Celebrating Durga Puja
Durga Puja, which involves the worship of Goddess Durga emphasizes the triumph of good over evil. The five-day long festival, that began on Thursday commemorates the story of the lion-riding, 10-armed Goddess Durga’s slaying of a demon king, celebrating the triumph of good over evil.
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Devotees offer prayers to Goddess Durga in Hyderabad on September 24, 2009. The complete image of Goddess Durga represents the destruction of evil and protection of good. It also enforces that in order to become divine one should keep one's animal instincts under control. (AFP PHOTO)
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A woman dressed as Goddess Durga, reenacts myths during Durga Puja in Allahabad on September 24, 2009. Durga Puja is all about wearing new clothes and going from one pandal to another with friends and family. Durga, in Sanskrit means, 'She who is incomprehensible or difficult to reach.' Mother of the Universe, Goddess Durga represents the infinite power of the universe and is a symbol of a female dynamism. (AFP Photo)
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Devotees perform rituals on the banks of river Ganga in Calcutta on Friday, September 25, 2009. The five festive days of Durga Puja are celebrated with aplomb. Rituals are accompanied with dhak (playing ceremonial drums), dhunuchi dance (a way of offering prayer), shiuli (small scented flowers with cream petals and orange pedicle) and kaash (flowers looking like the willows, that cover the horizon with a milky white appearance). (AP Photo)
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A sand sculpture of Goddess Durga alongside a burning globe, urging her to save the world from global warming, is seen on the beach commemorating the festival of Durga Puja, at Puri, about 67 kilometers from Bhubaneshwar on Wednesday, September 23, 2009. The five-day long festival, that began on Thursday commemorates the story of the lion-riding, 10-armed goddess Durga’s slaying of a demon king, celebrating the triumph of good over evil. (AP Photo)
