Three Days With the Goddess
Life Positive|January 2017

Prajnaparamita Padhi writes about the rapturous experience of receiving, enlivening and bidding farewell to Goddess Durga in the attic of an artist devotee and the company of his Bohemian friends.

Prajnaparamita Padhi
Three Days With the Goddess

Lanes, bylanes and a charming set of old houses are stitched together to form an old architectural panorama. Clothes of daily use strung along timeworn balconies, trucks and autos on bumpy tramways; water overflowing from a dhobi’s large clay pot, street urchins racing bicycle tires – controlling speed and balance with a stick – these are pictures of a long wearied yet unvanquished Calcutta, a locality audaciously high on enthusiasm in spite of its tumbledown appearance.

In its midst is a young man working assiduously in his roof-top studio, kneading and preparing precious clay to make an idol of Goddess Durga for the auspicious Durgotsav in Bengal. Halley Goswami is pouring his soul into sculpting, painting and embellishing his goddess, for the 15th time in a row. This year he has chosen the Shabeki style of pre-British Bengal, lost for 150 years until now! His research on ‘pratimas’ (idols) of Mughal India revealed certain distinctive features of the goddess. The Durga idol of Bengal in the 1700s had a beautiful tribhangi posture with narrow waists, and small breasts. She wore a mekhla (an Assamese garb) instead of a sari, and had two stocky frontal arms to hold the trishul, while eight arms, four on either side, were clasped together and raised upwards. She wore a simple crown without a chura, a garland wound around the contours of her body. She rode a stylised lion, more like a horse with a glorious lion’s mane. The European influence of realism came with the East India Company and slowly got absorbed in the Durga idols of the later years. The shape of the beautiful chala behind the pratima was inspired by the thatched roofs of village dwellings, a semi-circle encircling the goddess and her four children like a halo. Halley paints the chala too with stories of Shiva, Parvati and her four children on their way to her mother’s earthly home from that of her husband’s in Mt. Kailash.

Denne historien er fra January 2017-utgaven av Life Positive.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra January 2017-utgaven av Life Positive.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA LIFE POSITIVESe alt
Miracles of Mount Maunganui
Life Positive

Miracles of Mount Maunganui

A hike to Mount Maunganui in New Zealand filled Rashi Bunny with a sense of awe and wonder equivalent to witnessing the glory of the Divine Himself

time-read
4 mins  |
September 2024
Navigating Your 20s: A Simple Guide
Life Positive

Navigating Your 20s: A Simple Guide

By embracing the tumultuous journey through her 20s, Abhilasha Srivastava learnt to triumph over the challenges encountered and carve the path for her future

time-read
5 mins  |
September 2024
Inducing Sweet Slumber
Life Positive

Inducing Sweet Slumber

As we are well aware, lack of sound sleep can give rise to physical and mental problems. To ensure a good night's rest, you could follow the suggestions given by Jamuna Rangachari in the next few pages

time-read
5 mins  |
September 2024
Days for the Divine
Life Positive

Days for the Divine

Guided by her mentor Megha Bajaj, Meghana Acharya sends positive vibes into the Universe to ensure the well-being and success of others

time-read
4 mins  |
September 2024
Voices from the beyond
Life Positive

Voices from the beyond

Near-Death Experiences (NDES) have long fascinated humanity-a glimpse beyond the veil, a sneak peek into the unknown that pulsates with wonders, mysteries and intrigue. Jamuna Rangachari takes us through the narrations of a few who went to the other side and returned to share in great detail what they experienced and how it transformed them

time-read
10+ mins  |
September 2024
All for the best
Life Positive

All for the best

An academic disaster turned opportunity led Rajeev Hallur to understand the jigsaw puzzle of life, initially incomprehensible to most of us

time-read
4 mins  |
September 2024
Many Lives, One Master
Life Positive

Many Lives, One Master

Dr Bijal Maroo probes into the enigmatic charisma of Swami Omkaranandaji to discover the story behind his uncanny healing powers

time-read
9 mins  |
September 2024
Modern art with a tribal touch
Life Positive

Modern art with a tribal touch

Gautam Bharati and Avani Jain, based in Dungarpur, Rajasthan saw the incredible ability and passion of tribals for arts and decided to do something about it.

time-read
1 min  |
September 2024
Laugh your way to health
Life Positive

Laugh your way to health

Rupa Bannur, a former IT professional turned holistic health coach from Bangalore began turning to laughter yoga in 2001 after she faced profound loss of precious family members.

time-read
1 min  |
September 2024
Healing Hands
Life Positive

Healing Hands

When Rupesh Budh Ahmedabad from was 15 years of age, he learnt meditation from his martial arts (Karate) teacher. His teacher also introduced him to Reiki as a healing modality that can cure with just a touch. He told him that advanced Reiki practitioners can cure even from a distance without touching.

time-read
1 min  |
September 2024