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A few days after the country celebrates Dussehra, Kulu, the valley of gods comes alive
with an assembly of deities congregating to pay homage of
Raghunathji. The colorful celebration attracts thousands of people
from India and abroad.
Legend
has it that Shiva and Parvati once came down to the lower Himalayas
for a brief sojourn. All the local gods and goddesses ran to pay
homage, bearing gifts of flowers and fruit. They fussed around
Parvati to such an extent that she was completely bowled over and
resolved to take them back with her to Mount Kailash. Stuffing them
all into a large cane basket (pitari) she flew with Shiva
towards Mount Kailash.On the way they stopped to rest on a
mountain peak overlooking Kulu valley. The moment Parvati put down
the ‘pitari’ on a rock, a mighty gust of wind flipped open
the lid and away flew all the gods and goddesses, to land at various
places scattered over the valley. And there they remain to this day,
which is why every single village in Kulu has at least one and
sometimes more deities of its own to boast of. And Kulu goes by the
name of the Valley of Gods.
In
the early 19th century Raja Singh of Kulu, an ardent
Vaishnavite, brought an idol of Raghunathji (Rama) from Ayodhya and
installed it in a temple at Sultanpur in Kulu town. Seeking to
spread his faith over the entire kingdom, he decreed that all the
gods and goddesses of Kulu valley should bow to the idol of
Raghunathji on the occasion of Dussehra. The tradition still carries
on.
Thus
Dussehra at Kulu is not only a celebration of the victory of good
over evil. It is also an occasion to pay homage of Rama, who has
long been the presiding deity of the valley. Strangely, the festival
begins on Vijaya Dashmi, the last day of Dussehra celebrations
elsewhere in the country. No historical explanation of this
phenomenon has yet been found. The delay could be a deliberate step,
calculated to permit people from the plains time enough to join the
Dussehra fair and generally provide a fillip to local trade.
Strangely again, no effigies are burnt at the Kulu Dussehra.
Celebrations over, a small heap of dried grass is set alight, to
symbolize the burning of Lanka and the destruction of the forces of
evil. As a final act comes the ceremonial sacrifice of a buffalo,
originally performed by the rajahs of Kulu, with one fell sweep of
the sword.
The
unique features of Kulu Dussehra do not end here. Whereas every
other god and goddess in the valley must come to the venue of the
celebrations a day in advance, one particular goddess is permitted to
arrive late. She is Hidimba Devi demon wife of Bhima, the second
Pandava brother. From times immemorial Hindimba has been honoured as
the powerful patron deity of the rajahs of Kulu and celebrations are
withheld till she has arrived from her temple at Doongiri (Manali).
Dussehra
is traditionally celebrated on the spacious, grassy, deodar lined
Dhalpur maidan in Kulu town and lasts a total of seven days. The
centerpiece of the fair is a brightly coloured tent put up to receive
the idol of Raghunathji in all its splendour. But naturally, as the
guest of honour he comes much later. The first to arrive at the
maidan are the devis and deotas from all over the
valley, some 360 strong, borne on palanquins by a merry throng of
pujaris and chelas and bhaktas. At night these
processions can be seen descending mountain trails in the magic aura
of pine torches while the devout lead the way, dancing to the eager
beat of kettledrums.
The
gods of Kulu valley are not always manifest in the form of idols.
Sicne a full size idol made of metal is expensive, many of the humble
villages have opted instead for masks cast in silver. When marching
in procession to the Dhalpur maidan, these masks are tied to the
uprights of the palanquins which in turn are profusely decorated with
coloured drapery and garlands. There is always a ceremonial umbrella
(chhatri) overhead, red velvet richly, lovingly embroidered in
gold and silver. A Kulu deota going to the Dussehra fair
makes a colourful picture indeed.
On
the opening day, seated on a gorgeously draped, flower bedcked wooden
chariot (rath), the idol of Raghunathji is brought to the
Dhalpur maidan. When the priests have offered prayers and sprinkled
water around the rath, the gods of the Kulu Valley from a circle
around it. The descendants of the rajahs of Kulu also go around the
rath several times (parikarama). After this ceremony the rath
is reverently pulled by the local people to the far corner of the
ground and duly installed in the tent. A chance to pull the rath is
considered a stroke of great good fortune. On every single day of
the celebrations, morning and evening, all the gods are invoked and
taken in a procession over the ground. Like their followers, the
gods too have ‘relatives’ among others of their kind and
make this an occasion to call on them, so as to keep up the links. A
day before closing, all the gods reassemble at the abode of
Raghunathji of pay him homage (deota durbar). On the last
evening Raghunathji is taken to a puttu with a square design,
And you can come with a tricoloured bag. We’ll meet in Kulu.
But do bring a juicy coconut alone,We’ll
eat it together and I’ll stay with you’ll make me your
bride!
There
are songs on farming and other pastoral occupations, on fun and
festivals, history, legend and mythology. The heroes are, to us,
unlikely people like forest guards, rangers, tehsildars and patwaris.
Since independence however, songs have also been composed on
economic and social development, on defence and the glory of India
and Himachal.
Various
forms of folk dance grace the Kulu Dussehra, teams of dancers swaying
on nimble feet, with spirit and passion. Performed to folk tunes and
only in the prescribed costumes, thirteen different forms of dance
are currently is use, with names that have an unmistakable local ring
like Banthara, Luddi, Bashahri, Bakhli and Kharait. While the men
wear black berets and tunics of white woolen cloth, the women are
attired in rainbow bright churidar-kurtas, spangled with silver or
gold. And they’re invariably loaded with silver jewellery.
Beautiful and vivacious as they are, Kulu women carry the lot to
perfection.
Traditionally,
like many other outdoor activities, the dance was performed by men
only though they obviously played to the women. Not to be outdone,
in places women with spunk performed in purdah. But now they have
begun to participate freely in the open whirling away to the tune of
the shehnai, pipes (peepni) and drums (dhol and nagara). Kulu dance
troupe itself has become a member of the National Folk Dance Club and
Kulu Dussehra is now a state festival, recognized even at the
international level. Through folklore, song and dance and their
highly individualized modes of worship, the people of these hills
have faithfully preserved their culture, safeguarding it against
assimilation into the mainstream.
Trade
is naturally one of the main attractions at the Dussehra fair. In
the days gone by, merchants would trudge down from as far afield as
Tibet, Kabul, Peshwar and the remote hill areas with the best of
their wares. Even today they come from lahaul-Spiti, Ladakh, Kashmir
and the farthest reaches of himachal as well as the plains. On the
sale are wool, pashimina shawls and pattus, also embroidered Kulu
caps, readymade garments and footwear, beads, trinkets, carpets and
utensils. But basically th eKulu Dussehra is one vast social
gathering where people meet old friends and relatives Romances are
born and marriages are arranged. In between bouts of buying and
selling and long after dark on those seven days, the hookah is passed
around and many a tall tale is retold in the lap of the Kulu Valley.
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