Its Dasera

Dasera is a 10 day festival which starts from tomorrow - (8th Oct.,2010)
Its happy Dasera.

Its Hindu tradition, a festival, a celebration of the many forms of the Goddess mother.

The celebrations begin when the Planets Sun and Moon meet (around the same degrees -this is the new moon day)in the zodiac of Virgo or Kanya/Kanni each year. It is called the Mahamalaya amavasya. The next 10 days' period marks the beginning of this festival called Dasera.

In the South, especially among South Indians, dolls of all kinds, shapes, colors and sizes are brought out and displayed. Some dolls are passed down through generations and are precious treasures of the past.
Steps are readied and covered with silks and dolls arranged on each step. The steps are always odd in number, like 5, 7, 9 and so on. A lamp is lit and a colorful chalk powder decoration of a beautiful pattern known as Rangoli is drawn which occupies a special place on the floor just below the first step.
One could say this is predominantly a ladies' function. It offers all ladies an opportunity to display their silks (sarees, etc) and jewellery when they visit the houses they are invited to during the entire 10 day period. Usually the host requests the guests to sing a song and it is a devotional one in praise of the Goddess mother.
The Dasera's 9 days are divided into 3 parts in which each of HER form is worshipped and celebrated. Those 3 forms are Mahalakshmi, Saraswati and Durga whose main attributes are wealth, knowledge and courage, respectively. Each Goddess is invoked for 3 days.
The 10th and final day is called as Dasami aka Vijaya dasami.

It is indeed a very colorful festival.

I and my younger sister used to have a whale of a time planning for Dasera days ahead. We used to hunt for rare dolls, we would learn new devotional songs on the Goddess, stay up late nights to decorate the steps in unique ways. The best would be to draw portraits of Gods and Goddesses which my youngest sister is very good at. Many people used to flock to see the colorful rangoli at our house. They would be lifelike figures. I still remember the Radha-Krishna, a beautiful dancing girl, Mahavishnu-Mahalakshmi...
A huge portion in the room would be set aside to draw the rangoli and fill. Then we would decorate it with stardust or chamki which is available at Hyderabad easily.

There was so much merry making in singing songs in unison, receiving relatives and friends, serving home made fruit juices, preparing the famed 'sundal' made of steamed lentils of different kinds of on different days, in selecting the best saree with matching blouse to wear each and every day. Ah! Those were the golden days.
We separated because she had to settle down in Ottawa after marriage. She continues to arrange dolls every year and invite a minimum of 100 ladies to her house for Dasera.
Another sister who lives in Chicago also celebrates it the same way by arranging dolls and inviting not less than a 150 guests.
My eldest sister and I do not keep dolls but we celebrate it with the same devotion.
After my marriage I discontinued keeping the dolls on show. I celebrate Dasera by singing a few chosen songs for the occassion alongwith the regular recitation of the Lalitha Sahasranamam.

May the mother goddess bless us with knowledge, courage and wealth of all kinds. May we all succeed in whatever we are attempting to do.

Mahalakshmi.