Shared by Rajita Kulkarni
Navratri means ‘nine nights’ in Sanskrit; Nav – nine and Ratri – nights. During these 9 nights and 10 days, the three forms of the goddess – Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati – are invoked. I have been fortunate to have had the opportunity to celebrate Navratri at the Art of Living International Center for the last decade and a half.
The grand and profound Navratri celebrations in the presence of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar are the annual highlight of my life. It’s the time of the year for me to dive into the knowledge of the Devi Bhagwatam, rejoice in the beauty of all the homas and yagnas, sing and dance in the melodious satsangs, dress up in the finest silks in honor of the Divine Mother, and experience the amazing paradox of pure joy in deep silence. Every Navratri makes me a little more rich in the experience of life. In these few paragraphs, I have attempted to capture some of the life’s learnings that I have received in the past few years.
Discipline and Precision:
Thousands of people from around the world participate every year at the Art of Living International Center’s Navratri celebrations. The number peaks on the 8 th day, when more than a 100,000 people come together. Yet, everything is in perfect discipline. There is an order in the seating, and discipline in the movements of people. Even in the kitchen that cooks 15-20 food items per person for the 100,000 people, there is discipline and precision. No wasted movements, no unplanned activities, no chaos. All the pujas and yagnas are an epitome of discipline – perfect and precise synchronization of activities and people. When you watch this as an observer, it almost seems like a dance! This comes from meticulous planning, detailed preparations, and commitment to excellence. For all of us also who participate in Navratri, a certain discipline of personal hygiene, timeliness, conduct, and composure has to be maintained. For all the nine days, a group of us chants the Lalita Sahasranama and all the other chants of the Divine Mother – same time, every day, without fail. The best discipline I have ever maintained!
My lesson from Navratri
In discipline lies the secret of excellence. With the right planning and hard work, no task is big enough to fulfill.
Faith and knowledge
Navratri is the time to plunge into the unknown realms of the universe. It cannot be explained how it rains after every yagna, how the seeds sprout into little saplings in less than seven days, how the divine energy manifests in different aspects of Lord Ganesha, Lord Shiva, the Divine Mother, how healing happens! These are the most wondrous mysteries of the world. People from far off places such as Mongolia, Argentina, China, and Russia, who don’t understand the Sanskrit chanting, or even the language, also enjoy as much as someone from India does. There is only one thing binding everyone together – faith in the divine! And this faith makes the impossible possible.
For the past many years, I have had the blessing of sharing the knowledge of the Devi Bhagwatam and about the significance of Navratri in the satsangs. Just the process of studying the scriptures, going beyond the surface, and diving deep in the knowledge has been transformational! I have given hundreds of talks in my life, but I never thought I was capable of talking on the scriptures! When Gurudev instructed me to do this, I just said ‘yes’ and since then have spoken things about the scriptures I never knew!
My lesson from Navratri
Being in knowledge and having faith in the divine can make things possible in our life much beyond our capability and imagination.
Magnanimity and Diversity
Everything about Navratri is grand and glorious. The diversity of the world comes together as one big melting pot! Tonnes of food is cooked everyday for hundreds of thousands of people, crates after crates of puja materials are organized, baskets of flowers are offered! Thousands of people meditate, pray, chant, sing, and dance together. Elephant, horse, cow, little girls and boys, women and men – all are honored under one roof. The Gujarati Garba dance is done by South and North Indians ! My American and Italian friends dress up in sarees and bangles! When I am in this environment, everything is larger than life and my own problems seem so tiny. My world expands to encompass everyone, and in the process, my own life seems a lot easier to manage and maneuver. In these times, I have learnt to respect diversity and celebrate it. The world truly seems truly my oyster!
My lesson from Navratri
When we have a big vision for life and take everyone along with respect, our problems become small and very easy to overcome.
Inclusive and Exclusive
During Navratri, I have seen how inclusive everything we do in life can be. I have watched Bhanu didi (Sri Sri’s sister) include everyone in so many different ways to contribute their seva (service) towards the pujas. Whether it is doing the traditional Aarti of Gurudev, or organizing bangles and bindis for women, or arranging clothes and gifts for little girls, everyone is included to participate and contribute. Every one of us always has the experience of being the host! Such a unique feeling. It needs someone with a huge heart and a feeling of connectedness to the whole world to have this attitude of inclusiveness. With grace, poise, a warm heart and a loving smile, Bhanu didi takes all of us along, in diving deeper and rising higher, in our quest for the divine. Yet, everyone’s experience is personal and exclusive. Whether in meditation, yagnas or satsang, each one of us, and that’s true for all the 100,000 of us, comes back with our own exclusive memory. Year after year, this experience also matures as we evolve in our own personal spiritual journey.
My lesson from Navratri
Our ability to include others in our joy can expand our own life and its grandeur.
Happiness, Peace and a Big Vision
Navaratri is about peace, love and happiness – within and outside – in solitude and amid crowds, in silence and in celebration. Every year, this is the time I drench in the experience of the absolute truth, of the deepest stillness, the gentlest corner of my being and the most beautiful knowledge of my existence. I come back with a big, broad vision of my own self and that of the world – knowing how the subtle rules over the gross, how I am an integral part of this big interconnected universe; how with the right food, some discipline of routine, increased prana, and an attitude of celebration, my life can be filled with an ocean of positivity. How negativity can be won over because demons are but in the mind alone! This is the time when the power of meditation in spreading positive vibes can be felt, the power of having one big global family can be experienced, and the power of being able to make a difference – one person at a time – is a reality!
My lesson from Navratri
Being on the spiritual path under the grace of a Satguru is the biggest blessing of life.
A little about Rajita Kulkarni
Rajita is a humanitarian, an educationist, a writer, a leadership guide and a global leader. She is the President of the World Forum for Ethics in Business (www.wfeb.org) and a Board member in a number of non- governmental organizations at an Indian national and international level. (www.aolhet.org).
