Growing up in the foothills of the Sundarbans. The Bhola River flows on the west side of this area. Once that is over, the Sundarbans is home to the Royal Bengal Tiger. Baleshwar river on the east side; The Bay of Bengal can be seen by driving a trawler for an hour and a half.
As a child, the tigers of the forest would occasionally cross the Bhola River and attack people; Nirupaya people used to kill those tigers by mass washing. Back then, wildlife conservation was not as effective as it is today.
Again, many fishermen could sail in the Baleshwar river and fish in the habitat of those tigers at the risk of their lives. Of course, the tiger is the king of the tiger kingdom. The tigers would snatch the lives of many prisoners by getting there. Many would come back and fight with the tigers. Yet this journey of livelihood does not seem to stop; Although the accident rate has come down a bit, fishermen still go to the deep Sundarbans in search of fish.
But in earlier days the rules were less; Or there was laxity in law enforcement. For example, in those days one of the businesses of the people of this region was to sell the beautiful wood of the forest on the black market. It was pretty much an open secret. In other words, even though it was forbidden, everyone used to do this illegal work freely.
These illegal timbers were sold freely in different markets of the country including Swarupkathi in Pirojpur which is famous for timber. In those days it was a symbol of nobility to be able to build houses or furniture with this wood.
But now that day is no more. At present, the sale and purchase of beautiful wood is almost zero. The implementation of the law has brought these benefits to the Sundarbans.
Not just wood; These restrictions have also been imposed on honey collection or fishing. In earlier days, honey or fish like wood could be collected freely from the interior of the Sundarbans. Although there were detailed laws and policies in this regard. But the day has changed. Now only fishermen and mouals can enter the Sundarbans subject to the payment of rent at the time fixed by the government.
This rule now applies to other economic issues related to the Sundarbans. As in the past, if anyone wanted to go for a walk in the deep Sundarbans like Hiran Point or in the deep forest like Dublar Char, they would go for a walk in a regional trawler.
Now that day is no more; Only government-approved tourist launches can penetrate deep into the Sundarbans; Which is very expensive (10 to 15 thousand rupees per person). The exception to this, however, occurs at a specific time each month - he's coming to the discussion later.
I have done the above discussions mainly to inculcate in your heart a mental picture of the life and economic resources of the people of the Sundarbans. Otherwise, it may be difficult for the readers to believe the myths or legends surrounding the Sundarbans.
However, it is not possible to discuss everything; Today we will discuss only the annual Ras Mela of Dublar Char located in the deep forest of the deep Sundarbans.
Imagine for a second you were transposed into the karmic driven world of Earl Tiger, Crocodile and Snake.
Yeah Al that sounds pretty crap to me, Looks like BT aint for me either. Reality is sharper and harder than you think! A search of the Sundarbans coastal fishing families has revealed that none of their relatives went fishing in the Sundarbans and returned.
Not just the fear of tigers; Natural disasters also claimed their lives. There is no telling how many prisoners died during the catastrophic Sidr alone! There is no government account. And yes, through these fears, beliefs and disbeliefs, myths and legends have formed in the minds of the people of the coast. There is a myth that there is a Ras festival inside the Sundarbans every year.
Ras Utsav is basically an annual festival of Hindus. Although now it has become a public festival. The festival is held every year at the end of the month of Kartik or during the full moon at the beginning of the month of Agrahayan.
Followers of Hinduism bathe in the salt water of the full moon tide and go there to attain holiness. They believe that this bath will atone for their sins and fulfill all the good desires of the mind.
Dublar Char is located at the very end of the Sundarbans, in the lap of the Bay of Bengal. Situated between the Kunga and the Dead Animals, the island is essentially a temporary fishing village. Fishermen live there for four months of the year.
After catching hilsa in the monsoon season, fishermen from different parts of the country settled in Dublar Char. There they catch different species of fish and make dried fish. After making dry goods for four-five months, they are loaded on their boats and taken to different parts of the country for sale.
This is how the life cycle of these fishing families is cut. Often, if someone dies on the way, his fellow fishermen cannot even bring his body to his relatives. They are thus bound in the cruel cycle of fate!
The Ras festival is held just before the return of the fishermen. As if the festival before the farewell!
There are many opinions on how this event started. There are differences of opinion as to when it started. Some say that the festival began about 200 years ago today. Some people say that the festival started long before that. That is, there is no specific history in this regard. However, there are many myths about how it started.
The descriptions found in various books are only the written form of these original folktales. One such anecdote is mentioned in the book 'History of Jessore-Khulna' published from Calcutta in 1917.
Long ago, there was a merchant named Dhanpati in Bengal. His name was similar to his work. He was a real tycoon. His residence was at Ramnagar in Paikgachha upazila of Khulna. That rich man was going to Sinhala one day. Suddenly he saw an enchanting lotus flower blooming on the sea. And there is a beautiful goddess standing on that lotus.
The merchant opened the incident after seeing Devidarshan and told it to King Shalibahar of Sinhala and his minister Gajanan. After hearing the narration, the king said to the merchant, "This is the goddess Kamalkamini. We worship her. But we have never seen her." The king did not float in the sea to see the goddess.
But the philosophy of Goddess Kamalkamini no longer matches. The king became angry and imprisoned the merchant.
Meanwhile, the merchant left a son in the womb of his wife Khullana before going out on a voyage. A few days later the child is born. His name is Srimanta. When Srimanta grows up, he learns from his mother that his father was unjustly imprisoned by the Sinhalese king Shalibahar.
Srimanta set out for Sinhala to free his father. On the way, he also saw the goddess Kamalkamini standing on the lotus like his father.
Arriving at Sinhala, Srimanta, like his father, told the king about the incident. The king also imprisoned Srimanta like his father with false accusations. He even sentenced both of them to death.
Now it's time to implement. One day the father and son were put to bed. The executioner will throw his head with the sword now. At that time the invisible goddess Kamalkamini became visible. She came dressed as an old woman and begged the king for the life of her father and son. The Sinhalese king suddenly recognized the goddess and realized his mistake. As a result, he released his father and son.
Not only that, he married his beautiful daughter to the son of a merchant and sent her to Bengal loaded with jewels and pearls. But on the way there was a sudden roar in the sea. The merchant's boat sank.
At that time the goddess Kamalkamini floated in the lotus and rescued them and reached the mouth of the river Kunga and disappeared again. This Kungar arrow is Dublar Char. And that day was the date of Ras Purnima. Since then, the worship of mother Kamal Kamini has been held at Dublar Char near the Bay of Bengal at the mouth of Kunga River.
Mother Kamalakamini was very beautiful. That is why beautiful girls are called 'Kamalasundari'.
Now at this time of the year, i.e. during the Ras Mela, one can easily enter the Sundarbans. You can go to Dublar Char by adding trawlers by paying rent to the government at a fixed rate. From different points of Khulna, Bagerhat and Satkhira one can travel towards this char. On this one occasion, Dublar Char became the locality of the festival, but the living diary of the cruel life of thousands of prisoners is also Dublar Char in the deep forest!
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