In the
pre-dawn darkness, long before the sun was scheduled to rise – at 5:56 am –
devotees had started gathering on the lawns of Chittaranjan Park Kali Mandir.
Everyone stood in orderly lines facing east. It was Nabo Barsho – 15th April,
Bengali New Year’s Day. We were waiting to catch the first auspicious glimpse
of the Sun God, the giver of Life and ruling deity of our oldest scripture, the
Rig Veda. We held palm leaf bowls with rose petals, til and Ganga jal, which we
would offer the God as soon as he made his appearance through the verdant tree
tops that surround the temple. Since there remained a good half hour before sun
rise, we listened to a rendition of Tagore’s “Aguner Parashmani”, about the
light that touches our vision and dispels the darkness.
The Chief
functionaries welcomed all devotees who numbered in the hundreds by now. A
priest recited verses from the Rig Veda, in praise of that most ancient of
worshiped beings – the Sun, who was about to appear before us in its everyday
, glorious form. Is there anything more breath-taking than that first sight of
the newly risen sun? We raised our flowers to him and prayed for a serene, peaceful
and happy New Year.
At the end
of the prayers, the palm-leaf bowls were collected for orderly disposal – the
lawn remained pristine, except for the thousand or so devotees embracing each
other with New Year greetings.
And the
Bengali year 1425 had begun.
May it bring
happiness, good health and peace to all our neighbours.
By Chitra Sarkar ,J Block CR Park, New Delhi
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