Saraswati Puja

Saraswati Puja is one such festival that almost all the Bengali homes in West Bengal celebrate. On this day, the Goddess of knowledge and fine arts is worshipped with great fervor. The Bengali community considers knowledge and fine arts as an integral part of its life. People of all age participate in Saraswati Puja with unparallel intensity.

The Puja of Goddess Saraswati is a must in most of the Bengali homes. Even the people who are atheist celebrate Saraswati Puja in their houses. It is probably because Goddess Saraswati is considered the epitome of knowledge and fine arts. People in West Bengal give a lot of importance to the erudition and cultural values. There is hardly any artiste in the West Bengal who does not perform Saraswati Puja. The Goddess of knowledge and fine arts is clad in white sari with a ‘Beena’ in her left hand.

Every community no matter big or small, perform this puja with great respect. The puja is held in the morning and people gather in the puja ‘mandap’ to offer their prayer, which is called ‘anjali’. In the lunchtime they usually arrange for a community lunch that essentially includes Bengali delicacies like ‘Khichuri’, ‘Labra’ and ‘Kooler Chutney’.

Although people of all age celebrate this auspicious occasion with great enthusiasm, it is particularly more popular among the students. It is perhaps because Saraswati is the Goddess of education. Almost every school and college observes Saraswati Puja. The girls are clad in yellow colored sari and the boys are in essentially Bengali attire of Dhoti and Punjabi. The Saraswati Puja in West Bengal is an inseparable part in the life of the people.