Happy Dassain 2016
Dassain is the longest
and most auspicious festival in the Nepalese annual calendar. The festival is
celebrated by Hindus families of all caste and creed across the globe especially in Nepal, Bhutan, Burma
and North Indian hills.
It is celebrated in the tenth month Kartik ( late Sept and early Oct) of
Nepalese Calendar. It is the fifteen days celebration which occurs during the
bright lunar fortnight and ends on the day of full moon.
Goddess Durga |
Dassain commemorates a great victory of the gods over the
wrecked demons and symbolize the victory of good over evil. For followers
of shaktism, it represents the victory of the goddess Parvati. In hindu mythology, the demon Mahishaura had created terror in the devaloka (the world where gods live ) but goddess Durga killed the demon. The first
nine days of Dassain symbolize the battle which took place between the
different manifestations of Durga and Mahishasura. The tenth day is the day
when Durga finally defeated him and the last five days symbolize the
celebration of the victory with the blessing of the goddess. For other Hindus,
this festival symbolizes the victory of Ram over Ravan as recounted in the Ramayana. It is said that lord Ram was
successful in the battle only when goddess Durga was evoked.
Dassain wish |
In preparation for Dassain every home is cleansed and
beautifully decorated, painted as an invitation to the mother goddess, so that
she may visit and bless the house with good fortune. During this time people wear
new clothing which they receive as a gift from their parents, elders and
friends.
Among the fifteen days on which it is
celebrated, the most important days are the first, seventh eighth, ninth and
tenth. The first nine days of Dassain are called Nawa Ratri. This day is also
known as demon-hunting because members of defeated demon army tires to save
themselves by hiding in the bodies of animals and fowls.
The first day of Dassain is called
Ghatasthapana, which literally means kalash (holly water vessel) establishing
which represents goddess Durga. The seventh day is called Fulpati. The eighth
day is called the Maha Asthami, the fervor of worship and sacrifice to Durga
and Kali. The ninth day is called the Nawami, where temples of mother goddess
are filled with people from dawn to dusk.
The tenth day is the Vijaya (victory) Dassami. We celebrate this day grandly. On this day we receive tika (mixture of rice, cud and red colour) from our
elders and receive their blessing. We visit our elders in their home and get tika from them while our younger ones come
to our home to receive blessing from us. This function continuous for the next
four days till the day of full moon.
Tika ceremony |
It is also called as Dasshera or Maha Durga Puju in India and is celebrated with great rejoice, and goddess Durga is
worshiped throughout the kingdom as the divine mother goddess.
Dassain is festival which
gathers all the family members who are staying far from each other and gives
them the opportunity to spent the good time together and sense the feeling of
family and togetherness. People
return from all parts of the world, as well as different parts of the country,
to celebrate together. All government offices, educational institutions
and other offices remain closed during the festival period. This
is the time to get the precious blessing from the elders especially from the
parents and the grandparents. People makes verities of especial foods, drinks
and have meals together feeling the joy of happiness and forgets about all the
sorrows for the time.
This is my second year celebrating
the Dassain in the college, away from my home and away from my family. Here in
the college we, all the southern Bhutanese student come together and celebrate
the Dassain grandly serving the lunch to whole JNEC family. We receive the Tika
from Director sir and Deans and get precious blessing from them. We organize
the programme for the day with lots of preparations and excitements. We do the
puja session, we sing, we dance, we eat and enjoy the day to the fullest.
Thought we celebrate
the Dassain grandly in the college but it cannot subtitle the feeling of home
and joy of family. Actually this is the day where we miss our home and family
the most. I also really missed my family on the day, my mom, little bro and my
Nana(elder sis). They are my World and I know that they also have missed me the
most. But I’m hoping and wishing that next year we are definitely going to
celebrate together.
Image source : Google image
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References
Diwali.(n.d.). In wikipedia. Retrieved October 13, 2016 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diwali.
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