Hindu devotees across Bangladesh marked Mahalaya on Sunday with prayers and rituals, signaling the traditional start of Sharadiya Durgotsab, the country’s largest Hindu festival.
Mahalaya, observed a week before Durga Puja, symbolises the descent of Goddess Durga to Earth. This year the main festivities will begin on 28 September with Shashthi Puja.
At dawn, temples and homes resounded with Chandipath, the invocation from the sacred scripture describing the creation and triumph of the goddess. According to Hindu mythology, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva created the invincible feminine force Mahamaya on Mahalaya to defeat the demon Mahishasura, who could not be killed by man or Gaod. Riding a lion and wielding ten divine weapons, Durga fought a nine-day battle to restore cosmic order.
Mahalaya also carries deep ancestral significance. Early morning rituals included Pitru Paksha Tarpan — offering water, sesame seeds and food to honour deceased forebears, who are believed to descend to Earth on this day.
In Dhaka, the Dhakeshwari National Temple led special programmes beginning Sunday morning, including Chandipath recitations, ritual “eye-opening” ceremonies (Chokkhu Daan) and the installation of ceremonial ghats. Similar observances took place at temples and puja mandaps across the country.
The Metropolitan Universal Puja Committee coordinated Mahalaya ghats and special pujas at key centres including Dhakeshwari National Temple Central Puja Mandap, Ramakrishna Math and Mission Dhaka, Baradeshwari Kalimata Temple and Jagannath Hall at Dhaka University. Additional rituals and pot installations were held at Siddheshwari Temple, Ramna Kali Temple, Swamibag Loknath Brahmachari Ashram and Temple, Ramsita Temple and Jayakali Temple.
Traditionally, Mahalaya is seen as the day when Goddess Durga’s eyes are symbolically painted open, awakening her divine presence in earthly mandaps. While the main Durga Puja rituals begin later this week, Sunday’s celebrations set the spiritual and cultural tone for days of worship and festivities ahead — commemorating the triumph of good over evil.
