What happens on each day of Bengali Durgā Pūjā, and what is Bijoyā?

from Ṣaṣṭhī to Daśamī the Goddess is welcomed, worshipped and lovingly sent home; Bijoyā is the farewell and the greetings that follow.

In Bengal, Durgā is welcomed as a daughter visiting her parents’ home with her children Lakṣmī, Sarasvatī, Kārtika and Gaṇeśa. On Ṣaṣṭhī evening comes the bodhan, the awakening of the Goddess. Saptamī begins with the Nabapatrikā, a bundle of nine plants often called kolā bou, bathed in the river at dawn. Aṣṭamī brings the pushpāñjali that crowds offer together and the Sandhi pūjā at the junction of Aṣṭamī and Navamī, with 108 lamps and lotuses. Navamī is for bhog and feasts.

On Daśamī, married women offer sweets to the Goddess and smear each other with vermilion in sindūr khelā, and the image is taken for immersion, bisarjan, to cries of “Āsche bochor ābār hobe!”, it will happen again next year.

Then comes Bijoyā: younger people touch elders’ feet, friends embrace, and homes share nārkel nāḍu and sweets for days.

Source: common practice in Bengali households and pandals

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