| Boita Bandana | |
|---|---|
 Miniature boita (boats) used for Boita Bandana on Kartika Purnima | |
| Official name | Boita Bandana |
| Also called | Danga Bhasa |
| Observed by | Odias |
| Type | Asian |
| Significance | To commemorate the day when Sadhabas (ancient Odia mariner merchants) would set sail to distant lands of Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka for trade |
| Observances | Pujas, rituals, float miniature boats as a symbolic gesture of their ancestors' voyage |
| Date | Kartik Purnima- Full moon day in the month of Kartika in Odia calendar |
| 2023 date | 27 November |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Related to | Loi Krathong (in Thailand), Bon Om Touk (in Cambodia) |
Boita Bandāna (Odia: ବୋଇତ ବନ୍ଦାଣ boita bandāṇa) also known as Dangā Bhasā (Odia: ଡଙ୍ଗା ଭସା ḍaṅgā bhasā), is a traditional Odia maritime and naval festival celebrated annually throughout Odisha, India.[1] The name could be translated as "to float ritual boats and worshipping with lighted lamp" and comes from the tradition of making decorated boats, which are then floated on a river as a symbolic gesture of their ancestors' voyage.
Boita Bandana takes place in the early morning of Kartik Purnima which is the full moon day in the month Kartika in the traditional Odia calendar. Since it falls on the lunar phase of the solar calendar, the exact date of the festival changes every year. In the Gregorian calendar, the festival usually falls in the month of November. The festival is a celebrated to mark the commemoration on the day when Sadhabas (ancient Odia mariner merchants) would set sail to distant lands of mainland and insular Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka for trade and cultural exchange.[2][3]
A major commemoration of this festival called Bali Jatra is held at Gadagadia Ghata of Cuttack on the banks of Mahanadi river.[4][5]
- ^ "Boita Bandhana – Most Ancient Marine Trade Festival - OdissiPost". 2021-11-19. Archived from the original on 2021-12-11. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
- ^ Patnaik, Nihar Ranjan (1997). Economic History of Orissa. Indus Publishing Company. p. 117. ISBN 81-7387-075-6. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- ^ Uday Dokras (October 2020), Kalinga Maritime history, Indo Nordic Author's Collective, retrieved 9 February 2021
- ^ Orissa Review - Volume 45. Home Dept, Gov of Orissa. 1988.
- ^ Vanjani, Drishti (October 11, 2019). "The Great Indian festive culinary trail for November". The Asian Age.