ভূত চতুর্দশী or Bhoot Chaturdashi (‘bhoot’ means ‘ghost’ and ‘chaturdashi’ is the fourteenth night of the moon’s cycle) is a kind of Indian Halloween, which is observed in every Bengali household on the fourteenth day of Krishna Paksha i.e. during the waning period of the moon, and it happens before the new moon night — the night of Kali Puja or Diwali. Paksha refers to a fortnight or a lunar phase in a month of the Hindu lunar calendar.
It is said that on this night the evil spiritual powers are seemingly heightened on this night. In order to keep the evil spirits at bay, Bengalis ritualistically observe Bhoot Chaturdashi every year. On this day Bengali families light fourteen earthen oil lamps (prodeep or diya) around their houses at the juncture of dusk and night. Choddo Prodeep (চোদ্দ প্রদীপ) we call it. Choddo is fourteen in Bengali. On the entrance…
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