BY: AMIT KUMAR BHOWMIK
From Time immemorial, facts have been blended with fiction, to make existence more palatable, I suppose. Where reality ends and the myth – or mythology – begins, is such a digestible and heady blur, that we accept it in it’s Toto. Be it the parting of the Red Sea by Moses, Jesus’ miracle of turning water into wine or the creation of the Divine Mother, Durga, are all a matter of belief. They bring colour and purpose into our, otherwise, dreary lives!
One version, (which may not hold close scrutiny!) is that towards the end of the Ice Age, around 6000 BC, the inhabitants of the Russian steppes, the Arayans, started migrating elsewhere; seeking better pastures. Some went towards the West, to Italy, Germany Scandinavia and the British Isles. Others, to the East; to the fertile lands of India, through the Khyber and Bolan Passes in the Himalayas. Some, however, say the Arayans had their origins in the Nordic Alpines. The original homeland of the Arayans is referred to in the Zoroastrian scriptures, the “Vendedad”, as the lost “Ayarre Vaejans”, or the seed of the Aryans. They believed that the Sky was Father, and the Earth, the Mother of all beings. Women alone could give birth. Child-birth was associated with fertility – and blood. We worship, out of fear; what we are not sure exists. Or, that which frightens us. The Arayans, thus, worshiped Nature – whose benevolence they depended on, and whose fury they were petrified of. They also venerated the pot, as a symbol of the womb and fertility. With them, the early Arayans , brought their deities and myths. A powerful deity was needed to lead them in battle , giving way to the birth of Indra, the King of the demi-gods. But, when the Aryans arrived on the banks of the river Indus (“Sindu”– meaning a large body of water), more than a thousand years before them , had settled dark skinned, curly haired people, whose ancestors were from Namibia in Africa. The light skinned, blue eyed, fierce Arayans drove these people down to the southern part of India. They fought not only with these Dravadians (“Dravida” means, ‘flowing waters”), but also amongst themselves. (Notably, Harappa and Mohenjadaro – the Indus Valley Civilization – were Dravadian !). While the Arayans were never able to conquer the people of southern India, they made forays to expand territory , but without much success .However , to some extent, nevertheless, they were able to bring some influences of their Mother Goddess Worship upon the Dravadians. The Aryans had three classes in
their Society. Priests, warriors and those who tended to their huge herds of cattle. The present day caste system is an off-shoot from these primary groupings. Hindus are from tribal ancestry. All our male deities carry weapons and also have animals or birds as mascots, to represent their particular prowess. That is, with the exception of Durga and Kali, who are depicted as being armed. All the other female divinities have with them, musical instruments and birds, representations of their individual expertise so-to-say.
The idea of an “invasion” has been discarded in mainstream scholarship and replaced by more sophisticated models, referred to as the ‘Indo-Aryan migration theory’. Both Swami Vivekananda and Bhimrao Ambedkar valiantly wrestled with the Aryan race/invasion theory. In both, one finds passages in their writings ,where although they seem to have accepted the ‘Aryans’ as a race to begin with, on the other hand ,as they dwelt more into the subject, they rejected the Aryan race as well as the invasion theory. The Aryan invasion theory, it is argued, was created to foist on us justification of the British invasion of our country.
According to mythology, the demons managed to over-come all three worlds i.e. the Earth, Heavens and the Nether world, which they plunged into an orgy of violence, led by Mahish-Asura, the buffalo demon. Mahish was the progeny of Rambha, a demon King, who along with his brother, Kasamba, had prayed to Agni for powerful sons to shake up the three worlds .Kasamba was killed by Indra, who had taken the form of a crocodile, while he was meditating in deep waters. Agni, the god of Fire granted Rambha the boon he sought . Rambha mated with a she-buffalo, who gave birth to Mahish whose mother was killed by a he-buffalo, just after his birth. His father was also, thus, slain. But, because of the special boon from Agni, as his body was consigned to the fires for cremation, Rambha arose as “Raktabeej”. Mahish swore vengeance against Indra and all the gods.
The gods were in despair – and very angry. Their anger lighted up their faces, and at a single point, their collective energies created the shape of a young woman: Durga ! Her face was made from the cosmic light of Shiva, the Destroyer. Her ten arms were from Vishnu, the Preserver. Her legs, from Bramha, the Creator. Shiva gave her his trident, with a spear end; Krishna, his rotating disc; Varun, the god of the sea, a conch. From the
wind god, Vayu, she received arrows. Indra, King of the demi-gods, gifted her with his thunder-bolt and his white-skinned elephant, ” Aryavrata”; Yama, the god of Death, presented her with a Rod and a Noose. Heaven’s architect crafted a magic armour for her and adorned her with priceless jewels; the god of forests gave her a magnificent lion to ride into battle. Durga, the embodiment of ‘Shakti’ – the Eternal Mother – first destroyed the armies of Shushambhu and Nishambhu, and went on to behead Mahish-Asura. Shakti is the moving force behind all action in the phenomenal cosmos, the Hindus believe. In the North, Durga is seen as a beautiful bride, whereas in the South, she is depicted more warrior-like, as Chamundi or Amba. She symbolizes victory of Good over Evil.
It is quite probable that the Arayans, in order to justify their incursions to the South, spun the myth of Durga (which the British imperialists wove into our ‘history’ for their own oblique purposes – and gains!) Mahish was an ancient King of Mysore. He was swarthy and very dark complexioned. Like a buffalo!
But, because of this fearsome ending to the tale, hundreds of thousands of buffalos are cruelly ritually slaughtered not only in Nepal, but in parts of Bengal, Assam and elsewhere in India, as a symbolic decapitation of Mahish-Asura by Durga, on Vijay Dashami (Dashera).The ‘Gadhimai’ festival is a Hindu celebration held every five years in Nepal at the ‘Gadhimai ‘Temple of Bariyarpur, in Bara District, about 160 kilometers south of the capital ,Kathmandu, and about 7 kilometers east of the city of Kalaiya, near the Indo-Nepal border. It is primarily celebrated by the ‘Madhesi ‘people. The event involves large-scale sacrificial slaughter of animals, including water buffalo, pigs, goats, chickens, and pigeons, with the goal of pleasing’ Gadhimai,’ the goddess of Power .
More a hundred thousand male buffalos and their calves are butchered in a single day! It is, in fact, estimated that 250,000 animals, most of whom were male buffalos, were sacrificed during the ‘Gadhimai’ festival of 2009, as per Government statistics. This carnage continues, unabated until date. It has, in fact, increased by almost fifty per cent in 2019.
I look forward to Durga Puja, especially so as to gorge on the ‘khichidi’, ‘payesh’ and tomato chutney which is served as ‘bhog’. In Pune, there are many ‘pandals’, which have mushroomed over the last two decades, in particular. Leviathan sums of money is spent on constructing the idols, which are immersed a few days later, when “Durga’ returns to
her abode. I favour attending the ‘bhog’ at the Congress Bhavan and never try and miss it!
Personally, I subscribe to the conviction that, for those who believe, no explanation is needed. And, for those who do not, no explanation will suffice! Whatever be the debatableorigins of the myth, according to historical records, worship of Durga publically, (Durga Puja), in the spring, began in or around 400 A.D. It was also a great social event, when everyone met and enjoyed themselves. Matrimonial matches could be made; disputes settled.
Be what it may, Hinduism has no founders. Manu, Yagnivalika, Narada were merely law givers. It is all encompassing… and timeless. Goddess Durga is the representation of Mother, whose love alone is pure. We, her children, pray to her for protection.
May the powerful cosmic energy of Ma Durga keep you and your loved ones safe and happy always.
*Amit Kumar Bhowmik is a is a lawyer, based in Pune
