Navaratri: The 9 Divine Nights

5 Things We Need To Know
"Nava-ratri" literally means "nine nights." This festival is observed twice a
year, once in the beginning of summer and again at the onset of winter.
What's the Significance of Navratri?
During Navaratri, we invoke the energy aspect of God in the form of the
universal mother, commonly referred to as "Durga," which literally means the
remover of miseries of life. She is also referred to as "Devi" (goddess) or
"Shakti" (energy or power).
It is this energy, which helps God to proceed with the work of creation,
preservation and destruction. In other words, you can say that God is
motionless, absolutely changeless, and the Divine Mother Durga, does
everything.
Truly speaking, our worship of Shakti re-confirms the scientific theory that
energy is imperishable. It cannot be created or destroyed. It is always there.
Why Worship the Mother Goddess?
We think this energy is only a form of the Divine Mother, who is the mother of
all, and all of us are her children. "Why mother; why not father?", you may
ask. Let me just say that we believe that God's glory, his cosmic energy, his
greatness and supremacy can best be depicted as the motherhood aspect of God.
Just as a child finds all these qualities in his or her mother, similarly, all
of us look upon God as mother. In fact, Hinduism is the only religion in the
world, which gives so much importance to the mother aspect of God because we
believe that mother is the creative aspect of the absolute.
Why Twice a Year?
Every year the beginning of summer and the beginning of winter are two very
important junctures of climatic change and solar influence. These two junctions
have been chosen as the sacred opportunities for the worship of the divine power
because:
(1) We believe that it is the divine power that provides energy for the earth to
move around the sun, causing the changes in the outer nature and that this
divine power must be thanked for maintaining the correct balance of the
universe.
(2) Due to the changes in the nature, the bodies and minds of people undergo a
considerable change, and hence, we worship the divine power to bestow upon all
of us enough potent powers to maintain our physical and mental balance.
Why Nine Nights & Days?
Navaratri is divided into sets of three days to adore different aspects of the supreme goddess.
On the first three days, the Mother is invoked as powerful force called Durga in
order to destroy all our impurities, vices and defects.
The next three days, the Mother is adored as a giver of spiritual wealth,
Lakshmi, who is considered to have the power of bestowing on her devotees the
inexhaustible wealth.
The final set of three days is spent in worshipping the mother as the goddess of
wisdom, Saraswati. In order have all-round success in life, we need the
blessings of all three aspects of the divine mother; hence, the worship for
nine nights.
Why Do You Need the Power?
Thus, I suggest you join your parents in worshipping "Ma Durga" during the
Navaratri. She will bestow on you wealth, auspiciousness, prosperity,
knowledge, and other potent powers to cross every hurdle of life.
Remember, everyone in this world worships power, i.e., Durga, because there is
no one who does not love and long for power in some form or the other.
Goddess Durga
This festival is devoted solely to the Mother Goddess — known variously as
Durga, Bhavani, Amba, Chandika, Gauri, Parvati, Mahishasuramardini — and her
other manifestations.
The name “Durga� means “inaccessible�, and she is the personification of
the active side of the divine “shakti� energy of Lord Shiva.
In fact, she represents the furious powers of all the male gods, and is the
ferocious protector of the righteous, and destroyer of the evil.
Durga is usually portrayed as riding a lion, and carrying weapons in her many arms.
Lakshmi: Goddess of Wealth & Beauty!
Goddess Lakshmi means Good Luck to Hindus. The word 'Lakshmi' is derived from
the Sanskrit word Laksya, meaning 'aim' or 'goal', and she is the goddess of
wealth and prosperity, both material and spiritual.
Lakshmi is the household goddess of most Hindu families, and a favorite of
women. Although she is worshipped daily, the festive month of October is
Lakshmi's special month. Lakshmi Puja is celebrated on the full moon night of
Kojagari Purnima.
The Lakshmi Form
Lakshmi is depicted as a beautiful woman of golden complexion, with four hands,
sitting or standing on a full-bloomed lotus and holding a lotus bud, which
stands for beauty, purity and fertility. Her four hands represent the four ends
of human life: dharma or righteousness, kama or desires, artha or wealth, and
moksha or liberation from the cycle of birth and death.
Cascades of gold coins are seen flowing from her hands, suggesting that those
who worship her gain wealth. She always wears gold embroidered red clothes. Red
symbolizes activity and the golden lining indicates prosperity. Lakshmi is the
active energy of Vishnu, and also appears as Lakshmi-Narayan - Lakshmi
accompanying Vishnu.
Two elephants are often shown standing next to the goddess and spraying water.
This denotes that ceaseless effort, in accordance with one's dharma and
governed by wisdom and purity, leads to both material and spiritual prosperity.

A Mother Goddess
Worship of a mother goddess has been a part of Indian tradition since its
earliest times. Lakshmi is one of the mother goddesses and is addressed as mata
(mother) instead of just devi (goddess).
As a female counterpart of Lord Vishnu, Mata Lakshmi is also called 'Shri', the
female energy of the Supreme Being. She is the goddess of prosperity, wealth,
purity, generosity, and the embodiment of beauty, grace and charm.
A Domestic Deity
The importance attached to the presence of Lakshmi in every household makes her
an essentially domestic deity. Householders worship Lakshmi for the well being
and prosperity of the family. Businessmen and women also regard her equally and
offer her daily prayers.
On the full moon night following Dusshera or Durga Puja, Hindus worship Lakshmi
ceremonially at home, pray for her blessings, and invite neighbors to attend
the puja. It is believed that on this full moon night the goddess herself
visits the homes and replenishes the inhabitants with wealth. A special worship
is also offered to Lakshmi on the auspicious Diwali night.
Goddess Saraswati & Vasant Panchami
As 'Diwali' – the festival of light – is to Lakshmi, goddess of wealth, and
'Navaratri' is to Durga, goddess of strength, might and power, Vasant Panchami
is to Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge and learning. She represents the free
flow of wisdom and consciousness. She is the mother of the Vedas, and chants to
her, called the 'Sarasvati Vandana' often begin and end Vedic lessons.
The festival is celebrated every year on the 5th day of the bright fortnight of
the lunar month of Magha the day called 'Vasant Panchami'. Hindus celebrate
this festival with great enthusiasm, and temples and households are full of
activities on this day.
This 'Panchami' is also known as Saraswati Day, because it is believed that on
this day the goddess was born.Saraswati, the goddess of wisdom, art and music
is the daughter of Lord Shiva and Goddess Durga. It is believed that goddess
Saraswati endows human beings with the powers of speech, wisdom and learning.
She has four hands representing four aspects of human personality in learning:
mind, intellect, alertness and ego. She has sacred scriptures in one hand and a
lotus — the symbol of true knowledge — in the second. With her other two
hands she plays the music of love and life on a string instrument called the
veena.
She is dressed in white — the symbol of purity — and rides on a white swan
that symbolises Sattwa Guna or purity and discrimination. Saraswati is also a
prominent figure in Buddhist iconography — the consort of Manjushri.The
colour yellow is given special importance on Vasant Panchami. On this day,
Saraswati is dressed in yellow garments and worshipped. People prefer to wear
yellow clothes on this holy day. Sweetmeats of yellowish hues are distributed
among relations and friends. Some people feed Brahmins, some perform
Pitri-Tarpan (ancestor worship) and many worship Kamadeva, the god of love on
this day.However, the most significant aspect of this day is that children are
taught their first words on this day, for it is considered an auspicious day to
begin how to read and write. Educational institutions organise special prayer
for Saraswati. The great Indian guru Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya laid the
foundations of the world class academic institution of Kashi Hindu Vishwa
Vidyalaya on Vasant Panchami.Saintly people and individuals inclined towards
spiritual progress attach great importance to the worship of goddess Saraswati.
As a practice, only educated people and men of principle worship goddess
Saraswati for spiritual enlightenment. In their opinion, there can be no
comparison between the king and the learned or the spiritually advanced. The
king is honored within his kingdom, whereas the learned is respected or
worshipped throughout the world.Hinduism has taken into account special
significance of seasons and interwoven them with religiousfestivals. During
Vasant Panchami, seasons undergo change and the coming of springtime is
heralded. Trees display new shoots and new life is evident in the woods and
fields. Nature decorates the mango trees with new blossoms, wheat and crops
enliven with evidence of new life.Vasant Panchami is a festival full of
religious, seasonal and social significance and is celebrated by Hindus all
over the world with verve and new sense of optimism. The first faint signals of
the forthcoming festival of Holi— the festival of colours — also manifest at
Vasant Panchami.
by Gyan Rajhans

Remain Blessed!
Duty is God, Work is Worship