Celebrating the Spirit of Dussehra

“Good must triumph over evil. It usually does in life and in any case it is bad for young people to believe it doesn’t.” -Barbara Cartland

The themes of good prevailing over bad are as old as it gets. Crossing over the boundaries of geographies, races, ethnicities and even cultures shaped over centuries, the story of good winning over bad is a truly universal concept.

The story of Dussehra, where Ram stands for good and prevails over the ten-headed Ravana representing the bad, is one of the most popular fables of our country. Dussehra also marks the first significant festival of Hindu festive season in India.

Dussehra Celebrations in India

There are many popular melas organized to celebrate this victory of good over bad.

Kota in Rajasthan is quite famous for its grand Dussehra celebrations. Similarly Dussehra in Mysore is quite a royal affair with the direct involvement of the royal family of Wadiyars.

There is much fanfare on Dussehra in Mysore. The mighty royal palace is brightly lit with sparkling lights, candles and diyas. There are royal elephants, cavalry and mesmerizing fireworks, all coming together to celebrate the victory of good over bad.

Festival of Dussehra presents you with many opportunities to make your children keen participants in many interesting activities, be it as performers or joyful spectators.

There are delicacies, ferry rides, overwhelmingly big and artsy effigies, sparkly lights and loud crackers.

There is drama, there are tales, there is a general sense of having that time of the year where everything seems celebratory.

What`s there not to like for a young sprightly child?

And there is also an opportunity for imparting an important lesson in a fun way to your children about fighting their own inner demons in the life ahead of them.

Celebrating the Spirit of Dussehra with Your Children

• Explore Power of Story-telling

 Mythology is all about story-telling.

Most of the world`s religious and mythological scriptures are simply a collection of powerful stories of good prevailing over bad. Dussehra is the time when the story of Ramayana comes to life through various memorable characters and directly engages your child with which character stands for what side of the story and whom to idolize, or not.

Engage your children in the story, or rather stories, behind Dussehra and simplify the heavy symbolism for those young minds. Nothing captivates their curiosity like a good old story.

•  Learning Through Play

Dussehra is preceded by 9 days of “Ram-Leela”, bringing the events leading to “Ravana-Dahan” to life by actors and narrators. Indulging in your nearby “Ram-Leela” staging with your children every night before Dussehra is a great activity in itself. But what could be really interesting for your kids is to take part in “Ram-Leela” and learn this compelling story of good over bad through engaging play.

It will be a childhood memory to cherish for a lifetime.

•  Learning by Example

Children tend to learn a great deal when presented with understandable and relatable examples. The fables in the story of Dussehra serve great many examples for good and bad situations, good and bad actions and the consequences of those actions.

The symbolism and semiotics in these stories become subconscious anchors to relate different characters with particular characteristics and various situations with their outcomes, leaving a lasting impression on young nimble minds.

• Sparking Power of Imagination

Fantastical stories deep rooted in mythical tales and creatures have always captured the imagination of young children. There is a certain lure and an innocence that makes them all wide-eyed, curious and amazed at these fascinating tales of kings, queens and prince-princesses, of demons and villains, of mystical powers and creatures.

The children are very imaginative in their thinking and helping them explore various festivals helps them understand the cultures, build a sense of belonging and spark their power of imagination.

Engage them into art and craft activities through which not only they will have fun but will also both explore and exercise their imagination and creativity.

We`re organizing a special Dussehra Camp for age group of 3-8 years (Story of Ramayana through Hand Puppets) and for age group of 8-14 years (Dussehra Themed Bookmark Making Activity using Gond Art), and other festive art and craft activities, on 23rd October 2020.

Check all the details of the Dussehra Camp here : http://thebanyanworld.com/online

“Everyone has demons. What matters is how you tame them.”

This Dussehra, engage your child in the spirit of the festival and help them fight their inner demons, even if imaginary ones.