Sharad Navratri — the autumn nine nights — is the great festival of the Goddess: nine nights, nine forms of Devi from Shailaputri to Siddhidatri, opening with the Ghatasthapana kalash installation and culminating through Maha Ashtami and Maha Navami into Vijayadashami, the victory day.

It is less a nine-day party than a nine-step practice: the same kalash tended, the same lamp kept, one form of the Goddess honored each night — with the vrat simplifying the kitchen so attention can go where the festival points it. The nights commemorate the Devi Mahatmya's battle: nine nights of struggle, victory on the tenth.

Key facts

• Dates: October 11th – October 19th, 2026 (9-day observance)
• Ruling deities: Durga, Devi, Lakshmi, Saraswati
• Fasting: navratri_vrat — Satvik food, no grains, no onion/garlic
• Regional names: Navratri (north), Navaratri (south), Durga Puja (east), Navratri (west)

Day by day

How it is observed

• Ghatasthapana on Pratipada: the kalash installed on a sown barley bed, the akhand jyoti lit — the seat of the Goddess for all nine nights.
• Nightly worship of the night's Navadurga form, with arati and, in many households, a daily portion of the Durga Saptashati.
• The Navratri vrat: a satvik, grain-free falahar kitchen for the nine days — kept at full, partial, or first-and-last-day intensity by family tradition.
• Kanya Puja on Ashtami or Navami: nine girls honored as the nine forms; havan on Navami; visarjan of the kalash and sprouts on Dashami.
• Regional forms in parallel: Garba and Dandiya in Gujarat, Durga Puja in Bengal, Golu displays in the South, Ramlila in the North — the same nine nights, kept in each region's own genius.

Frequently asked questions

Related reading

• Navratri Explained: The Significance of the Nine Nights, the Nine Forms of Durga, Ghatasthapana, and the Vrat
• Pitru Paksha 2026 (Sep 26 – Oct 11): Shraddha and Tarpan at Home — Who Performs It, the Vidhi, and Every Common Doubt
• Diwali at Home: The Five Days, Lakshmi Puja Vidhi, and the Classical Stories
• Today's Panchang (Ghatasthapana window)
• Track the nine days in your calendar

Plan Navratri with Purohit Ji

Purohit Ji grounds the observance in your own city and Panchang — timings, vidhi, and what to prepare, answered for your home rather than in general.