Navratri Celebrations in USA by Indians

Navratri is amongst the most important Hindu festivals. This auspicious festival is celebrated with great zeal and devotion throughout India. The literal meaning of 'Navratri' is 'nine auspicious nights'. Navaratri is a pious festival celebrated in the honor of nine different forms of the Goddess Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati for nine continuous days.

The two main stories for celebrating Navratri are:

The Nine Divine Forms of Devi: During the nine nights, nine different forms or avatars of the Devi are worshiped, a different form each night.
The Legend of Ram: Another legend says that Lord Ram worshiped Goddess Durga’s nine forms over nine days. As a result, he was granted the strength to kill the evil Ravan and free Sita.

Navratri Celabrations with Garba, Dandiya and more

Tenth day of Navratri is usually celebrated with colourful and mind blowing dances like Garba and Dandiya. Garba has devotional appeal and it is performed along with bhajans and chants, praising the many divine forms of the Goddess. It is done before the aarti. On the other hand, Dandiyais are usually played during the late evening, as part of the merriment, after the aarti pooja is done.

Golu Pooja celebrated by South Indians

People from south Indian origin living in USA also celebrate with Golu during Dussehra, where festive display of dolls and figurine are arranged in steps. This is often referred to as Bommai Kolu in Tamil, or Bommala Koluvu in Telugu, or Bombe Habba in Kannada languages. It is a part of the annual Dasara-Vijayadasami Hindu festival where women display dolls, figurine, court life, everyday scenes along with the divine presence of the Goddesses Saraswati, Parvati and Laxmi in the Tamil, Kannada and Telugu households during Navaratri or The Nine nights.

Plan for parents or relatives from India visiting USA

Parents and relatives usually in India take this long vacation as an advantage and travel to USA to spend the festival with their children. We have many dance festivals happening in California, Illinois, Washington, and New Jersey and lots of youngsters participate. This is the one of the most awaited festivals of Indians in US and people flock together in colorful beautiful dresses to showcase their talents. Flight tickets are also very expensive during this time and hence parents and relatives visiting USA must plan their travel in advance, and also buy visitors insurance way before to ensure a worry-free, happy and peaceful stay in USA.

The significance of the festival of Navaratri

The warmth and togetherness we feel when we gather around our family and friends for nine days is unimaginable. It is a time filled with joy, love, and devotion. The aim of celebrating this festival is to remind people of the real goals of human life and also make them understand the value of doing good and condemning evil.