Collected PhotoThe Hindu community of Bangladesh will celebrate Maha Saptami today, the second day of the six-day Sharodiyo Durgotsab, as the tithi (lunar day) of Maha Saptami spans two days this year.
The extended observance of Maha Saptami will continue tomorrow.
Devotees will offer flowers and sing hymns to seek the blessings of Goddess Durga, daughter of the Himalayas. Her victory over the demon Mahishasura symbolises the triumph of good over evil.
Maha Sasthi, the first day of Durga Puja, was celebrated on Friday. Puja mandaps across the country were decorated for the festival and reverberated with the sounds of dhak (drums), brass instruments and conch shells, accompanied by hymns chanted by priests.
The goddess was welcomed amid the beats of dhak, with the unveiling of the idols’ faces marking the main ritual of the day. Thousands of devotees gathered at puja mandaps in the evening to welcome Goddess Durga and her children, Lakshmi, Saraswati, Kartik and Ganesh.
The rituals of Kalparambho, performed before the puja began, were followed by Amontron and Adhibas.
The government has taken security measures at puja mandaps, and organisers expressed satisfaction with the arrangements.
Leaders of different political parties, government officials and other dignitaries are scheduled to visit puja mandaps across the capital today.
Mohanagar Sarbajanin Puja Committee and Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad have arranged programmes to mark the festival. They will distribute new clothes and food among underprivileged people in front of different mandaps in the capital and elsewhere across the country today.
This year, Durga Puja is being celebrated at 33,851 mandaps nationwide.
According to Hindu beliefs and the traditional almanac, Goddess Durga descended from heaven to the mortal world this year riding a horse, which is believed to symbolise crop and agricultural losses. She will return to her heavenly abode by boat, traditionally interpreted as signifying increased agricultural production.
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