Bagerhat Correspondent :
The Saraswati Puja, one of the important religious ceremonies of Bengali Hindu community, was celebrated in Bagerhat district town and it’s all the nine Upazilas with the spirit of pursuing education and knowledge, traditional gaiety and due religious fervour on Saturday maintaining heath care.
Puja Mandops, temples and a large number of educational institutions were colourfully decorated as hundreds of devotees sought blessings throughout the day from the ‘Devi Saraswati’, the Goddess of knowledge and wisdom. The devotees, particularly the students attired in colourful dresses, offered special prayers and observed fasting as per the ritual of the festival to seek knowledge from the Goddess Saraswati. According to the Hindu religious rite, Devi Saraswati appeared on the earth on a white swan.
BSS from Rajshahi adds: People of the Hindu community on Saturday celebrated the Saraswati Puja with the spirit of pursuing education and knowledge, traditional gaiety and due religious fervour everywhere in the city as well as other districts in Rajshahi division.
Puja mandaps, mandirs and a large number of educational institutions have been colourfully decorated as hundreds of devotees seek blessings since morning from the `Devi Saraswati’, the Goddess of knowledge.
The day is called ‘Vasant Panchami’. The devotees, especially the students attired in colourful dresses, offered special prayers and observed fasting as per the ritual of the festival to seek knowledge from the Goddess Saraswati.
In Rajshahi city, a large number of images of Goddess Saraswati, symbolizing a graceful woman riding on a swan, were erected at different puja mandaps, mandirs and educational institutions.
Swaraswati Puja was celebrated at Rajshahi University, Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology, Rajshahi College, Rajshahi New Government Degree College, Rajshahi Medical College, Teachers Training College, Polytechnic Institute side by side with different educational institutions and many other places in the city.
The celebration also included offering of Devi Aradhana, Pushpanjoli, `archanas’, `anjolis’, `aratis’, distribution of `Prasad’, `Arati Competitions’, cultural functions and staging of drama.
To mark the celebration, Rajshahi University Central Puja Udjapan Parishad (RUPUP) arranged a bunny archana programme at central puja mandap premises today.
Hindu devotees, especially students and teachers of Rajshahi University celebrated the Saraswati Puja at the university central temple premises, setting up colorful Mandaps and placing the idol of the goddess with different types of sweet meets, fruits and other items and articles of handicrafts.
RU Vice-chancellor Prof Golam Sabbir Sattar and Pro-VCs Prof Chowdhuury Jakaria and Prof Sultan-Ul-Islam addressed the meeting as chief and special guests respectively with RUPUP President Prof Biswanath Shikder in the chair.
Similar reports on celebration of Saraswati Puja were received here from Chapainawabganj, Natore, Naogaon, Bogura, Joypurhat, Pabna and Sirajganj districts in Rajshahi division.
