Festival of lights celebrated across Barak Valley

SILCHAR, Nov 5: Goddess Kali, the destroyer of demons, was worshiped in house and in community pandals both as dark and destructive to blue and benevolent across Barak Valley. According to Ajay Paul, clay artisan of Bilpar, idols sculpted this year portrayed the Goddess in both forms. The number of Kali Puja in the valley has increased and with that the demand for idols. So was the changing face of Kali in pandals. An overall view suggests people prayed to the mother Goddess to usher in peace and tranquillity in view of violence around. Most perhaps preferred to invoke Shyama Kali in her familiar image of destroyer of evil.
At home worship, people seeking blessings of Kali wished to see her in fearsome or rudra shape. Narayan Chowdhury, priest of Tapoban Nagar puja mandap of this town, said the evolution of the ferocious Goddess to a still destructive but benevolent mother is not a recent one. The best known description of Kali is as the image who emerged from the eyebrow of Ambica or Durga in the height of battle with demons.
Legend has it that Kali drank blood oozing out of the body of demon Raktabij whom Ambica had slain to prevent each drop from touching the ground and giving birth to innumerable demons.
The festival of light was celebrated as usual with all joy and gaiety. After dusk, men, women and children in their best attires turned out in large number and went pandal hopping to pray to Goddess. Big budget community pujas put up the best of decorations and fascinating lighting, perhaps to beat one another. It was a puja with varied themes, apart from all the sublimity and divinity.
The organizers brought in contemporary and relevant themes. The crowd puller Janiganj puja selected BG project, much maligned and discussed. The Apostles of Malugram showcased the famous Kaziranga National Park with all its flora and fauna. Lala BT Road puja presented Manipur’s Loktak Power Project with all the natural flavour. Raktadoot Club of Karimganj built a gigantic replica of an imaginary temple to place Kali. Lakhipur puja organized by Forest Department highlighted the green theme of ‘save tree to save yourself’, Netaji Club of Hailakandi chose to focus on the world famous soothsayer Octopus Paul who predicted perfectly the outcome of World Cup Football of 2010.
Notwithstanding all the serenity, solemnity and glitter and glaze of decorations, the festival of lights was at the same time marked by the sounds of fireworks and blaring microphones, often irritating and annoying to the devotees and visitors in general. What was the level of sound and noise pollution could well be understood from the fact that the proclaimed rules were observed more in breach than in observance. And how many litres of liquor, country made and foreign, were consumed by the boozers is anybody’s guess. After all, it was also the festival to make merry. (TheSentinel)

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