For a while, I was engrossed in watching men and women colorfully clad in traditional attire… dancing supplely and artistically to every beat pouring out of the drums… all of them blending into one rhythm… the garba and dandiya raas that was being celebrated down in our building complex…

Most parts of the city and also country are witnessing similar celebrations… in small and big ways… behind these public gatherings and merriment which are largely superficial, a simpler and more somber form of celebrations takes place at homes… in the form of pooja and prayers… in form of rangolis and diyas… in form of flowers and garlands… in form of festival delicacies and its aroma… in the form of family and friends coming together… in the form of elders enlightening the young ones with legends of navraatri, dussera, durga puja… unwrapping the real meaning and significance behind these celebrations…

And most of us know this real meaning and significance… the festival of Navraatri or Durga Puja celebrates the worship of Three Goddess - Durga (the goddess of power and strength), Lakshmi (the goddess of wealth) and Saraswati (the goddess of knowledge and learning). This is followed by Dussera which signifies victory of Ram over Ravana… victory of good over evil… of light over darkness… Thus in this ten day celebration, we worship all the essential elements of our life - power, wealth, knowledge and virtues… and pray for a holistic spiritual state of being… free of vices, free of impurities, free of miseries…

So while the night is silently creeping in midst of fair and fiesta, in the midst of noise and intensity… I am looking forward to a pristine morning… the morning of dussera… to welcome purity and virtues with rangoli and diyas… with flowers and garlands… treat them to a sumptuous badaam kheer… and celebrate the festival in my own small way… at the same time, attain wisdom and spiritual enlightenment…