Navratri Durga Puja 2026

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु शक्तिरूपेण संस्थिता।

नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः॥

Yā Devī sarvabhūteṣu śakti-rūpeṇa saṃsthitā,

namas tasyai namas tasyai namas tasyai namo namaḥ.

Navratri Day 8 – Sunday, 18 October 2026 – Durga Ashtami

Invoking Mahagauri Devi

The ladies may wear Purple today

Mahagauri Ma

On the eighth day of the Moon, the Maha Ashtami of Durga, Her 8th manifestation appears, Mahagauri Ma.

Yesterday, Her color was midnight black, today She is effulgent white, as Her name suggests. Gauri means “white.”

“Austerities” are referred to as “tapas” in Indian tradition, which actually means “heating” or even “burning,” so the result of Parvati’s tapas was that her skin blackened from the fire of Her austerities. This morning (in cosmic terms), Lord Shiva bathed Parvati with the waters of the Ganga, and lo and behold, the blackness washed away revealing the pristine Goddess, whose face resembled the Moon.

Dressed in white, sitting atop a white bull, holding Authority in Her right hand in the form of the trident, she holds Lord Shiva’s gift of the damaru, the two headed drum, in her left. It is from this damaru that the Maheshwara Sutra is heard, and Speech is gifted to humankind.

The divine irony of opposites is revealed in Mahagauri Ma, and for those who can realise that, She grants joy and power. Many believe that the husband will have a long life should the wife worship Mahagauri Ma, and the unmarried woman seeking a husband will find an excellent match.

She may be invoked and worshipped with these mantras:

या देवी सर्वभूतेषु महागौरीरूपेण संस्थिता।

नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः॥

Yā Devī sarvabhūteṣu Mahāgaurī-rūpeṇa saṃsthitā,

namas tasyai namas tasyai namas tasyai namo namaḥ.

श्वेते वृषे समारूढा श्वेताम्बरधरा शुचिः।

महागौरी शुभं दद्यान्महादेवप्रमोददा॥

śvete vṛṣe samārūḍhā śvetāmbaradharā śuciḥ, mahāgaurī śubhaṃ dadyān mahādevapramodadā.

ओं ह्रीं श्री महागौरी दुर्गायै नमः

oṃ hrīṃ śrī mahāgaurī durgāyai namaḥ

सर्वमङ्गलमाङ्गल्ये शिवे सर्वार्थसाधिके।

शरण्ये त्र्यम्बके गौरि नारायणि नमोस्तु ते॥

sarvamaṅgalamāṅgalye śive sarvārthasādhike, śaraṇye tryambake gauri nārāyaṇi namo’stu te.