O
ne of the popular Hindu festivals, Dussehra is celebrated
with pomp and gaiety. Since
ages, a number of rituals are performed to please the Almighty, on the
ceremonious occasion. It is the climax
of the nine-day long celebrations of
'Navratris', which precede it. The festival commemorates the victory of Lord
Rama over Ravana. Apart from the legend from the epic Ramayana, and the
story of the triumph of Goddess Durga
over Mahishasura, a vibrant history is
associated with the festival.
History & Origin Of Dussehra
Triumph Of Lord Rama Over
Ravana
The celebration of Dussehra is rooted in the Hindu epic of Ramayana,
according to which, Lord Rama, the eight
incarnation of Lord Vishnu, killed the tenheaded demon Ravana, in Satyug.
Ravan had abducted Rama's wife Sita.
Rama, along with his brother
Lakshmana, follower Hanuman and an
army of monkeys, headed towards
Lanka (Ravana's Kingdom) in order to
enter a war with Ravana and rescue
Sita. On his way to Lanka, Rama organized Chandi Pooja to seek the blessings
of Maa Durga, the Goddess of power
and courage. After seeking her blessings, Lord Rama defeated and killed
Ravana, with the help of his fellow
beings. Therefore, the day was celebrated to commemorate the victory of Rama
over Ravana, which later came to be
known as Vijayadashmi or Dussehra.
Assassination Of Mahishasura By
Goddess Durga
Another legend is connected to
Goddess Durga. According to the
story, all the Gods in swarglok and the
living beings on earth were upset by
the
tyranny
of
the
demon
Mahishasura, because he had
acquired invincible power to conquer
the world. He was undefeatable, even
by the mighty deities - Lord Brahma,
Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva.
Therefore, all the Gods decided to create a power, which would destroy
Mahishasura, freed the living beings
from his despotism and restore the
swarglok to them. This gave rise to the
creation of Goddess Durga, an avatar
History of Dussehra
of Maa Shakti. With the weapons
given to her by the Gods, Goddess
Durga went to fight against
Mahishasura. She defeated the
demon, successfully, and restored the
swarglok to the Gods, as promised.
Her victory is celebrated as
Vijayadashmi or Dusshera, by many
people following Hinduism.
Rain Of Gold Coins
According to a story, Kautsa, the
young son of Devdatta (a Brahmin),
was residing in the city of Paithan.
After pursuing his education under
the guidance of Rishi Varatantu, he
wanted to offer a dakshina to his
Guru. Although the guru refused initially, he later asked for 140 million
gold coins. The student approached
King Raghu for the coins, because
he was renowned for his generosity.
Within three days of the student's
request, King Raghu asked the God
of Wealth - Kuber - to create a rain of
gold coins near the apati and shanu
trees. After presenting the promised
gold coins to his guru, Kautsa distributed the rest of the coins to the
needy, on the day of Dussehra.
Since then, people loot the leaves of
apati trees and present to each other
as a symbol of gold, on Dussehra.
Shami Tree
Another legend connected to the
origin of Dusshera finds place in the
greatest Hindu epic - Mahabharata.
According to a story, Pandavas where
banished by Kauravas for 12 years
and 1 year of disguise, because the
former were defeated in gambling
(chausar) by the latter. Subsequently,
Pandavas decided to spend their first
12 years of exile in the woods and the
last year in disguise.
Since they were asked to remain
incognito during that period,
Pandavas did not want to be
exposed to others. Therefore, they
lay aside their divine and powerful
weapons during the exile. They
concealed their weapons under the
shami tree, situated close to the
place of their residence. At the end
of every year of the exile, Pandavas
came to the shami tree to check
whether their weapons were there.
Whenever Pandavas approached
the tree, they worshipped it and
Goddess Durga, the presiding deity.
In the mean time, Kauravas were
making every attempt to trace
Pandavas, so that they could extend
the exile time, because it was said
that if they were found, they would
have to spend another 12 years in
the woods. However, the Kauravas
could find the Pandavas only past
the stipulated time. Subsequently,
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2014
the Pandavas went to the shami
tree, fetched their concealed
weapons and went straight to the
battle field to fight the Kauravas.
Pandavas emerged victorious. The
event took place in dasami and
since good had achieved victory
over the evil, it came to be known as
Vijayadashmi. Since then, people
hug each other under the shami tree
and exchange its leaves.
(Coutesy: http://festivals.iloveindia.com)
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