NAVRATRI THE FESTIVAL OF THE MOTHER GODDESS

Navaratri or navratri, which literally means “Nine Nights”, is a holiday dedicated to the worship of Devi or Śhakti, the divine Mother, the feminine expression of God.
Navaratri is celebrated with great devotion throughout India and the rest of the world.

HOW DO YOU CELEBRATE IT?

The celebrations begin with the arrival of the new moon of the lunar month of Ashvina (September-October) and last for nine days, so the celebration falls on different days each year. chants, customs and traditions are observed that can vary greatly, depending on the geographical area, the distinct traditions and customs of individual families.The Navaratri festival is known, especially in northern India, also as Durgotsava, the feast of Durga, in which the nine forms of Durga are venerated, the one who is difficult to win, almost the unbeatable.

The traditions of Navratri

In many South Indian traditions, the first three days are dedicated to Durga, a divine expression of strength, powerful energy capable of destroying the demons of selfishness and adharma; the following three days Lakshmi is worshiped, an expression of generosity, of the light that dispels ignorance, of physical and spiritual prosperity; the last three days are instead centred on the cult of Sarasvati, an expression of pure knowledge and art.

NAVRATRI AND THE WOMEN

Navratri is a holiday particularly dear to women from all over the world and of all ages; in fact, in these 9 days, women are venerated and respected as the purest expression of the Devi, of the mother. In some families, the women of the family are invited to sit in the house and symbolically they are worshiped as the Devi, they are offered food, cereal seeds, new clothes, dancing, etc.

NAVRATRI THE FESTIVAL OF THE MOTHER GODDESS

Navratri symbolically but sometimes also practically can also mark a new beginning for many, a moment in which one purifies oneself of one’s sins and begins anew with vivified and stronger spiritual energies.

At the end of the nine nights, on the tenth day, the festival known as dasahara, which dissolves the ten sins or errors, is celebrated. This tenth day is also known as vijayadashami, “the tenth day of victory”. The latter name refers to a myth present in the puranas in which the birth of Durga and the origin of Navratri is narrated.

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