Thursday, September 29, 2011

Five Navratri Festivals of the year


Most of you probably know that Navratri is celebrated just prior to the Dassehra festival and that it represents the celebration of Goddess Durga, the manifestation of the deity in the form of Shakti. This 9 day festival culminates with the 10th day known as Vijayadashmi. Did you know, however, that actually Navratri is celebrated 5 times a year? That’s right - each time it is a 9 day festival in honour of the 9 forms of the Mother Goddess known as Shakti.

Durga Navami Festivals


1. Vasanta Navratri
  • Also known as: Basant Navratri / Chaitra Navaratra / Raama Navratri
  • When it is celebrated: In the months of March-April during the spring season.
2. Gupta Navratri
  • Also known as: Gayatri Navratri / Shakambhari Navratri
  • When it is celebrated: In the months of June-July known as Ashadha. To be more specific, it is celebrated during the waxing phase of the moon, known as Ashadha Shukla Paksha. I
3. Sharada Navratri: This is regarded as the most important of the navratri festivals,
  • Also known as: Maha Navratri
  • When it is celebrated: In the months of September-October during the onset of winter (known as Sharad). This is the month of Ashvina.
4. Paush Navratri
  • When it is celebrated: In the months of December-January during the waxing phase of the moon, known as Paush Shukla Paush.
5. Magha Navratri
  • Also known as: Gupta Navratri
  • When it is celebrated: In the months of January-February during the waxing phase of the moon, known as Magha Shukla Paksha.

Sada Sarvada prayer lyrics in Marathi


Sada Sarvada Ganapati Prathana Words in Marathi

सदा सर्वदा योग तूझा घडावा |
तुझे कारणी देह माझा पडावा |
उपेक्षू नको गूणवंता अनंता |
रघूनायका मागणे हेचि आतां  ||

कैलास राणा शिव  चंद्रमौळी |
फणींद्र माथा मुकुटी झळाळी ||
कारुण्य सिंधू  भवदु:खहारी |
तुजवीण शंभो मज  कोण तारी ||

मोरया मोरया  मी बाळ तान्हें |
तुझीच सेवा करु काय जाणे ||
अन्याय माझे कोट्यानुकोटी |
मोरेश्वरा ब तू घाल पोटी ||

ज्या ज्या ठीकांणी मन जाय माझे  |
त्या त्या  ठीकांणी निजरुप  तुझे ||
मी ठेवितो मस्तक ज्या ठीकांणी |
तेथे तुझे सदगुरु पाय दोन्ही ||

अलंकापुरी पुण्य भूमी पवित्र |
तिथे नांदतो ग्यानराजा सुपात्र |
तया आठविता महापुण्यराशी|
नमस्कार माझा सदगुरु गयानेश्वराशी ||

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

2011 Falguni Pathak Dandiya Raas Venue in Mumbai

Last year, Falguni Pathak had opted to celebrate the Navratri festival in Gujarat. This year, the dynamic performer is back at her favourite venue at  the Goregoan Sports Club.

Address and Entry Fees for Falguni Pathak's Dandiya Raas Performance

Venue: Goregaon Sports Club, Malad Link Road, Mumbai 
Time: 7p.m. onwards
Name: Sankalp Dandiya, Navratri 2011
Who will Perform: Falguni Pathak, Hemangini Pandit, Tushar Trivedi, Sanjay Sawant and others.
Special Feature: Pyrotechnics
Entry Fees: Rs.300/- on weekdays / Rs.600/- on weekends. Season pass also available.
Ph: 26161212 / 26192525 / 8291700226/7/8/9


For the 2012 event, tickets information here: 2012 Falguni Pathak Dandiya Raas event

2011 Top 6 Navratri Dandiya Raas Venues in Mumbai

Here's a list of 2011 dandiya nights venues in Mumbai for the Navratri festival

1. Goregaon Sports Club
Name: Sankalp Dandiya, Navratri 2011
Who will Perform: Falguni Pathak 
Special Feature: Pyrotechnics
Entry Fees: Rs. 3,00/- Season Pass; Rs.300/- on weekdays; Rs.600/- on weekends.
Ph: 8291700226/7/8/9

2. Ghatkopar Police Grounds (West)
Who will Perform: Pinky and Preeti
Special Features: Sufi bollywood songs & surprise packages for particpants

Entry Fees: Rs. 100/- and Rs.200/- for daily pass/ Rs. 800/- Season Pass

3. Ekta Ground, Borivali (W)
Who will Perform: Bhumi Trivedi (Indial idol contestant)
Special Feature: There will be one celebrity every day
Entry Fees:  not known

4.Kora Kendra, Borivali (W)
Name: Kora Kendra Navratri 2011
Who will Perform: Singers from Surat
Special Feature: Only Gujarati songs
Entry Fees: Rs.360/- for weekdays / Rs. 450/- for weekends / Rs. 2,5200/- season pass.
Ph: 9769385111

5.  Navratri Ground, Sector 7, Kandivili (W)
Name: Navratri Raas Garba 2011
Who will Perform: Himesh Reshammiya, Vaishali Samant, Raja Hasan, Swaroop Khan, Rajpal Yada, Ketki Dave, etc.
Special Feature: All the proceeds from sale of tickets will go to charities for cancer and blind patients.
Entry Fees: Rs. 200/- weekdays / Rs. 350/- weekend pass / Rs. 2,000/- season pass.

6. Prerna Raas Mulund
Who will Perform: Arpita Thakkar, Hanif Aslam, Kirtidhan Gadhvi
Entry Fees: not yet fixed

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Navratri dress colours for nine days 2011


The Navratri festival is unique for dressing up in nine different colours. These nine colours match with the sari colour of the Devi. Read about the significance of the Navratri colours here.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Popular Ganapati pandals in Mumbai

During the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi, there are numerous pandals spread across Mumbai. This blog post gives a list of some of the most popular Ganapati pandals locations in Mumbai.

What are the types of Ganesh Patris for Ganesh Puja

On the occasion of Eka Vimshathi Patra Puja, which is a puja conducted as soon as the Ganapati idol is brought home, 21 holy leaves are offered during the puja. These leaves are known as Ganesh Patris. The word 'patri' actually does not mean a leaf. It has its origin in Sanskrit and basically means a protector. It also means a vessel and is also another name for Goddess Durga.