Jagaddhatri Puja: Chandannagar, Krishnanagar and the goddess who holds the world

Jagaddhatri Puja is the worship of Jagaddhatri, whose name means "the holder (or sustainer) of the world", a form of Durga worshipped in Bengal on Navami, the ninth lunar day of the bright fortnight of Kartik. That is about nine days after Kali Puja, a few weeks after Durga Puja. It is the last great goddess festival of Bengal's autumn, and it is celebrated on a spectacular scale in two towns: Chandannagar in Hooghly district and Krishnanagar in Nadia. The date changes each year with the lunar calendar, so check your local panjika.

Who is Jagaddhatri?

Jagaddhatri is understood as Durga in her role as the one who supports and sustains the universe. Her image is distinctive:

• she is usually four-armed, holding a conch, a discus, a bow and arrows, though details vary;
• her complexion is often shown as golden or like the morning sun;
• she is seated calmly on a lion, and the lion stands over an elephant;
• she wears red and is adorned like a queen, with a serene expression.

The elephant is commonly explained as a demon in elephant form, sometimes named Karindrasura, subdued by the goddess. A popular reading also sees the elephant as the restless, proud mind, and the goddess as the steady power that holds it in check. Unlike Durga's battle scene with Mahishasura, Jagaddhatri's image is calm: the struggle is over.

How it is worshipped

The structure of the worship resembles Durga Puja. In some places all the rites of Saptami, Ashtami and Navami are performed on the single day of Navami; in others, especially Chandannagar, the festival is spread over four days, from Saptami to Dashami. Practice varies by town, committee and family, and the panjika sets the timings.

Krishnanagar and Raja Krishnachandra

In Krishnanagar, the old capital of the Nadia Raj, Jagaddhatri Puja is closely associated with Raja Krishnachandra Roy, the eighteenth-century ruler of Nadia and a major patron of Bengali arts and religion. A widely told story says that the king was held by the Nawab's authorities during Durga Puja and missed the festival, and was then shown in a dream how to worship the goddess in this form a month later. Accounts differ on details and dates, and historians treat the story as tradition rather than documented fact, but it is central to how Krishnanagar tells the history of its puja.

Krishnanagar is also known for its clay modellers, and its Jagaddhatri images and the immersion, when many idols are carried through town, often on the shoulders of bearers, are a highlight of the festival.

Chandannagar: the town of lights

Chandannagar, north of Kolkata on the Hooghly, was a French settlement until the mid-twentieth century. Its Jagaddhatri Puja is traditionally said to have been begun in the eighteenth century by Indranarayan Roy Chowdhury, a local merchant associated with the French, inspired by the puja in Krishnanagar; again, this is a traditional account.

Today the town hosts a large number of community pujas, many with tall images and elaborate pandals. What makes Chandannagar famous across India, however, is its light art. Local light artists build huge illuminated panels and figures, once from small bulbs and now largely with LEDs, showing scenes from mythology, folk tales, current events and pure fantasy, often animated by sequenced switching. These lighting makers are in demand far beyond the town, including for Durga Puja pandals in Kolkata.

The procession

On immersion night, decorated idols and giant light installations are taken in a long procession through the town to the river, typically on trucks. The procession usually runs late into the night and draws very large crowds. If you go:

• arrive early and agree on a meeting point, as phone networks may be congested;
• wear comfortable shoes and carry water and a little cash;
• follow police barricades and announcements, and avoid the riverbank in the densest crowds;
• check the year's route and timings with local authorities or puja committees.

Also readBengal's festival season

Other places

Jagaddhatri Puja is also celebrated in other towns along the Hooghly and in parts of Kolkata, in temples and in some old family homes. Neighbouring areas around Chandannagar, such as Bhadreswar, are also known for their pujas.

Getting there

Chandannagar is on the Howrah to Bandel suburban railway line, and Krishnanagar is reached by train from Sealdah. During the festival both trains and roads are crowded, so plan your return carefully, especially late at night.

Related reading

See the festival season hub for the full run of autumn festivals, Kali Puja and Diwali and Bhai Phonta for the festivals just before, and the history of Durga Puja for the role of Bengal's zamindars and rajas in shaping the Pujas.