Durga Visarjan 2023

Maa Durga Visarjan - Durga Visarjan marks the culmination of the 10-day long Navratri festival, which involves invoking Maa Durga and her manifestations with a ritual of intense praying and rigorous fasting for her blessings. The auspicious day of Navami or Dashami marks the idol immersion of Maa Durga. Carried out with zestful flair and verve, and seeped in the traditional practice of a procession-led immersion, it brings a beautiful and cathartic end to the festival, immensely gratifying the soul. Finally, the procession and rituals of ‘visarjan’ makes for a compelling and surreal sight, as there is an underlying strong emotional force to the sacred practice. Mostly performed during morning hours, the Visarjan timing also extends to evening hours, depending on the 'muhurat'.

Durga Visarjan Date and Time in 2023

When: October 24th (Tuesday), 2023
Durga Visarjan Time = 06:27 AM to 08:42 AM
Duration = 2 Hours 15 Mins

One visible aspect of the visarjan is the fanfare associated with the procession. While the festivity is steeped in traditional rituals, the camaraderie of the people is unbeatable as they come together in gently lowering the idols. The banks of rivers, ponds and any water body have a festive look.

In West Bengal, customarily “dhunuchi” dance is performed before the immersion in front of the Goddess. Drummers or dhakis beat their drums while devotees move in rhythms to the beat holding a clay pot with dhuno and as the dhak beats reverberate across the city, people jostle for the opportunity to touch the Goddess' feet before the immersion. The rumbustious celebration comes to an end as idols are finally immersed in the rivers or lakes. The Visarjan is done with full reverence. In the evening or late evening, people visit each other's place and share sweet dishes. Devotees put vermilion on the forehead of the Goddess and perform Aarti, before carrying the idol in a ‘rath’ to immerse her in a water body.

The devotees become teary-eyed as they perform the visarjan, holding onto every moment of the bliss created by the presence of Durga. They shout slogans, hopeful of her visit next year. It is a mesmerizing sight to watch people in such large numbers come together. On a deeper level, visarjan is a symbolical concept, as Maa Shakti and her virtues really reside in us.