Jagaddhatri Puja

What is Jagaddhatri Puja?

Jagaddhatri Puja is a festival observed mainly in Bengal, where Mother Durga is worshipped in different forms at different times of the year. Jagaddhatri is one of her many names. In 2026 the festival falls on Wednesday, 18 November.

Significance

Durga has hundreds of names, each tied to a pastime. She is called Durga for killing the demon Durg, and she is also known as Kali and Jagaddhatri. The Brahma-samhita, the prayers of Lord Brahma, tells who she is: Maya, the external potency of the Lord, is worshipped by people as Durga, the agency that creates, preserves and destroys this material world.

She does not act on her own. Vaishnavas understand that Durga moves only in accordance with the will of Lord Govinda, Krishna, the original Personality of Godhead. That is the lens through which devotees see this festival.

I adore the primeval Lord Govinda in accordance with whose will Durgā conducts herself.

Brahma-samhita 5.44

How to observe it

Devotees use the day to remember that the whole material world runs on the Lord's arrangement. Chant the holy names of Krishna with extra attention, and read or hear a little from the Bhagavad-gita or the Srimad-Bhagavatam. Utthana Ekadashi follows on 21 November, so it is also a good day to prepare for that fast.