#25-22 DURGA PUJA … Kolkata celebrates a fierce Goddess

Durga is a major Hindu Goddess, whose many powers include motherhood, war, and the destruction of all evil.  Puja is a term for ceremonial worship. The 10-day Durga Puja celebrated in Kolkata, India, in September/October, was recently inscribed by UNESCO in its list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.  WINGS’ producer in Kolkata, Kalpana Pradhan, interviewed women scholars and a woman priest about the history and changing sociology of Durga Puja. Once a private pleasure of the wealthy Hindus and their colonizers, it is now in the hands of organizations, politicians, and women who newly claim the right to officiate and drum.

Speakers: Social scientist Dr Bula Bhadra; Dr Ruby Sain, professor of the Centre for the study of Religion and Society; Sanskrit professor and woman priest Nandini Bhowmick.

http://www.radio4all.net/files/wingsradionews@gmail.com/WINGS-25-22DurgaPuja-28_49-128kbps.mp3