Hinduism in West Bengal

Hinduism had existed in the region of Bengal before the 16th century BC and by the 3rd century, Buddhism and Jainism were popular too. Gaur, the first sovereign Hindu kingdom in Bengal with its capital in Karnasubarna in modern-day Murshidabad district, was set up by Shashanka, a Shaivaite king who ruled approximately between 600 AD and 625 AD. The modern structure of Bengali Hindu society was developed during the rule of the Sena dynasty in the 12th century AD. West Bengal has been home to several famous religious teachers, including Sri Chaitanya, Sri Ramakrishna, Rammohan Roy and Swami Vivekananda.

Culture

The language of the Hindus in West Bengal is Bengali. A large number of Hindu religious texts like biographies of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Mangal-kavyas, Bratakathas and Panchalis as well as dharmik writings of modern Bengali philosophers and saints have been produced in Bengali for many centuries.

Religion

Majority of Bengali Hindus follow Shaktism (the Kalikula tradition), minority—Vaishnavism (Gaudiya Vaishnavism, Vaishnava-Sahajiya, Bauls). Shaktas belong to the upper castes as well as lowest castes and tribes, while the lower middle castes are Vaishnavas.

The main devis of the Kalikula tradition are Kali, Chandi which is another form of Durga, Durga, as well as regional goddesses such as Manasa(also known as Bishhori), the snake goddesses, Shashthi, the protectress of children, Shitala, the smallpox goddess, and Umā (the Bengali name for Parvati).

Jagadhatri, Lakshmi and Saraswati, Shiva, Ganesha, Vishwakarma, Krishna, Rama, Jagannath and Vishnu are the other popular and widely worshipped Hindu deities in West Bengal.

Durga Puja is the biggest and most important festival of the Hindus in West Bengal, as well as the most significant festival of the state in general. Kali Puja is the second major festival of the community and it corresponds to the pan-Indian festival of Diwali. Other major festivals include Kojagari Lakshmi Puja, Dolyatra, Jagaddhatri Puja, Rathayatra, Saraswati Puja, Poila Baishakh, Vishwakarma Puja, Gajan, Poush Parban etc.

Festivals

Bengali Hindus in West Bengal observe a number of festivals, hence the Bengali proverb Baro Mase Tero Parbon (Bengali: বারো মাসে তেরো পার্বণ, lit. 'twelve months thirteen festivities'). Birth Anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore which is celebrated as one of the major festivals of the state, Rathyatra and Janmashtami before the commencement of the autumnal festival season which starts with Vishwakarma Puja on the last day of Bengali month of Bhadra which is around the middle of September in the English calendar. The annual five-day Durga Puja is the biggest and most widely celebrated Hindu festival in West Bengal. Durga Puja is followed by Kojagari Lakshmi Puja, Kali Puja, Bhai Phonta, Jagaddhatri Puja and Kartik Puja. On 1 January Kalpataru Day is observed as an auspicious day associated with Ramakrishna Paramhansa. The winter solstice is celebrated a Paush Sankranti in mid January, followed by Saraswati Puja. The spring festival of Holi is celebrated in the form of Dolyatra. The year ends with Charak Puja and Gajan.

Temples

Temple architecture in West Bengal architecture has assumed a unique identity and evolved into the Bengali terra cotta temple architecture which is also a very common style of Hindu temples in Bangladesh. Due to lack of suitable stone in the alluvial Gangetic delta, the temple makers had to resort to other materials instead of stone. This gave rise to using terra cotta as a medium for temple construction. Terra-cotta exteriors with rich carvings are a unique feature of Bengali temples. The town of Vishnupur in West Bengal is renowned for this type of architecture. Usually a part of the intended total motif was carved by hand on one side of a brick and then baked. While under construction, these carved bricks were arranged to make up the entire motif.

The Bengali style of temple is not luxurious. Rather, most are modeled on simple thatched-roof earthen huts used as dwellings by commoners. This can be attributed to the popularity of bhakti sects which taught people to view gods as close to themselves. Thus, various styles like do-chala, Jor-bangla Style, char-chala, and aat-chala sprang up. However, there is also a popular style of building known as Navaratna (nine-towered) or Pancharatna (five-towered) in Bengal which is more luxurious than the Chala buildings. A typical example of Navaratna style is the Dakshineswar Kali Temple. The Shiva temples of rural Bengal has significantly impacted on the architectural style of Kalighat Temple, one of the oldest Hindu temples of India. The famous Birla Temple of Kolkata, built in 1996, has a unique blend of temple architecture of Odisha with Rajasthani temple arts. The Mahakal Temple in Darjeeling is a unique and important Hindu temple since 1782.