Anandapur: Celebration of Raja festival is different at different places. Narasinghpur village of Bhandaridiha panchayat under Ghasipura block in Keonjhar district needs a special mention here.
Here the Raja festival is otherwise known as ‘Dhipamada Parva’. On the first day of the festival, the senior villagers seek blessings from their presiding deity Maa Mangala before going into the jungle to bring the stem of a specific tree.
The tree is called ‘Kasimula’. After bringing the stem, they extract the pith of the tree, taking great care not to cause any harm to its outer skin. This hollow stem is then worshipped on the day of Raja Sankranti before taking it out in a procession covering the whole village.
During the procession, the carriers strike the stem with two sheesham sticks to produce a kind of sound while reciting erotic depictions of ‘Bhanja Sahitya’. This tradition, as the seniors say, is followed to appease Maa Mangala. This brings prosperity to the village with the villagers reaping a bumper harvest, it is believed.
After ‘Dhipamada Parva’, the hollow stem is kept at the bank of River Sendhei. On the last day of the Raja festival, the stem is immersed following the first day’s rituals.
The elderly villagers said they have been following the tradition for ages.
PNN
