Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar says: Navratri is a celebration of the spirit or prana which alone can destroy mahishasura inertia , shumbha-nishumbha pride and shame and madhu-kaitabh extreme forms of craving and aversion. They are completely opposites yet complementary.
Inertia, deeply ingrained negativities and obsessions raktabeejasura , unreasonable logics chanda-munda and blurred vision dhoomralochan can be overcome only by raising the level of prana and shakti , the life-force energy. Devi Durga, in her form as Mahishasura Mardini, is the destroyer of Mahisha. The word Mahisha means buffalo which is a symbol of laziness, lethargy, small-mindedness, tamogun and inertia.
Things will not work, one has to be corrupt. These are the qualities which impede the spiritual, material progress of an individual and must be conquered. The Devi is a storehouse of positive energy, and any trace of laziness or inertia dissolves in her very presence.
The Mahishasura Mardini Stotram holds immense significance during Navratri. Composed by the great sage Adi Shankaracharya around AD, this stotram is based on the Devi Mahatmyam and extols the different powers shaktis of the Devi.
Mahishasura Mardini Stotram is said to bring peace to the devotee and removes all fear and sadness. It drives away negative emotions like doubt, anger, ego and inertia. This stotram also removes obstacles from the path of the believer. One can listen to the Mahishasura Mardini Stotram, however reciting the chants are considered to be more powerful. Discover the nine forms of Divine energy that constitute our life force. Ayudha puja is performed to honor and feel grateful for all the instruments that add meaning to our life.
Get to know Lalitha — the scintillating and dynamic expression of the Self, as described in the Lalitha Sahasranama. Transition from sound to silence, from movement to stillness with this guide on what to do during Navratri. Fasting during Navratri is highly auspicious.
Fast the right way with our guide on tips to fasting during Navratri. National Website Menu. The Slaying of Mahishasura. He called all his generals for a meeting. No man or god can harm me. Also Read: Let your child turn storyteller. True to his command, the army of asuras stormed Amravati, confident that they would win. The gods had heard about the coming attack and were quite worried. They consulted Brahma.
If only I had guessed his intentions! Mahishasur had taken the form of a huge buffalo and was leading the demons. And to their horror, all the divine weapons of the gods proved useless before his strength.
Vishnu hit him with his powerful mace. The demon was stunned but rose again, taking the form of a lion. Then Vishnu threw his chakra to cut off his head but it bounced back, unable to make even a slight cut on him. In revenge, Mahishasur butted the god and knocked Vishnu down. As a last resort, Indra hurled his thunderbolt vajra at the demon. But he was shocked to see that Mahishasur still stood there, laughing!
Mahishasur now took the form of a giant buffalo again and redoubled his attack. With shouts and whoops of delight, the asura army drove the gods out of heaven. He did what he wanted and the people of the earth suffered terribly. The gods were in a pathetic state. For years they wandered over fields and mountains.
Then, tired of being in exile, they decided to consult the trinity, Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma to come up with a way to destroy the demon so they could return to heaven. Let us use our combined powers to create one. The desperate gods closed their eyes and began to concentrate all their thoughts on creating this invincible woman. Their divine powers and deep concentration worked, and soon a fiery pillar of light appeared in the sky.
It was so bright that even the gods found it impossible to look at it. It was a mass of pure energy produced from their combined power. From it they created a goddess who would be strong enough to vanquish Mahishasur. Shiva created her face, Vishnu gave her arms, and Brahma provided her with legs. The god of the oceans of milk gave her a red sari and a diamond necklace.
Vishwakarma presented her with earrings, bracelets and other jewellery he had made himself. Thus all the gods presented her with various ornaments. Shiva gave her a trident and Brahma a kamandal full of the holy Ganga water.
Varun gave her a gift of ever-blooming lotus flowers and a mighty conch. Agni presented her with the sadagni—a weapon that could kill thousands. Vayu provided her with a bow and a quiver holding an endless supply of arrows. Indra gave her a thunderbolt similar to his own.
Vishwakarma armed her with an axe, Yama with a staff and Kuber gave her a cup of wine. Surya presented her with his blinding rays. The story begins when Rambha, the king of the asuras fell in love with the demon princess Shyamala. Shyamala had taken on the form of a buffalo after being struck by a curse. Mahishasura was the child born to Rambha and Shyamala.
As an asura, the devas were of course arch enemies to Mahishasura. He attempted several times, to vanquish them. Despite his ability to change his form, Mahishasura couldn't win against the combined might of the devas.
He wondered what might help him defeat the gods. Mahishasura began to meditate, and invoked Lord Brahma to grant him a boon. His austerity finally appeased Brahma, who agreed to grant Mahishasura a boon. But Mahishasura wanted immortality! Brahma granted Mahishasura's boon that he couldn't be destroyed by man, god, demon or beast.
But the boon had an important omission — it said nothing about whether or not a woman could kill Mahishasura. Armed with a boon from Brahma that made him near invincible, Mahishahura started on a conquest of the three worlds.
It seemed there was nothing that could stop Mahishasura and his evil dominion. Even Lord Brahma had no influence over Mahishasura; so omnipotent had the demon ruler grown. The devas had hoped that Brahma would have a solution to their present predicament.
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