Navaratri, A Celebration of Life

We know it’s Navaratri when we see Indian women, clad in their most elegant attire, hopping around chirpily. The men are on a completely different schedule now. They typically unleash their inner Bakāsur (a gobbling demon) to feast on the sweet-meat spread!

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In all, Navaratri, the nine festive nights of Devi, adds color and enthusiasm to life. Even so, the excessive socializing for Navaratri in current times has pushed its real purpose to the backseat. This post is my humble attempt at reviving this festival’s sacredness.

Gratitude for The Seasons

The Navaratri or Navaratra fest happens four times yearly — one for each of the four seasons. From spring to winter, the Navarātris are named after the lunar month of their occurrence. Those are

• Spring: Chaitra Navarātri
• Summer: Ashadha Gupt Navarātri
• Fall/Autumn: Sharad Navarātri
• Winter: Magha Gupt Navarātri

Of those, the summer and winter Navarātris, aptly named Gupt or hidden, aren’t as well known. These are mostly reserved for Sadhana[1].

The spring and fall ones are the most popular, with the latter being a big-ticket event. Famous or not, all four…