Devotees take part in an immersion procession of Goddess Manasa in Bhagalpur on Sunday. The puja was held on August 17. They sang ditties about how Behula conquered death to save husband Lakhindar, who died of a serpent bite after being cursed by snake-goddess Manasa. Inspired by the folklore of Behula and Lakhindar, the festival is celebrated each year in the town. Rajiv Sinha, a senior history teacher at Tilka Manjhi Bhagalpur University, said the origin of the festival celebrated in Bihar, Bengal, Assam and Bangladesh, could be traced to oral traditions. He has recently published a book on the subject discussing how the tradition had given birth to the Manjusha art form. “Like Madhubani, Manjusha is a reflection of folklore, poetry, religion and social practices of Anga Pradesh,” he added. Nabard has started a Manjusha Development Project to promote the art form. Text by Gautam Sarkar, picture by Amit Kumar