Tuesday Photo Challenge – Force of Almighty

The topic for Tuesday Photo Challenge this week is Forces. This can have multiple interpretation right from force of nature to force of love. I decided to choose a little unconventional theme that I consciously choose not to think or write about – Force of Almighty.

I grew up in a Bengali household in India where praying and worshipping of God was not restricted to just rituals and celebration. My parents believed in the power of Almighty and I had no reason to question their belief. Until that fateful night of Nov 2011 when I lost my mother to an undiagnosed and sudden sickness. My system of faith had been shattered. I stopped praying.

Co-incidentally, I had been married into a family where they worshipped a two hundred plus year old deity – Shaam-Rai. On the Sri Krishna Jayanti or Janmasthami(birth day of Sri Krishna), the in-house temple is made open to all to partake in the grand ceremony of fasting, praying, worshipping and having prasad(sanctified offerings). The first year that I became a part of this ritual was after my son was born. Until then I had been living in different cities owing to my job.

It is strange that through my toddler my broken faith is getting a new shape. When he questions me on the history of our family deity, the rituals associated with Durga Puja or the need to light lamps on Kali Puja, I revisit my childhood to dig out reasons and help him create his own memories of faith. The Force of Almighty is acting through my child to give me reasons of believing in Him yet again.

Author: Sonia Chatterjee

An alumnus of Presidency College (Kolkata), Delhi University, and XIME (Bangalore), Sonia Chatterjee holds two post-graduate degrees in Chemistry and Management and an MFA in creative writing from Writer's Village University. With eight years of experience in the banking sector as a Branch Head, she took a sabbatical from the corporate world to start her blog soniasmusings.com. Her blog consistently featured in the Top Indian Blogs list from 2019 to 2024. Her articles have been published on various digital platforms such as Women's Web, Youth Ki Awaaz, Tuck's Magazine, and Period Magazine. She was invited as a speaker at the Breaking Barriers, Kolkata 2018 event by the Women's Web, at the Women Writer’s Fest, Kolkata, 2020, and the Crime Writers Festival, Kolkata,2025. Sonia has written two detective thrillers titled ‘Deal of Death – Introducing Raya Ray’ (2019) and ‘Diary, Deceit, and Death – A Raya Ray Adventure’ (Vishwakarma Publications, 2024) and a non-fiction book on true crime titled ‘The Sanyasi Who Became a King’ (Sristhi Publishers, 2025). Her book ‘Diary, Deceit, and Death’ was shortlisted for the PVLF Awards 2024-25 in the Best Fiction Category. Sonia lives in Kolkata with her doctor husband and nine-and-a-half-year-old son. View all posts by Sonia Chatterjee