Navratri is not just about outer restoration. It is about inner illumination. Liberation is knowledge, and knowledge is restoration. Until man knows himself, no river will run clean, no forest will stand safe. To worship Devi is to end the demon within; only then will the earth be free.
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Originally published in The Pioneer on 30 sep '25
In a world where exploitation and greed mirror the demons of old, Navratri is a reminder that true worship, true sacrifice, and true restoration begin with reverence for nature — and the courage to confront the poison within ourselves
This Navratri, as the planet reels under record heatwaves, poisoned rivers, and collapsing forests, the hymn “Ya Devi Sarvabhuteshu…” takes on an urgent meaning. We are not only invoking a distant goddess. We are calling upon the very breath that keeps us alive: the rivers, the winds, the forests, the food on our plate. The Durga Saptashati’s third charitra says it without hesitation: when the demons Shumbh and Nishumbh were vanquished, rivers flowed clean, the air turned cool, and mountains and forests healed. The Goddess’s victory was the Earth’s restoration. The sages were not naïve. They saw that whenever adharma rises, an important casualty is nature. The health of rivers and the coolness of the wind are the truest measures of whether dharma or adharma rules. That is why the text ends its long battle not with the devas celebrating, but with the land itself breathing again.
