Navratri
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Navratri | |
| Observed by | Hinduism |
|---|---|
| Type | Festival of worship and dance. |
| Date | April |
| 2008 date | April 12 |
| Celebrations | 9 days |
Navratri (Sanskrit: नवरात्रि) is a Hindu festival of worship and dance. The word Navaratri literally means nine nights in Sanskrit; Nava meaning Nine and Ratri meaning nights. During these nine nights and ten days, nine forms of Shakti (metaphor for goddess Durga ) i.e. female divinity are worshipped.
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[edit] Significance
The beginning of summer and the beginning of winter are two very important junctions of climatic and solar influence. These two periods are taken as sacred opportunities for the worship of the Divine Mother. The dates of the festival are determined according to the lunar calendar.
Dasaharara, meaning ‘ten days’, becomes dasara in popular parlance. The Navaratri festival or ‘nine day festival’ becomes ‘ten days festival’ with the addition of the last day, Vijaya-dasami which is its culmination. On all these ten days, Mother Mahisasura-mardini (Durga) is worshipped with fervor and devotion.
[edit] Traditions of Navaratri
There are five Navarathris devoted to the worship of Sakthi. Out of these only three are being celebrated now.
1. Sharad Navaratri - This is the Navaratri, which is celebrated during Sharad Ruthu (beginning of winter) (Sept-Oct). This is also called Maha Navaratri. Sharad became Sharada in some places. This celebrates the slaying of Mahishasura by Durga. The festival is observed in most parts of India - especially in the East and South. In South India some observe it as commemorating the slaying of Bandasura.
2. Vasantha Navaratri - This is celebrated during Vasantha Ruthu (beginning of summer) (March- April). This Navaratri is celebrated in North India. Vaishno Devi temple in Jammu observes Navaratri during this period.
3. Ashada Navaratri - This Navaratri is particularly important for all Upasakas of Varahi- Celebrated in July-August. This is called Guhya Navaratri in Himachal Pradesh. Varahi is one of the seven Matrikas of Devi Mahatmya!
[edit] Sharad Navaratri
Commences on the first and ends on the tenth day of the bright half of the lunar month Aswayuja/Asvina.
‘The Navaratri festival has to be celebrated during the bright fortnight of the month of Asvina, in the order of pratipada, etc, until the navami ends,’ says the Dhaumya-vacana.
Celebrated in the states of Andhra Pradesh,Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal.
In all these places the Navaratri is celebrated in all the Devi temples with special Pujas and recitation of Devi Mahatmya.
There are a number of traditions with different kinds of worship at home and in special places.
[edit] Gujarat
"This festival is essentially religious in nature. It is celebrated with true devotion in the various temples dedicated to the Mother, or Mataji, as she is familiarly called. In some homes, images of the Mother are worshipped in accordance with accepted practice. This is also true of the temples which usually have a constant stream of visitors from morning to night.
Another interesting feature of Navratri is the garba. a circular dance performed by women and men around an earthenware pot called a garbo , filled with water. A betel nut and a silver coin are placed within the pot, called a kumbh, on top of which a coconut has also been placed. As the dancers whirl around the pot, a singer and a drummer and their band provide the musical accompaniment. The participants dance in a steady rhythm. Nowadays, loudspeakers are used to enhance the sound which grows to a crescendo. The dance usually starts slowly. The dance and music start to go faster and faster, until the dance abruptly comes to a halt. There is a pause for a while and the dance commences once again, the singer leading with a new song.
Another dance which is also a feature of Navaratri is the dandya-ras or 'stick' dance, in which men and women join the dance circle, holding small polished sticks made of wood or plastic called dandyas. As they whirl to the intoxicating rhythm of the dance, men and women strike the dandias together, adding to the joyous atmosphere. So popular are the garba and the dandia-ras that competitions are held to assess the quality of the dancing. Prizes are given to those judged to be the best. The costumes for the dances are traditional and alive with colour. The dances usually commence late in the night and continue until early morning, testifying to their great popularity."[1]
[edit] Karnataka
The hallmark of Dussehra festival in Karnataka is the famous royal celebrations held in Mysore city.
The traditional Golu (pronounced as Golu or Kolu) or Bombegalu or the display of dolls by young girls at their homes, holds its own charm.
"Bommai" is dolls and "Kollu" stands for displaying. These dolls depict gods or village scenes and weddings.
Bommai Kollu is done by constructing wide tiers or steps in any number, seven at the maximum. The number of tiers or steps should be evenly arranged, like, one, three, five, and so on. One can erect nine steps, provided, space and time permits. A variety of dolls are displayed artistically and arranged beautifully on the steps.
Mysore Dasara
The Tradition and History of Dasara
The Mysore kings, Wadiyars, were subordinates of the Vijayanagara emperors. They declared independence at the decline of the empire in 1610 AD and tried to retain the latter’s goodwill by continuing the traditions started by them. Raja Wadiyar, the founder of the Mysore kingdom, started the Navaratri festivities in order to celebrate his new - found freedom, and issued an order that the days be observed with piety and splendor by one and all. Initially, as the rulers had their stronghold in Srirangapatn, now a satellite town of Mysore city, the festival continued undisturbed even during the annexation of Mysore (then state) by Hyder Ali and followed by Tippu Sultan’s rule between 1761 and 1799.When Mysore State was restored to Mummadi (lit. ‘ third’)Krishnaraja Wadiyar in 1799, the capital was shifted to Mysore city from Srirangapatna, and the Navaratri festivities began to be performed with greater magnificence in the new capital with the introduction of a special durbar (‘audience’ or ‘royal assembly’) for the Europeans, and direct participation by the common masses.
The attendance of the Europeans indicates the friendly ties that the king had with the colonial rulers, apart from the spreading of the popularity of the event in western media. The festival became a tradition of the royal household and reached its zenith during the rule of Nalvadi (lit. ‘the fourth’) Krishnaraja Wadiyar (1902-1940 AD).
The wooden royal palace of Mysore City was famous for its intricate carvings and embellishments of gold and precious stones. Swami Vivekananda during his itinerant days was a royal guest and had several sessions with the king in this palace. Unfortunately, the palace was destroyed in a fire accident in 1897 and a new palace was built in its place by 1912, surpassing the glory of the previous one with the introduction of electrification and European expertise. The royal durbar, the procession of caparisoned elephants with the king seated in a golden howdah (throne with a canopy) followed by his ministers, administrators, the royal staff and the military came to an end with the taking over of all the kingdoms by the Indian Union in 1947.
The last crowned king, Sri Jaya Chamarajendra Wadiyar, tried to revive the tradition in his personal capacity after a few years, but the old charm was missing. With the annexation of states from kings by the national government, and upon the demise of Jaya Chamarajendra Wadiyar in 1974, the tradition again suffered a setback and Mysore almost lost its unique festival until the Government of Karnataka decided to celebrate it as a state fiesta minus the royal entourage.
Today, on the occasion of the world famous Jambu Savari or Dasara procession on the dasami day, apart from NCC, Scot, and other school and college student displays, tableaus depicting the land’s culture and history, fold-art performances, etc, and volunteer groups follow the caparisoned elephants, one of which (Drona has been doing it since many years) carries the image of Goddess Bhuvanesvari Devi. Bhuvanesvari (a name of Mahisasura-mardini), incidentally, is the goddess of Mysore, and she is none than Durga. She has a temple situated on the hill in Mysore - The Chamundi Hill. There is also the mythological legend, saying that it was on this hill that Mother Chamunda killed the demon Mahisa. In a Bengali article published several years ago in Desh, a famous researcher who conducted a through research on where exactly Durga worship started, says that Mysore is perhaps one of the oldest place of Mother worship. And the reason? It was here that the Mother killed the demon. Apart from the procession, a carnival providing the latest gadgets and amenities to the general public with attractive displays and amusements for all age groups is also being held since 1877. Celebrated musicians, dance and theatre groups perform and add color to the celebrations.
What kings did during Dasara
What exactly would take place in Mysore during the time of the kings on Navaratri is interesting. We should remember one important point. The kings of Mysore would begin their war-expedition against enemies and also attempt to expand their boundaries on the Vijayadasami day. More about this later. So, Vijayadasami, the tenth day of Navaratri, is special for Mysore kings. What they would do during Navaratri is detailed here.
The Divine Mother Durga would be worshipped on all these nine days of Navaratri as ‘Sailputri, Brahmacarini, Candraghanta, Kusmanda, Skandamata, Katyayani, Kalaratri, Mahagauri and Siddhida. On the first day, the king, after having a ceremonial bath, would perform purificatory rites. He would then worship his family deity, Goddess Chamunda, in the palace along with the worship of Lord Ganesa, and would wear the ceremonial, sacred wrist - band which signified his intention to perform the sacred puja with devotion and dedication. He would then enter the durbar to the accompaniment of sacred chants and music. The tradition of the durbar, an adoption from the Mugal emperors, was first introduced by Mummadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar in September 1805, and it is an assembly of the royal court, attended by the invitees, chief citizens, members of the royal family, palace officials, royal priests, and the intelligentsia.
After this, the king would worship the navagrahas, the nine sacred deities, and then the sacred kalasa. He would also worship the throne as per the Kalika Purana injunctions. He would then circumambulate the throne thrice and ascend it at an auspicious moment. Later royal insignia and sword were presented to him amid prayers to Karya-sri Gauri. At that moment all the lights in the palace would come alive, and there would be the royal 21- gun salute.
After this the king would sit on the throne and receive royal guests. Soon after this, the royal elephant and horse would receive ablutions and worship. The court would present the king with the offerings received from various temples and religious centers (mathsa). This was followed by Vedic chants, sprinkling of holy waters and blessings by the royal priests. The vasslkings, dewans, army chiefs and other royal staff would come and offer their respects to the throne in earlier times. Musical instruments would start an ensemble accompanied by dance performance, and the blowing of conches and trumpets with the parade of uniformed soldiers and other staff.
The beautifully decorated royal elephant arrived showering roses on the assembled guests; and the royal horse, equally well - decorated, would bend down on its knees in salutation to the throne. The assembly would leave the court after bowing down to the king once again and the queen, accompanied by the other royal ladies, would come to pay obeisance to the king who would share the offerings received from the temples with them. The queen mother and the other senior ladies would bless him good health. The king would then leave the durbar hall and partake of the noon meal with the royal guests, after praying to the Goddess once again.
The same procedure would be followed on all the Navaratri evenings with the addition of acrobatic feats, wrestling bouts by champions, fireworks display and other entertainment’s, watched by the teeming masses everyday. While the durbar would be held in the outer court the worship would be done within the palace. The king would worship Goddess Sarasvati on the seventh day and Mahisasuramardini on the eighth. On the mahanavami day, the royal sword would be worshipped ceremoniously, signifying the worship of all the weapons and would be taken out in procession accompanied by the army, elephants, horses, camels and the royal retinue.
The sword would be received by the king at the palace gates and kept at the feet of the Divine Mother. The king would then worship a local deity - an aspect of the Divine Mother - named as Amaladevi Amma. Special worship, Candi worship, fire sacrifice (home) with purnahuti would all be performed with great devotion at the Chamundi Hill temple. The assembly rooms of the palace and the royal insignia would also be worshipped. The king, after performing all these ceremonies, would remove the sacred wristband, signifying the close of the rituals.
On the Chamundi Hill, the Divine Mother would be served in many ways on all these days. She would be taken out of the temple, for instance, and using beautifully lighted floats, would be taken for boat rides in the lake adjacent to the temple. Thousands of devotees would come from everywhere to see these ceremonies.
The Navaratri celebrations would reach their culmination with the grandest Vijayadasami celebrations, also called in popular parlance as Jambu Savari. The grandeur and magnificence of this event has popularized the Navaratri celebrations of Mysore both in India and abroad. On this day, after ablutions, the king would worship the royal sword again and place it in a palanquin, would offer an ash gourd smeared with vermilion as sacrifice to it. He would follow the grand procession, seated on the historically famous golden howdah bedecked with the rarest gems and pearls, which was carried by the royal elephant. The royal throne on which the king used to sit is made of gold and is said to have been used by Dharmaraja, the illustrious Pandava king. It was rediscovered by the great sage Vidyaranya during the establishment of the Vijayanagara Empire and was subsequently presented to the Mysore kings. There’s also a legend, which says that this very throne is the Vikramaditya throne.
The beginning of the traditional Vijayadasami procession, which is continued even today with the same - if not more - fervor and devotion, would be announced with a 21- round gun salute. The important streets of Mysore city would be decorated beautifully with electric bulbs. Millions of people from everywhere would stand on both sides of the route - as they do today also - to witness the grand procession. After a mile - long walk, the procession would reach the Bannimantap site, where the king, after a bath, would worship the sami (orbanni in Kannada) tree. This sami tree is supposed to have been used by the Pandavas to hide their arms during their one - year period of forced incognito life. Arjuna is said to have retrieved his bow Gandiva from this tree in order to help Uttara Kumara defeat the marauding Kaurava army. Worshipping this tree before embarking on anywar adventure was customary for kings of this dynasty. The Wadiyar king would return to his palace after viewing the wonderfultorchlight parade and the grand fireworks display at Bannimantap. That would conclude the Vijayadasami festivities.
The next day, after the Goddess Camundesvari would be worshipped with great devotion, the king would honor distinguished personalities by conferring titles on them. That would mark the close of the grand ten - day - long celebrations during the days of the kings.
[edit] Kerala
The celebrations are mainly conducted in temples. The devotees throng the temples to witness the special pujas. Vidyarambham is of prime importance.
[edit] Maharashtra
Special pujas conducted in the temples. Huge rush of worshippers to the temples.
[edit] Orissa
Orissa has a number of Chandi temples. Here Navaratri assumes considerable significance as its celebration is mentioned in the Devi Mahatmya.
[edit] Tamil Nadu
Other than the special Pujas in the Devi temples, Tamil Nadu also has a tradition of Golu (Bommai Kolu).rachita
[edit] Vasantha Navaratri
This is celebrated during Vasantha Ruthu (beginning of summer) (March- April). This is also known as Chaitra navaratri as it falls during the lunar month of Chithra.
[edit] Forms of Shakti
Nine forms of Shakti are worshipped during the Navaratris. The Devis worshipped depend on the tradition of the region.
- Durga, the inaccessible one
- Bhadrakali
- Amba or Jagadamba, Mother of the universe
- Annapurna, The one who bestows grains (an) in plenty (purna)
- Sarvamangala, The one who gives joy (mangal) to all (sarva)
- Bhairavi
- Chandika or Chandi
- Lalita
- Bhavani
- Mookambika
[edit] Rituals
The Navratri commences on the first day (pratipada) of the bright fortnight of the lunar month of Ashwin. The festival is celebrated for nine nights once every year during the beginning of October, although as the dates of the festival are determined according to the lunar calendar, the festival may be held for a day more or a day less.
Navaratri is celebrated in different ways throughout India. In the South Indian states of Tamil Nadu & Karnataka, it is celebrated by setting up of Golu (pronounced as Golu or Kolu) or Bombegalu. It is believed[who?] that this was a means to invite people home to celebrate the festivities with them. In Karanataka, particularly Mysore on the 10th day the enacting of destruction of evil (Ravana destroyed by Rama) is displayed with the lighting of dolls representing Ravana and forces of evil (2.5 millennia earlier version of the British Guy Faukes Day - Nov 5th).
Navratri is divided into sets of three days to adore three different aspects of the supreme goddess or goddesses.
[edit] First three days
The goddess is invoked as a spiritual force called Durga also known as kali in order to destroy all our impurities, vices and defects..
[edit] Second three days
The Mother is adored as a giver of spiritual wealth, Lakshmi, who is considered to have the power of bestowing on her devotees inexhaustible wealth. She is the goddess of wealth blaptangs
[edit] Final three days
The final set of three days is spent in worshipping the goddess of wisdom, Saraswati. In order to have all-round success in life, believers seek the blessings of all three aspects of the divine femininity, hence the nine nights of worship.
In South India, Saraswathi pooja is performed on the 7th day. Eight day is traditionally Durgashtami which is big in Bengal. The 9th day is Ayudha Pooja when everyone gives their tools of the trade -- pens, machinery, books, automobiles, school work, etc. a rest and ritually worships them. They start afresh from the next day, the 10th day which is considered as 'Vijaya Dashami'. Many teachers/Schools in south India start teaching Kindergarten children from that day onwards. Students also pay homage to their respective teachers as they are considered the third god (Maathaa, Pitha, Guru, Daivam - Mother, Father, Teacher & God). On this tenth day of Navratri in October - the holiday of Dussehra or Dasara, an effigy of Ravana is burnt to celebrate the victory of good (Rama) over evil.
During Navratri, some devotees of Durga observe a fast and prayers are offered for the protection of health and property. A period of introspection and purification, Navratri is traditionally an auspicious and religious time for starting new ventures.
During this vowed religious observance, a pot is installed (ghatasthapana) at a sanctified place at home. A lamp is kept lit in the pot for nine days. The pot symbolizes the universe. The uninterrupted lit lamp is the medium through which we worship the effulgent Adishakti, i.e. Sree Durgadevi. During Navratri, the principle of Sree Durgadevi is more active in the atmosphere. [1]
Navratri is celebrated in a large number of Indian communities. The mother goddess is said to appear in 9 forms, and each one is worshipped for a day. These nine forms signify various traits that the goddess influences us with. The Devi Mahatmya and other texts invoking the Goddess who vanquished demons are cited.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Why do we celebrate Navaratri?
- Navratri Celebration!
- Navaratri - Celebrating the Symbolic Vision of the Goddess Article of the Month - October 2007
- Vaishno Devi and Navratri Story
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