Navratri

Navratri dedicates nine nights to the worship of Goddess Durga's nine forms (Navadurga), celebrating the power of Shakti and, on the tenth day, her victory over the buffalo demon Mahishasura. Each of the nine nights is associated with a different form of the Goddess and, in many regions, a specific color worn by devotees.

Devotees observe fasts for all or part of the nine days, light an unbroken lamp (Akhand Jyot) that burns continuously through the festival, and gather each evening for Garba and Dandiya-Raas folk dances performed in circles around the lamp or an image of the Goddess. The festival closes with Kanya Pujan, where young girls are worshipped as living forms of the Goddess and offered food and gifts.

As per the Markandeya Purana, the Goddess battled the shape-shifting demon Mahishasura for nine days and nights before finally defeating him on the tenth, an event still marked as Vijayadashami (Dussehra). Different regions of India observe Navratri differently: as Durga Puja in Bengal, as Garba-Dandiya nights in Gujarat, and as Ram Lila performances leading to Dussehra in North India.

It is said that Lord Rama, too, worshipped Goddess Durga for nine days before his battle with Ravana, performing a Chandi Homa to seek her blessing and strength, and that his eventual victory on Vijayadashami is directly tied to this period of devotion - which is one reason Navratri and Dussehra are celebrated back-to-back.

• •Ghatasthapana
• •Kanya Pujan
• •Garba
• •Shastra Puja

• •Durga Saptashati Recitation
• •Homa
• •Sandhi Puja

• •Durga Puja in Bengal
• •Garba in Gujarat
• •Mysuru Dasara

Dos and Don'ts