Invoking the courage of the Goddess

This week the festival of Navratri begins, the nine nights dedicated to the Goddess and to the living presence of Shakti.

These nights revolve around the epic battle of Durga, a powerful form of the Goddess who confronts the demons that threaten the balance of the world. These demons represent forces that disturb clarity in the human mind and create havoc in the world: fear, doubt, anger, arrogance, illusion, the inner forces that can keep consciousness caught in confusion.

For that reason Navratri is an auspicious time for inner practice, a moment to explore what is happening in our own mind, which can sometimes feel like a battlefield.

When we sit in meditation we step directly into that territory, meeting what appears with presence and courage in the same way the Goddess meets the demons in the stories.

The nine nights unfold in three phases, each connected to a different aspect of the Goddess and each showing us something profound about doing Sadhana.

The first nights are dedicated to Durga, the force that confronts the obstacles and brings hidden patterns into the light of awareness.

In a way you could say that Durga asks us to have courage:

Can we sit with what arises?

The middle nights are devoted to Lakshmi, the Goddess who restores harmony and balance as space begins to open and energy can begin to flow again.

You could say that Lakshmi asks us to create space:

Can we allow the karmic seeds to burn?

The final nights honor Saraswati, the power of wisdom and clarity that begins to emerge as the mind grows quiet and awareness expands.

Perhaps Saraswati asks us to remain present:

Can we remain present when the “black smoke” appears, when painful memories, uncomfortable emotions, or persistent stories of the mind surface as the subconscious begins to open?

Navratri is an invitation to enter into communion with Shakti, the Goddess power that lives within us as Kundalini, the power of the soul that fuels our capacity for awareness and ultimately sets us free.

She is the subtle impulse that draws us toward spiritual practice in the first place. The longing to meditate, to inquire, and to realize who we truly are arises from this very power.

Through the breath we come into contact with her. Breath moves prana, and prana becomes the doorway through which Kundalini begins to reveal herself.

Sadhana then becomes a process of liberating the energy that has become contained within our inner contractions. The beliefs we hold about ourselves, the emotional patterns we repeat, and the stories that keep us circling within the familiar identity of the mind all hold energy that has become frozen in place.

When we sit in meditation these contractions gradually begin to loosen, and the energy that was bound inside them becomes available again as Shakti, as life force that can support clarity, presence, and transformation.

This kind of practice asks for courage and stamina, and it becomes much more supportive when we do it together.

For this year’s Navratri we will practice for 11 days, beginning on March 19, the day of the New Moon, and moving through the Spring Equinox on March 20, the moment when the light begins to return and nature begins to shift toward a new cycle of growth.

During these days we gather in the Sadhana Moving from Within, creating a shared space to explore this process through meditation and breath.

If you feel the call to practice during these days of Navratri, you are warmly invited to join us.