The legends behind Navaratri, told briefly.
There is no single document that records when families first began arranging dolls on steps at home, and historians describe it as a custom that grew over centuries. What can be traced is the festival around it.
The story of the Goddess's victory over Mahishasura is told in the Devi Mahatmya, part of the Markandeya Purana, which scholars generally place in the first millennium CE. Royal courts later made Navaratri a grand public festival. The Vijayanagara rulers held Mahanavami celebrations at Hampi, and Mysuru's Dasara continues that courtly tradition today.
The word kolu in Tamil is linked to a royal court or assembly, so the display can be understood as the Goddess holding court, with the whole world of gods, people and creatures gathered before her.
Regional doll-making crafts grew alongside the festival: Kondapalli in Andhra Pradesh, Channapatna in Karnataka, Thanjavur and Tirupati in the south. Many families still buy or inherit dolls from these traditions.
Mahishasura was a shape-shifting asura who often took the form of a buffalo. He won a boon from Brahma that no man or god could defeat him, and once he felt invincible he conquered the heavens and drove out the devas.
The devas went to Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. The anger of all the gods streamed out as blazing light and joined into one radiant woman: Durga. Each god gave her a gift. Shiva gave a trident, Vishnu a discus, Indra a thunderbolt, and Himavan a lion to ride.
She fought Mahishasura's armies and then Mahishasura himself as he changed form again and again. According to tradition the battle lasted nine nights, and on the tenth day she defeated him. That is why Navaratri has nine nights and why Vijayadashami, the victorious tenth, closes it.
The story appears in the Devi Mahatmya, also called the Durga Saptashati, a text of about 700 verses in 13 chapters. Because Mahishasura could not be killed by any man or god, it is the Goddess, the embodiment of shakti (power), who defeats him.
The Devi Mahatmya is built around three episodes: the defeat of Madhu and Kaitabha, of Mahishasura, and of Shumbha and Nishumbha. Tradition connects the three to the Goddess as Mahakali, Mahalakshmi and Mahasaraswati.
Many South Indian households follow a popular grouping: the first three nights for Durga (courage and the removal of obstacles), the next three for Lakshmi (prosperity), and the last three for Saraswati (knowledge).
Other traditions worship a different form of Durga each night, the Navadurga. Both patterns are shown in the day-by-day guide, so you can follow whichever your family prefers.
In the Mahabharata, the Pandavas had to spend the thirteenth year of their exile unrecognised. Before they entered the kingdom of Virata in disguise, they hid their weapons, including Arjuna's bow Gandiva, in a Shami tree (called Vanni in Tamil).
At the end of the year, on Vijayadashami, they took the weapons back, and Arjuna defeated the Kaurava army that had raided Virata's cattle.
The Shami is honoured on this day for that reason. In parts of Karnataka and Maharashtra its leaves are exchanged as symbolic gold. It also connects to Ayudha Puja: the tools that serve us are cleaned, worshipped and put back to work.
For many communities, Vijayadashami is also the day Rama defeated Ravana. In North India it is celebrated with Ramlila plays and the burning of Ravana effigies. In some Bengali retellings of the Ramayana, Rama worships Durga before the battle to gain strength.
In the south the day is mostly about the Goddess, learning and new beginnings. In every telling, the message is the same: goodness prevails over arrogance and injustice.
Saraswati is the goddess of knowledge, music and the arts. She sits on a white lotus with a veena, a book and a rosary, and her companion is the swan. Legend says a swan can separate milk from water, so it stands for the ability to tell what matters from what does not.
In the last three nights she takes the centre of the festival. On Mahanavami, books and instruments rest before her. On Vijayadashami, learning begins again, and children write their first letters in a tray of rice or sand. This is called Vidyarambham or Aksharabhyasam.
What each day is about, the colour to wear, what families usually do, and which stotrams to recite. Dates follow the days of Gollu 2026 and may shift by a day for your panchangam.
The festival opens. The kalasha is installed, the gollu is completed and the lamp is lit for the first time.
Shailaputri, the daughter of the mountain (Himavan), is the Goddess in her first form.
Colour to wear: Orange
Stotrams for today: Ganesha prayer, Sarva mangala mangalye, The nine forms of Durga.
The Goddess as a disciplined seeker, shown performing austerity in order to unite with Shiva.
Brahmacharini stands for devotion and self-discipline.
Colour to wear: White
Stotrams for today: Sarva mangala mangalye, Ya Devi sarvabhuteshu.
Calm and fierce at once. A crescent moon on her forehead is shaped like a bell.
Chandraghanta represents courage in the face of fear.
Colour to wear: Red
Stotrams for today: Sarva mangala mangalye, The nine forms of Durga.
The Goddess whose smile is said to have brought the universe into being. In the popular three-by-three reading, the Lakshmi days of abundance begin today.
Kushmanda is associated with vitality and abundance.
Colour to wear: Royal Blue
Stotrams for today: Namastestu mahamaye, Ya Devi sarvabhuteshu.
The Goddess as the mother of Skanda (Murugan), the picture of protective motherhood.
Skandamata stands for the protective love of a mother.
Colour to wear: Yellow
Stotrams for today: Namastestu mahamaye, The nine forms of Durga.
The warrior form of the Goddess. In many retellings Katyayani is the form who defeats Mahishasura.
Katyayani is the fierce protector who removes what threatens the world.
Colour to wear: Green
Stotrams for today: Namastestu mahamaye, Ya Devi sarvabhuteshu.
The darkest and most fearsome form, who destroys ignorance. In many homes the Saraswati days begin now, with books placed before the Goddess in the days ahead.
Kalaratri represents the removal of ignorance and fear.
Colour to wear: Grey
Stotrams for today: Saraswati namastubhyam, The nine forms of Durga.
The serene, radiant form. Ashtami (Durgashtami) is a major day of Durga worship, when the fiercest battle is remembered.
Mahagauri stands for purity and calm.
Colour to wear: Purple
Stotrams for today: Sarva mangala mangalye, Saraswati namastubhyam.
Mahanavami. Saraswati Puja and Ayudha Puja: books, pens, instruments, tools and vehicles are cleaned, decorated and worshipped.
Siddhidatri is the giver of accomplishment (siddhi).
Colour to wear: Peacock Green
Stotrams for today: Saraswati namastubhyam, Ya Devi sarvabhuteshu.
The victorious tenth day. The Goddess defeats Mahishasura, Rama defeats Ravana and the Pandavas take back their weapons. It is the day for new beginnings.
All forms of the Goddess are honoured today.
Stotrams for today: Saraswati namastubhyam, Ya Devi sarvabhuteshu, Ayi giri nandini.
The reasons behind the customs, from tradition and from everyday practice.
In tradition. Odd numbers are considered auspicious in Hindu ritual practice, and the steps of a gollu are always built in an odd number: three, five, seven, nine or eleven.
In practice. We keep seven. Read from the top down, they are a ladder of creation, from the gods at the top to everyday life at the foot. Read about our seven steps.
In tradition. Grains and pulses are offered in gratitude for the harvest. The nine grains (navadhanya) are traditionally linked to the nine planets, so offering a variety is considered auspicious.
In practice. Sundal is a lightly spiced dish of boiled legumes such as chickpeas, green gram, black-eyed peas, peanuts and white peas. It is rich in protein, easy to make in large batches, and easy to hand to every guest. A different legume is used on each of the nine days.
In tradition. Sowing grain in a pot before a major rite is called Ankurarpanam, an old temple custom. Healthy sprouts are read as a sign of prosperity and a successful festival. In Tamil homes the pot is called mulaipari.
In practice. Moong germinates quickly, so it is ready by Day 9 or 10. Families keep the pot near the kalasha, water it daily, and on Vijayadashami immerse or plant the sprouts.
In tradition. The kalasha represents the Divine Goddess. It is a pot filled with water, topped with mango leaves and a coconut, and wrapped in cloth.
In practice. It is installed on Day 1, worshipped each evening, and kept undisturbed until the final puja.
In tradition. Receiving guests is part of the worship itself, and thamboolam is offered as a sign of respect: betel leaves and nut, a coconut, fruit, flowers, bangles, turmeric and kumkum.
In practice. Women and girls who visit are given thamboolam before they leave. If you are offered it, it is not a formality: being received, fed and sent home with thamboolam is the whole substance of a gollu visit.
In tradition. The Marapachi bommai is a pair of plain wooden dolls, usually carved from red sandalwood. No gollu is complete without them. They are given to a daughter when she marries, or when she first sets up a gollu of her own, and passed down from mother to daughter after that.
In practice. In our gollu they stand on the fourth step (entry 4.6). They are the least ornate things on the steps and almost always the oldest, and in many households the only pieces that are dressed and re-dressed every year.
In tradition. On Mahanavami, books, pens, instruments and tools (ayudhas) are placed before the steps with flowers and kumkum. The idea is to honour the instruments through which knowledge and livelihood come. They rest for the day and are taken back on Vijayadashami morning with a blessing.
In practice. Books, pens and musical instruments are left unopened and unplayed out of respect, and Ayudha Puja is performed on the tools and vehicles the family depends on. Vehicles are washed and decorated. It is a day of pause and gratitude.
In tradition. Jaggery-based sweets are offered as a sign of joy on the day of victory, and panakam is a simple sweet drink the Goddess is offered and everyone shares.
In practice. Panakam is jaggery dissolved in water with dry ginger, cardamom and pepper. It is cooling, and the ginger and pepper are gentle on digestion as the weather turns after the monsoon. It is also offered at other festivals such as Rama Navami, so you may find it at other times of year.
In tradition. After the final puja on Vijayadashami, the idols are laid down to sleep. This marks the close of the festival for the year.
In practice. In our home the idols are laid down on the tenth day, Vijayadashami, and one is turned to face the wall. The collection is then wrapped and packed away for another year.
Short verses to recite during Gollu, with transliteration and meaning. Full hymns and audio will follow.
Begin every puja with this verse.
वक्रतुण्ड महाकाय सूर्यकोटि समप्रभ । निर्विघ्नं कुरु मे देव सर्वकार्येषु सर्वदा ॥
Vakratuṇḍa mahākāya sūryakoṭi samaprabha Nirvighnaṃ kuru me deva sarvakāryeṣu sarvadā
Meaning. O Lord with the curved trunk and mighty form, radiant as a million suns, please remove all obstacles from everything I undertake, always.
Recite on the Durga days (Days 1 to 3) and any day of Navaratri.
सर्वमङ्गलमाङ्गल्ये शिवे सर्वार्थसाधिके । शरण्ये त्र्यम्बके गौरि नारायणि नमोऽस्तु ते ॥
Sarvamaṅgala māṅgalye śive sarvārtha sādhike Śaraṇye tryambake gauri nārāyaṇi namo'stu te
Meaning. Auspiciousness of all that is auspicious, companion of Shiva, fulfiller of every purpose, our refuge, three-eyed one, fair one, Narayani: I bow to you.
Recite on the Lakshmi days (Days 4 to 6). It opens the Mahalakshmi Ashtakam.
नमस्तेऽस्तु महामाये श्रीपीठे सुरपूजिते । शङ्खचक्रगदाहस्ते महालक्ष्मि नमोऽस्तु ते ॥
Namaste'stu mahāmāye śrīpīṭhe surapūjite Śaṅkhacakragadāhaste mahālakṣmi namo'stu te
Meaning. Salutations to you, Mahamaya, seated on the throne of prosperity and worshipped by the gods, holding the conch, discus and mace. Mahalakshmi, I bow to you.
Recite on the Saraswati days (Days 7 to 9) and at Vidyarambham on Vijayadashami.
सरस्वति नमस्तुभ्यं वरदे कामरूपिणि । विद्यारम्भं करिष्यामि सिद्धिर्भवतु मे सदा ॥
Sarasvati namastubhyaṃ varade kāmarūpiṇi Vidyārambhaṃ kariṣyāmi siddhir bhavatu me sadā
Meaning. Saraswati, salutations to you, giver of boons, who takes whatever form is needed. I begin my studies: may I always succeed.
A verse from the Devi Suktam, recited across all nine nights.
या देवी सर्वभूतेषु शक्तिरूपेण संस्थिता । नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः ॥
Yā devī sarvabhūteṣu śaktirūpeṇa saṃsthitā Namastasyai namastasyai namastasyai namo namaḥ
Meaning. To the Goddess who lives in all beings in the form of power (shakti): salutations to her, again and again. The full text repeats this verse for other forms, such as knowledge (vidya) and prosperity (lakshmi).
Names the nine forms, one for each night in the Navadurga tradition.
प्रथमं शैलपुत्री च द्वितीयं ब्रह्मचारिणी । तृतीयं चन्द्रघण्टेति कूष्माण्डेति चतुर्थकम् ॥ पञ्चमं स्कन्दमातेति षष्ठं कात्यायनीति च । सप्तमं कालरात्रीति महागौरीति चाष्टमम् ॥ नवमं सिद्धिदात्री च नवदुर्गाः प्रकीर्तिताः ॥
Prathamaṃ śailaputrī ca dvitīyaṃ brahmacāriṇī Tṛtīyaṃ candraghaṇṭeti kūṣmāṇḍeti caturthakam Pañcamaṃ skandamāteti ṣaṣṭhaṃ kātyāyanīti ca Saptamaṃ kālarātrīti mahāgaurīti cāṣṭamam Navamaṃ siddhidātrī ca navadurgāḥ prakīrtitāḥ
Meaning. The first is Shailaputri, the second Brahmacharini, the third Chandraghanta, the fourth Kushmanda, the fifth Skandamata, the sixth Katyayani, the seventh Kalaratri, the eighth Mahagauri and the ninth Siddhidatri. These are the nine Durgas.
The opening line of the Mahishasura Mardini Stotram, widely sung during Navaratri. The full hymn is long; this is only its first line.
अयि गिरिनन्दिनि नन्दितमेदिनि विश्वविनोदिनि नन्दनुते
Ayi giri nandini nandita medini viśva vinodini nandanute
Meaning. Hail, daughter of the mountain, who delights the earth and brings joy to the whole universe. The hymn goes on to praise the Goddess as the slayer of Mahishasura.