Navratri

Navratri - Dedicating 9 Nights to the Goddess

3 October to 12 October 2024

Millions of Hindu women consider Navratri the year’s central festival, the one they most deeply connect to. These nine days dedicated to Shakti, the Goddess, provide an opportunity to seek blessings and commune with their own divinity. It is a time for sacred gatherings, austerities, selfless acts and intimate prayers. But Navratri is not just for the ladies; everyone turns out for the joyous worship, festivities, plays, feasting and dance—all venerating God as the loving Mother Spirit that gives life to everything. 

What do Hindus do for Navaratri?

Navratri starts on the new moon of September/October. On the first day, it is customary to plant seeds in a clay pot which will sprout over the next nine days. In some communities, women prepare a specially decorated kalasha, a vessel symbolizing the fertile womb, representing the Goddess. Especially in cities in Tamil Nadu, families create elaborate shelf displays, called kolu, of handmade clay dolls. Adding new dolls each year and handing the collection down to the next generation results in some grand displays. 

How is Navaratri observed in homes?

Each night, the Goddess “holds court,” and special food offerings are presented as prayers eulogizing Her powers are chanted. Guests are invited to showcase their artistic skills, and all enjoy sweets and other treats. Women dress up and visit female friends and relatives, taking a tray of offerings which includes the betel leaf and nut that bear the gravity of a formal contract of friendship and loyalty. Other items on the tray—beauty accessories, fresh turmeric root and coconut—symbolize goodwill and fertility. They fast, pray morning and evening, and give food and cooking pots to the poor.  Some families formally honour a prepubescent girl each day, giving her new clothes, treating her to a sumptuous lunch, and pampering her, affirming her femininity and affinity with the Goddess. 

How are Shakti’s forms worshiped? 

The first three days of Navratri are dedicated to Goddess Durga (Warrior Goddess) dressed in red and mounted on a lion next three to Goddess Lakshmi (Goddess of Wealth and Prosperity) dressed in gold and mounted on an owl and finally, last three to Goddess Saraswati (Goddess Of K knowledge) dressed in milky white and mounted on a pure white swan. In this way, Hindus honour women as the protectors of the family, extol their powers of fertility and endurance, venerate them as the source of good fortune and revere them as repositories of culture and learning. In North India one of the nine aspects of Durga is venerated each day. These nine days are celebrated by communities in East India as Durga Puja, treating the Goddess as the Daughter who has come to Her maternal home for an annual visit.  

What is the final day? 

Vijaya Dashami, “triumphant tenth day,” celebrates Durga’s legendary victory over Mahishasura, a powerful being fraught with ignorance and selfishness. On the same day, many celebrate Rama’s victory over the evil Ravana. The celebration is a reminder to persist in the challenges we face in life. Local traditions vary widely, and this day is known by other names, including Dussehra, Dasara and Dashain. 

The joy of Navratri

In the evenings, devotees gather to perform Garba, Gujarat’s popular folk dance, is a vigorous dance performed in circles while twirling, jumping, flailing the arms, clapping rhythmically and stepping in sync. In the Dandiya-Ras, sticks are part of the choreography. Dancing is a community expression of joy and togetherness. 

Gujarat garba got UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) tag on 7 December 2023

Garba the famed folk art of Gujarat earned the coveted Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity ICH tag from UNESCO on Wednesday.

The festival of Gujarat in which lakhs of revellers swirl to the tunes of tunes of dhols music and folk songs in colourful attire like chaniya cholis, ghaghras etc during Navratri has become the first ICH of Gujarat.

Garba is a celebration of life unity and our deep-rooted predictions. Its inscription on the intangible heritage list showcases to the world the beauty of Indian culture. This honour inspires us to preserve and promote our heritage for future generations.

This is a moment of pride for Gujarati spread all over the world. This is a result of importance being given to the heritage of the country under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership shape and such heritage being big taken to the world. Congratulations to the people of Gujarat.

Origin of the word Garbo

Garbo originated from the Sanskrit word “Garbha” (womb) symbolised by a perforated earthen pot. The earthen pot known as “garbhadeep” became a symbol of omnipresent divine energy in the universe with the lit lamp emblematic of the Goddess’s divine energy. The pot eventually became the garbo around which song, dance and worship of Mother Goddess during Navratri began.

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