| Various
Sanskrit books like Linga Puram, Siva Puran, Brahmandya Puran, Skanda Puran etc., that
have a narration as to how the worship of Siva was sponsored have been translated into
Bengali in prose and poetry. Siva as a deity has a strange fascination for both men and
women. The village elders recite Siva stories. In the Linga Puran there is a story that
once there was a great quarrel between Brahma and Vishnu as to who is the overlord of the
world and the quarrel was solved by Lord Siva who appeared in the shape of a lingam which
was like a flash of a fire. There is a type of old
Bengali poetry, which goes by the name of Sivayan; the theme of the Sivayan
literature is one and the same--preaching the glory of Lord Siva and propagating Siva
worship. There is Bengali proverb that evens when the womenfolk husk paddy, songs in
praise of Siva are recited. The number of Lok-geets or songs in local dialects on Siva and
his exploits is legion in Bengal.
Siva-Gajans or melas and festivities in honor of Siva are
very common. Some of these Gajans attract more than a fifty thousand crowd. Men and women
eagerly look the Siva- Gajans forward to. Religiously has found a great expression in
these Gajans and more about them has been mentioned elsewhere. |
