Ayudha Pooja - Its Significance
 DUSSEHRA Victory of Durga Mata over Mahishasura
The
name Dussehra is also derived from Sanskrit Dasha + Ahaha = Dasharahaha
= Dasharaha. Ahaha means day. Example Aharnisha is derived from
Ahaha+nisha. Goddess fought with evils for 9 nights and 10 days. The
name Vijayadashami is also derived from the Sanskrit words
"Vijaya-dashami" literally meaning the victory on the dashami (Dashmi
being the tenth lunar day of the Hindu calendar month). Diwali the
festival of lights is celebrated twenty days after Dasara.
Some of
the demons, or Asuras, were very powerful and ambitious and continually
tried to defeat the Devas, or Gods, and capture Heaven. One Asura,
Mahishasura, in the form of a buffalo, grew very powerful and created
havoc on the earth. Under his leadership, the Asuras defeated the Devas.
The world was crushed under Mahishasura's tyranny, the Devas joined
their energies into Shakti, a single mass of incandescent energy, to
kill Mahishasur.
A very powerful band of lightning emerged from
the mouths of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva and a young, beautiful female
virgin with ten hands appeared. All the Gods gave their special weapons
to her. This Shakti coalesced to form the goddess Durga. Riding on a
lion, who assisted her, Durga fought Mahishasura. The battle raged for
nine days and nights. Finally on the tenth day of Ashvin shukla paksha,
Mahishasura was defeated and killed by Durga.
Hence Dasha-Hara is also known as Navratri or Durgotsav and is a celebration of Durga's victory. Durga, as Consort of Lord Shiva, represents two forms of female energy – one mild and protective and the other fierce and destructive.
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SHUBH VIJAYA DASHAMI
Vijayadashami also known as Dussehra or Dashain or Tenth day of Navratri or Durgotsav is one of the most important Hindu festivals celebrated in various forms, across Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. The name Dussehra is derived from Sanskrit Dasha-hara literally means The sun will not rise (Dasha (sun) and Hara (defeat)) referring to Lord Rama's victory over the ten-headed demon king Ravana. As per Hindu religion, on this day in the Treta Yug, King Rama, also called Shri Ram, the seventh avatar of Vishnu, killed Ravana who had abducted Rama's wife Sita to his kingdom of Lanka. Rama, his brother Lakshmana, their follower Hanuman and an army of monkeys fought a great battle to rescue Sita. The entire narrative is recorded in the epic Ramayana, a Hindu scripture. Rama had performed "Chandi Homa" and invoked the blessings of Durga, who blessed Rama with secret knowledge of the way to kill Ravana. On the day of Ashvin Shukla Dashami, Rama's party found Sita and defeated Ravana. Thus it is termed as Vijaya Dashami. Based on the inferences from Valmiki’s Ramayana, Kalidas’s Raghuvans, Tulsidas’s Ram Charit Manas, and Keshavdas's Ram Chandra Yas Chandrika as well as common perception in India, Rama, Sita, and of Lakshmana returned to Ayodhya on the 30th day of Ashvin (19–20 days after Vijayadashmi). To mark the return of Lord Rama, in the evening, the residents of Ayodhya lit their city with millions of earthen lamps (called Deepak). Since then, this day is celebrated in India as Deepawali or Diwali. Many people perform "Aditya Homa" as a "Shanti Yagna" and recite Sundara Kanda of Srimad Ramayana for 5 days. These Yagna performances are thought to create powerful agents in the atmosphere surrounding the house that will keep the household environment clean and healthy. These rituals are intended to rid the household of the ten bad qualities, which are represented by 10 heads of Ravana as follows:
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