Preparations underway at 618 mandapams in Sylhet: Start on September 28
S A Shofiee, Sylhet:
The biggest religious festival of Hindus, the autumn Durga Puja, is going to start from September 28 with the beat of drums and a festive atmosphere.
It is known that this year, worship will be held at 618 temples and mandapams in Sylhet district and the metropolis. Idols are already being made in various temples and mandapams. They are being made with clay. After a few days, the forms of these idols will be made beautiful with paint and cotton. Currently, Hindu traditional worshipers and devotees are making Goddess Durga with heart-wrenching love.
Like the rest of the country, the work of making idols is going on in Sylhet too. Idol artists are spending a very busy time in this work. The last-minute work of colorful decoration of Goddess Durga in the mandapam is in full swing. The artists are painting the idol with colorful strokes of paint and ink. The artists are working tirelessly, mixing the sweetness of their hearts. All the preparations for the puja, including offering flower garlands, chanting, distributing Mahaprasad, discussion meetings, cultural programs, aarti, bhajan kirtan, lighting and decorations, are now almost at the final stage. Each committee organizing the puja and the family puja organizers are now working non-stop for the final aesthetic and beautiful arrangements. According to the sources of the Sylhet District and Metropolitan Branch of the Bangladesh Puja Celebration Council, this year 142 public pujas and 20 family pujas will be held in the Sylhet metropolitan area. In total, pujas will be held in 162 mandap in the Sylhet metropolitan area. There will be 427 public pujas in different upazilas of Sylhet district and 29 family pujas. A total of 456 public and family pujas will be held in Sylhet district. Durga Puja will be organized in a festive atmosphere at a total of 618 mandap in Sylhet district and Sylhet metropolis.
In Sylhet, 59 public and 3 family pujas will be held in Golapganj Upazila, 30 public and 2 family pujas in Balaganj Upazila, 31 public and 19 public in Jaintapur Upazila, 41 public and 1 family puja in Fenchuganj Upazila, 22 public and 2 family pujas in Bishwanath Upazila, 40 public and 84 public and 1 family puja in Gowainghat Upazila, 43 public and 11 family pujas in Beanibazar Upazila, 27 public and 31 public and 9 family pujas in Osmaninagar Upazila. In the Kotwali Model Thana area of Sylhet metropolis, 30 public and 11 family pujas will be held, in Jalalabad 16 public and 4 family pujas, in Airport Thana area 1 universal puja will be held. 40 and 1 family, 24 public and 1 family in Shahparan (R.) Thana area, 14 public and 1 family in Dakshin Surma and 18 public and 2 family in Mogla Bazar will be held. Usually, Shardiya Durga Puja is held on the bright side of the month of Ashwin. The main 5 days of this puja are known as Mahasathi, Mahasaptami, Mahaashtami, Mahanavami and Vijaya Dashami respectively. The bright side of the month of Ashwin is called Devi Paksha. The new moon at the beginning of Devi Paksha is called Mahalaya. On this day, Hindus pay homage to their ancestors by offering tarpan.
Idol artists are busy spending their time at various puja mandap in Sylhet city ahead of Durga Puja. Along with this, extensive preparations are being made to decorate the mandap in the city with colorful decorations. Every year, new decorations are seen in Sylhet city during this puja.
The holy Mahalaya will be held on Sunday, September 21. Mahapanchami will be held on Saturday, September 27, Mahasashti on Sunday, September 28, Mahasaptami on Monday, September 29, Mahaashtami on Tuesday, September 30, Mahaashtami on Wednesday, October 1, Mahanavami on Wednesday and Vijaya Dashami on Thursday, October 2. Advocate Ranjan Ghosh, General Secretary of Bangladesh Puja Udjavan Parishad Sylhet District, said, “Extensive preparations have been made to organize the Puja peacefully in Sylhet district. We have humbly requested all the Puja organizers to strengthen security measures, appoint volunteers in each Puja Mandap, keep generators running round the clock and follow all government instructions. We hope that this time too, the Sharad festival will be celebrated peacefully in a festive atmosphere with the joint efforts of everyone.” According to Hindus, this time the arrival of the goddess will take place in the yard and her departure will take place in the dola. Meanwhile, Sri Sri Kojagari Lakshmi Puja will be held on Monday, October 6 and Sri Sri Shyama Puja will be held on Monday, October 20.
