Vijayadashami
Vijayadashami (Sanskrit: विजयादशमी, romanized: Vijayadaśamī), also known as Dussehra, Dasara or Dashain, is a major Hindu festival celebrated every year at the end of Durga Puja and Navaratri. It is observed on the tenth day of the month of Ashvin, the seventh in the Hindu lunisolar calendar. The festival typically falls in the Gregorian calendar months of September and October.
| Vijayadashami | |
|---|---|
Vijayadashami reveres Durga's and Rama's victory over evil depending on the region. | |
| Also called | Dashain, Dussehra, Dasara |
| Observed by | Hindus |
| Type | Religious, Cultural |
| Significance | Celebrates the victory of good over evil |
| Celebrations | Marks the end of Durga Puja and Navaratri |
| Observances | |
| Date | Ashvin Shukla Dashami |
| 2023 date | 24 October |
| 2024 date | 13 October |
Hindu festival dates The Hindu calendar is lunisolar but most festival dates are specified using the lunar portion of the calendar. A lunar day is uniquely identified by three calendar elements: māsa (lunar month), pakṣa (lunar fortnight) and tithi (lunar day). Furthermore, when specifying the masa, one of two traditions are applicable, viz. amānta / pūrṇimānta. If a festival falls in the waning phase of the moon, these two traditions identify the same lunar day as falling in two different (but successive) masa. A lunar year is shorter than a solar year by about eleven days. As a result, most Hindu festivals occur on different days in successive years on the Gregorian calendar. | |
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Vijayadashami is observed for different reasons and celebrated differently in various parts of the Indian subcontinent. In the southern, eastern, northeastern, and some northern states of India, Vijayadashami marks the end of Durga Puja, commemorating goddess Durga's victory against the buffalo-demon Mahishasura to restore and protect dharma. In the northern, central, and western states, it marks the end of Ramlila and commemorates the deity Rama's victory over the demon-king Ravana. Alternatively, it marks a reverence for one of the aspects of goddess Devi, such as Durga or Saraswati.
Vijayadashami celebrations include processions to a river or ocean front that involve carrying clay statues of Durga, Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ganesha, and Kartikeya, accompanied by music and chants, after which the images are immersed in the water for dissolution and farewell. In other places, towering effigies of Ravana, symbolising evil, are burnt with fireworks, marking evil's destruction. The festival also starts the preparations for Diwali, the important festival of lights, which is celebrated twenty days after Vijayadashami.