The Other Durga

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It is said good and evil are the flip sides of the same coin. It is like light and darkness. If one exists, the other exists too. The Indian Culture, since time immemorial, has seen the confrontation of such opposing forces multiple times. Mainly in the form of the two descendants of Maharshi Kashyap – The Suras and the Asuras. In modern times clash between the Suras and Asuras can be seen in the form of ideological differences where the person/group with the other ideology is the Asura.

The clashes in the ancient Culture are marked by the victory of good over evil, which is celebrated with great pomp and enthusiasm. The autumn season or Ashwin Month of the Hindu calendar marks one such Mega clash between the topmost and the bottommost tier of existence where good wins over evil again. This moment is celebrated as a nine-day mega-festival named Navaratri or Durga Puja.

But just as there is a flip side of the coin here, also there is a flip side but before let us understand the popular side of the spectrum first, why do we celebrate Durga Puja?

Why is Navaratri Observed?

In the ancient Indian scripture “Markandeya Purana,” there is a mention of a Buffalo Demon named “Mahisasura,” who was born out of the union of Rambha, the king of Asuras, and a She-Buffalo (Mahisa). Mahisasura, with the help of great penance and sacrifice, was able to get a boon from Lord Shiva that no man in the Trilok (Swarga Lok, Marta Lok, and Pataal Lok) would be able to kill Mahisasura. 

Still, as a downfall of this boon, he also received mortality only at the hands of a female. Mahisasura was very pleased with this boon as he presumed that no woman would be able to withstand his might. With this boon and supposed immortality, he began creating chaos all over. Even the Suras or Devtas were disturbed and sought Brahma, the creator, for help. 

Then Brahma took to Lord Shiva (The destroyer) and Lord Vishnu (The Protector). The 3 Supremes then combined their powers to create an ultra-powerful being in the form of a woman, Durga. Durga waged war against Mahisasura that went on for nine days. In these nine days, Mahisasura tried various forms of living embodiment to defeat Durga but could not. Finally, on the 9th day, Durga slew Mahisasura with the Trident/Trishul given to her by Lord Shiva, and it marked the end of the war.

In Ramayana, too, there is a mention of Durga. Before Rama went to the war with Ravana, he worshiped a form of goddess Durga, and that went for nine days, so nine forms of Goddess Durga are worshipped on these nine days. On the 9th day, he defeated Ravana and rescued his beloved Sita.

The other narrative

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With these stories of victory, there is a flip side to the coin. This Flipside exists in parts of Jharkhand, West Bengal, Orissa, and Karnataka. Some tribal people in these regions registered under the PVTG of the Indian Constitution idealizes the Buffalo Demon Mahisasura. 

They call him “Hudur Durga”. During the holy Navaratri period, they lock themselves in their homes and mourn the loss of their ideal leader Mahisasura. According to them, Navaratri is a time of Aryan/Brahmanical invasion by the Swavarnas(fair-skinned) who cornered and outnumbered the Asura Tribe and killed them mercilessly.

According to some other of their texts, Mahisasura was tricked by the beauty of Goddess Durga, who enticed Mahisasura to marry her and killed him in his sleep during the nine days honeymoon. These sources also refer to Durga being a sex worker hired by the Swavarna Suras.

This counter-tradition was first brought to the public in 2010 and was recognized in 2016 when some JNU students protested under Police surveillance. They demanded recognition of these traditions and how Durga puja is a racist tradition carried forward with pride. Smriti Irani responded to these protests saying these were Anti-Hindu and Anti-National comments. This brought about a different wave of controversy.

The Tale goes on…

The ancient Indian scriptures have various lineages, parts, and subparts. This creates a cultural contrast among different traditions but is united under the same umbrella of religious values. Respecting all the values under the same umbrella is how this nation has survived this far. The contrast shows how inclusive the people of this nation are. Maybe because of this pluralistic nature, the saying goes “Vasudaiva Kutum Bakam.”

With that note, let us welcome another mother Goddess Kali and Lakshmi together to celebrate the festival of lights - Kali Puja and Diwali with requisite COVID protocol.

Author

Pritwish Panda