SALUTATIONS to the Divine
Mother, Durga, who exists in all beings in the form of intelligence, mercy,
beauty, who is the consort of Lord Shiva, who creates, sustains and destroys
the universe.
This festival is observed
twice a year, once in the month of Chaitra and then in Aswayuja. It lasts for
nine days in honour of the nine manifestations of Durga. During Navaratri (the
word literally means "nine nights") devotees of Durga observe a fast.
Brahmins are fed and prayers are offered for the protection of health and
property.
The Durga Puja is celebrated
in various parts of India in different styles. But the one basic aim of this
celebration is to propitiate Shakti, the Goddess in Her aspect as Power, to
bestow upon man all wealth, auspiciousness, prosperity, knowledge (both sacred
and secular), and all other potent powers. Whatever be the particular or
special request that everyone may put before the Goddess, whatever boon may be
asked of Her, the one thing behind all these is propitiation, worship and linking
oneself with Her. Everyone is blessed with Her loving mercy and is protected by
Her.
Durga Puja or Navaratri
commences on the first and ends on the tenth day of the bright half of Aswayuja
(September-October). It is held in commemoration of the victory of Durga over
Mahishasura, the buffalo-headed demon. In Bengal Her image is worshipped for
nine days and then cast into water. The tenth day is called Vijaya Dasami or
Dussera (the "tenth day"). Processions with Her image are taken out
along the streets of villages and cities.
Durga represents the Divine
Mother. She is the energy aspect of the Lord. Without Durga, Shiva has no
expression and without Shiva, Durga has no existence. Shiva is the soul of
Durga; Durga is identical with Shiva. Lord Shiva is only the silent witness. He
is motionless, absolutely changeless. He is not affected by the cosmic play. It
is Durga who does everything. Devi worship is, therefore, worship of God's
glory, of God's greatness and supremacy. It is adoration of the Almighty.
Shakti is the omnipotent power
of the Lord, or the Cosmic Energy. The Divine Mother is represented as having
ten different weapons in Her hands. She sits on a lion. She keeps up the play
of the Lord through the three attributes of Nature, namely, Sattwa, Rajas and
Tamas. Knowledge, peace, lust, anger, greed, egoism and pride, are all Her
forms. The worship of Devi, the universal Mother, leads to the attainment of
knowledge of the Self.
The original or Adi Shakti is
beyond human comprehension. Bhagavan Krishna says in the Gita:
"This is only My lower nature. Beyond this is My higher nature, the
life-principle which sustains the universe".
The Upanishad also
says: "The supreme power of God is manifested in various ways. This power
is of the nature of God, manifesting as knowledge, strength and activity".
Truly speaking, all beings in
the universe are Shakti-worshippers, whether they are aware of it or not, for
there is no one who does not love and long for power in some form or other.
Physicists and scientists have now proved that everything is pure, imperishable
energy. This energy is only a form of divine Shakti which exists in every form.
The Mother's Grace is
boundless. Her mercy is illimitable; Her knowledge infinite; Her power
immeasurable; Her glory ineffable; and Her splendour indescribable. She gives
you material prosperity as well as spiritual freedom.
Approach Her with an open
heart. Lay bare your heart to Her with frankness and humility. Be as simple as
a child. Kill ruthlessly the enemies of egoism, cunningness, selfishness and
crookedness. Make a total, unreserved, and ungrudging self-surrender to Her.
Sing Her praise. Repeat Her Name. Worship Her with faith and unflinching
devotion. Perform special worship on the Navaratri days. Navaratri is the most
suitable occasion for doing intense spiritual practices. These nine days are
very sacred to the Divine Mother. Plunge yourself in Her worship. Practise
intense repetition of the Divine Name, having a regular "quota" of
repetitions per day, and the number of hours spent on it.
Dussera can also be
interpreted as "Dasa-Hara", which means the cutting of the ten heads
of Ravana. So, let us resolve today to cut the ten heads--passion, pride,
anger, greed, infatuation, lust, hatred, jealousy, selfishness and
crookedness--of the demon, Ego, and thus justify the celebration of Dussera.
Religious observances,
traditional worship and observances at times have more than one significance.
Apart from being the adoration of the Divine, they commemorate stirring events
in history, they are allegoric when interpreted from the occult standpoint and,
lastly, they are deeply significant pointers and revealing guides to the
individual on his path to God-realisation.
Outwardly, the nine-day
worship of Devi is a celebration of triumph. This nine days' celebration is
offered to the Mother for Her successful struggle with the formidable demons
led by Mahishasura. But, to the sincere spiritual aspirant, the particular division
of the Navaratri into sets of three days to adore different aspects of the
Supreme Goddess has a very sublime, yet thoroughly practical truth to reveal.
In its cosmic aspect, it epitomizes the stages of the evolution of man into
God, from Jivahood (the state of individualization) to Shivahood (the state of
Self-realization). In its individual import, it shows the course that his
spiritual practice should take.
Let us, therefore, examine in
detail the spiritual significance of Navaratri.
The central purpose of
existence is to recognize your eternal identity with the supreme Spirit. It is
to grow into the image of the Divine. The supreme One embodies the highest
perfection. It is spotless purity. To recognize your identity with That, to
attain union with That, is verily to grow into the very likeness of the Divine.
The aspirant, therefore, as his initial step, has to get rid of all the
countless impurities, and the demoniacal elements that have come to cling to
him in his embodied state. Then he has to acquire lofty virtues and auspicious,
divine qualities. Thus purified, knowledge flashes upon him like the brilliant
rays of the sun upon the crystal waters of a perfectly calm lake.
This process demands a
resolute will, determined effort, and arduous struggle. In other words,
strength and infinite power are the prime necessity. Thus it is the Divine
Mother who has to operate through the aspirant.
Let us now consider how, on
the first three days, the Mother is adored as supreme power and force, as Durga
the Terrible. You pray to Mother Durga to destroy all your impurities, your
vices, your defects. She is to fight with and annihilate the baser animal
qualities in the spiritual aspirant, the lower, diabolical nature in him. Also,
She is the power that protects your spiritual practice from its many dangers
and pitfalls. Thus the first three days, which mark the first stage or the
destruction of impurity and determined effort and struggle to root out the evil
tendencies in your mind, are set apart for the worship of the destructive
aspect of the Mother.
Once you have accomplished
your task on the negative side, that of breaking down the impure propensities
and old vicious habits, the next step is to build up a sublime spiritual
personality, to acquire positive qualities in place of the eliminated
demoniacal qualities. The divine qualities that Lord Krishna enumerates in the
Gita, have to be acquired. The aspirant must cultivate and develop all the
auspicious qualities. He has to earn immense spiritual wealth to enable him to
pay the price for the rare gem of divine wisdom. If this development of the
opposite qualities is not undertaken in right earnest, the old demoniacal
nature will raise its head again and again. Hence, this stage is as important
in an aspirant's career as the previous one. The essential difference is: the
former is a ruthless, determined annihilation of the filthy egoistic lower
self; the latter is an orderly, steady, calm and serene effort to develop
purity. This pleasanter side of the aspirant's Sadhana is depicted by the
worship of Mother Lakshmi. She bestows on Her devotees the inexhaustible divine
wealth or Devi Sampath. Lakshmi is the wealth-giving aspect of God. She is
purity itself. Thus the worship of Goddess Lakshmi is performed during the
second set of three days.
Once the aspirant succeeds in
routing out the evil propensities, and develops Sattwic or pure, divine
qualities, he becomes competent to attain wisdom. He is now ready to receive
the light of supreme wisdom. He is fit to receive divine knowledge. At this
stage comes the devout worship of Mother Saraswathi, who is divine knowledge
personified, the embodiment of knowledge of the Absolute. The sound of Her
celestial veena awakens the notes of the sublime utterances of the Upanishads
which reveal the Truth, and the sacred monosyllable, Om. She bestows the
knowledge of the supreme, mystic sound and then gives full knowledge of the
Self as represented by Her pure, dazzling snow-white apparel. Therefore, to
propitiate Saraswathi, the giver of knowledge, is the third stage.
The tenth day, Vijaya Dasami,
marks the triumphant ovation of the soul at having attained liberation while
living in this world, through the descent of knowledge by the Grace of Goddess
Saraswathi. The soul rests in his own Supreme Self or Satchidananda Brahman.
This day celebrates the victory, the achievement of the goal. The banner of
victory flies aloft. Lo! I am He! I am He!
This arrangement also has a
special significance in the aspirant's spiritual evolution. It marks the
indispensable stages of evolution through which everyone has to pass. One
naturally leads to the other; to short-circuit this would inevitably result in
a miserable failure. Nowadays many ignorant seekers aim straight at the
cultivation of knowledge without the preliminaries of purification and
acquisition of the divine qualities. They then complain that they are not
progressing on the path. How can they? Knowledge will not descend until the
impurities have been washed out, and purity is developed. How can the pure
plant grow in impure soil?
Therefore adhere to this
arrangement; your efforts will be crowned with sure success. This is your path.
As you destroy one evil quality, develop the virtue opposite to it. By this
process you will soon bring yourself up to that perfection which will culminate
in identity with the Self which is your goal. Then all knowledge will be yours:
you will be omniscient, omnipotent and you will feel your omnipresence. You
will see your Self in all. You will have achieved eternal victory over the
wheel of births and deaths, over the demon of worldliness. No more pain, no
more misery, no more birth, no more death! Victory, victory be yours!
Glory to the Divine Mother!
Let Her take you, step by step to the top of the spiritual ladder and unite you
with the Lord!
Continue to Read:
Durga Puja
and Navaratri – by Swami Sivananda
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