robinscreations: October 2014

Wednesday, 29 October 2014

Say -"Cheese"!

149th Post :

Say -"Cheese"! ......and the photographer is ready to take the smiling picture of your otherwise grin face! Haven't heard about the old Bangadeshi (then East Bengal) story, where the old coachman (horse carriage driver) was laughing aloud after hearing a silly joke from his passenger and said, " Koiyen naa, koiyen naa Kottaa, Ghoraa-ye o haansbo ! (Stop this nonsense, Sir, or else the horse too would start laughing!). Laughter is infectious and at the same time, it is the best medicine!

Presenting eight of my recent nonsense or not-so-nonsense/rhymes poems in Bengali. And wow! a sunrise picture taken by me in September 2014 by the Ganges in Benaras, India in the beginning of this post.

Happy viewing.

Robin Banerjee.

Wednesday, 22 October 2014

The autumn arrives in a subtle way.

The autumn arrives in a subtle way.

Come September... and after a spell of monsoon, when the tearful canopy of the clouds is withdrawn, the autumn arrives in a subtle way in Bengal. The sky becomes azure with the white clouds floating all around, festivities begin and the fields are full of golden grain of paddy that starts ripening and is harvested towards the end of the season. This is the time when Kaash and Siuli (flower) bloom to welcome Goddess Durga . Puja begins amidst much fanfare, fun & frolic and the holiday-note murmurs in the whisper of the Kash bushes. The immersion of the Idols takes place in the river on the Vijaya Dashami day, when also the demon, Ravana is put to flames to celebrate Dusserah.

Durga's daughter Lakshmi arrives again after a gap of 5 days to be worshiped on a full moon day - this time, all alone with her carrier, the famous owl.

Here are some of my poems and pictures on this subject.

Happy viewing.

Robin Banerjee.

Friday, 17 October 2014

The festive season is over.

The festive season is over.

Being regularly irregular has become a habit with me and this time too, I find no exception. The reasons may be many, but I do not want to cut excuses for being absent for over a month. In the meantime, the festive season has passed by (only Kali Pujo and/or Dewali is yet to come). This year, Durga Pujo was observed during the first week of October with much fanfare. And on the Vijaya Dasami day, Dussera is observed in India.

As per the Wikipedia : Durga Puja is widely celebrated in the Indian states of Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Manipur, Odisha, Tripura and West Bengal, where it is a five-day annual holiday. In West Bengal, Assam ,Tripura, which has a majority of Bengali Hindus and Assamese Hindus, it is the biggest festival of the year. Not only is it the biggest Hindu festival celebrated throughout the state, it is also the most significant socio-cultural event in Bengali Hindu society. Apart from eastern India, Durga Puja is also celebrated in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh,Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala. Durga Puja is also celebrated as a major festival in Nepal where 91% is Hindu, and in Bangladesh where the 8% population is Hindu. Nowadays, many diaspora Assamese and Bengali cultural organisations arrange for Durgotsab in countries such as the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, France, The Netherlands, Singapore and Kuwait, among others. In 2006, a grand Durga Puja ceremony was held in the Great Court of the British Museum."

Now the tale-tell Siuli or Kash flower has stopped blooming and it's time to welcome winter gradually. Still the memory of Durga Pujo lingers in my mind. All poems & photographs by me.

Happy viewing.

Robin Banerjee.