Vijaya Dasami: Weather God smiles in afternoon, devotees witness Ravan Podi that marks victory of good over evil

Bratati Baral Bhubaneswar, Oct 5: Today, people celebrated Vijayadashami marking the end of Durga Puja which celebrates the victory of good over evil. With the Weather God smiling in the afternoon, people thronged temples and puja pandals to have a glimpse of the Goddess and witness the Ravan Podi (burning of an effigy of Demon King Ravan) The nation is today celebrating the special day with pomp and gaiety after two years with the belief that the Goddess will destroy all the evils from society. While some devotees worship the Goddess by visiting pandals, and temples, there are a few other devotees who perform Durga Puja at home with much fervor.   The festival is observed on the tenth day of Shulka Paksha (bright fortnight) during the month of Ashwin as per the Hindu lunar calendar. Bhubaneswar-based Debasish Rayguru is an avid devotee of Goddess Durga. Debasish, who celebrates all nine days with much dedication says, " It’s an age-old tradition of my family of celebrating Durga Puja at home. I have seen my grandfather and my father who perform all the rituals with dedication. My grandfather hosts a feast after the puja and feeds the whole village. After his demise, my father took care of the puja and he tried to do everything as his father did. After his death, now we are doing the same. With the change of time, things have changed and the puja is now limited within our family and some of our friends." “According to Ramayan, Vijayadashami marks the day when Lord Rama defeated the demon King Ravan. On this special day, I pray to the Goddess to destroy all the evils from the world and kill all the Ravanas from our society. With the perishing of crimes from the society, women can live peacefully", added Debasish. Ruchismita Mishra from Jagatsingpur narrates; "Durga puja is one of the important festivals we celebrate at my home with pomp and gaiety. I would like to share my feelings from childhood, when Durga puja means wearing new dresses, visiting my uncle’s home in Bhubaneswar, and enjoying visiting pandals. I am blessed that my in-laws also celebrate the festival in a great way." "Vijaya Dashami marks the destruction of evil. Each and every woman in our society is an incarnation of the Goddess. However, I get stressed when I see some people who worship the goddess Durga but they never respect women. Starting from misbehaving with women at home, they can't even tolerate the existence of women in society.", said Ruchismita. {"align":"center","id":217478,"width":672,"height":394,"sizeSlug":"full","linkDestination":"none"} Another devotee of the Goddess, Pratikshya Thakur from Bhawanipatna narrates her feelings for the Goddess. She said Durga puja means a ton of enjoyment with family. "We are from Cuttack but we stay at Bhawanipatna as my father works here. However, I never miss visiting Cuttack during Dussehra" {"align":"center","id":217665,"sizeSlug":"full","linkDestination":"none"} “I am really lucky that I have been blessed with a daughter and I am really proud of that. Every year on Durga Puja, I never miss getting her dressed, decorating like Goddess Durga, and telling her the story behind Dussehra. I pray to Goddess Durga to make my daughter brave, fearless, courageous like her so that she can fight for those women who are neglected, tortured, "she added.