Navratri-Dussehra

October 8, 2019

Navratri (नवरात्रि) has been a great festive occasion since childhood. ‘नव’ means nine, ‘रात्रि’ means night. It's a nine-day celebration followed by Dussehra. Various forms of the goddess are worshiped through the nine days. Though she is one, she is represented in many different forms - Durga, Lakshmi, Saraswati for some and then the other 9 forms of her for others. 

As a kid, the last day of Navratri had a huge significance for us, young girls. We will get called to almost every house in the neighborhood, seated in a row our feet were washed, then we were worshipped and fed and at the end given a gift, usually a 1 or 2 rupee coin and sometimes a pencil or handkerchief if we get lucky. The first few of those visits would be great, as one would be with an empty stomach. After that one had to exercise some negotiation skills so that the host doesn’t put extra halwa or puri in the plate before one could protect it with the shield of one's own hands. The women after 9 days of fasting were just looking to get the blessings of the goddess and make their tapas a success through us. The day of Dussehra use to be reserved to go out and see Ravana-Dahan. 

The Devi incarnated to kill the demons and Lord Rama fulfilled his mission long back but what is the significance of these festivals today? On the surface, it looks like the time devoted to the worship of goddesses. One might call it the worship of women or the feminine power. If one goes a level deeper it is the worship of the power of manifestation, the shakti (शक्ति). The word Shakti has its root in the Sanskrit root शक् (Shak) - to be able to do something. Shakti is the energy or the power that creates, nourishes, sustains us and works through us. She is worshiped as hunger, thirst or anything else you name it and she is there.

Dussehra is a good occasion to think about where we are feeding our ravanas. Have the ravana heads in the mind died? The Kama (Lust), Krodha (Anger), Lobha (Greed), Moha (Delusion), Mad (Pride), Matsarya (Jealousy) all sprout like the heads of Ravana through the Ego and the feeling of smallness underneath. The false identification with these lets these heads feel like they belong to us.

Recently at least 3 different people at different levels of affinity with me, acknowledged that they had a feeling of jealousy towards someone. I must say they have got the strength to accept tough emotions otherwise almost everyone has them at some time to varying degrees. How does one resolve them? 

Sage Patanjali mentions ‘Pratipaksha Bhavana’ in the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali. 

वितर्कबाधने प्रतिपक्षभावनम्

‘When one is disturbed by the conflicting thought, one should think of opposite thoughts.’

It is a powerful thought to get back to the self before the Ravana heads are superimposed on others and the ramas are perceived as the killers. The source and the triggers for the ravanas are inside but the outside object is falsely understood as the reason for it. In fact, almost every conflicting emotion finds its root in the false sense of smallness - अपूर्ण भावः. This Dussehra may you focus more on the पूर्ण Rama inside you!