Navaratri 2022: Durga Puja Rituals and Dos and Don’ts

New Delhi: Navaratri is one of the most spectacular and widely celebrated festivals across India. Several homes perform elaborate puja and visit Durga Puja pandals to pay respects and worship the goddess that symbolises the triumph of good over the evil.

This year, the Sharad Navaratri began on Monday, September 26, 2022, and will end with Vjayadashmi on Wednesday, October 05, 2022.

Though the Durga Puja is an important festival in the eastern states of West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, and Jharkhand, it is widely observed in the states of Tripura, Maharashtra, Chhatisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, and Gujarat.

The festival is a series of ancient traditions that are expected to be observed for a period of nine days, starting from the Mahalaya to the Vijayadashmi, with every day holding a peculiar significance.

Goddess Durga is invoked and invited to visit the Earth for a week on the Mahalaya. An exquisite idol of Goddess Durga is installed on podiums across cities and houses.

The altar is thoroughly cleansed and a Kalash is placed as a mark of Durga’s presence. A ceremony is performed on the seventh day or Saptami of the idol’s establishment in the house. The veneration is called Pranah Pratishtha.

Next, a little banana plant, called Kola Bou (meaning Banana Bride), is draped in an Indian saree and bathed in a nearby river. It is believed to absorb the spirit and divinity of the goddess.

Different prayers are offered to the goddess each day. The goddess is worshipped as a virgin little girl, Kumari Puja, on the eighth day or Ashtami. The puja is performed to maintain the holiness of the female energy. It is believed that Durga transforms into a little, innocent girl (Kumari) after the puja.

The goddess is offered prayers with a fire ceremony known as Maha Aarti on the Navami or the ninth day. Goddess returns to her husband’s house on the final day of the puja, and the idols are brought for immersion in water bodies.

Idols from pandals and homes of devotees are immersed in city lakes, a local non-perennial river, ponds, etc. Besides, married women offer crimson powder (Sindoor) to the goddess and daub selves with marriage, fertility, and childbearing.

Huge rallies and processions are carried before the immersion to celebrate her last day on the planet. It also indicates sending the goddess with respect and pomp.

Here are a few Dos and Don’ts to keep in mind while performing Navratri Puja:

1. Since Goddess Durga stands for the strength of the female gender, make sure to respect women around us, especially those residing in our vicinity. The festival is a reminder to respect the women citizens.
2. When lighting an Akhnad Jyot, make sure it faces in the Southwest direction. People who keep the Akhand Jyot are expected to follow all rules and regulations during the entire festival without breaking any regulation.
3. It is believed that bathing early followed by Puja rites brings good luck. People who have idols or are observing fasts are expected to wake up early morning and bathe at the earliest.
4. Try to keep homes free from any type of strife, arguments, or fights because a calmer house attracts happiness and prosperity.
5. Refrain from consuming non-vegetarian foods, alcoholic beverages, and smoking. People, especially those fasting, should also avoid onions and garlic.
6. Ensure that foods offered to the goddess also do not contain any onions or garlic. Use rock salt instead of convention salt.

(Avya Mathur)