Ashram Navratri News Update - March, 2023

March 12, 2023  |  by Ramloti

Dear Friends,

In a little over week the Divine Mother Festival, Spring Navratri, will begin. It is a glorious nine days when we set aside extra time to thank, adore, and celebrate our beautiful Mother. The first day is Wednesday, March 22 and the celebration will continue through Thursday, March 30. We hope you will join in as much as possible.

Navratri was always celebrated in India with Shri Babaji where He was often honored as the Divine Mother and draped in a chuni or veil and hundreds would travel from all over to be with Him. Navratri continues to be celebrated at His Ashrams both in India and around the world each Spring (Chaitra) and Fall (Ashvin). It is a time of great importance and was celebrated in the Mahabharata and Ramayana era. It is a time when our prayers are multiplied because millions of people are celebrating at the same time around the world. The time during which Navratri prevails is said to be the period when Mother Nature undergoes a huge change climatically and engenders much change in our bodies, it is a good time for spiritual practices. This is a festival of nine days and nights. The number 9 indicates Shakti – the power and energy that creates the whole universe. Hence, this power of Nine Divine Nights can change the life, destiny, and future of an individual. Navratri comes in our life as a Divine Light and Power in the form of Hope.

Each day of Navratri consists of Paduka puja, aarati, Devi Puja, recitation of the Haidakhandeswari Sapta Sati, Sacred Fire Ceremony, Chanting, and Discourse on the Divine Mother from the Srimad Devi Bhagavatam. These all occur in the morning until just before 1pm. The remainder of the day consists of a meal (if you are eating; many people do some kind of fast such as: no food, only fruits and vegetables, or one meal a day), karma yoga cleaning up and preparing for ceremonies the next day, and evening aarati.

We will live-stream several of the ceremonies on Haidakhandi Universal Ashram Facebook Page beginning at 8:30am with the Devi Puja. At 11am we will live-stream the Fire Ceremony, Chanting and Discourse. If you plan to attend in person, a call to the Ashram at 719-256-4108 is appreciated. We will upload the ceremonies to YouTube at the Ramloti Wood Channel each afternoon, so you can follow along if you miss the live-stream. Each morning at 8:30am we do a sweet puja to the deity of the day. The first three days of Navratri we honor Mother Durga. She helps purify and destroy the aspects in us that keep us from our spiritual path. On the next three days, we honor Mother Lakshmi, asking Her to fill in the places we have just eliminated with more satvic or life-giving qualities. The final three days, we honor Mother Saraswati, asking Her to assist us in putting our new satvic qualities into action. She is also the one that bestows Divine Knowledge on us.

This will be followed by the recitation of the Haidakhandeswari Sapta Sati. These 700 verses in praise of the Divine Mother were written by Shri Vishnu Dutt Shatriji and he said that She was standing next to him the whole time he was writing it. This will not be live-streamed but you can follow it on YouTube with many beautiful photos of Mother at https://youtu.be/0V7Nft-cvcw.

Here is part of the introduction to the Sapta Sati
"Above all the Gods who come and go in the consciousness of man through the rise and fall of civilizations, in the abode of infinite space, in absolute peace where time is no more, there resides the Great Mother of all creation, one with Her Lord, the Supreme Spirit.

The Great Goddess, matrix and creatrix of all that is, takes as many forms or aspects of manifestation as the human mind can conceive. Within and without, it is always She who weaves the patterns of all life as the Divine Force behind everything perceived by the senses. She is Universal and has many names: we call Her Haidakhandeshwari, Vishveshwari, and Maha Lakshmi."

Shri Babaji said, “The Great Power that is the cosmic Maya, the Supreme Divine Energy, the Mother Goddess of Haidakhan embodies the totality of all that is to be known. She is the combined divine Grace-Energy of the Goddess Maha Kali, Maha Lakshmi, and Maha Saraswati. To worship the Universal Goddess while we are in this mortal frame gives human life its highest realization.”

After the Sapta Sati reading, we will be preparing for the sacred Fire Ceremony. Throughout the day as karma yoga is being done, the repetition of the Devi Mantra taught to us by Shri Shastriji is very beneficial. “Om Aing, Hring, Kling Chamundayai Viche.” You can tune into five malas of repetition at https://youtu.be/GuEP6WaBiRw.

Each day at the Sacred Fire Ceremony we will be describing that day’s Devi of the Nine Forms of the Goddess. It is said that during Navratri, the Mother Goddess appears in nine different Forms, and each one is worshipped for a day. These nine Forms signify the various traits that are influenced by the Goddess. According to the Markendeya Puran the worship days for the various forms of Goddess Durga are as follows:

Day One: Wednesday, March 22 - Ma Shailputri

Navratri begins with the worship of the Ma Durga in the form of Shailputri Devi, whose name means Daughter of the Mountain. In fact Shailputri is the daughter of the king of the Himalayas, and is considered the purest incarnation of Mother Durga. Goddess Shailputri embodies The Powers Of Lord Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Married to Lord Shiva, Ma Shailputri has many divine powers.

Worshipping of this Goddess is believed to fulfill all our internal desires or wishes, as well as grant good health and even moksha. This is the reason Mata Shailaputri is often referred as Anantha Phaladayini, the bestower of immense wishes.

Day 2: Thursday, March 23 – Ma Brahmacharini

The benign and peaceful form of Brahmacharini brings serenity and calmness in the mind and instills a great degree of self-confidence. As Brahmacharini, the Divine Mother is the greatest Yogini and a Guru to the world. Brahmacharini means in whom the nature of Parabrahma (divine consciousness) is prevalent, so by worshiping Her the ultimate nature of your own self, which is the Goddess, will come alive in your experience. She is meditated upon in a peaceful form where she holds rosary and kamandalu in Her hands, which both are symbols of spiritual austerities for divine realization. As Parvati, when She performed her penance, even Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, and Saptarishis bowed down to Her as Her penance stood unparalleled and highest among all yogis. She is the Goddess who is worshiped by all Yogis and realized sages. She is the storehouse of knowledge and wisdom.

Day Three: Friday, March 24 – Ma Chandraghanta

As Chandraghanta, Divine Mother is a fiery warrior who takes down all evil endlessly. She is meditated upon with a ten armed form holding trident, mace, sword, bow, arrow, lotus, rosary, kamandalu, Abhaya, and Vara mudras. She is seated on a tiger. The purpose of worshipping Goddess Chandraghanta, the third manifestation of Devi Durga, is both related with internal and external situations. Chandraghanta has a mark of moon on her forehead, which represents Her calmness and meditativeness. She is a fierce Warrior who is always taking down Asuras in war, but still She's untouched by anger. She's always internally calm but at the same time very active in doing Her job. This form of Mother teaches us about inner balance, as many times we lose our balance and react senselessly which is followed by regret. So with the worship of Chandraghanta, Her devotee is reminded to remain calm and react in any situation only after clear analysis.

Day Four: Saturday, March 25 – Ma Kushmanda

As Kushmanda among the nine Durgas, She is regarded as the Universal Mother because everything that exists is born out of Her. She is the womb/source from which Shiva (time), Vishnu (space), and Brahma (matter), are born, She is the Mother of all the Gods. Kushmanda means from whose ushma/self energy, the Brahmanda (universe) is born. She is the mother Goddess to everything that is animate and inanimate. Creations are born out of Her and go back to Her, She is the beginning and she is the end of the cosmos. Devi is consciousness and bliss incarnate as Saguna, and also She is formless, unknown or unseen as Nirguna Parabrahma. When She's in a form, She becomes the Mother and creates life and universes, when She becomes formless She devours everything back within Herself. The Goddess Kushmanda holds a kamandal, bow, arrow, lotus, a jar of nectar, discus, and mace in her seven hands, respectively. There is a rosary (japa mala) in the eighth hand, which is capable of bestowing the eight Siddhis of Divine Powers.

Day Five: Sunday, March 26 – Ma Skanda Mata

As Skanda Mata, the Goddess is Mother to Kartikeya also known as Skanda. Kartikeya is known as Deva Senapati, the commander in chief of Gods. He takes down all the negativity/Asuras, which are off springs of material desires in the mind. As Her Son, He clears the path for Her devotee by defeating all the compulsions in our mind. Once peace and silence takes over the mind, the devotee becomes meditative and experiences the Divine consciousness, which is Skanda Mata. Skanda or Kartikeya has six heads, which represents his victory over six kinds of disorders in the human mind. Worship of Skanda Mata bestows the grace of both Kartikeya and the Divine Mother to a devotee. As we are celebrating the Mother of Skanda, the leader of the celestial army that is overpowering the lower tendencies of our human nature. We can do our part by paying full attention to our thoughts and actions.

Day Six: Monday, March 27 – Ma Katyayani

Katyayani is the daughter of Sage Katyayan. He worshiped the Divine Mother to grant protection from all evil forces to the society. Pleased by his tireless penance and oblations to fire/homa, the Goddess appeared and offered him a boon. Katyayan replied if you'll be born as my daughter and protect the world from Asuras, it will be my greatest fortune. The Devi smiled and gave him his desired boon. Goddess Katyayani is non other than Mahishasura Mardini, the slayer of buffalo demon who terrorized even Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. Katyayani is a ferocious warrior form of the Goddess whose name itself terrorizes the negative forces. She's ferocious but compassionate at heart. Katyayani is the spiritual fire in a human being who takes down the six enemies of Kama (lust), Krodha (anger), Lobha (greed), Moha (attraction), Mada (pride), and Matsarya (jealousy). Mahishasura is a unified form of these six enemies hence he can only be slayed by the Divine consciousness which is Mother Katyayani. She holds the chandrahaasa sword, which destroys negativity and grants meditative mind. Katyayani is the great power of transformation, who transforms compulsions into positive actions. She refines the inner nature of a spiritual aspirant and makes him/her fearless to go deeper into the spiritual depths of their own self.

Day Seven: Tuesday, March 28 – Ma Kaalratri

Kaalratri is the most fierce one among the nine Durgas. This is because She gives the highest realization to Her devotees by annihilating their mortal limitations and grants them fearlessness. Her fierceness represents Her higher intensity. This means She gives transcendence to Her bhaktas easily by making them quickly suffer their accumulation of past mortal karmas. She is meditated upon in a form with untied long hair. She is digambara or naked as she is the entire cosmos and there can hardly be any clothes made for Her as external covering because she is everything. Her face expression is Raudramukhi, fierce with wide big open eyes and a gentle smile on her lips. Kaalratri means the night of dissolution, absolute darkness in which nothing can be seen or known. Only when there is light, can you find a sense of duality. Here, in absolute darkness, there is no existence of matter. She either stops time or has devoured time itself. In the absence of time, the space can't be formed and matter becomes static. Her ornaments and body are charged electric waves, thus anything which goes close to Her will dissolve in Her. She'll release them from mortality, hence She grants Moksha or liberation to Her devotees. She destroys fear in her devotee's mind and grants them wisdom to cross the ocean of samsara/physical life effortlessly. We invoke the blessings of Ma Kaalratri to destroy all negativities in our lives.

Day Eight: Wednesday, March 29 – Mahagauri

Mahagauri is the kriya Shakti of existence. Kriya means action, the energy which creates motion in static matter is Mahagauri. She is the beloved wife of Lord Shiva and She is meditated upon seated on Nandi, the bull. She has four hands in which she holds a trident, damru, Abhaya, and Vara mudras. She has a blissful expression on Her face. Mahagauri also represents the union of Shiva with Shakti. She completes Him by merging with Him, which makes Him Ashutosh. Shiva grants auspicious boons to his devotees only when He is united with Shakti, without Her He becomes dispassionate and has no purpose in existence. The reason Mahagauri plays a Damru represents that divine union of Shiva and Shakti. Their union is considered auspicious for continuance of existence, so Mahagauri embodies the greatest Auspiciousness. She is the creator of life, the Yoni from whom the creation takes birth. She is Mother to all life forms. Her worship grants experience of oneness with all lives.

Day Nine: Thursday, March 30 – Ma Siddhidatri

The ninth and final manifestation of Ma Durga is known as Shri Siddhidatri, the one who grants you all kinds of auspicious accomplishments/strengths known as Siddhis. Siddhis are unparalleled strengths in terms of different kinds of masteries, which help you pass through the austere spiritual path effortlessly with Her grace. Siddhis are not what a sadhaka must bother too much about, if they come or not is Her choice. If you are not prepared consciously such strengths can also become disasters, it is like handing over a knife to a child who has just learned to walk. If your priority is only Mother than such strengths will not boost arrogance, rather they'll be helpful in attaining divine realization. It is said Lord Shiva Himself worshiped this manifestation of the Devi and with Her grace attained all Siddhis. Shiva is Dakshinamurti Himself, the ultimate Master of all kinds of spiritual sadhanas. He attained His completeness through His union with the Goddess. As She became His left half, He became the Master of everything. Siddhidatri Devi is an all-inclusive figure in that all are Her devotees. She is the universal Mother, all complete and powerful in Herself. As she sustains everyone and everything, naturally everyone bows down at Her feet. Mother never discriminates among her children, thus Ma Siddhidatri sees all her devotees as equal whether a Deva or Asura. It is a beautiful quality to learn from Her. If the world drops each other's differences and realizes its universal identity, then definitely there will be more peace and harmony.

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As mentioned above, we will live-stream the sacred Fire Ceremony each day at 11am MT at Haidakhandi Universal Ashram Facebook Page. After the Fire Ceremony we will proceed to the temple and live-stream some chanting and a Discourse on the Divine Mother taken from the Srimad Devi Bhagavatam. Once again, if you prefer to watch it on YouTube, it will be posted later in the day.

If you would like to sponsor one of the Devi Pujas, Fire Ceremonies, or Bhandaras (meals each day of the festival) you can do so at our Donate page. There are buttons toward the bottom of the page for the various activities. You may designate when you make the donation what day you would like to sponsor. This can be done online with Paypal or credit card. You can also call us at 719-256-4108 with a card as well.

You may wish to order a few items for Navratri from the Maha Lakshmi Shop. At our Maha Lakshmi Online Shop, you can purchase the Sapta Sati with or without CD, malas for japa, aarati CD and book, Divine Mother women’s organic (medium only) T-Shirts, statues and images of the Divine Mother, and many other inspirational items. We have also ordered copies of “Devi, The Srimad Devi Bhagavatam Retold” by Ramesh Menon. We will ship them as soon as they come in.

Thank you, as always for your love and support of the Ashram. It is here because of our Lord Shri Babaji and the Divine Mother’s grace and all of your loving care.

Jai Ma!
Ramloti for the Ashram