Ranchi celebrates Mahashtami with zeal !!
श्वेते वृषे समारूढ़ा श्वेतांबर धरा शुचि:।
महागौरी शुभं दद्यान्महादेव प्रमोददा ॥
Everything and everyone is colored in the vibes of Durga Puja and here it comes, the 8th day, Mahashtami.
Mahashtami is believed to be the most important day. It is believed that the devotee who worships Devi Mahagauri wholeheartedly, gets all his wishes fulfilled. There are a great joy and enthusiasm seen, among people, Ashtami is the holy day for observing fasts and balidaan pooja. Pandals and temples are more crowded than any other day. On the eighth day of Navratri Maa Mahagauri is worshipped, who is believed to be an incarnation of Devi Parvati. Maa Mahagauri rides a bull and is depicted wearing a red silk saree and a golden crown, She is very beautiful and her light from within illuminates the whole world. Maa Mahagauri in the ‘roop’ of Devi Parvati, meditated for years to lure lord Shiva to marry Him.
Once He said something to Devi Parvati which pained her a lot and so She went for meditation. Many years passed, but when Devi Parvati didn’t return, Lord Shiva went to look for her and he was astonished to see Devi Parvati. While meditating for several years, her body looked as white as moonlight and She was looking like a white flower. When Lord Shiva saw her, He blessed her with a complexion which never fades. And hence she was named “Mahagauri”. There is one more story related to Devi Mahagauri. According to that story, Devi Parvati performed extreme penance in a deep forest with all her heart and soul to please Lord Shiva. After several years He was pleased with her devotion and hardship and asked her, for a wish, and she asked Lord Shiva to marry Her, when he accepted her as his wife and sprinkled ‘Ganga Jal’upon her she became prettier than before, and the “Devgan’s” praised her…
सर्वमङ्गलमाङ्गल्ये शिवे सर्वार्थसाधिके ।
शरण्ये त्र्यम्बके गौरि नारायणि नमोऽस्तु ते ॥
Celebrating Durga Puja should not only be limited to photoshoots, or visiting pandals. During Durga Puja, we worship Goddess Durga and her different ‘avatars’, but we should keep in mind that each and every woman in this world, is an avatar of Goddess Durga. So, if in the real sense, we want to celebrate Durga Puja, we should try to respect the dignity of every woman.
Every day we hear a lot about molestation, rape and eve teasing, one day or the other day a newborn baby girl is found in a dustbin or on the stairs of a temple. If we can’t respect girls and can’t have a girl child, then we don’t have the right to worship Devi Durga, she might be offended when she sees such injustice happening to her “avatars”.
यत्र नार्यस्तु पूज्यन्ते रमन्ते तत्र देवता:
Reading this article and thinking about the current condition of women in the society is not enough; if you want to worship Maa Durga in real, then take an oath that you will protect the dignity of every woman around you. Why look down a woman who gives birth to a man?
Don’t let this Durga Puja be as same as the last Durga Puja.
श्वेते वृषे समरूढ़ा श्वेताम्बराधरा शुचिरू।महागौरी शुभं दद्यान्महादेवप्रमोददा।।