Mahishasur Day observed at JNU

The third Mahishasur Shahadat Diwas, organized by the All India Backward Students' Forum (AIBSF) at Jawaharlal Nehru University, was held at the School of Social Sciences.

That the group promoting the 'worship' of Mahishasur is growing in confidence is evident from the venue change-it was earlier held in the hostel mess. "When we were trying to organize this for the first time," observes Jitendra Yadav, who started the event, "people refused to speak fearing trouble. Now there are more speakers than chairs on the stage."

Mahishasur, whose slaying by Durga is celebrated annually over 10 days, is regarded as a martyr in the rewriting of the tale. "The war between the gods and the asuras was actually a war between the Aryans and the non-Aryans," says Prem Kumar Mani, whose essay on the worship of Shakti had inspired Yadav. A discussion on Mahishasur is automatically a one on dalits, adivasis and all those who don't belong to mainstream Hinduism. "I don't believe in any kind of worship and I certainly don't want another devta. But Mahishasur Diwas is not about the puja. It should be observed through a discussion on our society," he said.

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