Dussehra or Vijayadashmi is a Hindu Festival that is celebrated across India to mark the victory of Lord Rama over Demon Ravana. It is also celebrated to mark the triumph of Goddess Durga Maa over the buffalo Demon known as Mahishasura. Not just Hindus in India celebrate the festival but people in Nepal also celebrate the festival and there it is called Dashain.

Date, Time, Why is it celebrated?, How it is celebrated?, and everything you should know about the Festival of Vijayadashami or Dussehra.

Dussehra 2023 

Dussehra, also widely referred to as Vijayadashami, is one of the biggest festivals observed by the Hindu community in India. It is celebrated at the end of the 9-day Navratri, on account of which the date changes every year. During the festival, people across the length and breadth of India burn the effigy of the ancient Lanka King Ravana who abducted Mata Sita, the Wife of Lord Ram. Later, Shri Ram went to kill the demon and rescued Sita Mata. This is the reason why Hindus celebrate the festival. Dussehra is also said to be a festival that marks the win of good over evil.   

How is Dussehra Celebrated?

Dussehra is widely celebrated in India by taking out a mega nation-wide processions carrying statues of Goddess Durga, Saraswati, Ganesha, Lakshmi, and more to nearby rivers or oceans and immersing them. Additionally, effigies of Demon King or Rakshaka Ravana are burned which symbolise the victory of good over evil and wide celebrations at grand scale are held by burning crackers and lighting fireworks. Moreover, Dussehra or Vijayadashmi also marks the preparation of the biggest Hindu Festival- Diwali or Deepavali, the Festival of Light.

Date, Day and Time- Dussehra 2023

The Vijayadashami or the Dussehra this year will be celebrated on Tuesday, October 24. As per the Hindu Panchang (Calendar), the Vijay Muhurat is between 01:58 PM to 02:43 PM. The Duration will be 00 Hours 45 Mins. If you want to know about the Bengal Vijayadashami, then as per the holy Hindu Calendar, it will be celebrated on Tuesday, October 24, 2023 with Aparahna Puja Time being 01:13 PM to 03:28 PM and the total Duration being 02 Hours 15 Mins.

Here are few more details:- 

• Dashami Tithi Begins – 05:44 PM on Oct 23, 2023

• Dashami Tithi Ends – 03:14 PM on Oct 24, 2023

• Shravana Nakshatra Begins – 06:44 PM on Oct 22, 2023

• Shravana Nakshatra Ends – 05:14 PM on Oct 23, 2023

Importance of Dussehra or Vijayadashmi 

Dussehra holds a significance in the hearts and minds of 100 crores of Hindus in India as it marks the victory of good or evil. Each year, the festival is celebrated with great zeal and full enthusiasm and citizens across the nation take part in the occasion in their own unique style. Dussehra is the auspicious day when ten-headed Demon King Ravana was killed by Lord Rama. Every locality, area, region, state of India has its own unique way of celebrating the day.

Ram-leela and Dussehra

Dussehra is incomplete without Ram-leela which is a widely organised play of Ramayana held across India, particularly in North India. In numerous parts of India, especially in the region of North India, a series of theatre performances termed as Ramlila takes place. An elaborate theatre is set up and the saga of how the mighty Lord Rama defeated Ravana, essentially taken from ‘Ramayana’ is narrated along with a fare organised for the audience.

On the day of Dussehra, the final episode of the epic is enacted in which Lord Rama kills Ravana. After the enactment, effigies of Ravana, his brother Kumbhkaran and son Meghnath are burnt. Numerous actors play different roles during the play and it is widely watched in open grounds by lakhs of people.

Dussehra in Ayodhya

It is a known fact that Dussehra is celebrated widely across India but Ayodhya, being the birthplace of Lord Shri Ram, witnesses an extravagant Dussehra. People in the city have their own way of celebrating the festival and Ravana Dahana of Ayodhya is known for his grandeur and people from several parts of India flock to Ayodhya to witness Ravana’s effigy being burnt. 

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