Bangladeshi Hindus worship young girls as part of Durga Puja festival

Dhaka [Bangladesh], Oct. 10 (ANI): Thousands of Bangladeshi Hindus thronged a temple in Dhaka to take part in the "Kumari Puja" ceremony, a part of the Durga Puja festival. In Hindu mythology, the goddess Durga symbolises power and the triumph of good over evil. According to the religion, Durga visits the earth for a period of four days every year, and during these four days, she is worshipped in various forms. On Sunday, the form known as "Kumari", or virgin form, was celebrated by locals. The colourful ceremony showcases a young girl, aged between one and 16, who is dressed up as "Kumari" and is worshipped by believers who make loud wailing noises to welcome her into the temple. She then sits in front of an idol of the Goddess Durga as the ceremony takes place. "In the Kumari, (young girl), we see the faces of our mothers and daughters. So, the main aim of this worship is to show the highest respect to women. So, I myself as a woman, I feel happy that I can honour other women and I want the position of women to always be honourable. We don't want to be repressed, we don't want to look back. We want to go forward," said one woman who was attending the ceremony. (ANI)