Durga Puja: Navratri and Ashtami

In brief

Durga is the Divine Mother, the Shakti (= power) that protects and renews the world. Her great festival is Navratri (= nine nights), kept twice a year, in Chaitra and in Ashwin. The home puja has three parts: setting up a sacred pot on the first day, a short daily puja, and a special worship of young girls on Ashtami or Navami. The Bengali Durga Puja, with its community pandals from Shashthi to Dashami, follows a different pattern. This page covers the home form. Customs vary, so follow your family's way or your priest's.

When to do it

• Navratri, from Shukla Pratipada to Navami, in Chaitra and in Ashwin.
• Ghatasthapana, on the first day, in the morning while Pratipada prevails, or in the Abhijit muhurat if the morning time is missed. It should not be done at night or on Amavasya. The site shows the time for your city.
• Ashtami and Navami for the special worship. Families choose one by custom.
• Each month's Ashtami, and Tuesdays and Fridays, are Devi days for many families.

What you need

• A picture or murti of Durga, on red cloth
• A wide shallow pot, clean soil, and barley or mixed grains for sprouting
• A kalash (= pot of water) of copper, brass or steel, with mango leaves, a coconut wrapped in red cloth, a red thread, a coin and akshat (= unbroken rice)
• Red flowers, kumkum, a lamp, incense and camphor
• Fruit and sweets for naivedya
• For Kanya Pujan: puri, black chickpeas and semolina halwa, cooked without onion or garlic, and small gifts

Puja vidhi (steps)

1. Clean the home and altar, bathe, and spread a red cloth. Worship Ganesha first with "ॐ गं गणपतये नमः" (om gam ganapataye namah).
2. Sip water three times (see the daily puja page) and state your sankalpa (= spoken intention) to keep the nine days, in your own words.
3. Do Ghatasthapana. In the shallow pot, make layers of soil and seeds, and sprinkle a little water.
4. Prepare the kalash. Fill it with water, add the coin, rice and a betel nut, place mango leaves around the rim, set the coconut on top and tie the thread.
5. Set the kalash in the centre of the pot and invite Durga to dwell in it for the nine days.
6. Offer a lamp, incense, flowers, scent and food. Many families keep a lamp lit all nine days (an akhand jyot). Others light it morning and evening.
7. Each morning, offer fresh red flowers and kumkum, water the sprouts and chant "ॐ दुं दुर्गायै नमः" (om dum durgayai namah) 108 times.
8. Read or hear the Durga Saptashati, the Durga Chalisa or a Devi prayer you know. Many families honour one form of the Goddess each day: Shailaputri, Brahmacharini, Chandraghanta, Kushmanda, Skandamata, Katyayani, Kalaratri, Mahagauri and Siddhidatri.
9. Do aarti in the morning and the evening, and offer naivedya.
10. On Ashtami or Navami, perform Kanya Pujan. Welcome nine girls, usually aged about two to ten, and often a boy as the Goddess's guardian. Wash their feet, apply tilak, offer a plate to the Goddess first, serve the meal and give small gifts.
11. Close on Navami or Dashami with a final aarti and a prayer for forgiveness. Share the sprouts as prasad.

Mantras and aarti

The aarti for this puja is the Durga aarti, with its text on the aarti page. The Durga stuti is on the mantra page, and the 108 names are on the namavali page. Families also recite the Durga Saptashati (the Devi Mahatmya), usually with a priest's guidance. Ask a priest or elder to guide pronunciation.

Many families fast, for all nine days, the first and last days or Ashtami only, often on fruit and grain-free food. People with health conditions, pregnant or nursing women, children and the elderly should follow their doctor's advice and may keep a lighter fast.

Doing it in the USA

Lamp. A nine-day akhand jyot is a serious fire and safety question in an apartment, especially at night and when you are at work. Safer choices are a small ghee lamp lit only while you are home and awake, a lamp in a glass chimney on a metal tray, or an LED diya. Ask your priest whether a substitute is acceptable, and check your lease.

Barley. Sow it in a pot with potting soil near a window. Afterwards, put the soil and shoots in a garden or houseplant, not into public water.

Havan and smoke. Some families hold a havan (= fire ritual) on Ashtami or Navami. It makes heavy smoke, so many go to a temple for it. Use incense and camphor sparingly near alarms.

Time. Ghatasthapana happens in the morning, and the best window can fall during working hours, so ask your priest what to do. The date in the USA can differ by a day from India. If you host Kanya Pujan, invite children with their parents' permission and ask about food allergies.