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India is a country that celebrates a large number of Hindu festivals. The rich historical and cultural background of the country gets manifested in the different festivals that are observed here. Festivals have their own historical significance, meaning and reasons associated with it. One of the most important Hindu festivals is the Navratri. As the name signifies, it means nine nights. The festival is dedicated to Goddess Durga. In fact, each of the nine days is dedicated to different forms of Goddess Durga. The celebration starts on the first day of Ashwini. The dates of the festival are fixed in accordance with the lunar calendar. The Navratri festival is an indication of power, wealth, prosperity and knowledge.
The first three days are devoted to the worship of Goddess Durga in her different appearance. Kumari, Parvati and Kali are the three different forms of Goddess Durga and they are worshipped on the first, second and third day of Navratri respectively.
The fourth, fifth and the sixth day is dedicated to the worship of Goddess Laxshmi- the Goddess of prosperity and peace.
Goddess Saraswati – Goddess of art and knowledge is worshipped on the seventh day and a ‘yagna’ is performed on the eighth day to bid farewell to Goddess Durga.
The ninth and final day of Navratri celebration is known as ‘Mahanavami’ and on this day Kanya puja is performed. On this occasion nine young girls who have not yet reached the stage of teens are worshipped to honor Goddess Durga. The nine girls stand as a representative of the nine forms of Goddess Durga.
It is a common belief that if we worship Goddess Durga she will bless us with wealth, prosperity, wisdom and also help us in gaining inner strength to face the various odd obstacles of life.
The main ritual of this festival consists of placing the images of Goddess Durga in homes and temples. Fruits and flowers are offered to the God and bhajans and devotional songs are sung in her praise. The nine day celebration of Navratri terminates on the tenth day of Vijay Dashmi, with the immersion of Goddess Durga in the water. During the nine days there are feasting, fasting, chanting of religious hymns, prayer, meditation and performance of religious dances. In Gujarat the Rasa and Garba dances are performed. They are the distinctive dances of the Gujaratis and are performed widely in India during the Navratri festival.
Last Updated On: 2011/07/04
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