Preparing for Navaratri—Inside and Out
Updated: Oct 1
How do you prepare to spend nine days with the Goddesses?
Let’s begin with what you do not need.
You do not need to redecorate your house.
You do not need to understand Sanskrit.
You do not need an impressive meditation practice.
And you certainly do not need to purchase an entirely new wardrobe of white linen.
Unless, of course, you have been looking for an excuse. 😄
The practical preparation can be very simple.
Choose a little place in your home where you can be undisturbed for a while.
Keep your Navaratri Sādhanā Workbook nearby.
Find a journal and a pen you actually enjoy using.
Gather some coloured pencils for your yantras and Devi Doodles.
Perhaps place a candle, flower or beautiful object beside you—something that says:
For the next little while, this space is sacred.
Not because it needs to look impressive.
But because you are choosing to pay attention.
And that, really, is where sādhanā begins.
The inside may require a slightly different kind of preparation.
Not more knowledge.
More openness.
Before Navaratri begins, you might sit quietly and ask:
What am I hoping to see more clearly?
What am I ready to hold a little less tightly?
Which quality would I like to awaken in myself?
What might become possible if I stopped insisting that I already know the answer?
An intention is not another goal to achieve.
It doesn’t need a spreadsheet, three measurable outcomes and a colour-coded action plan. 😄
It is simply a way of turning towards the journey.
A quiet inner Yes.
And then you begin.
One day.
One Goddess.
One story.
One mantra.
Perhaps some journalling, a Devi Doodle or a little time colouring your yantra.
And then you close the workbook and get on with your day.
Because this is where your private Navaratri pilgrimage really begins.
Can you recognise something of that Goddess while you're making coffee?
Driving to work?
Talking to your daughter?
Standing in the supermarket queue?
Having the conversation you've been avoiding?
Suddenly discovering a very clear No where yesterday there was an apologetic maybe?
This is not about performing spirituality correctly.
You may become distracted.
You may lose your place in the mantra.
You may colour outside the yantra.
You may feel deeply moved one morning and wonder what on earth everyone is talking about the next.
All perfectly human.
The invitation is simply to experience the stories, mantras and practices—and notice what they illuminate in your actual life.
And perhaps this is one of the loveliest things about creating your own Navaratri retreat at home.
Nobody is watching.
There is no Zoom session to turn up for.
No group to keep up with.
No need to share anything you'd rather keep between you and Durga Maa.
You can make the journey privately, at your own pace.
And although it is your pilgrimage, you don't have to figure everything out alone.
If a question arises while you're using the workbook—or something happens that surprises, puzzles or delights you—you are very welcome to write to me.
I'll be here.
So prepare your little space.
Open your workbook.
Sharpen your coloured pencils.
Set an intention.
Bring an open mind.
And, preferably, your sense of humour.
Then leave a little room for the Goddesses to surprise you.
Your home. Your practice. Your pilgrimage.
My new 65-page Navaratri Sādhanā Workbook gives you everything you need to create your own nine-day journey through the Nine Faces of Durga.
Digital + Printable Edition — US$27
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