Nature's verdant embrace, the lavish downpour of blooming white night-flowers, the fleeting image of autumn rejoicing in cloudless blue—adorned with these blessings, the sanctuary of worship resounds with tidings of the Mother of the World's arrival. Transient though it be, the muted heartache of sorrow and suffering grows luminous with exquisite grace. The frenzy of hope kindled by the hymn of the Blissful One's coming has made her children tremble with impatience.
As the Supreme Presiding Power, she is eternal and beyond qualities, yet dwelling in matter and spirit alike, she governs all and takes benevolent forms age after age—her protection of the children and subdual of evil are proclaimed in all the scriptures. In seeking to determine the purpose of worshipping this Great Power, Sri Ramakrishna declares: Power itself is the foundation of the universe. She is the Great Maya, bewitching the world, bringing forth creation, sustenance, and dissolution. Without her consent, one cannot attain Existence-Consciousness-Bliss. Within that Primordial Power dwell both knowledge and ignorance—ignorance is the Goddess's veiling power, knowledge her compassion—ignorance bewitches while knowledge leads to the path of God. To attain knowledge, one must first appease ignorance; thus was established the method of worshipping the Power.
In the Chandī, we find that the sage Medhas told King Surath and the merchant Samadhi, who sought to know the true nature of the Great Goddess Maya: the Divine Mother captivates with her full force the hearts of the discriminating and firm-willed, enveloping them in her spell—and needless to speak of the undiscerning! This is why in countless legends and scriptural accounts, the fitness of all beings to engage in the worship of the Goddess is evident. In autumn, across different ages, the Goddess has manifested in different forms. In remembrance of these auspicious manifestations, a grand festival is held each year—known throughout Bengal as the 'Autumn Great Festival of Worship' and in other parts of India as the 'Festival of Nine Nights'.
Among the Puranas containing detailed accounts of Durga worship are the Brihannandikeshvara, the Kalika Purana, and the Devi Purana. In all of them, the time and prescriptions of worship are written within the context of Sri Ramchandra's untimely invocation of the Goddess. Though the original Ramayana does not support this, we find its history in texts such as the Devi Bhagavat, the Maha Purana, and the Brihad Dharma Purana. The works of Jimutvahana (c. 1050–1150)—the Durgottsava Nirnaya; Vidyapati (1374–1460)—the Durga Bhakti Tarangini; Shulpani (1375–1460)—the Durgottsava Viveka; Krittibas Ojha (c. 1381–1461)—the Ramayana; Vachaspatimishra (1425–1480)—the Kriyachintamani; and Raghunandan (15th–16th centuries)—the Tithi Tattva, contain extensive descriptions of Durga worship. From this, it is inferred that Durga worship was prevalent in Bengal from the tenth or eleventh century onward. These authors, through various scriptural arguments, have described the different rituals and prescriptions observed in the Durga Festival, earning the gratitude of all; otherwise, it would be exceedingly difficult to determine the proceedings of worship merely by maintaining consistency with the subject matter mentioned in the Puranas.
The Goddess's autumn arrival intertwines with the relationship between mother and daughter, with the essence of illusion and affection, rendering it singularly rich in grace and alive with sentiment. The Puranic tale recounts how Menaka, the enchantress celestial nymph of the three worlds, blessed with wisdom and innate brilliance, was flooded with boundless joy witnessing her daughter Uma become the consort of Shiva—yet the yearning to always keep her beloved child near caused the mother's heart to brim with profound sorrow. The narrative of the daughter's return from the husband's house to her father's home each year's end, rendered so tenderly in Menaka's lament and in the arrival songs, possesses such grace that it captivates even the heart of the most uncompromising realist.
Various Puranic legends concerning the Goddess's manifestation are prevalent.
Devi Shatakshi—her tale of manifestation is recounted in the Sri Sri Chandi and the Devi Bhagavata (7/28). Through variations of her divine play, she bears three names: Shatakshi, Shakambhari, and Durga. The asura Durgama had come to know that the Vedas were the source of the gods' power. Seized with the resolve to destroy them, he propitiated Brahma and obtained the Vedas from him; he also prayed for the strength to vanquish the deities. Because Durgama became the lord of all the Vedas, the Vedas disappeared from the mortal realm. Deprived of their share of the oblations offered in sacrifice, the gods themselves grew weak. Durgama defeated the deities and seized Amaravati. The gods then took shelter in mountain caves upon the earth and became immersed in meditation upon the Supreme Power. With the cessation of ritual and sacrifice came the cessation of rain. For a hundred years, drought parched the earth, leaving it waterless. All Vedic rites ceased in the hermitages—once ablaze with sacred fire and resonant with chanting—and the effects of their abandonment manifested throughout the social body, rendering mankind bereft of moral wisdom and given to idleness. At the same time, the terrible grip of a rainless season laid bare each barren field.
The verdant earth donned the terrible countenance of a grey desert. At the piteous weeping of the hungry masses and the anguished prayers of the benevolent sages, the Devi Shatakshi—she of infinite eyes—manifested herself in the bright autumn sky. Through nine nights her compassion flowed as tears of countless eyes, transforming them into torrential rains that restored life and vigor to the earth-mother. In this season fraught with the fear of death, her supernatural, blessed vision averted the ravages of plague and delivered all from the hands of untimely death—and thus arose the observance of this unseasonable worship. Yet from what immemorial age this practice began, it is difficult to say.
The tale is told of the Goddess, she who slays the buffalo-demon, manifesting three times in three ages, each time in autumn. In the first age—from Shiva's boon was born to Rambhasura a son named Mahisha, of immeasurable might. As he grew, intoxicated with power, the buffalo-demon abandoned all piety, became a tyrant, and drove the gods from heaven. Their exile from the celestial realm brought countless calamities upon the world. At the united prayer of all, there arose the Goddess—fierce in battle, eighteen-armed, the dreadful Ugrachanda. On the ninth day of the month of Ashwin, Devi Ugrachanda slew the buffalo-demon.
In the second age—at the anguished cry of the oppressed, the Mother of the World came again in the form of Bhadrakali, sixteen-armed and radiantly beautiful. In this form we behold her once more at Daksha's sacrifice ground (in the foothills of the Himalayas at Kankhal)—a vision as tender as it is terrible. Sati, devoted to Shiva, breathed her last upon hearing her husband reviled. From the meditative Shiva's eyes blazed forth consuming fire—to the rhythm of apocalypse sounded by Rudra's horn, there arose Bhadrakali, encircled by millions of yoginis, dancing (Devi Bhagavata, 3/27/8-10). Thus her other name is the Destroyer of Daksha's Sacrifice. Even now, in remembrance of that divine tale, many places of worship echo with: Om dakshayajnavinashinyai mahaghroraryai yoginikoti-parivritayai bhadrakali-hari om durgayai namah—(She who is) the embodiment of Om and the Destroyer of Daksha's Sacrifice, surrounded by multitudes of yoginis, adorned in the form of Bhadrakali, the bringer of the final dissolution—she is the Great Maya, Durga, the Saguna Brahman; to her we bow.
The third manifestation took place in the secluded ashram of the great sage Katyayan, situated in the Himalayas. Mahisha had been born again. The gods were tormented by his tyranny. As the assembled deities determined how to slay this demon, a blazing fire burst forth from their furrowed brows. Before their very eyes, that luminous radiance illumined the ten directions and gradually took form as a Goddess of supreme majesty. Through the ascetic power of the great sage, she appeared radiant and terrible, adorned with the weapons and armor of all the gods—Durga, capable of slaying the buffalo-demon, bearing ten weapons, manifesting in the hermitage of the great sage Katyayan. In acknowledging her as his daughter, she became revered throughout the world by the name Katyayani.
Katyayan himself was the first to offer worship and obeisance to this goddess in the form of a maiden—this maternal image dwelling in his heart. For the perfection and ultimate state of maidenhood lies in motherhood; thus this becomes the foundational principle in the worship of Jagadamba in her maiden form. From this very philosophy has Bengal's autumnal great worship been fashioned in this dual linguistic register. It seems the materials were gathered from the very backdrop of this narrative, and perhaps it is for this reason that the worship of the virgin goddess is considered an essential aspect of the observance. She is both gentle and formidable—as the nurturer of the faithful she is benign, yet toward the demons she is equally the fierce and terrible form, the fearsome one. A supremely refined maternal image drawn from all the fearsome forms of old—a flow of compassion that melts the hard and the soft into one. She slays the asura, yet there is not the slightest trace of malice in her; she remains ever gracious. Stern in her command though she be, her heart is cool with tenderness.
The goddess spoken of in three ages—Ugrachanda, Bhadrakali, and Katyayani—manifests on the great eighth day and slays the buffalo demon repeatedly on the great ninth day; yet it is the latter form, the ten-armed Durga, whose worship has gained the widest prevalence. In some places one may see the worship of the other two images as well. This auspicious great eighth day, which holds the narrative of the slaying of the buffalo demon and traces all its three paths, is acknowledged as the source of boundless welfare and joy. The very goddess herself has proclaimed that all who devotionally read or hear the account of her exploit in vanquishing the asura shall be freed from sin and from calamity.
In another Purana (Devi Purana, chapters 2-20), it is seen that on the very great ninth day of autumn she was engaged in slaying Ghorasura. The jurist Ragunatha Shiromani, drawing upon this very Purana, has declared—according to the Devi Purana, the goddess shall be worshipped from the sixth to the ninth lunar day. It seems for this reason that the inhabitants of the world are blessed with her vision on the sixth day of autumn.—This time the center is the Vindhya mountains. The demon king Dundubhi, possessed of boundless valor and unstained prowess, joined with the self-confidence born of his austerities, was rendered capable of establishing dominion over the entire world. One day, during a journey to Kailash, swayed by his demonic nature, he strayed from the path. Coming upon Shiva's abode and obtaining the rare vision of the goddess, he could not uphold her dignity, and as a result of this contemptible conduct, he took birth upon the earth.
The asuras are forever aspiring and industrious. Again through severe austerities and the vision of the divine, receiving boons from him, the demon king's arrogance crossed the highest limits as he conquered all the worlds. Then the goddess dwelling in the Vindhyas manifested to slay Ghorasura, appearing as an incomparably beautiful maiden at play. The asura, rendered senseless by the abundance of pleasures and the absence of good counsel, lusted to seize the goddess, and thus was he swiftly slain along with his army on the great ninth day.
Three mighty sons, born of Danu, the wife of the illustrious sage Kashyapa—Shumbha, Nishumbha, and Namuci. Hearing of the death of their younger brother at the strike of Indra's thunderbolt, the two brothers, grieving, applied themselves to fierce austerity for the purification of their enmity—that tale told from ages past. The rampant oppression and unrestrained tyranny of these two powerful asuras, and the humble, devoted hymns of praise from the oppressed, stirred the transcendent Pure One to sport. And there we see her again, in the cool precincts of the hermitage of the sage Matanga, beneath the shade of trees on the slopes of the Himalayas, in the peaceful realm far from the tumult of battle, the incomparably radiant ten-armed goddess in her form as Kausiki.
Through the narratives recounted above, we have seen that the goddess Durga, bearing ten weapons, manifested herself in the autumn month of Aswin to vanquish the demons Mahishasura, Ghorasura, Shumbha-Nishumbha, and others. Kailash is her eternal abode, yet she took form in the hermitages of Katyayan and Matang in the Himalayas, and upon the Vindhya mountains. Thus even today, at the auspicious hour of the Bodhan rite, she is invoked with words such as "I summon the Goddess in earthen vessels and in the sacred fruit" or "From the peaks of Kailash, O Goddess, from the Vindhya and snow-clad mountains"—and so forth. In the form wherein you eternally abide upon Kailash's summit, in the ten-armed manifestation in which you appeared at Katyayan's hermitage upon the Vindhya to slay Mahishasura and Ghorasura, in that very form do you come to this sacred tree and to this earthen image. Because she is born of the autumn season, one of her names is Sharada. Though the succession of events bears various configurations, there is no disagreement that the Ten-Armed One made her appearance precisely in the month of Aswin. The words of the Sri Sri Chandī—"The Great Worship in Autumn"—make clear that through the autumn worship, all beings are capable of dispelling the three kinds of suffering: spiritual, cosmic, and earthly anguish. And certain blessed souls, devoted servants of Brahmic wisdom, through their worship of Durga attain by her grace this rare experience of Brahman itself. King Suratha, bereft of his kingdom, and Samadhi, the merchant abandoned by his own kin—these two, after hearing from the sage Medhas of the goddess's glory, fashioned an earthen image of the Deity upon the riverbank adjoining his hermitage and committed themselves to severe austerity. After three years of practice, blessed by the vision of the World-Mother, the king recovered his kingdom, while the spiritual aspirant Samadhi attained the right to perceive Brahman in all places. In Swami Saradananda's work, "Shakti Worship in India," we find these words: "It is said that the fruits of Shakti-worship come to hand immediately, especially in this age of Kali, when other deities slumber; save the scriptures on Tantric worship related to Shakti-devotion, all other treatises are like toothless serpents—utterly futile. Though the statement may not be complete, there is much truth in it. For we perceive directly that whatever dominion mankind has gained, whether in the material realm or the kingdom of mind, has come wholly through the worship of Shakti. Through the worship of what is called material force—that which lies within the perception of ordinary humanity—has come all knowledge of physiology, natural philosophy, the cure of disease, the prevention of plague, the procuring of food and sustenance, the manifold ways of accumulating wealth, and weapons suited to warfare and defense. Similarly, through the worship of what is known as mental power have come to humanity psychology, poetry, self-restraint, the laws of marriage, civilization, morality, the structure of society, and the science of governance. And through the awakening of spiritual force—celibacy, truthfulness, contentment, the disciplines of mental and sensory control, and at last the supreme fulfillment that is freedom from all bondage—these too have become within reach. Certainly, all this has accumulated through the prolonged and manifold worship of Shakti by countless beings across ages. Yet the measure of fruit that humanity receives in any epoch corresponds precisely to the measure of reverence and devotion with which the worship of any particular force is undertaken. The devotees of our own time know this truth from direct experience. Yet when ritual is incomplete, or when proper method and sincere devotion are absent, the complete fruition of worship becomes impossible, and sometimes even contrary results ensue."
Despite the widespread propagation of Shakti worship in our land, I find at the root of this sorrowful plight the intimation contained in the closing words of Swami Saradananda's teaching. Some say: the Mother of the Universe—will she not respond when called upon in whatever form? It is true that not all can call upon her with equal sincerity; the Mother surely understands that the child's inarticulate cry is raised to draw her attention—dependence upon the mother is the only resource of the simple child. But in this case, is even this present? If in the worship of the Goddess we possess neither devotion nor faith, how can any of this be possible at all?
In his work "The Festivals and Worship of Bengal," Sri Amarendranath Ray has written: "If, seeing the recent proliferation of 'public worship,' one were to imagine that our religious consciousness is awakening once more, one would only be displaying thoughtlessness. Where mere appetite for amusement and revelry are so nakedly evident, it is best not to speak at all of any awakening of religious consciousness. Where, in the fashioning of the image, instead of the manifestation and effort of spiritual truth, the flashy adornments of so-called Art bloom forth, what occurs is not worship—merely a mocking parody of worship."
The great autumn worship comprises four elements—the great ablution, worship proper, sacrifice, and the ritual fire offering—and only when these four observances come together is there a great worship. Apart from this great worship and the Durga Puja itself, the simultaneous gathering of all these elements is not seen in any other form of worship; hence when determining the resolve to perform worship, the term 'great worship' must be invoked. Seven ritual phases that mark the timing of worship are mentioned, and among these, the practice of beginning from the sixth lunar day and continuing through the ninth has become most prevalent. On the evening of the sixth, there is the invocation, the summoning, and the installation; then on the morning of the seventh, when the Goddess arrives in the sacred precinct through the nine-leafed plant, the formal worship begins. Beyond this, worship on the seventh, the great eighth day, the junction, the great ninth day, and the dismissal rites are performed at their respective appointed times.
The nine-leafed plant is a distinctive element of Durga worship in Bengal, Assam, and Odisha. The term 'nine-leafed plant' literally means the leaves of nine trees. Yet in reality, the nine-leafed plant comprises not nine leaves, but nine plants.
Rambha kachchhi haridrachcha jayanti bilva darimow. Ashok manakascha chaiva dhanyañcha navapattrika.
That is: the plantain or rambha, taro, turmeric, jayanti, bel, pomegranate, ashoka, manakchu, and rice.
A leafed plantain plant is joined with eight other rooted and leafed plants, bound together with a pair of bel fruit by a white undefeated creeper, and draped in a white sari with a red border to be given the form of a veiled bride; two bel fruits are used to fashion the breasts for the feminine form. Then, marked with vermilion, she is made to stand with her family to the right of the goddess image and worshipped. In common parlance, the nine-leafed plant is called the 'bride of plantain.'
The Great Ablution: From the seventh day through the ninth, even before the ritual worship of the Goddess begins, offerings arrive from all directions—fragrant and beautiful things of many kinds, accompanied by music, dance, and instruments. These are presented slowly to the Goddess with the utterance of meaningful mantras. Various Puranas show differences in the ritual substances employed according to place. Among these, the Goddess's body is anointed with soil gathered from different sacred locations—a rite called the soil-bathing.
Worship: In all places, vision of Brahman stands as the supreme form of worship; meditation through disciplines holds the middle rank; praise, incantation, and like practices occupy the third; and invocation through symbol or image, the fourth. Through dependence on external forms, the aspirant gradually attains that supreme communion with Brahman. Thus, even though worship appears external, the sequence of these four stages is observed in all ritual practice through various ceremonies, meditation, adoration, hymns, and praises.
Though the ritual materials of worship differ according to the qualities of sattva, rajas, and tamas, the method itself permits no variation. In sattvic worship there is no ostentation. The rajasic worshipper conducts the ritual with great display—a burning desire to be well-regarded by others shows clearly through. The tamasic aspirant's worship knows no proper form.
A sound body and steady mind are the first steps in worship. Before all else, these two must be purified and refined; otherwise they cannot become the dwelling-place of one's chosen divinity. When the place of worship, its materials, the image, and the mantras of the deity are consecrated, the worshipper's mind becomes fit for meditation. Sri Ramakrishna has said that the deity inhabits the image through the worshipper's sincerity, the householder's devotion, and the proper construction of the divine form in accordance with meditation. Without the Goddess's proper limbs and the arrangement of her weapons, merely to make an image pleasing to the eye is not desirable. The Goddess does not dwell without; she dwells within.
The Goddess's matted locks are adorned with the crescent moon; her lovely face, graced with three eyes, shines like the full moon; her complexion glows like the blue lotus; she stands in dignified bearing and is bedecked with ornaments. Her youthful form and her row of pure teeth radiate the sweetness of motherhood as she stands in the three-bent pose, crushing the buffalo demon. From her slender ten arms, proceeding from left to right and downward, she holds the trident, the curved sword, the discus, the keen arrow, and the shaft of power; and from her left side, rising upward, the shield, the bow with its cord, the serpent noose, the goad, and the bell or axe—all weapons and instruments. Beneath her feet lies the buffalo demon, his head severed; and the moment the sword-bearing Mahishasura half-emerges from that very spot, the Goddess's trident pierces his heart. His whole body drenched in blood, his eyes red and wide with terror, his loins bound by her serpent noose, his brow furrows and his face takes on a most terrible aspect. When the Goddess holds his hair fast with the noose, he vomits blood. At the Goddess's feet lies the lion, her right foot resting simply upon it, while her other foot, positioned slightly above, has only its great toe touching the beast. Surrounded by the assembly of gods, attended by the eight Shaktis—Ugrachanda and the rest—the Goddess, bestower of dharma, artha, kama, and moksha, stands sustaining the entire universe.
At the end of meditation, the lotus seat of the heart was offered to the Goddess. With the nectar stream flowing from the Sahasrara—the chakra situated at the crown of the brain—the practitioner washed her holy feet and presented this as an oblation from the mind. Thus, after offering all the ritual elements one by one, the practitioner realized there was nothing left to give the Goddess—and so, surrendering himself entirely, he began to contemplate himself as the Goddess made manifest. Now the Great Maya, who is the self itself, was summoned from the eight-petaled lotus throne of the heart to receive worship. With every offering he could muster, she was honored; and by her command, the divine retinue that came with her was worshipped—the deities dwelling in her various limbs and those encompassing deities who veil her form. Thus the worship was brought to completion.
The Sacrifice: Though 'sacrifice' may mean 'offering' in general, the term here specifically denotes 'animal sacrifice.' Why such a prescription?—Is it truly pleasing to the Goddess? There are two meanings: one primary, one secondary. Srinilakantha, the commentator on the Devi Bhagavata, has written that animal sacrifice befits the worship of the Goddess alone, nowhere else; for the Goddess, who embodies the knowledge of Brahman, destroys that fierce animal-consciousness that obscures our true nature and reveals herself as the intellect directed toward Brahman—and thus she is the lover of sacrifice.
"Let one offer passion and wrath as goats at the altar of the Goddess."—In his mental worship, the practitioner offers to the Goddess his anger and rage. The true meaning of animal sacrifice is the suppression of the animal nature within and the unfoldment of divine power. For the scattered-minded practitioner, animal sacrifice indicates this secondary meaning. Those whose intellect is unrefined and who are carnivorous may worship through animal sacrifice. Among the animals offered—goats and sheep are domesticated creatures, while buffalo and the like are forest animals.
The Fire Oblation: The great autumn worship is bound by auspicious day and time; it must be performed at the appointed hour, and the fire oblation is its concluding rite. Having completed the worship on the great ninth day, one must pour offerings into the blazing fire while meditating on the Goddess's presence there—for fire is the mouth of all gods, and its duty is to carry the offerings to their rightful place. According to the mode of practice, both Vedic and Tantric forms of fire oblation are prescribed. The Vedic method is lengthy and time-consuming, so many practitioners perform a different form instead. The fire worship of the Vedic age—the tending of the consecrated flame—has been linked through this concluding rite to the image-worship of later ages, creating a bridge between the devotions of both eras. The worship concludes with the final oblation and a turning of the mind toward the Goddess in ultimate surrender.
The Tenth Day: After Ravana's slaying comes Sri Ramachandra's victory festival and his journey to Ayodhya; the Goddess's return to her own dwelling in Kailasa; and since Durga is the presiding deity of war, after worshipping her through the great ninth day, on this victorious tenth day the rites include the procession of triumph for kings seeking to vanquish their enemies, and the honoring of soldiers—the ceremonial welcome of the armies of those rulers who desire conquest. Even in this age, one can observe that if someone has no other reason to travel, they will nonetheless undertake a journey on this day for a full year ahead—so that afterward they may travel at any time, on any day, without regard to auspicious timing.
Worship and adoration, hospitality and reverence, three days spent in the divine intoxication of the worldly and unworldly—all grow confused at the unwelcome arrival of the tenth day. The pain of separation wounds whom it does not touch—especially the pain of parting from one we have gained only after long waiting!
Today is the day the Goddess returns to her eternal dwelling of snow—the tenth day, the day of immersion. Where lies that Himalayan peak, that Kailash?—Why, it dwells within our own Mind-lake, so near at hand, where the ascetic power of the mighty, meditative Shiva has scattered and torn asunder the mist of our unknowing.
The mirror has been immersed. In that very mirror's reflection was the Goddess worshipped. Now that reflection, returning to image, passes back into its source and origin. The festival ground that once resounded with the prayers of devotees—seekers of wisdom and fortune, yearning for knowledge of the Brahman, whether with attributes or without—falls silent now. As twilight gathers, the image stands exposed beneath the open sky. The same decorated pavilion that once rang with songs of invocation at her coming now fills every heart with the mournful strains of her departure. Yet carrying within us the steady, unbroken meditation on the Mother's eternal return, and offering one another the reverence and kinship that is our due, we shall once again pass our days in waiting for the Mother's coming.