Wisdom — Festivals & Mythology
Navaratri
Celebrating and Invoking the Divine Mother
Unlike the Gregorian calendar, the Hindu new year does not begin in January. It starts sometime in late March or April. Around this time, there is a change in seasons. The spring makes way for summer; the days get hotter and longer. Human beings attune their minds and bodies to the change in their surroundings. The Hindu festival Navaratri (nine nights) marks the cusp of seasonal change when the Devi or the Goddess is celebrated and honoured. She is the divine energy that permeates all nature and living beings. Only a female has the capacity, patience and courage to go through extreme pain and hardships to create life itself. It is easy to assume that the energy that courses through creation is feminine — the Divine Mother.
During Navaratri, the devotees attempt to get in touch with their inner energy. It is time for a physical and mental detox. People indulge in fasts, prayers, meditation, chanting and other spiritual practices. They take a break from sense gratification and indulge in self-purification by eating Sattvic food, offering prayers, and spending time in solitude and peace to invoke the Devi. The body is, after all, a temple. And by breaking away from the humdrum routine, the period of Navaratri prepares a devotee for the year ahead. There are four Navaratris in a year. The Chaitra Navaratri (in late March-April) and the Sharada Navaratri (in October) before Dusshera are the most important as the Sun’s movement turns during these periods.
In Hinduism, the Shakta sect or Shaktism revers the Devi (feminine representation of energy) as their chief deity. She is seen as the primordial energy, the cosmic force behind all creation, preservation, and destruction.
Through the nine days of Navaratri, nine different manifestations of Goddess Durga are prayed to and celebrated. It is believed that during these days, Goddess Durga slew the Asura (demon) king Mahishasura.
This story is recalled in songs and mantras and enacted in plays and dance dramas. On a symbolic level, Goddess Durga stands for our will and invincible force that vanquishes all negative tendencies — anger, lust, sloth, aggression — represented by the Asuras. Beginning today, I’ll narrate the tale of Goddess Durga’s battle with Mahishasura. Jump into the story wagon if you wish to know how and under what circumstances the Divine Mother manifested for the first time.
Mahishasura Vadha Katha: Beginning with Rambha and Karambha
These were dark ages when the Asura clans had expanded their power from Patala (the region below the Earth, rightfully belonging to Asuras. Not to be confused with Hell) to the Earth and Devaloka. The Asuras were fierce warriors. Some were steadfast in their prayers and penance, like Rambha and Karambha, the two Asura brothers who practised intense austerities for hundreds of years to beget sons. They chose the holy Panchanada lake [1] for their penance.
Proficient in the art of Pranayama [2], Karambha submerged himself in the Panchanada lake while meditating on his diety. Rambha, on the other hand, offered his prayers under a Peepul tree near the banks of the lake. The tree was home to several Yakshas and Yakshinis ( nature spirits). Rambha lit a fire around him and sat in meditation to please his deity, Agni Dev (Fire God). As happens in most stories, Indra (the king of Devas) became quite insecure with the prayers of Rambha and Karambha. He entered the lake disguised as a crocodile and ate Karambha in one gulp.
(to be continued)
Notes
[1] Interestingly, Panchanada (meaning five rivers) is the name of an actual place in the Bahawalpur District of Pakistan; a confluence point of five rivers of the Punjab region, namely Indus, Ravi, Beas, Sutlej, and Chenab. During Mahabharata times, ‘Panchanada’ was the name given to Punjab. The present name Punjab can be broken as ‘Punj’ (five) and ‘aab’ (the Persian word for ‘water’)
[2] Pranayama: The yogic practice of breath regulation.
