Durga Puja 2019: Does The Origin Of This Festival Lie In The Battle Of Lanka?

Durga Puja is a massive festive extravaganza today and is celebrated with zeal and fervour every year. This year, the festival has begun on 28 September and will end on 8 October.

Our ancestors have been celebrating this festival before us. But just like all other forms of culture, festivals also evolve out of something; they cannot exist in a vacuum. So what are the origins of Durga Puja? Who did the first Durga Puja in history? We do not have any written records, but according to oral tradition, it was Lord Rama who started Durga Puja as a means to invoke the goddess.

Most people are aware that Navratri is celebrated twice in a year. The Navratri that comes in between March and April is the main festival. Chaitra Navratri pre-dates the Navratri we celebrate in September-October. And the more popular version of Durga Puja was started by Lord Rama when He was about to go to war with the demon king Ravana.

Lord Rama wanted to invoke the blessing of the goddess before He waged war on Lanka. But He did not want to wait for another six months. So He worshipped Goddess Durga in the wrong season. That is why; Durga Puja is also referred to as 'akal bodhan' or the puja done out of season. He offered the Goddess 108 lotus and lit 108 oil lamps to celebrate the puja.

One of the demons stole one lotus from His stock. So to complete the puja, Lord Rama was willing to gorge out one of His eyes and offer it to the Goddess instead of a lotus. But the Goddess appeared in front of Lord Rama before this and blessed Him to be victorious. On the tenth day of Navratri, Lord Rama slayed Ravana. We still burn a statue of Ravana on Dusherra to celebrate that legendary victory.

So mythologically speaking, the origins of Durga Puja as we know it today lie in the great battle of Lanka.