An important tradition followed by Hindus is the tradition of Navratri. Nav (nine) and ratri (night) translates to 9 nights. The Navratri festival is celebrated for 9 nights - once in spring and then again in fall.
Navratri is the time when Hindus celebrate the Divine Feminine (Shakti or Devi) in Her many forms during these 9 days to honor the feminine principle of nature, to embody Her wisdom in our daily lives, and to seek Her blessings to navigate life’s challenges, much like the way She had to. Hence, the 9 days signify a typical life cycle in a person’s life. This significance and direction applies to men and women. Hence Devi (Goddess) is revered by both men and women.
Day 1: Shailaputri – Daughter of the mountain – She represents the purity and innocence of early childhood.
2: Brahmacharini: Seeker of knowledge – She represents the stage of student hood, the time to learn, acquire knowledge of various forms – language, arts, music, dance, science. Her qualities are one of perseverance, dedication, focus, goal oriented, etc- all qualities that help students achieve mastery in their skills.
3. Chandraghanti – She becomes a wife and bears the insignia (or symbols) of Her Divine Consort. She is shown wearing the moon crescent as her Consort is Shiva - the Divine Masculine who wears the crescent moon on His head. She represents qualities of early adulthood, qualities needed to co-habit with another person.
4. Kushmanda- She represents cosmic fertility. Ku-little; ushma- warmth, Anda- egg. Literally translates to little warm egg – She represents the qualities of creativity and fertility. She is considered as the Shakti who is the co-creator of this Universe, the Big-Bang, along with Her Divine consort – Shiva. Big-Bang is the dance of creation. And it was hot when it happened.
5. SkandaMaata- She is now the Divine Mother – nourishing, nurturing, the giver of life, the soother of pain. Much like Mother Earth.
6. Katyayani- She now represents the mid-life crisis, the peri-menopausal period. The time span from late 40s and mid to late 50’s. She has lived life, raised Her children. She is now becoming aware of the imbalances within Her and around Her, a restlessness that forces Her to be different, to do things differently, to take stock of her life and situation. With all these changes and insights within Her, there is movement of energy - sometimes appears as rage and anger that can be destructive in nature. This day signifies Her destructive abilities – the color of this day is red signifying anger as well as passion. However, this destruction is the necessary prelude to what can be born after. It is the destruction of comfort within familiarity, that pushes us towards exploration, adventure, and radical new beginnings. In this phase, She proceeds to slay these “demons.” Inner demons of anger, hatred, envy, greed, lust, depression, amotivation, laziness, etc and outer demons of society and patriarchy – anything that tried to or has suppressed Her light, Her voice, Her authenticity. As you can see, these are the same themes we as humans also grapple with. Hence, Devi’s story and life journey can be a beacon, lighting a path for us all.
7. Kaal-Ratri- Literally, dark night. In parallel with modern spiritual concepts of “dark night of the soul.” Here She comes to terms with her light and shadow side and works to integrate the two as only then can She become whole. Having accepted and integrated the shadow side, She emerges into the next day as:
8. Maha Gowri- Great Feminine. She now embodies the wisdom of Her life experiences, integrated whole self and She is now the beacon of light that lights the path for others to follow in Her footsteps to achieve the same wholeness.
9. Siddhi Dhatri: Last day of Navratri – wherein She is fully enlightened and actualized and now embodies the Divine energies in its wholeness. She is Shakti (Divine Feminine) and She is Shiva (Divine Masculine). She is the instant manifestor. Bestower (Dhatri) of desires (Siddhi). She embodies the qualities of the Divine – qualities of unconditional love, unconditional acceptance, joy bestowing, wholeness, abundance, all forgiving, compassion, mercy, and so on.
This journey also represents a spiritual seeker’s journey through the 8 chakras, starting with the root (mooladhara) chakra and ending in the 8th chakra – Vyapana – which represents the Union of the individual soul (Jeevatma) with the Universal soul (Param Atma or the unified field of quantum physics). It represents the rise of the Kundalini Shakti from the base of the spine to the top of the head to merge with the Unified field. A union of feminine or Shakti (kundalini) with the masculine or Shiva (the unified field). It represents the union of polarities. A return to oneness and wholeness.
As you can see, there are different levels of meanings here and it rests on each individual seeker to apply what resonates with them.
As a psychiatrist, I am thrilled with the parallels with modern spiritual psychology. Another takeaway for me is the acceptance of destructive phases in a person’s life journey. Without having the need to label it, tame it, or suppress it. No diagnosis of conditions such as bipolar, schizophrenia, borderline, histrionic, attention seeking, or worse, hysteria! Instead it is presented as a face of life’s journey for most of us. A facet that needs movement, expression, non-judgmental acceptance, and integration into the whole.
Shakti’s story is thus universal. By connecting with Her energy and embodying or imitating Her qualities, we also can reach the stage of wholeness, oneness, joy and love.
These 9 days are a subtle reminder to do just that. To take a break from the busyness of life and to devote our time and energy to this process. A specific fast is also followed to purify our body’s energies. Interestingly, this fast almost mimics the fast recommended for Panchakarma - the Ayurvedic ritual of mind-body-spirit detoxification and purification. When I first observed these parallels, I was impressed by how much the wisdom of Ayurveda was integrated with the business of life in India. So much so that even after centuries of suppression (by outside forces), this wisdom persisted as rituals, traditions, grandmother’s wisdom, wise elder’s guidance, etc.
Since learning of this deeper esoteric and mystical wisdom, I follow this practice twice ever year. I am writing this article today and sharing it as spring 2026 Navratri is from March 19th to March 27th, 2026.
For anyone interested in following Devi’s journey, here’s what to do:
Diet: Eliminate dairy, gluten, meat, eggs and fish during this period. Eating freshly prepared vegetarian food twice daily is recommended.
Wake up by 6 am and practice a 10 to 15 min meditation ritual where you are connecting with yourself.
Journal and reflect on your life’s journey and seek Devi’s guidance in navigating whatever stage you are in. And, last but not the least…
For fun and community, find and attend local Keertan (gathering of people to sing devotional songs) or attend Garbha (traditional dance to honor the cosmic womb or garbha).