What is the Dussehra Festival ?

Dussehra Burning Effigy of Ravana

Where is Dussehra celebrated?

Dussehra is predominantly an Indian festival in the north. Delhi and Varanasi are popular places to attend the celebrations.

The largest effigy of Ravan in India is located in the small town of Barara (about 80 kilometers from Chandigarh). He was 200 feet tall in 2013!

Elsewhere in India, notable Dussehra festivals are held in the Kullu valley of Himachal Pradesh, Mysore in Karnataka, Kota in Rajasthan, Bastar in Chhatisgarh and Almora in Uttarakhand. See the 7 best places to celebrate Dussehra in India.

In West Bengal, Navaratri and Dussehra are celebrated as Durga Puja.

Dussehra is one of the liveliest times to visit the Dadar flower market in Mumbai, as people buy gold marigolds for traditional decoration and worship.

How is Dussehra celebrated?

In northern India, theatrical performances and dances known as Ramaleela, depicting the life of Rama, are commonly held in the head of Dussehra.

These shows are particularly great in Varanasi and Delhi. Do not miss these 5 popular Ramlila shows in Delhi.
Then on Dussehra, huge effigies of the Ravana demon are burned throughout India. See the effigies of Ravan made in Delhi.
In Mysore, in addition to cultural shows and fairs, the highlight of Dussehra's 10-day celebration is the large parade of decorated elephants and mounted guards to escort the goddess across the city.
In Kullu, the deities of the goddess are carried around on colorful floats, and there is a lot of dancing and revelry.

What rituals are performed?

Dussehra is considered a propitious time to worship the tools used to earn an income. Nowadays, this includes laptops and cars! According to legend in the epic Mahabharata, Arjun hid his arms on a tree and when he returned a year later, on Dussehra's day, he recovered them safely. So he worshiped the weapons, along with the tree.

Ravan is depicted with 10 heads and 20 limbs. It is often thought of as a symbol of the negative or evil emotions that exist in human beings. Each of its 10 heads refers to an aspect that must be conquered: lust (kama vasana), anger (krodha), illusion (moha), greed (lobha), pride (mada), jealousy (matsara), selfishness (swartha) , hate (Ghrina ), cruelty (amanavta) and ego (ahankara).

According to mythology, King Mahabali told Ravan to get rid of his negative emotions.However, he refused, arguing that they were important for him to remain complete. As our head controls our destiny, Ravan's inability to control his emotions and desires has led to his final destruction.