Durga Puja 2024: Date and Significance

Durga Puja 2024: Durga Puja also known as Durgotsave. It is observed in the month of Ashvin according to the Hindu lunar calendar. The Bengali community in the Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar, Assam, Odisha, Jharkhand, Tripura, and the diaspora in other areas celebrate Durga Puja.

The Durga Puja is a major Hindu festival, that devoses worship of the Hindu mother Goddess Durga. Bengalis, a community in India celebrate the festival in September or October during the spring season. This festival also epitomizes the victory of good over evil, as it celebrates the victory of Goddess Durga over the buffalo demon Mahishasura.

Moreover, the festival also serves as a cultural and spiritual gathering for millions of devotees.

Durga Puja 2024: Date and Time

Durga Puja is celebrated alongside Navratri, the nine-day festival. It is commemorated in the Hindu month of Ashwin, which often falls between September and October on the Gregorian calendar. This year, Durga Puja will start on the sixth day (Shashthi), i.e., on Tuesday, October 09, and continues with significant ritual and worship, concluding on the tenth day with Durga Visarjan on October 13th, 2024, as per the Drik Panchang.

On the 10th day of Vijaya Dashami, when the idols are immersed in the river from where the clay came thereby completing the life cycle.

Durga Puja Time Calender

As per the Hindi religious texts, Durga Puja starts the day following Mahalaya Amacasya. On this day, Hindus pay accolades to their ancestors as well as starting any more work is considered inauspicious. Apart from the West Bengal, most regions celebrate the nine-day festival Navratri, the day after Mahalaua Amavasya.

Before and during the Durga Puja, devotees take place a variety of rituals and celebrations, including lavish decorations, traditional music, dance performances, and sumptuous feasts.