Mitti Puja before Navratri

16 October, 2012

Navratri, which is popularly known as Durga Puja in Bengal has a side which many people are unaware of. The idols are made of clay but priests offer prayers to the clay as well before it is drawn from river banks.

PEOPLE HAVE started fasting as Navratri starts today. The idols of Durga Ma are almost ready and the final touches are being applied. However, not many know it that the clay with which all the idols are made also goes through a process of prayers and mantras.

Mitti Puja or the worship of clay is held in all parts of the country. It is considered to be an essential first step before the idol makers get to work. The clay is dug out from the banks of the rivers preferably the Ganga but before this is done the priest performs various rituals, including chanting of mantras on the river bank.

Each person is assigned a specific role. Some beat drums and other percussion instruments while another plays the shehnai. After the prayers, the men collect the holy clay. This must be mixed with the rest of the clay mixture for making the figurines. In some parts of the country, the puja of the clay starts on the day of Akshay Trithiya, but in others as in Bhubaneshwar it is done as early as first week of August.

Once the clay worship concludes, the artisans get down to work. For most of them it is traditional calling and art is passed on from father to son. Many take it up as a family business and are extremely talented in it.