Chhattisgarh's Bastar gears up for Dussehra celebrations

Bastar (Chhattisgarh) [India], October 23 : The Dussehra festival in Bastar has started to take shape as idols of goddess Danteshwari and other local deities have been brought during a period of 75 days during the month of Ashwin.
Bastar stands out as distinctive rituals are observed daily, and unlike other regions where effigies of 'Ravan' are burnt, here the festival pays tribute to 'Mahishasur Mardini Adishakti.'
Celebrated by the local people of the state with extreme vigour, the Bastar Dussehra festival is one of the most popular festivals in Chhattisgarh.
While Dussehra is a significant festival celebrated throughout the country the Bastar Dussehra witnesses an entirely different kind of celebration.
A festival connoting the supreme power of the Goddess Danteswari, during the course of this festival the inhabitants of Bastar organise many special worship ceremonies at the famous Danteswari temple in Jagdalpur.
It is said that the celebration of this festival in Chhattisgarh was initiated for the very first time by Maharaja Purushaottam Deo in the early 15th century.
The tribal-dominated Bastar region of Chhattisgarh state is world famous for its primitive culture and unique civilizations. There is such a unique tradition in Bastar in which the Mahakumbh of Gods and Goddesses is held once a year.
Dussehra is celebrated twice a year in Bastar. The first Dussehra of the year (celebrated during summer) was called Chaitrai Dussehra or Chota Dussehra which has now lost its essence.
The grand level at which the festival is celebrated demands extensive preparations before the event takes its form and rigour.
Months before the festive season starts, the royal family, the temple committee and the district-level officers come together to make this event possible.
In earlier times the heads of several Parganas (which are made of a few villages) called Manjhi collectively represented the tehsil or the block.
The Manjhis would collect rice, varieties of pulses, salt, turmeric, oil, animals for sacrifice etc. calling it 'Dussehra bokda mangni chaur' as also monetary donations which they called 'bisaha paisa'.
Men and women of all castes, classes and religions are said to have extended their support for the festival to take place.
Vijayadashami, also known as Dussehra is a major Hindu festival celebrated every year at the end of Navaratri.
It is observed on the tenth day of the month of Ashvin, the seventh in the Hindu Luni-Solar Calendar. The festival typically falls in the Gregorian calendar months of September and October.
The festival also starts the preparations for Diwali, the important festival of lights, which is celebrated twenty days after Vijayadashami.
This year, Dussehra will be celebrated on October 24 (Tuesday). The Dashami Tithi will start from 05:45 PM on October 23, 2023, and will end at 03:14 PM on October 24, 2023.