at Belur Math and at a number of other places. Swami Vivekananda began the Belur Math observance in 1901, and it is the one that draws thousands.
The other rituals worth understanding are Nabapatrika, the bathing of nine plants that stand for nine forms of the goddess, and Sandhi Puja, the forty-eight minutes across the Ashtami-Nabami junction when a hundred and eight lamps are lit.
The names
Places, pujas and people, with what each one is| Name | Where | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Belur Math Kumari Puja1901 | Belur, Howrah | Begun by Swami Vivekananda; held on Ashtami. Entry is by queue and it fills very early. |
| Belur Math1897 | Belur, on the Hooghly | The Ramakrishna Mission headquarters; its Durga Puja follows the scriptural form closely. |
| Nabapatrika | the river ghats, Saptami dawn | Nine plants bound together and bathed in the river at dawn; the kola bou is the banana plant among them. |
| Sandhi Puja | every pandal | The forty-eight minutes spanning Ashtami and Nabami; 108 lamps and 108 lotuses. |
| Dhunuchi naach | the pandals, evenings | The dance with burning coconut husk and incense, performed to the dhak. |
| Chokkhu Daan | Kumartuli, Mahalaya | The painting of the idol’s eyes. |
| Tarpan | the ghats, Mahalaya dawn | Offerings to ancestors at the river. |
| Sindoor Khela | the pandals, Dashami | Married women smear vermilion on the idol and on each other before immersion. |
Worth knowing
- Belur Math on Ashtami fills before dawn. Go very early or watch the broadcast.
- Kumari Puja is also performed at several bonedi bari and at some community pujas.
- Sandhi Puja time is set by the almanac and differs each year.
- Dhunuchi naach happens in the evenings at most pandals and anyone may join.
More on Durga Puja
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