THE EMOTION COLOURED YELLOW
In Bengal, we are emotionally attached to every religious and cultural (our own and others’) festivals are the framework for our social and emotional balance or almost. The Worship of Devi Saraswati surely stands out amongst the Hindus in our festival calendar as one close to our hearts.
Each occasion is celebrated with utmost devotion towards the Goddesses/Gods and dedication to food, fashion and naach gaan (dancing and singing). Saraswati puja or Vasant Panchami is an encapsulation of a myriad of emotions. I am going to recall a few that made lasting impressions on me and many like me.
DEVI SARASWATI IS PARTICULAR ABOUT HER DRESS CODE
Devi is known to us by a hundred names and one of her names is Swetambari. She is dressed in white or yellow. So the dress code on this day is clearly yellow/ Basanti colour or White. Too bad if either are not your favorites ….then this is not your day. First time most Bengali girls or kids drape a saree is on Saraswati Puja. And it has to be a yellow/white saree for women and kurta for men, certainly. So, while I was growing up, Saraswati puja was one of those days even my most boisterous friends, ditched their boy shorts for a yellow saree tucked in those ridiculous shorts. I did too.
DEVI IS QUITE A GASTRONOME
The menu set up is pretty specific too; the nostalgic aroma of the elaborate ‘bhog’ or food cooked for Devi brings back gastronomic memories. Few amongst them that are just very special to her and therefore to the rest of us demands and deserve a special mention: ‘Gota Sheddo’ – a one pot meal of lentils and whole or uncut vegetables cooked in slow heat – very healthy and an acquired taste. It should be on every nutritionist’s diet chart.
Jora Ilish’, which is a pair of Hilsa fish – a single piece will not work on the plate. This is an exquisite delicacy and absolutely Devi(ne) like! This ritual is more of an East Bengall/Bangladeshi tradition but Bengalis across have happily adopted it. All of the above need to be paired with Basanti Pulao – a sweet yellow coloured rice preparation. The meal is concluded with Kuler tok (tangy and sweet preparation with seasonal berries) – this specific item, I have a long running relationship with so deserves a mention separately.
DEVi's urge to excel
Besides Her gastronomic choices and admiring Devi’s sartorial sense, we also pray to Devi for literary, fine arts and performing arts aspirations. Devi Saraswati is our Goddess of knowledge and learning. On the auspicious day of Saraswati Puja, we inaugurate a child’s long literary journey. The practice is called ‘Haathe Khori’ and meant to be the formal beginning of a child’s education by Hindu age old traditions. When the child is five, she is traditionally sat by her maternal uncle and made to trace the Bengali alphabets or numbers. Traditionally the child wrote with a reed pen or knife. Only after this humble tradition which happened on Saraswati puja would the kid learn to hold the chalk or pencil and start his long pursuit of academic excellence. Now this grand ritual has been expedited to age 2, and of course delegated to preschool teachers.
Devi - Goddess of love and longing
Our Goddess is especially kind to students who mercilessly toil away the entire year or at least supposed to. They are not only granted the license to unlatch from their books but also to meet their special ones. Back then in Calcutta, and even now, Saraswati Devi was interpreted quite dynamically and one of the understandings was, She is Goddess of love amongst all other divine qualities. My city was struck by Cupid’s arrow on Saraswati Pujo (Vasant Panchami) and most us had single minded focus on match fixing either for yourself or your best friend or a friend’s friend’s brother’s friend… the point being spending the day loving, being loved or orchestrating love.
THE FORBIDDEN FRUIT OF DEVI - KUL
The humble tiny, brown and queer tasting ber or ‘topa kul’ is the preferred appetizer of Goddess Saraswati. As nature curates her seasonal menu, this precious berry is only seen around Saraswati Pujas. All elders like didas (grand moms) and mashis (aunts) strictly warned us about the sinister claims of the untimely consumption of these sweet tangy balls. We had to wait for Devi to savor them first and then enjoy them only post her puja. Mere mortals like the rest of us were left craving for these umami balls of godliness. Somehow, everything in ‘then kolkata’ was related to porikha (exams) : like if you forgot to bow down and touch your elders feet to consuming ‘topa kul’ at a pre matured time and disregard of every other rule in between, had the strong possibility of manifesting in bad grades. I had every wish to obey my elders; I am not confrontational by choice. However and for whatever reason, left to my creative skills of self-entertainment, I always managed to binge on a bunch of these lovely berries days before Saraswati Puja. Every moment with these lush balls reinforced my faith in Devi Saraswati who shares my good taste in food in fashion.
The bonding with this occasion is deep. This feeling I am sure is regardless of being a bong or not. Saraswati puja has or at least had no regional or religious biases; it is very much a shared sentiment amongst teachers, students and all members of every household alike.
My recommendation for Saraswati Puja or Vasant Panchami. To view all designs suiting the occasion head to the link Vasant Panchami
