Dasarais the ‘Nada Habba’ or the state festival of Mysoreand of the whole of Karnataka. Of all the festivals celebrated in this state, Dasara gets the royal status. Dasara is celebrated with traditional splendour all over the state. The Dasara festival is celebrated for a period of ten days, which comprises the nine nights where the nine forms of the Goddess is worshipped. The tenth day is celebrated as Vijayadashami– a celebration of victory to mark the end of the ten day festivities.
It was the Vijayanagar Empire which converted this religious festival into a state festival. The beauty of this festival is that, all people irrespective of religion and caste enjoy and participate in the celebrations. The Wodeyar Kings who ruled over Mysore introduced grandeur in the celebrations and used the occasion to involve the public in the celebrations.
The celebrations start on the first day at the palace. This is a private ceremony where the scion of the Wodeyar dynasty, Srikantadutta Narasimharaja Wodeyar formally ascends the throne and holds a darbar. He is given a 21 gun salute and the royal sword and emblem is formally presented to him.
Every evening, there are celebrationsall over Mysore at different venues. These include traditional music concerts, wrestling and other sports competitions. Keeping up with the times, concerts by Shreya Goshal, Kunal Ganjawala and other Bollywood singers are held to attract the youth. Sonu Nigam is also a usual fixture, though he is absent this time.
The ninth day is Mahanavamiand is celebrated across the state as Ayudha Pooja. On this day, the armoury of the palace is opened and all the weapons are worshipped. The tradition of this ceremony is followed all over the states even in offices and factories. All over the state, this is day where all offices, factories, shops undergo cleaning, painting. All machinery, equipment are cleaned and worshipped and given rest for the next two days. Employees and workers love this day because management presents them with sweets, bonus payments and other gifts. Most establishments in the state are closed on this day and the next.
The last day of Dasara is celebrated as Vijayadashami. The day is celebrated to mark the victory of Goddess Chamundeshwari (Durga) over the forces of darkness represented by the demon Mahishasura. In fact, Mysore owes its name to Mahishasura, from whose name the city’s name has been derived.
The star attraction of the ten day celebrations is the Dasara Jamboo Savari, which includes the grand Dasara procession. Earlier this used to be a royal affair, but now the Government has taken over the celebrations. The parade starts with a pooja of the royal elephant, horse and other animals. The former prince, the CM and a special chief guest (Dr.Kalam is this year's guest of honour) inaugurate the parade.
The parade involves animals (elephants and horses) and tableaurepresenting the rich cultural heritage of Karnataka. The royal elephant Balarama(specially trained for this purpose) majestically leads the parade and carries the golden howdah with the idol of Goddess Chamundeshwari (weighing 750kg). Dancers dressed in various types of costumes dance away throughout the parade. Lakhs of tourists visit Mysore on this day to watch the colourful parade, which is indeed a real treat to watch. The procession concludes in the evening at the Bannimantap and ends with a torchlight procession and bursting of fireworks. This year though the swine flu scare and the heavy rains seems to have acted as a slight dampener to the tourist inflow.
The Mysore palace is lighted up every evening during the Dasara parade and this is a sight to see. The entire grandeur of the royal city can be enjoyed by just seeing the magnificently lit-up palace. So, if you are planning a holiday for the Dasara holidays, there is no there best place to be in than Mysore.
Wishing all MSians a happy Dasara and Navaratri.
May the Goddess bless everyone with happiness, health and wealth.
