উত্তরবঙ্গের রাজবংশী সম্প্রদায়ের মাড়াই পূজার একটি ক্ষেত্রসমীক্ষা ভিত্তিক অন্তর্দৃষ্টি
Volume-XII, Issue-III, April 2024
Volume-XII, Issue-III, April 2024 | ||
Published Online: 30.04.2024 | Page No: 94-109 | |||
উত্তরবঙ্গের
রাজবংশী সম্প্রদায়ের মাড়াই পূজার একটি ক্ষেত্রসমীক্ষা ভিত্তিক অন্তর্দৃষ্টি
বাবলী বর্মন, পি.এইচ.ডি
গবেষক, বাংলা
বিভাগ, কোচবিহার
পঞ্চানন বর্মা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়, কোচবিহার, পশ্চিমবঙ্গ, ভারত। | |
An Ethnographic Insight into the Marai Festival of the Rajbanshi Community in North Bengal Babli Barman, Ph.D. Research Scholar, Department of Bengali, Cooch Behar Panchanan Barma University, Cooch Behar, West Bengal, India. | |
Marai, the goddess of North Bengal, is another name for Goddess Mansa and is worshipped by the Rajbanshi communities. Rajbanshi people worship this goddess for the fear of snakes, the well-being of children, and the prosperity of families. However, Marai Puja is performed with devotion, reverence, and ideal etiquette by the Rajbanshi Community. Additionally, the Pala song of the Bishahara group or Dal is strongly associated with this Marai Puja, and worship of the goddess is incomplete without this song. Mansa Purana has been prevalent in North Bengal since the medieval period, but it nowadays is almost extinct among Rajbanshi community. This study explores the relevance of Marai Puja and Bishahara groups in the Rajbanshi community. Furthermore, this study highlighted the folklore, traditional folk songs, and ample portrayal of Marai idols. Only those who have been worshipping Marai for generations have practised this worship; otherwise, it appears that worshipping of Marai Goddess has declined significantly among Rajbanshi community. The same pertains to the traditional folklore of the Bishahara Group or Bishahari songs, which are associated with Marai Puja. From the field interviews, senior members of Bishahara Dal or group essence of each traditional folks, folklore, rituals, and customs of Marai Puja. This study provides the potential for fostering spiritual/religious goddess worship and also conserving folk culture, traditional rituals in the local community. | |
Keywords: Marai Puja, Rajbanshi community, Bishahara Dal or groups, Marai Idol, Folklore of Marai Puja. |