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238 years gone, Durga idol awaits immersion
Published: Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Varanasi, Sept 26: Contrary to age-old tradition of immersing the Durga idol at the end of the nine-day 'Sharadiya Navaratra,' an idol of the same goddess in this religious city has been awaiting immersion in the Ganga river for the last 238 years.
Believe it or not, but the clay idol of the goddess carved out by an idol-maker from Bengal and installed at the house of a Mukherjee family in the Debonathpura locality way back in 1767 has not been immersed till date.
The descendent of the family, hailing from Janayi Road in Hooghly district of West Bengal, Birendra Nath Mukherjee, a former railway employee told sources here today that on the Dussehra day in 1767, the family of 25 males, as in the past, tried carrying the idol for immersion in the Ganga river, but could not succeed.
''The clay Benglachal style idol, could not be lifted, even after the number of devotees was increased to 40,'' he narrated the story passed over on to next generations by their predecessors.
The devotees in the family then decided to postpone the 'Visarjan' (immersion) for the next day. The same night, however, the priest entrusted with performing religious ceremonies in the house, saw Goddess Durga in his dream, where he was directed by the goddess not to immerse the idol ever, Mr Mukherjee said.
''The priest was also directed by the mother goddess not to worry about her well being and only asked the Mukherjee household to convey their forebearers to offer as 'prasad' to the idol, 'Gur and Chana,' the bare minimum consumed by commoners,'' Mr Mukherjee maintained.
"Since, then it has been the duty of this family to look after the goddess and never ever dream of immersing the idol," he added.
The idol, which is now taken care of by a priest, besides Uma Lahiri, octogenarian widow of the family, is not only worshipped by the Mukherjee family and relatives, but prayers are offered at the house famous as 'Purana Durga Badi' by devouts hailing from all corners of the country.
''Every Durga Puja, both Sharadiya and Basantiya, the traditional silk attires for the goddess are donated by devouts from different parts of the country, especially Kolkata and other parts of West Bengal,'' Mr Mukherjee maintained.
The 238-year-old idol is not the only one installed in the temple within the house, but is flanked on her right by the 11th century black stone idol of Lord Vishnu.
In the room adjacent to the Durga temple, six Shiv Lingas, allegedly unearthed from the same house are worshipped through out the year. UNI
http://www.oneindia.com/2006/09/26/238-years-gone-durga-idol-awaits-immersion-1159254372.html
Published: Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Varanasi, Sept 26: Contrary to age-old tradition of immersing the Durga idol at the end of the nine-day 'Sharadiya Navaratra,' an idol of the same goddess in this religious city has been awaiting immersion in the Ganga river for the last 238 years.
Believe it or not, but the clay idol of the goddess carved out by an idol-maker from Bengal and installed at the house of a Mukherjee family in the Debonathpura locality way back in 1767 has not been immersed till date.
The descendent of the family, hailing from Janayi Road in Hooghly district of West Bengal, Birendra Nath Mukherjee, a former railway employee told sources here today that on the Dussehra day in 1767, the family of 25 males, as in the past, tried carrying the idol for immersion in the Ganga river, but could not succeed.
''The clay Benglachal style idol, could not be lifted, even after the number of devotees was increased to 40,'' he narrated the story passed over on to next generations by their predecessors.
The devotees in the family then decided to postpone the 'Visarjan' (immersion) for the next day. The same night, however, the priest entrusted with performing religious ceremonies in the house, saw Goddess Durga in his dream, where he was directed by the goddess not to immerse the idol ever, Mr Mukherjee said.
''The priest was also directed by the mother goddess not to worry about her well being and only asked the Mukherjee household to convey their forebearers to offer as 'prasad' to the idol, 'Gur and Chana,' the bare minimum consumed by commoners,'' Mr Mukherjee maintained.
"Since, then it has been the duty of this family to look after the goddess and never ever dream of immersing the idol," he added.
The idol, which is now taken care of by a priest, besides Uma Lahiri, octogenarian widow of the family, is not only worshipped by the Mukherjee family and relatives, but prayers are offered at the house famous as 'Purana Durga Badi' by devouts hailing from all corners of the country.
''Every Durga Puja, both Sharadiya and Basantiya, the traditional silk attires for the goddess are donated by devouts from different parts of the country, especially Kolkata and other parts of West Bengal,'' Mr Mukherjee maintained.
The 238-year-old idol is not the only one installed in the temple within the house, but is flanked on her right by the 11th century black stone idol of Lord Vishnu.
In the room adjacent to the Durga temple, six Shiv Lingas, allegedly unearthed from the same house are worshipped through out the year. UNI
http://www.oneindia.com/2006/09/26/238-years-gone-durga-idol-awaits-immersion-1159254372.html
