What is Nauraatri About?

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'Nav' means 'nine' and 'ratri' means 'night'. Thus, 'Navratri' means 'nine nights'. There are many legends attached to the conception of Navratri like all Indian festivals. All of them are related to Goddess Shakti (Hindu Mother Goddess) and her various forms. It is one of the most celebrated festivals of Hindu calendar, it holds special significance for Gujratis and Bengalis and one can see it in the zeal and fervor of the people with which they indulge in the festive activities of the season. Dandiya and Garba Rass are the highlights of the festival in Gujarat, while farmer sow seeds and thank the Goddess for her blessings and pray for better yield. In older times, Navratri was associated with the fertility of Mother Earth

who feed us as her children.The first three days of Navratri are dedicated to Goddess Durga (Warrior Goddess) dressed in red and mounted on a lion. Her various incarnations - Kumari, Parvati and Kali - are worshipped during these days. They represent the three different classes of womanhood that include the child, the young girl and the mature woman. Next three days are dedicated to Goddess Lakshmi (Goddess of Wealth and Prosperity), dressed in gold and mounted on an owl and finally, last three are dedicated to Goddess Saraswati (Goddess Of Knowledge), dressed in milky white and mounted on a pure white swan. Sweetmeats are prepared for the celebrations. Children and adults dress up in new bright-colored dresses for the night performances. In some communities, people undergo rigorous fasts during this season that lasts for the nine days of Navratri. The festival culminates on Mahanavami. On this day, Kanya Puja is performed. Nine

young girls representing the nine forms of Goddess Durga are worshiped. Their feet are washed as a mark of respect for the Goddess and then they are offered new clothes as gifts by the worshiper. This ritual is performed in most parts of the country. With commercialization, the festival has moved on to be a social festival rather than merely a religious one. However, nothing dampens the spirit of the devout followers of Goddess Durga, as they sing devotional songs and indulge in the celebrations of Navratri, year by year.Navaratri Festival 2010 Chaitra Navratri or Vasant Navratri: March 16, 2010 to March 24, 2010Sharad Navratri: October 8, 2010 to October 17, 2010.Navaratri StoryThe story associated with Navratri can be found in various Hindu religious texts like Markandeya Purana, Vamana Purana, Varaha Purana, Shiva Purana, Skanda Purana, Devi Bhagavatam and Kalika Purana. The story of Navratra is the symbolic message of the fact that however glorious and powerful the evil become, at the end it is the goodness that wins

over all of the evil. The story is associated with Maa Durga and Mahisasura, the buffalo headed demon. The story begins from the life of two sons of Danu called Rambha and Karambha who performed austerities by to gain extreme power and authority. When their prayers became deeper and austerities became exceptional, the King of the heaven God Indra got perturbed. Out of fear, he killed Karambha. Rambha, who came to know about his brother’s death, became more stubborn to win over the Gods. He increased the intensity of his austerities and finally got several boons from gods like great brilliance, beauty, invincibility in war. He also asked a special wish of not being killed by either humans or Gods or Asuras.He then considered himself immortal and started freely roaming in the garden of Yaksha where he saw a female-buffalo and fell in love with her. To express his love, Rambha disguised in the form of a male-buffalo and copulated

with the female buffalo. However, soon after that a real male buffalo discovered Rambha mating with the she-buffalo and killed him. It was due to Rambha’s inflated ego that killed him, out of which he has not asked his death to be spared from the wrath of animals. As the pyre of Rambha was organized, the female-buffalo, who was copulated with him jumped into the funeral pyre of Rambha to prove her love. She was pregnant at that time. Thus, demon came out of the with the head of a buffalo and human body and he was named Mahisasura (the buffalo headed demon).Mahishasura was extremely powerful. He defeated the gods and the demons and acruierd power over the entire world. He even won over the heaven and threw devtas outside it. He captured the throne of Indra and declared himself to be the the lord of the gods. The gods led by Brahma approached Vishnu and Shiva and evaluated them of the situation. In order to save the Gods, the three supreme

deities emerged a light of anger, which combined to the take the shape of a terrible form and this was Durga. All the gods then granted this Goddess of power with all the supreme weapons they had. This is why; Durga is called the brilliance of all the Gods.When the goddess was seen by Mahishasura, he was mesmerized by her beauty. Her then fell in love with her and proposed to marry her. The goddess said she will marry him, if he defeated her in the battle. Then began a scary and terrible battle between both of then which continued for nine days. Finally, on the last day, Durga took the form of Chandika and stood over the chest of Mahishasura and smashed him down with her foot. She then pierced his neck with her spear and cut off his head off with her sword. It is the day when Vijayadashmi is celebrated.The nine-days of Navratri festival are dedicated to the Almighty. The devotees of Ma Durga would perform special pujas to invoke the deity and pray for peace, prosperity and happiness. Fasting and singing bhajans are the two highlights of the festival. While the way of celebrating the occasion might be different in different regions of the country, but the thought among all remains the same - to praise the

Lord and seek her blessings. Goddess Durga temples are flocked by devotees, where they offer prayers, perform aarti and chant mantras. Talking about Navratri mantra, it is chanted during the puja by the devotees, to protect themselves from evil. In the following lines, we have given Navratri mantra.Mantras For NavaratriYa devi sarva bhutesu, shanti rupena sansitha Ya devi sarva bhutesu, shakti rupena sansthitaYa devi sarva bhutesu, matra rupena sansthita Namastasyai, namastasyai, namastasyai, namo namaha!Sarva mangala maangalye shive sarvaartha saadhikeSharanye trayambake GauriNarayani namosthuteNamoh devyai mahadevyai shivayai satatam namahNamah prakrutyai bhadraayai niyataah pranataahsma taamAnnapoorne sadapoorne shankarah praanavallabheNjana vairaagya sidhyardham bhikshaam dehi cha parvatiIn India, Navratri is celebrated twice- once in Chaitra as Chaitra Navratrai and then in Ashwin as Shardey Navratri. According to the Gregorian calendar, the first one falls in March- April and the second one comes in the month of September – October. The celebrations of both these Navratri in India is full of extreme zest and enthusiasm. Apart from the celebrations, there is immense devotion, joy and passion in the country about the arrival of the Goddess of Shakti. In both these Navratri, the devotees of Maa Durga observe fast for the nine days and please Mata Rani with various sholkas and bhajans dedicated to her. In this article, we

have dealt with a special aspect of the Pooja, the Pooja Thali and Vrat Bhijan Thali. Read this article to know more about the Navratri pooja thali and Navratri vrat thali in detail. Navratri Pooja ThaliIn order to accumulate the entire Pooja material, it is always better to arrange all the little things required during Pooja into a Pooja Thali. This may consist of things like roli, vermilion, flowers, sacred water, bhog materials like dry fruits and sweets etc. Generally people decorate this Thali in a very artistic manner in order to give more aesthetic look to the pooja. So, once you have arranged all the Pooja items, you simply need to arrange it in a beautiful Thali. The decoration of Thali is not a tedious task either. All you need to do is simply decide what kind of thali you are looking for. Silver, brass or a steel

thali, any of them is perfectly fine. You can decorate the Pooja thali by using beautiful clothes, gulal powder or flowers. Navaratri Vrat ThaliA Vrat Thali is basically the thali that includes of food items for the devotees who observe fast. As, during the fast, it is compulsory to eat only satvik food, there are limited options available for the fast-observers. However, now days, cookery experts have come up with extremely scrumptious recipes out of these limited options. Even in hotels, there is a specific satvik thali available by the name of Navratri Vrat Thali which consists of special food for the people on fast. A Vrat Thali may consist of items like Aloo Sabudane Ki Tikki, Palak Paneer, Sookhi Arbi, Dahi Pudine Wale Aloo, Makhane Ki Sabzi, Shakarkandi Ki Chaat, Pudina Raita, Aloo Papad, Sago Papad, Sawank Ke Chawal, Kuttu Ki Poori among others. You can thus also prepare the satvik thali or Navratri thali as per

you own choice.A most Blessed Nauraatri 2010 to all devotees and sadhanas.