Navratri, which begins tomorrow September 24th, 2014, is the festival to celebrate the Hindu Goddess Durga. Durga is honored as one of the many forms of Shakti in Hindusim and Tantra Yoga. Navratri means "nine days" in Sanskrit, and the festival covers nine days. The nine day period is significant as this marks the period of the battle where Durga fought and slayed the demon Mahishasura. So Navratri is a period where we celebrate the triumph of good over evil.
Durga is the Goddess of inner strength, courage, justice and protection. During Navratri we also honor and celebrate Lakshmi and Saraswati. The first three days are to Durga, the second three days are to Lakshmi and the final three are to Saraswati.
It is typical during this time to fast, or to eat a mostly vegetarian diet and sub stain from grain and alcohol. I will be sharing different ways to honor Durga, as well as Lakshmi and Saraswati during this time. I will be posting tomorrow a full puja (or ritual) that you can use to honor Durga.
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