A Glossary of Durga Puja Terms

Durga Puja is a Hindu festival centred on the worship of Goddess Durga. In Bengal, particularly West Bengal and Kolkata, the festival combines religious rituals with image-making, temporary architecture, music, community participation and artistic practices. It is also observed by Bengali communities in other parts of India and around the world. UNESCO inscribed Durga Puja in Kolkata on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2021.

The terminology of Durga Puja comes mainly from Sanskrit and Bengali and refers to specific days, rituals, objects, forms of worship, artistic traditions and community practices. Meanings and procedures can vary between temples, households and Puja committees. This glossary explains commonly encountered terms in their Durga Puja context.

A

Akal Bodhan

Akal Bodhan means the invocation or awakening of Goddess Durga at an unusual or untimely period. In Bengali Durga Puja tradition, it refers to the autumnal worship of Durga and is traditionally associated with the Ramayana account of Rama invoking the goddess before his battle with Ravana.

Amantran

Amantran means invitation. In Durga Puja, it refers to the ritual invitation extended to the deity as part of the preparatory ceremonies associated with the formal commencement of worship.

Anjali

Anjali is an offering made with joined hands, usually involving flowers or other prescribed materials. During Durga Puja, Pushpanjali is the offering of flowers to Goddess Durga while sacred mantras are recited.

Arati

Arati is a Hindu ritual in which a lamp or other lighted offering is moved before the deity. During Durga Puja, Arati commonly accompanies the conclusion of a worship session.

B

Barowari

Barowari refers to a form of community-organised Puja conducted outside the traditional household setting. The term is strongly associated with the development of public Durga Puja in Bengal.

Bodhan

Bodhan means awakening or invocation. In the Bengali Durga Puja tradition, it is the ritual through which Goddess Durga is formally invoked at the beginning of the autumnal worship. It is commonly performed around Shashthi, although the exact schedule can vary according to the calendar and tradition.

Bhog

Bhog is food formally offered to the deity during worship. After the offering, it may be distributed among devotees as prasad. Community Durga Puja often includes a communal bhog meal.

Bijoya Dashami

Bijoya Dashami, also written Vijaya Dashami, is the concluding day of the Durga Puja cycle in Bengal. It follows the completion of the principal worship and is associated with farewell ceremonies, immersion of the images and the exchange of greetings known as Bijoya.

Bonedi Puja

Bonedi Puja refers to Durga Puja traditionally conducted by established Bengali families, often in ancestral homes. These household celebrations may preserve distinctive family rituals, iconography, food traditions and ceremonial practices.

C

Chokkhu Daan

Chokkhu Daan, literally associated with the giving or painting of the eyes, refers to the traditional painting of the eyes of the Durga image. It is particularly associated with the final stages of idol-making and is commonly performed around Mahalaya in Bengal.

Chalchitra

Chalchitra is a painted or decorated semicircular or arched backdrop associated with traditional Bengali Durga images. In older styles, it forms part of the visual composition surrounding the central group of deities.

D

Dashami

Dashami is the tenth lunar day, or Dashami tithi, associated with the conclusion of Durga Puja. In Bengal it is commonly known as Vijaya Dashami or Bijoya Dashami.

Devi Paksha

Devi Paksha is the period associated with the worship of the Goddess in the autumnal Hindu calendar. In Bengal, the expression is closely associated with the period beginning around Mahalaya and leading into Durga Puja.

Dhak

Dhak is a large traditional Bengali drum played with sticks. Its distinctive rhythms are strongly associated with Durga Puja processions, worship ceremonies and public celebrations.

Dhunuchi

A dhunuchi is a traditional earthen incense burner used during Bengali Hindu worship. It contains burning charcoal or other combustible material over which incense is placed. During Durga Puja, it is particularly associated with Dhunuchi Naach, a ceremonial dance performed while carrying the vessel.

Dhunuchi Naach

Dhunuchi Naach is a ceremonial dance performed with a dhunuchi, usually to the rhythm of the dhak. It is a cultural practice associated particularly with Durga Puja in Bengal, although its performance is not a mandatory component of every Puja.

E

Ekchala

Ekchala refers to a traditional style in which Durga, Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ganesha and Kartikeya are presented together beneath a single architectural or decorative framework. The term literally refers to a single covering or structure.

G

Ghata

A ghata, also called a kalasha, is a ritual vessel used in Hindu worship. During Durga Puja, a water-filled vessel may represent the presence of the deity and forms part of particular invocation and worship procedures.

Ghatasthapana

Ghatasthapana means the ritual establishment or installation of a sacred vessel. Its precise use and timing vary according to the ritual tradition followed by a particular Puja.

H

Homa

Homa is a fire ritual in which prescribed offerings are placed into a consecrated fire while mantras are recited. A Homa may form part of the concluding or principal ceremonies of Durga Puja.

K

Kalparambha

Kalparambha refers to the formal commencement of the Puja according to a particular ritual calendar. It may be performed before or alongside other Shashthi ceremonies, depending on the tradition being followed.

Kumari Puja

Kumari Puja is the ritual worship of a prepubescent girl as a manifestation of the Goddess. It is especially associated with Maha Ashtami in some Bengali traditions. The practice is prominent at institutions such as Belur Math, but it is not performed in every Durga Puja.

Kumartuli

Kumartuli is a historic artisan quarter of Kolkata associated with the production of clay images, particularly Hindu religious images. Its sculptors and workshops are closely associated with the making of Durga Puja images for Kolkata and elsewhere.

M

Mahalaya

Mahalaya is the day that marks an important transition into the Devi-worship period preceding the main days of Bengali Durga Puja. It is associated with the end of Pitru Paksha and the beginning of Devi Paksha in popular Bengali observance.

Mahalaya is also strongly associated with the broadcast of devotional recitations and music centred on the Goddess. The day is culturally significant, but the principal public Puja rituals in many Bengali traditions formally begin later, usually with Shashthi ceremonies.

Mahasnan

Mahasnan, meaning great bath, is a ritual purification associated with the worship of the Goddess. In some Durga Puja traditions, it is performed during the Saptami and Ashtami ceremonies as part of the consecration process.

Mahasaptami

Mahasaptami is the seventh lunar day of the Durga Puja sequence. One of its best-known Bengali rituals is the bathing and installation of the Nabapatrika, followed by further consecration and worship.

Mahashtami

Mahashtami is the eighth lunar day and one of the principal days of Durga Puja. Pushpanjali, Kumari Puja in some traditions and Sandhi Puja at the transition to Navami are among the practices associated with this day.

Mahanavami

Mahanavami is the ninth lunar day of the Puja. Worship continues on this day, and some traditions include Homa or other concluding rites.

Mandap

A mandap is a temporary or permanent structure in which religious ceremonies are conducted. In contemporary Bengali Durga Puja, the term may refer to the principal worship space housing the Durga image.

Mahishasura

Mahishasura is the buffalo demon defeated by Goddess Durga in one of the central narratives associated with her worship. The image of Durga overcoming Mahishasura is a defining feature of the traditional Durga icon.

Mahishasuramardini

Mahishasuramardini means the slayer of Mahishasura. It is an epithet and form of Goddess Durga depicting her victory over the buffalo demon.

Murti

Murti refers to a sacred image or representation of a deity. In Durga Puja, the term is commonly used for the clay image of Goddess Durga and the associated deities.

N

Nabapatrika

Nabapatrika, literally meaning a group of nine plants, is a ritual bundle used during Mahasaptami. It consists of nine specified plants associated with different divine forms or attributes. The bundle is ceremonially bathed, dressed and worshipped.

The nine plants traditionally include banana, colocasia, turmeric, jayanti, bilva, pomegranate, ashoka, arum and rice paddy. Local terminology and the interpretation of individual plants may vary.

Navami

See Mahanavami.

Navapatrika Snan

Navapatrika Snan is the ceremonial bathing of the Nabapatrika, traditionally performed in the early hours of Mahasaptami. It is one of the recognisable ritual sequences of Bengali Durga Puja.

P

Pandal

A pandal is a temporary structure erected to house the deity and provide a space for worship and public gathering. In contemporary Kolkata, pandals may range from simple structures to elaborate temporary architectural installations.

Pitru Paksha

Pitru Paksha is a period traditionally associated with remembrance and offerings to ancestors. In the Bengali calendar cycle, Mahalaya marks the transition from Pitru Paksha towards Devi Paksha.

Pran Pratishtha

Pran Pratishtha refers to the ritual consecration through which a deity is invoked into a sacred image or representation. In Durga Puja, it forms part of the process through which the crafted image becomes an object of ritual worship.

Prasad

Prasad is food or another offering that has been presented to a deity and is subsequently distributed to devotees. The term is distinct from bhog, which refers specifically to the offering made to the deity.

Pushpanjali

Pushpanjali means a floral offering made during worship. Devotees generally hold flowers in their joined hands while a priest recites the relevant mantras, after which the flowers are offered to the deity.

S

Sandhi Puja

Sandhi Puja is the ritual performed at the junction between Ashtami and Navami. In the traditional calculation, the Sandhi period comprises the final 24 minutes of Ashtami and the first 24 minutes of Navami, making a total of 48 minutes.

The ritual is associated with Goddess Chamunda and commemorates the transition described in the Devi tradition involving the defeat of Chanda and Munda. Exact observance follows the lunar tithi and therefore changes from year to year.

Sarbojanin

Sarbojanin means “for everyone” or “of all people.” In the context of Bengal's Durga Puja, it commonly describes community-organised public worship rather than a Puja restricted to a particular household.

Saptami

Saptami is the seventh lunar day of the Durga Puja sequence and is particularly associated with the Nabapatrika Snan, consecration and formal worship of the Goddess.

Shashthi

Shashthi is the sixth lunar day and marks the beginning of the principal Bengali Durga Puja observance in many traditions. Bodhan, Amantran and Adhivasa are among the rituals that may be performed on this day.

Shankha

Shankha is a conch shell used in Hindu ritual. Its blowing is an established feature of Bengali religious ceremonies, including Durga Puja.

Shodashopachar

Shodashopachar is a traditional mode of worship involving sixteen forms of ritual service or offering to a deity. The exact sequence and materials may vary according to the ritual tradition.

Sindoor Khela

Sindoor Khela is a Bengali Dashami custom in which vermilion, or sindoor, is traditionally applied during the farewell ceremonies for Goddess Durga and exchanged among participants. Its form and participation have changed in different communities over time and are not universal to every Durga Puja.

U

Ulu Dhwani

Ulu Dhwani, also called Ululation, is a distinctive vocal sound traditionally produced by women during Bengali Hindu ceremonies. It is commonly heard during Durga Puja, particularly at moments of ritual celebration.

V

Visarjan

Visarjan is the ritual immersion of a deity's image in a body of water. In Durga Puja, the immersion on Dashami symbolically concludes the period of worship and marks the departure of the Goddess.

Vijaya Dashami

Vijaya Dashami is the tenth lunar day associated with the conclusion of Durga Puja. In Bengal, it is also called Bijoya Dashami and is followed by the cultural practice of exchanging Bijoya greetings.

Related Terms and Names

Agomoni

Agomoni refers to songs and musical traditions welcoming Goddess Durga to her maternal home. The songs are particularly associated with the Bengali cultural interpretation of Durga's annual arrival.

Arati

See Arati under A.

Ashtami

See Mahashtami.

Kola Bou

Kola Bou is the popular Bengali name associated with the banana plant within the Nabapatrika arrangement. Because the banana plant is the most visible element of the bundle and is dressed in a sari, it is sometimes popularly interpreted as a bride. In ritual terms, however, the Nabapatrika is a group of nine plants rather than simply a banana plant.

Puja

Puja is a Hindu form of worship involving offerings, prayers, ritual actions and invocation of a deity. Durga Puja specifically denotes the worship of Goddess Durga.

Pratima

Pratima is another term for a sacred image or representation of a deity. In Bengali usage, it is frequently used for the clay image created for Durga Puja.

The Five Principal Bengali Puja Days

Although the wider festival period extends beyond these days, the principal Bengali Durga Puja sequence is commonly described through:

1. Shashthi — Bodhan and associated preparatory ceremonies.

2. Saptami — Nabapatrika Snan, consecration and worship.

3. Ashtami — major worship, Pushpanjali, Kumari Puja in some traditions and Sandhi Puja at the Ashtami-Navami junction.

4. Navami — continuation and completion of major worship, with Homa in some traditions.

5. Dashami — farewell rituals, Bijoya observances and Visarjan.

The exact ritual sequence is not identical across all Durga Puja traditions. Household Pujas, temple Pujas, community Pujas and institutional Pujas may follow different calendars and procedures.

Why These Terms Matter

Understanding Durga Puja terminology makes it easier to interpret the festival as both a religious tradition and a cultural practice. Terms such as Bodhan, Nabapatrika, Sandhi Puja and Pran Pratishtha describe ritual processes; Dhak, Dhunuchi and Ulu Dhwani describe associated sound and performance traditions; while Pandal, Pratima, Chalchitra and Kumartuli relate to the artistic and material culture surrounding the festival.

Durga Puja is therefore not represented by a single ceremony. It consists of interconnected forms of worship, craft, performance, community organisation and inherited knowledge that are practised differently across locations and communities.