Left to right: Sanjay Gupta, IAF President Raj Mittal, Rajiv Sharma and Master of Ceremonies Mamta Narula welcome Chief Guest Shanti Doot Shri Devkinandan Thakur Ji Maharaj to the Dushahra Celebration. EDISON — The 15th annual Dushahra Festival drew a crowd to the township’s Lake Papaianni Park on Sept. 28 for cultural performances, music, food, fireworks and other activities.
The Dushahra Festival is based on the Hindu belief that Lord Rama killed the demon Ravana on this day. People continue to symbolize that event each year by marking its importance as the “victory of good over evil.”
For Hindus, the festival brings the occasion to worship the virtues of God King Rama, reinforcing his life and good deeds while inculcating the “good versus evil” concept in children.
The burning of a Ravana effigy remains as the major highlight of this festival. Ravana was believed to have abducted Rama’s wife Sita, and was terrorizing other kingdoms. The importance of Dushahra emanates from this story, when Rama — with the help of monkey gods — defeats Ravana, thus paving way for the defeat of evil and all its vices.
Sharad Agarwal, second from left, and Bindu Krishna, third from left, portray Rama and Sita for the re-enactment of the couple’s wedding at the Dushahra Celebration held Sept. 28 in Edison. Committee members and dignitaries on stage bless the couple. PHOTOS COURTESY OF BINDU KRISHNA Twenty days after Dushahra, Hindus celebrate Diwali, when Rama is said to have returned to his Kingdom Ayodhya after killing Ravana.
Fifteen years ago, Mangal Gupta, the late founder and chairman of Indo American Festival Inc., had a dream to celebrate Dushahra in the United States. The committee members, with the leadership of Gupta’s wife Chanchal Gupta, have strived for two years without him to continue his dream.