The festival of Navratri is held for nine days to honour and pray to the Mother Goddess, or as popularly known Adishakti, in Her various powerful forms.
Although there are four seasonal Navratris in the Hindu calendar, the most popular and highly celebrated forms of these nine-day festivals include the Sharadiya and Chaitra Navratris.
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The most pompous Navratri celebration is the Sharadiya Navratri that is celebrated in the autumn season or in the months of September and October.
The last five days of Sharadiya Navratri is commemorated as Durga Puja in the eastern part of India.
Meanwhile, the Chaitra Navratri is celebrated in the spring season or in the months of March and April
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History & Significance of Chaitra Navratri
As the festival of Chaitra Navaratri is celebrated in spring season, it is also known as Vasanta Navratri. During the nine days of Chaitra Navratri, the devotees pray to the nine forms of Goddess Durga with many offerings and rituals as per traditional methods or as given in the scriptures. Each of the nine days is dedicated to a particular form of the Goddess Durga. The nine forms are namely Shailputri, Brahmacharini, Chandraghanta, Kushmanda, Skandamata, Katyayani, Kalaratri, Mahagauri, and Siddhidatri. Besides worship, many devotees observe fast by staying away from consuming non-vegetarian food items, onion, garlic and alcohol and feast on satvic meals. Chaitra Navratri ends with Ram Navami which is believed to be the day when Lord Ram, the seventh avatar of Lord Vishnu, was born as the son of King Dasaratha and Queen Kaushalya in Ayoydhya. Chaitra Navratri is a celebration of victory of good over evil. It is also believed that worshipping and fasting on the days of Chaitra Navratri helps devotees get the blessings of Mother Goddess for a happy, successful and prosperous life.
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Chaitra Navratri 2023 Date & Time
This year, Chaitra Navratri will begin on March 22 and end on March 30, 2023. Ghatasthapana Muhurta is on March 22 and the best timings include from 06:29 AM to 07:42 AM. Pratipada Tithi begins at 10:52 PM on March 21, 2023 and ends at 08:20 PM on March 22, 2023