Ashtami and Navami

Huts and figures made completely of jute

Pandal made of clay pots

Kashmiri style pandal

Village of bamboo pandal. This was just the entrance

The buildings around this one were painted to match

Everything in this one was made of tiffins (metal lunchboxes), silverware, or plates.

My colleagues tell me that Tuesday, Ashtami, was the most important day of puja for the communities that surround their pandals (temporary temples erected to house the goddess Durga for puja). I mostly stayed inside, but was honored to participate in a small program in a local pandal that had been made through the participation of everyone on the community. From making jute lamps to putting together the lanterns in the pandal, everyone did something to make the pandal a success. The creator, a young Bengali man, told me about his vision that came to fruition, where the pandal was used to build more of a sense of community and bring together families from all economic backgrounds in the community. Today, on Navami, friends and I went "pandal hopping"-- seeing various pandals that won awards over the past couple of days. Each pandal has a unique theme, using various materials and artisans to construct the structures. The photos above capture a small glimpse of the variety in pandals. I'm going to post about the goddess' idols later this week. Today was the final day before the ceremonies to return the goddess to the Ganga (in Kolkata, the branch of the Ganga is the Hoogley River) begin tomorrow afternoon.