Shyama Puja and Diwali Celebrated Across the Country Today

Shyama Puja, also known as Kali Puja and regarded as the second-largest religious festival of the Hindu community, will be celebrated across Bangladesh on Sunday alongside Diwali, the festival of lights.

Shyama Puja is traditionally observed on the new moon night of the Bengali month of Kartik. Preparations are underway at Hindu households and temples to welcome Goddess Shyama, who is worshipped as the embodiment of power and peace. The festival holds a special place in Bengali culture and is celebrated with religious rituals and festivities.

In Bangladesh, the occasion is commonly known as Deepavali, while non-Bengali Hindus generally refer to it as Diwali. It is also known as Deepannita Kali Puja.

The festival symbolises the victory of good over evil and the triumph of light over darkness, representing the removal of evil and misfortune and the arrival of goodness, peace and prosperity. Bengali, Assamese and Odia Hindu communities traditionally observe Kali Puja on this lunar occasion.

According to the almanac, the new moon phase will begin at 1:02pm on Sunday and conclude at 11:58am on Monday.

Kali Puja is generally performed around midnight, while many devotees also observe Lakshmi Puja on the same lunar occasion. In the evening, devotees light earthen lamps at their homes and cremation grounds to pay tribute to their deceased parents, relatives and ancestors.

Special arrangements have been made at several temples and religious venues across the capital to mark the occasion. These include Dhakeshwari National Temple, Ramna Kali Temple, Ramakrishna Mission and Math, Siddheshwari Kali Temple, Shri Shri Bardeśwari Kalimata Temple in Sabujbagh, Radhagobinda Jiu Thakur Temple in Old Dhaka, Postogola Mahashmashan, Tanti Bazar, Shankhari Bazar and Banglabazar.