City Desk :
The Hindu community of the country is poised to celebrate the “Sharadiya Durga Puja”, their biggest religious festival, scheduled to start on Wednesday.
Preparations are afoot for the annual five-day festival at temples and makeshift puja mandaps across the country to welcome Goddess Durga, reports BSS.
On Wednesday last, the Hindu community people celebrated Mahalaya inviting Goddess Durga to her paternal home earth from Kailash (heaven) along with her offspring Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ganesh and Kartik. Hindu community believed that Goddess Durga arrives in earth from heaven during the puja as she will arrive on palanquin this year.
With only two days left for Sharadiya Durgotsab, idol makers and artisans are now passing their busiest time in giving the final touch to idols at puja mandaps across the country.
Work of clay in making idols have been completed and now the works of painting and ornamentation are underway.
On the basis of various themes, works of decorations and illuminations are also going on at puja mandaps.
A festive mood is in the air across the country as only two days left for Durga Puja. Hindus are waiting eagerly as the puja mandaps will be filled with devotional chants with the smoke of incense (dhup), beating of drums (dhak-dhol), kansar-mandira and ululation (uludhoni).
The five-day festival will begin with the unveiling of the face of the deity on the day of Maha Shashthi on October 9.
Maha Saptami, Maha Ashtami, Maha Nabami will be celebrated on the next days as festival will come to an end with the immersion of the idols of the Goddess Durga on Bijoya Dashami on October 13.
According to government data, Durga Puja will be celebrated at 32, 666 mandaps across the country.
In the capital, preparations are going on in full swing at Dhakeshwari National Temple, Ramkrishna Math and Mission, Banani, Kalabagan, Shakhari Bazar, Shiddeshwari Kali Mandir, Ramna Kali Mandir, Jagannath Hall on Dhaka University campus, Khamar Bari at Farmgate, Lalbagh Rishipara, Rajarbagh Kalimandir and old part of Dhaka including Tanti Bazar.
Exquisitely crafted and decorated life-size clay idols of the Goddess Durga depicting her slaying the demon Mahishasura are being set up in temples and Durga Puja mandaps ahead of the celebration.