Sobha Daffodil celebrated Saraswati Puja with traditional fervour recently. Every year, on this day of Basant Panchami, Saraswati Puja is performed to worship Saraswati, Goddess of wisdom, learning, music and fine arts. With Veena and Pustak (book) in her hands, and riding on a swan (or peacock), Ma Saraswati is personified as knowledge in its full grandeur.
 The day started with traditional offering of prayers and other rituals including pushpanjali and yagya/havan. Being a Saturday, the event saw a large turnout from the residents of Daffodil especially small children who came out in new dresses to offer their prayers to the Goddess. Many of them placed their books, paint brushes and musical instruments at the feet of the idol to seek blessings.
An integral part of Saraswati Puja is "Haate-Khori" (chalk in hand) where small children are introduced to alphabets for the first time in front of Ma Saraswati, a tradition that marks their initiation into reading, writing and learning. Five children went through the ritual this year. "We need to celebrate these events regularly so that our children remain aware of our traditions," said one of the senior residents of the complex.
ICICI Prudential, one of the sponsors of the event, organised a Sit-and-Draw session for the children. The other sponsors for the event were Pen Folds and Dino Kids Pre-school.
A traditional "khichdi bhog" was served for lunch. The evening saw a homely cultural programme comprising classical and devotional songs and dances by the children and adults of the complex. Suvendu Ray, a resident and former RWA member, was misty-eyed: "This is bringing back nostalgic memories from my school and college days. Every tradition has been followed here. Impeccable organisation".
 "I am proud to be part of the celebrations. May Ma Saraswati bless the students and young minds of our community towards building a stronger nation" said Bhaswati Hazra, a teacher at Bethany High School and one of the lead organisers of the event. The other members of the organising team were: Sabyasachi Sen, Ruchi Pant, Amrita and Dinabandhu Naskar, Debarati and Kiran Kumar Das, Satarupa and Anandaroop Bhattacharya, Sahana and Saikat Ghosh, Sonjoy Mukherjee, Arindam Sen, Sugato Guha and Ranajit Jana.

For the first time
An integral part of Saraswati Puja is “Haate-Khori” (chalk in hand) where small children are introduced to alphabets for the first time in front of Ma Saraswati, a tradition that marks their initiation into reading, writing and learning.

--CITYPLUS NEWSDESK

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