Durga Puja- 2013

In the battle of good versus evil we know that at the end always good triumphs. But where do we get the practical example for the above statement. One of the practical example of this is the festival of Dussehra. In India Dussehra is also called Vijaya Dasahmi . This festival is observed for 10 days. The Durga Puja is celebrated in two different ways in Odisha. In Shakti peethas (temples of goddess) the Durga Puja is observed with proper rituals for 10 to 16 days known as Shodasa Upachara/Shohala dinatmaka,which starts from 7 days earlier to mahalaya called as mulastami and ends on Vijayadashami, dussehra. Goddess Durga is also worshiped by devotees in different pandals in form deities across the state. The pandals are decorated with beautiful decoratives.

The name Dussehra is derived from Sanskrit term Dasha-hara literally means removal of ten referring to Lord Ram's victory over the ten-headed demon king Ravan. The day also marks the victory of Goddess Durga over the demons Mahishasura. The name Vijayadashami is also derived from the Sanskrit words "Vijaya-Dashmi" literally meaning the victory on the tenth lunar day of the Hindu calender . There are many legends behind the festival of dussehra . Some of the demons, were very powerful and ambitious and continually tried to defeat the Devas, or Gods, and capture Heaven. One Asura, Mahishasura, in the form of a buffalo, grew very powerful and created havoc on the earth. Under his leadership, the Asuras defeated the Devas. The world was crushed under Mahishasura's tyranny, the Devas joined their energies into Shakti, a single mass of incandescent energy, to kill Mahishasura. A very powerful band of lightning emerged from the mouths of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva and a young, beautiful female virgin with ten hands appeared. All the Gods gave their special weapons to her. This Shakti coalesced to form the goddess Durga. Riding on a lion, who assisted her, Durga fought Mahishasura. The battle raged for nine days and nights. Finally on the tenth day of Ashvin shukla paksha, Mahishasura was defeated and killed by Durga. Hence, Dasha-Hara is also known as Navratri or Durgotsav and is a celebration of Durga's victory.

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http://www.odishabook.com/Aticle/Events/2013/09/23/Durga-Puja(Dussehra)-2013