19th September 1980
a.m.Ramlal bazaar with Profulla Pal junior. "Jotho moth otho poth." (Ramamkrishna). 1 Durga image-Ganesha + Lakshmi on left, Karttik + Saraswati on right. 3 other images of usual kind and are @ 6' high. Saj/daish=mould. Pratima matir karkana? Soto Chakrabarti and Manikchandra Das. I watched Profulla making a large modern style image (separate 4) Durga puja. The kathamo had been built and the straw core remained to be added. First P cut 2 pieces of bamboo to the right size and then inserted them into the back frame. He then loaded large amounts of straw onto these bamboo supports. The same was done for the lion. In all, both took @ 2 hours to near resemblance. Straw was added and tying string. Unlike Varma's opinion that sticks are put into the straw frame as a kind of 'armature', no such thing occured here. One completed straw figure of Durga was in a corner that had no bamboo pegs at all. P said that Profulla senior (in Kalighat) made the old bamboo-leaf style Durga image.
Bama-Kali, Chinamasta-both worshipped here in this district (or nearby?) during Kali puja. NB-the images are generally immersed at midnight or at 1 am. Incidentally, most of the Biskarma images were immersed yesterday, but some still remained today. More were on their way this afernoon. I also saw (am) a Rath (modern) for Rath Jatra in a shed. This place is called Rath tola (?).
p.m.Bhidari Sarani for Devi Purana and dictionaries. Then to Prodip's. All his Biskarma images had been sold. Several Durga images were under way. One was still with a math chauni. This Prodip told me later was for a family in Maniktola whose puja was 125 years old. They also claimed that their puja had been performed in the Hooghly district in a village for 500 years. This year will be a special celebration. In this connection Prodip also told me of a village where there is a wooden Durga image with Orissan lion and bamboo leaf eyes which the villagers believe is also 500 years old. Prodip made a stone substitute. The Calcutta Museum tried to buy the wooden image off the villagers but nothing doing and what's more they want to bury it. They now keep it in the annexe of a temple in the village.
Prodip is making an Okala-bodhana image. The kathamo is completely of wood. Durga is standing in front of her lion preventing Ramchandra from procuring the one needed blue lotus by firing an arrow into his eye. The image is quite large. Some figures of the 8 Durgas are also under way. Upstairs, Prodip and his mother explained to me the remains of what had been a small puja to Lakshmi. In the last day od Bhadra, during Biskarma puja, Lakshmi is also worhipped. In this case in one of the bedrooms next to the kitchen. Sankh (conch shell-white). Prodip-a small bronze woman holding 5 cup lamp. This is for arti ( 5 lights). Prodip means a special type of lamp. There is a large ladel for pouring water. A small bowl for doing arti with camphor which is also put in drinking water to purify it. Korpur dani-water poured into a small basin. Kosa kusi.
Alpana-the footprints of Lakshmi. 'It means that Lakshmi has come into my room to make me rich.' Before puja it is made ot rice paste. Mangal ghat with mango leaves on top and a banana (other fruits must be given). Sindhu (red powder).
All items are put on a small choki (stool) every old family has an earthen 'hari'. Rice, wooden owl. A ladel also for pouring rice, kunke (measuring pot) generally used for measuring rice. A coin, sindhu etc. Brahmin comes and worships. 'We worship actually dhan'. No image.
Asana and singhason are not the same. Singhason=throne. Asana not a throne.
During Janmasthami (Krishna's birth) a special ceremony takes place. P described it after I had been talking about the flag of India being the start of Utsava-bera puja practice (which he said was correct). The raja/zemindar would take a flag and march round the gram/village to let his subjects know of the impending Durga puja. the flag would then be erected in a special place. This happens at Janmasthami. The pole is then used in the construction of the image (?). P said something about the kathamo (platform) being retained after puja-the images being cut away and immersed. Sometimes the kathamo is borrowed from the kumars, worshipped and then returned for the construction of the image. Ask Prodip more about this practice.
20th September 1980 - Kumartuli, Nimtala and Dum Dum para
21st September 1980 - Rajbari and Kalighat
24th September 1980 - Kumartuli
26th September 1980 - Victoria Memorial
27th September 1980 - Kalighat
29th September 1980 - Kalighat
30th September 1980 - Kumartuli and Kalighat