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Kali Puja

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Kali Puja
Kali Puja at Roy Chowdhury House at Barasat
Observed byHindus
TypeHindu
CelebrationsFireworks
ObservancesPrayers, Religious rituals (see puja, prashad)
DateDecided by lunar calendar
Frequencyannual

Kali Puja, also known as Shyama Puja or Mahanisha Puja,[1] is a festival, originating from the Indian subcontinent, dedicated to the Hindu goddess Kali, celebrated on the new moon day (Dipannita Amavasya) of the Hindu month Kartik especially in the regions of Bengal, Mithila, Odisha, Assam and the town of Titwala in Maharashtra.[2] It coincides with the Lakshmi Puja day of Diwali. While the Hindu Bengalis ,Odias, Assamese and Maithils worship the goddess Kali[2] on this day, the rest of India and Nepal worships goddess Lakshmi on Diwali.

Legend

As per the Kalikula sect of Shaktism, the supreme celestial Mother goddess Mahakali took 10 manifestations to slay evils on the Earth, which are collectively known as Dasa Mahavidyas. Each Mahavidya has a day of incarnation in the Hindu calendar of 12 months. Out of those 10 Mahavidyas, the last goddess is Kamalatmika, whose day of incarnation is celebrated as Kamalatmika Jayanti, falls on the day of Deepavali. She is often recognized as 'Tantrik Lakshmi'. In the rest of Indian subcontinent, the day is associated with deity Srirama or Srikrishna. Since both of them are central Gods of Vaishnavism, most Indians celebrate Deepavali as a Vaishnavite-oriented festival and thus worship the Goddess Lakshmi, the consort of Lord Mahavishnu as the supreme mother Goddess.

However, in Eastern & Northeastern India, the Kalikuli Shakta faith being dominant, the root goddess of Kamalatmika, Mahakali is worshipped. Thus, the day eventually becomes Kali puja.

History

Artisan making an idol of goddess Kali at Kumortuli, Kolkata.

The festival of Kali Puja is not an ancient one. Kali Puja was practically unknown before the 16th century;famous sage Krisnananda Agambagish first initiated Kali puja, also a late 17th-century devotional text Kalika mangalkavya –by Balram mentions an annual festival dedicated to Kali.[3] In Bengal during the 18th century, King (Raja) Krishnachandra of Krishnanagar, Nadia, West Bengal also made this puja wide spread .[2] Kali Puja gained popularity in the 19th century, with Krishanachandra's grandson Ishvarchandra and the Bengali elite; wealthy landowners began patronizing the festival on a grand scale.[4] Along with Durga Puja, Kali Puja is the biggest festival in Bengal and Assam.[5]

Worship

[1] During kali puja (like Durga Puja) worshippers honour the goddess Kali in their homes in the form of clay sculptures and in pandals (temporary shrines or open pavilions). She is worshipped at night with Tantric rites and mantras. She is prescribed offerings of red hibiscus flowers, sweets, rice and lentils. It is prescribed that a worshipper should meditate throughout the night until dawn.[6] Homes and pandals may also practice rites in the Brahmanical (mainstream Hindu-style, non-Tantric) tradition with ritual dressing of Kali in her form as Adya Shakti Kali and no animals are sacrificed. She is offered food and sweets made of rice, lentils, and fruits.[7] However, in Tantric tradition, animals are ritually sacrificed on Kali Puja day and offered to the goddess.[2] A celebration of Kali Puja in Kolkata , Bhubaneswar and in Guwahati is also held in a large cremation ground[8] where she is believed to dwell. Barasat, Madhyamgram region of North 24 Parganas is well known for their majestic pandals, lightings and Idols. Durga Puja of Kolkata is often said synonymously with Kali Puja of Barasat. The region experiences Lacs of footfalls during the days of the festival. People from different regions gather to witness the majestic Pandals.

The pandals also house images of Kali's consort Shiva, two famous Bengali Kali devotees named Ramakrishna and Bamakhepa, along with scenes from mythology of Kali and her various forms, including images of the Mahavidyas, sometimes considered as the "ten Kalis." The Mahavidyas is a group of ten Tantric goddesses headed by Kali.[9] People visit these pandals throughout the night. Kali Puja is also the time for magic shows, theater, and fireworks.[7] Recent custom has incorporated wine consumption.[10]

In the Kalighat Temple in Kolkata, Kalikhetra Temple in Bhubaneswar and in Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati, Kali is worshipped as Lakshmi on this day so as to reflect an essence of Vaishnava Haldars on Kali worship. Goddess Lakshmi is worshiped in her three forms, Maha Lakshmi, Maha Kali and Maha Saraswati on this day. The temple is visited by thousands of devotees who give offerings to the goddess.[2][8] Another famous temple dedicated to Kali in Kolkata is Dakshineswar Kali Temple, where Sri Rāmakrishna performed rites.[11]

Other celebrations

A Kali Puja pandal with a replica of the Kalighat Kali Temple icon.
A child bursting firecracker in Bengal during Kali Puja

Although the widely popular annual Kali Puja celebration, also known as the Dipanwita Kali Puja, is celebrated on the new moon day of the month of Kartika, Kali is also worshipped in other new moon days too. Two other major Kali Puja observations are Ratanti Kali Puja and Phalaharini Kali Puja. Ratanti puja is celebrated on Magha Krishna Chaturdashi and Phalaharini puja is celebrated on Jyeshta Amavashya of Bengali calendar. The Phalaharini Kali Puja is especially important in the life of the saint Ramakrishna and his wife Sarada Devi, since on this day in 1872, Ramakrishna worshipped Sarada Devi as the goddess Shodashi.[12] In many Bengali and Assamese households, Kali is worshipped daily.[13]

Notes

  1. ^ http://www.diwalifestival.org/regional-names-diwali.html
  2. ^ a b c d e McDermott and Kripal p.72
  3. ^ McDermott p. 373
  4. ^ McDermott p. 173
  5. ^ McDaniel p. 223
  6. ^ McDaniel p. 234
  7. ^ a b McDaniel pp. 249-50, 54
  8. ^ a b Fuller p. 86
  9. ^ Kinsley p.18
  10. ^ Harding p. 134
  11. ^ See Harding pp. 125-6 for a detailed account of the rituals in Dakshineshwar.
  12. ^ Gambhirananda, Swami (1955). Holy Mother Shri Sarada Devi (1st ed.). Madras: Shri Ramakrishna Ashrama, Madras. pp. 48–51.
  13. ^ Banerjee, Suresh Chandra (1991). Shaktiranga Bangabhumi [Bengal, The Abode of Shaktism] (in Bengali) (1st ed.). Kolkata: Ananda Publishers Pvt Ltd. p. 114. ISBN 81-7215-022-9.

References

Further reading

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