The day after Mahanavami/ Saraswati Pooja is Dassera/VijayaDasami - an auspicious day to commence any new venture , business , studies etc
Dassara/Dussehara is also the day when Lord Rama won the battle against Ravana in Lanka and freed Sita Mayya from his clutches .
In North India ,on Dassara ,effigies of Ravana ,Kumbakarna and Indrajith are burnt down indicating victory over evil . Also , stage shows depicting the Ramayana ,known as Ramlila are staged in many places .
Vijay In Hindi / Sanskrit means Victory and since Lord Rama emerged victorious by destroying the evil forces on the Dasami Day it is known as VijayaDasami .
The below image, depicts Lord Hanuman giving assurance to Seetha Mayya that Lord Shri Ram is on his way to free her . Seetha Maa trusts Lord Hanuman when she sees Lord Rama's Ring with Hanumanji and he then flys back with the happy news of Maa Seetha's location in Ravana's Empire after which Lord Rama comes to Sri Lanka and defeats Ravana after a long battle .
Traditionally ,during the olden days new academic year would start on the eve of Dassera.
This practice is called Vidyarambham . "Vidya" meaning Knowledge and "Aarambham" meaning Start .
Lord Hayagreeva and Devi Saraswati are the Hindu God and Goddess of education ,art forms and intellect.
On Saraswati Pooja ,we offer our salutations to Maa Saraswati by placing our books , musical instruments , tools etc. To know more about Ayudha Pooja / Saraswati Pooja click here ..
On Dassara ,we do a Punara Poojai also known as Pooja Yeduppu ,meaning we again thank the lord for having bestowed their blessings on all these tools and then as a customary practice children are asked to study a few chapters, those playing the musical instruments, play them for a while ,so on and so forth .
In South India even to this day ,fresh admissions to dance schools , music schools or any new art form commence on Dassera/Vijaya Dasami .We offer our salutations to the Guru by offering them Thamboolam (Betel leaf , betel nuts, fruits and flowers) along with Guru Dakshina (token fees) and then start learning the new art form .
Those who keep Golu/Kolu , perform an Aarthi on the night of Dassera and symbolically just make one doll on the step to lie down, which denotes bidding farewell to the Gods and Goddesses for this year.
In Calcutta and Bengal ,the Durga Maa idols are immersed into the water bodies bidding her adieu until next year . The married ladies of Bengal dance and play with Sindhoor known as Sindhoor Khela which is considered very auspicious and they pray for the long life of their husband. Sindur Khela is applying vermillion or sindoor on one other's faces and they dance to the dhol and beats along with Durga Maa's procession.
For Sindur Khela ladies wear the traditional white and red Saree known as Laal Paad or Laal Paar .The white color denotes Purity and red color denotes Fertility .
In Maharashtra, there is a unique and wonderful tradition of exchanging a leaf from a plant with one another and call it "sone ghya" meaning "take this gold" . The leaf is known as SonPatha or Sonpatta or Apta Leaf . "Sona" in Marathi is gold . There is a belief that when one offers these leaves to lord on Dassara and exchanges it with friends and family,there is bountiful blessing of Lord Kubera (the lord of wealth and prosperity) in our homes ..the leaf is given the status of gold which is regarded highly precious and valuable .
Also ,on Dussera is drawn a special rangoli called "Saraswati" in Maharashtrian homes .
This below rangoli is a symbolic representation of the apta leaves . Botanically it is called Bauhinia racemosa , a native tree supposed to have lot of medicinal values and widely used in Ayurveda too.
Saraswati Rangoli
This is a symbolic representation of Saraswati Maa and is generally drawn on a slate along with symbols like Om 🕉 and Swastik . This custom originated in Maharashtra and the design pattern also depicts a peacock . One may include the design of foot steps too which denotes the presence of Lakshmi Devi .
Both these rangolis are drawn by my talented friend Priyadarshini who happily let me share her work on my blog.
Having spoken so much about Pooja , it is obvious that we will prepare and offer Bhog / Prasad even on the last Day . Since Dassara marks the beginning of a new dawn it is mostly celebrated by making some sweet and a small festive meal .
In Gujarat and Bombay on Dassara ,the special breakfast is Jalebi and Fafda . I love to enjoy this combination. It feels so special to indulge into a rich sugar laden sweet occasionally .
In south India we normally make some paysam or sweet and celebrate this day .In my home it would normally be Sakkara pongal or Sheera along with some Bajjiya like Potato Bajjis or Vazhakkai (Raw Banana) Bajjis.
Sharing a small Bhog Thaali that I offered last year (2023) on Dassera / Vijayadasami
Items in Frame .. click the individual recipe names below for a detailed recipe ..