There is a particular feeling that arrives with Navratri.
The lamps come out. Flowers begin appearing at the doorway. Somewhere in the house, a box that has been carefully put away for a year is opened again. Dolls are unwrapped. Brass is polished. A saree is taken out and held against the light.
And suddenly, the home has kalae again.
Across India, these nine nights take many forms. There is Garba and Dandiya in Gujarat. Durga Puja in Bengal. In Tamil homes, steps are arranged for Golu. In Karnataka, Bombe Habba brings generations of dolls back into the house. As the festival draws to a close come Saraswati Puja, Ayudha Puja and Vijayadashami.
The traditions may look different, but something underneath them feels remarkably similar.
Homes become gathering places.
Women visit one another. Children are dressed and taken along. Sundal and sweets are shared. Songs and prayers return that perhaps haven't been heard since the previous year.
And clothes become part of the occasion too.
Sometimes it is the silk saree kept carefully for festivals. Sometimes a comfortable cotton for an evening of visiting several homes. Sometimes it is a saree that once belonged to a mother or grandmother and quietly carries another Navratri with it.
Perhaps that is why festivals remain with us.
Not because every year is exactly the same, but because familiar things return and make a home feel different for a few days.
This Navratri, the Shlokam Journal will explore some of those traditions — Golu, Bombe Habba, the colors of Navratri, Saraswati Puja, Ayudha Puja and Vijayadashami — and, naturally, the sarees that accompany them.
Navratri has begun long before the first lamp is lit. It begins when we start preparing for it.
Explore sarees chosen for the festive season at Shlokam.com.