FOLK FESTIVAL AND AGRARIAN RITUALS OF COOCHBEHAR . Part I: Seasonal Vows, Rituals, and Women’s Participation.

 

Author - Biswarup Chatterjee.

        

        Cooch Behar constitutes one of the principal riverine and agrarian districts of West Bengal, where men and women engage in a wide range of rituals, ceremonies, and forms of worship throughout the year. Each festival observed in this district is marked by prescribed customs and rituals, performed on fixed dates and times. Significantly, the majority of participants in these vows (vratas), festivals (parvans), and related observances are women, among whom unmarried girls often play a particularly prominent role.

        As in many other districts of West Bengal, the practice of drawing alpana (ritual floor designs) is an integral feature of festivals and religious occasions in Cooch Behar. A notable example is the Pusuna ritual among the Rajbanshi community, which parallels the Poush Parvan observed in East Bengal. Many such rituals retain elements of magical orientation and carry a distinctly archaic character, reflecting their roots in folk belief rather than classical scriptural authority. Examples include Tistaburi, Meceni-khela vrata, Subachani, Katyayani vrata, Mangalchandi vrata, Nataichandi vrata, Madan Kamar vrata, and the Sonaray Magan Sangraha vrata, among others.

        One of the most important agrarian folk observances of the district is the Dhatti Puja. In this ritual, farmers plant banana saplings along the edges of their fields and offer milk, praying for a prosperous harvest. The persistence of tree worship in the district further underscores the continuity of animistic and agrarian belief systems over time.

         Other widely celebrated folk festivals include Baisakhi, Amati, Āṣāḍhi-sevā, Paddy-Flower Bringing, and Kṣeti-Lakṣmī Pūjā. These are often collectively described as Krishi Pūjā or Bhūmi Pūjā, signifying their deep connection to the rhythms of cultivation and the fertility of the soil. The well-known saying, “thirteen parvans within twelve months,” aptly captures how these seasonal festivals, closely tied to agricultural cycles and daily village life, have become inseparable from the cultural identity of the people of Cooch Behar. 

        In my upcoming blog, I will discuss certain distinctive forms of tree worship prevalent in this region.