October is here with vibrant colours, the smell of incense and, of course, the beats of Dandiya, indicating that Navratri and Durga Puja are upon us. But wait, are Durga Puja and Navratri different? And if they are, what really is the difference? Let’s find out.

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Difference between Durga Puja and Navratri

Navratri and Durga Puja are two separate festivals that overlap with each other. One of the primary differences is that Navratri is a nine-day festival while Durga Puja is a five-day festival. Durga Puja begins on the sixth day (Shashti) of Navratri and ends on the tenth day (Dusshera).

Moreover, eastern states like West Bengal celebrate Durga Puja while the north and west of India celebrate Navratri. Though both the festivals are dedicated to Goddess Durga, the purpose and austerity of the celebrations are different.

During Navratri, people visit temples, offer prasad and fast to honour Goddess Durga. People also play the popular Gujarati dances Dandiya and garba to please the Goddess and get her blessings. 

Durga Puja, on the other hand, marks the return of a daughter to her maternal home. People of West Bengal consider Goddess Durga as their daughter, who is married to Lord Shiva and lives on Mount Kailash. So, it is a festival to celebrate the annual visit of their daughter to her maternal home.

Navratri translates to nine nights, and during this time, nine avatars of Goddess Durga are worshipped. But as the name suggests, Durga Puja means worshipping Maa Durga in her entirety without separating all her avatars from one another. She’s worshipped, along with her children — Kartikeya and Ganesha, and fellow goddesses Saraswati and Lakshmi. 

Navratri begins with the worship of the first avatar of the goddess, known as Shailputri, whereas Durga Puja starts with Mahalaya, the beginning of the battle between the demon, Mahishasura and Goddess Durga.

The different rituals

People who observe Navratri abstain from consuming non-vegetarian foods, as well as onion and garlic. However, Bengalis relish non-vegetarian food during Durga Puja. They believe that Goddess Durga’s arrival at her maternal home is a time of joy and celebration, and eating non-veg food is a part of it. In some places, the Goddess is offered meat and fish as bhog. However, some Bengalis refrain from eating non-veg food for the last four days of the puja, but this is not a common practice. 

Navratri in Northern India ends with Dusshera to mark the day Lord Rama defeated Ravana. On Dusshera, we burn the effigies of Ravana and Ramlila is performed. Durga Puja, on the other hand, ends with Vijayadashmi to mark the goddess’ victory over Mahishasura. On the last day of Durga Puja, women participate in Sindoor Khela, a vermilion game where married women put sindoor on one another. This day also marks the return of Goddess Durga from her maternal home to her marital home on Mount Kailash. The festival ends with Ghat Visarjan, where people immerse the goddess’ idols in local water bodies to say goodbye to their beloved daughter.

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