A Springtime Invocation of the Devi - Basanti Puja by Sadhguru
- Sadhguru
- 2 days ago
- 8 min read
Sadhguru says Basanti is not the season; She is the breath between desire and freedom. Worship Her not with hands but with the surrender of your shadow. One glance from a Siddha in Siddhashram is more potent than a thousand rituals.
Article | Shree Siddhashram | April 06, 2025
Sadhguru: In the heart of Bengal, where the rhythms of the seasons shape life and devotion, Basanti Puja stands as a radiant celebration of the Divine Mother. Often overshadowed by its autumnal counterpart, Durga Puja, Basanti Puja is a spring festival that revives ancient traditions and echoes a time when the Goddess was worshipped in full bloom amidst the fragrant air of spring. Celebrated in the month of Chaitra (March–April), Basanti Puja is not just a ritual—it is a cultural resurgence, a seasonal invocation of Shakti, the primordial energy.
While the grand pageantry of Sharadiya Durga Puja in Ashwin draws global attention, it is not Durga Puja, it is Tripura Navratri or Tripura Sundari Puja. Basanti Puja is actually Durga Puja. It is, in many ways, a rediscovery of the Vedic and Puranic origins of Durga worship. With ancient hymns, village melodies, and mustard-yellow spring light bathing the land, Bengal transforms into a canvas of devotional fervor, inviting the Goddess not in battle but in grace.
Basanti is not the gentle breeze; She is the fire disguised as fragrance.
Historical Origins of Basanti Puja
Mythological Context
Basanti Puja traces its roots to the Markandeya Purana, where Durga was first invoked in spring by the gods to defeat Mahishasura. Originally, the Vasanta Kalin or springtime worship, was the actual time when Chaitra Navratri was observed.
Thus, Basanti Puja is historically the original Durga Puja, preceding the later autumn celebration. The scriptures point to King Suratha, a legendary monarch from the Devi Mahatmyam, who was the first to worship Durga in spring after being dethroned. Guided by the sage Medhas, King Suratha performed rituals with full devotion and regained his kingdom. This story is often read or enacted during Basanti Puja in traditional households.
Revival by Bengali Kings and Landlords
Though Basanti Puja was more popular in ancient Bengal, it began to lose prominence with the rise of Sharadiya Durga Puja during the medieval period. It was revived in pockets by Zamindars and kings, most notably in the Malda, Birbhum, and Bardhaman districts. The Roy family of Malda, for instance, has records of celebrating Basanti Puja for more than 400 years.
Even in modern times, some Tantric sects, Bauls, and Vaishnavite-Kali upasakas revere this spring puja as more spiritually potent, as the cosmic energies of renewal and blossoming are at their peak.
Silence is not the absence of sound—it is the presence of Shakti.
Ritualistic Details and Observances
Timing and Calendar
Basanti Puja is observed from Shukla Saptami to Dashami of the Chaitra month, according to the Hindu lunar calendar. The puja spans over four days—Saptami, Ashtami, Navami, and Dashami—much like the autumn Durga Puja.
Construction of the Idol
The idol of Ma Durga in Basanti Puja is sculpted with a special tenderness, often smaller than the autumn ones. The colors used are lighter, evoking the hues of spring—pale yellow, light green, and white dominate. Shola (pith) decorations are common in traditional Basanti Puja idols. The Goddess is depicted in her Mahishasura Mardini form, with ten arms holding divine weapons, slaying the demon Mahishasura.
Interestingly, Basant (yellow) is the dominant theme—mustard flowers, yellow sarees, and spring blossoms decorate the pandals.
Puja Rituals
Bodhan (Invocation): The ceremony begins with the 'Bodhan' of the deity, inviting the Goddess into the idol with Vedic mantras. The Kalash is established, symbolizing her divine presence.
Naba Patrika Sthapan: Like Sharadiya Puja, nine different plants representing nine forms of Shakti are worshipped. The banana plant is dressed as the consort of Ganesha.
Sandhi Puja: The mystical moment between Ashtami and Navami, when Devi killed Chanda-Munda, is celebrated with 108 lamps and a powerful tantric arati.
Homa and Bali: In some traditional households, animal sacrifice or symbolic vegetable bali (like pumpkins) is performed, especially in Tantric lineages.
Dashami Visarjan: On the last day, after the immersion, Sindoor Khela and boron are performed among women devotees with yellow turmeric and red vermilion, evoking both love and farewell.
Cultural Significance in Bengal
Rural and Agrarian Connection
In the rural heartlands of Bengal, especially in Birbhum, Bankura, Purulia, and Nadia, Basanti Puja is a profound celebration of fertility and agriculture. With the mustard flowers blooming, farmers offer the first blossoms to Durga, seeking blessings for the upcoming harvest. The earthy simplicity of this puja is reflected in folk music, Baul performances, and Alpona (floor art) drawn with rice paste.
Villagers gather in the temple courtyards with drums, flutes, and conch shells. Charak fairs or Gajan Melas, which coincide with Basanti Puja, bring together mystics, sadhus, and performers. Shiva and Shakti, folk theatre (Jatra), and tiger dance (bagh nach) become spiritual-cultural performances.
Folk Music and Baul Influence
Bauls and wandering minstrels often sing of Ma in her springtime mood:
“Boshonter ei phool bone Ma Elo ronge ronge /Kokil bole, chithi elo – Ma Elo phire ghor-e…”
(“In the spring’s blooming forest, Ma arrives in colors /The cuckoo calls out, a letter has come—Ma has returned home…”)
This musical flavor gives Basanti Puja a pastoral sweetness, connecting the human to the cosmic in song.
Basanti Puja in Shree Siddhashram
Basanti Puja in Shree Siddhashram: A Hymn to the Blossoming Devi
In the sacred heart of the Himalayas, nestled far beyond the reach of common pilgrim routes and mundane maps, lies Shree Siddhashram, the mystical hermitage of seers and siddhas, where Time moves not in minutes but in vibrations of Consciousness. Here, amidst crystalline streams, whispering pine groves, and air imbued with mantric resonance, the festival of Basanti Puja is not merely a ritual—it is an awakening.
The Arrival of the Crimson Spring
Basanti Puja at Siddhashram is celebrated not by calendar calculations but when the etheric fragrance of Shakti ripens in the air. The yogis say that when the inner fire (Kundalini) ascends to the Anahata Chakra and bursts into the Sahasrara as a thousand-petaled blossom, Devi awakens not in the temple but in the body of the sadhaka. That precise moment is the beginning of Basanti Puja.
Unlike the Durga Puja in Sharad Ritu, where Mother arrives as a warrior goddess, here, She comes in Her primal form—a tender yet fierce expression of Vasanta Shakti, clothed in the scent of wild jasmine and twilight.
The Secret Invocations
At dawn on the chosen day, the Siddhas gather at the Shakti Kund, a translucent, blue-green lake that reflects not just the sky but the cosmic womb. They bathe in silence, their breaths synchronized with the pulse of the Earth. Here, no mantras are spoken aloud—they rise from the core of being, and Akshara manifests from silence.
Each ascetic wears a saffron cloth dipped in turmeric, sandalwood, and wild rose essence. They chant from the Basanti Rahasya Tantra, a scripture known only within the walls of Siddhashram. The verses invoke Devi not as an external force but as the inner breath, the subtle joy, and the memory of divine freedom forgotten by ordinary humanity.
The Dance of Chiti
When the moon rises above the cliffs, the forest glows silver, and the celebration reaches its mystic climax. Bhairavis of Siddhashram, women of divine fire and silence, perform the Nritya of Chiti—the dance of Consciousness. It is said that each movement of their body invokes one petal of the thousand-petaled lotus. The air vibrates, the stones pulse, and even the hidden animals of the jungle sit in a trance.
The Bhairavis wear no ornaments, only ashes of sacred herbs, and a red mark on their forehead—not of kumkum, but the distilled essence of hibiscus and siddha blood, symbolizing the union of life and death, the blossoming and the falling leaf.
The Tantric Offering
The Siddhas do not offer fruits and flowers. Their offering is prana—lifeforce, transmuted through breath and meditation. Some offer their deepest wound, some their hidden longing, and some their sacred celibacy preserved over decades. The mantra offered is:
"Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu Vasanta-rūpena Samsthita,Namastasyai, Namastasyai, Namastasyai Namo Namah."
The flame rises from the center of the homa kund, without fuel. It is said that Devi consumes the inner ego of the sadhak as ghee.
The Vision and the Boon
In the hour just before dawn, a stillness descends. One by one, the ascetics go into deep samadhi. Some enter the inner planes to converse with Mahadevi in her golden abode; some disappear for days, only to return with a new glow in their eyes and silence in their breath.
The boon of Basanti Puja is not wealth, power, or protection. It is Remembrance—to recall that one is not body, mind, or memory, but Shakti in Her play, the dancer and the dance, the flame and the offering.
The Closing Whisper
As the first light of day touches the peaks, the Siddhas gather around the central banyan tree. One elder speaks:
"Basanti is not the season; She is the breath between desire and freedom. Worship Her not with hands but with the surrender of your shadow."
Then, silence. Not an end, but a return to the eternal vigil—the watchful awareness of those who remember.
Comparison with Sharadiya Durga Puja
While both pujas celebrate the same deity, the essence, environment, and experience of Basanti Puja are uniquely different:
Feature | Basanti Puja | Sharadiya Durga Puja |
Season | Spring (Chaitra) | Autumn (Ashwin) |
Mood | Subtle, spiritual, rustic | Grand, festive, urban |
Mythic Reference | Original time of worship | Tripura Navratri |
Ritual Style | Traditional, Tantric in some parts | Modernized, Vedic |
Community Role | More household-based or temple-centered | Massive public pujas |
Decoration Theme | Yellow, green, mustard, floral | Red, gold, marigold, vibrant |
Contemporary Revival and Challenges
In recent years, spiritual movements, historians, and cultural revivalists have begun to restore the lost glory of Basanti Puja. In Shantiniketan, Bishnupur, and Bardhaman, community-led Basanti Pujas with classical music, scriptural recitations, and eco-friendly idols are bringing back awareness of the springtime Goddess.
However, challenges remain. With growing urbanization and commercialization of festivals, Basanti Puja often goes unnoticed. Media attention is minimal, and corporate sponsorship is scarce compared to Sharadiya Puja. Yet, its soul remains intact—rooted in the soil of Bengal, in the songs of its mystics, and the prayers of its mothers and grandmothers.
Spiritual Meaning and Esoteric Dimensions
For Tantriks, Naths, and Shakta sadhakas, Basanti Puja is not merely seasonal—it is a time when the kundalini shakti of nature awakens. The flowering of spring is symbolic of the inner blossoming of consciousness. The Chaitra Navratri is used for deep meditations, Chandi sadhana, and yogic awakening.
The nine forms of Durga worshipped in Navratri—from Shailaputri to Siddhidatri—represent stages of human evolution. But in Basanti Puja in Shree Siddhashram, these Nine Devis are Different since it is Varahi Navratri. In the Basanti version, these stages are accompanied by the fragrance of nature’s awakening, symbolizing that spiritual evolution and natural renewal are intertwined.
Conclusion: An Intimate Celebration of Shakti
Basanti Puja in Bengal is a tender invocation of the Divine Mother during the spring—the season of regeneration. It is a festival that invokes not just the slayer of demons but the mother of the cosmos, the nurturer, the destroyer of inner darkness, and the awakener of inner light.
Though quieter than the autumnal celebration, Basanti Puja is deeper, closer to the roots, and saturated with ancient mysticism and rural grace. It is a return to the original rhythm of worship, a song sung with mustard flowers, folk chants, and a heart full of devotion.
As Bengal continues to evolve, may this springtime festival remind every seeker that the Goddess blooms not only in the loud processions of autumn but also in the quiet blossoms of spring.
