In one of my previous articles, I  wrote that in Hinduism there is a wheel of festivals, observances and seasons, which makes us constantly remind ourselves of the existence of God , and which assist us very profoundly to engage in pious, positive and  non-violent activities, that will carve a path for good and righteous living. They help to shape and mould our lives in such a way that will definitely make us walk on the path of God’s realization. They create paths for spiritual elevation and solace. Immediately after the observance of ‘Pitri Paksha’, Hindus commence one of the most auspicious and highly scared season called ‘Nava- Raatri’. In its literal sense, Nava- Raatri means night nights. It is considered by Hindus to be nine scared and highly religious oriented nights.  It is nine nights of spiritual power; devotion; faith; sincerity. It is nine nights of spiritual transformation. It is a time for introspection, when we as Hindus should try to identify and destroy the negative and evil thoughts from our lives and seek spiritual enlightenment that will not only make us better Hindus, but better human beings.
Vices are the evils that sway us from the path of real and serene living. Lust, greed, anger, hate, malice, conceit, jealousy, etc, are the root cause of man’s miseries and sufferings in this world. Swayed by them, man eats the wrong things; speak the wrong things; spend money on non-essential things; harbor wrong company; and do the wrong things in his live. Mistakes are therefore committed when humans allow vices to take control and intervene in their lives. He cannot make the right decision at this stage, and as a result, he lives his life as a brute. At this stage even religion and God become a mockery for him. In order to avert these kinds of living, the festivals and observances of Hinduism are extremely vital.
Nava- Raatri therefore gives us an opportunity to transform our lives to a spiritual stage or a stage in which we will be guided in the right direction; by which we will commit fewer mistakes and strive for the status of perfection. Indeed for perfection, we need to reveal that Divinity (God) within us.
During Nava- Raatri, Hindus pay more focus to the worship of God in the feminine aspect. This is the conceiving force or power of God. From this power the entire universe is born. That is why we as Hindus do not only view God as being male alone, but we see that very God as a mother, who creates, nourishes and protects.  
God in the feminine aspect is well known by three popular names. They are: Durgaa, Lakshmee and Saraswatee. Each of these names represents different aspects of God as the Universal Mother. As Goddess Durgaa, she represents ‘Shakti’-divine energy or power. She is the power that fights against evil; the destroyer of negative forces of human minds. In her very mythological portrayal, she is seen with eight arms, each holding a weapon symbolizing that man or worshippers of Her must try to destroy the eight evils of the mind, which are: lust, anger, greed, hate, jealousy, illusion, pride and contempt. Also in another mythological work, she is seen with a sword piercing a buffalo-shaped demon. The buffalo demon represents demonic and impure forces, and vices. The purpose of the piercing portrayal is to remind man that every time he attempts to worship God, he must use spiritual powers to destroy the diseases of his mind and make his character pure.  Man needs to make his mind pure so that he can unravel the Divinity that is within him. Hence, Goddess Durgaa pays a vital role to constantly remind us of the Divinity that lies within us and in order for us to unravel that Divinity, the presence God or spiritual power is of paramount importance.
The second common name by which the Goddess is called is ‘Lakshmi’. ‘Laksh’, is the root word of Lakshmi which means good fortune and auspiciousness. She represents wealth, light, beauty, compassion, peace, prosperity, purity. In mythological works, Goddess Lakshmi is shown either sitting or standing in a lotus. This has a power message for man. The lotus grows in polluted water and yet it never come in contact with the unclean water. It always grows and blossoms above the water. This is telling that despite man is born and grow in a world full of negative influences and impurity, he must some how be like a lotus to unattached himself from the impurities and illusions of the world and live a life of purity; harbor pure thoughts and do good action; he must be non-violent in his thoughts, words and deeds. Thus the representation of God as the Goddess Lakshmi, is to always remind us of the importance of pure living.
Come third is Goddess Saraswatee. Goddess Saraswatee represents learning, knowledge and speech. For this reason, she is called ‘Gyaan Shakti’ – the power of speech and wisdom. Goddess Saraswatee stands out very distinguished as the representation of discrimination. This is shown when She is been portrayed in mythology sitting on a swan. The swan can separate water from milk which shows the strong power of discrimination. So the message here is that man must some how or the other try to separate ignorance from knowledge. He must use his thinking power to discriminate between what is truth and what is untruth. He must not let delusion deceive him. Once he sees this portrayal of Goddess Sraswatee, that’s the message he must get. Hence, the representation of Goddess Saraswatee is there to remind us of the human power of discrimination.
This festival, Nava- Raatri, as mention earlier lasts for nine nights in which Hindus revered God mostly in the feminine aspect; in the three main names; Durgaa, Lakshmee, and Saraswatee. These nine nights are further sub-divided into three sections, each comprises of three nights. It is really a spiritual journey for man. For the first three nights, he focuses on the worship in the name of Goddess Durgaa, which means to destroy the evil (vices) from his mind; the second three nights, he prays in the name of Goddess Lakshmee to be blessed with good attributes and to allow light to permeate in his life; the final three nights, worship is done to the Goddess in the name Saraswatee for Divine Knowledge and realization. So the entire message of Nava- Raatri is for us as Hindus to evolve spiritually and seek to live better lives.
The day after Nava- Raatri is called ‘Vijaya Dashmi’, which is for us to evaluate our spiritual success over the past nine divine nights and celebrations. It is for us to measure how much spiritual progress we would have made, so that our lives onward will be victorious.  To be victorious in life is simple once we have God on our sides and work with diligence and determination. “God helps him who makes an effort.” (Rig-Veda)
However, it must not be denied that in today’s world many Hindus (please note, I am saying many, not all Hindus) do not use the season for such transformation. They feel that once rituals are done, that is Nava- Raatri, and they say they have observed Nava- Raatri. What spiritual benefit they gain? Did their lives changed? After Nava- Raatri, do they behave better? The answer we get in many cases is no. So, the essence of Nava- Raatri is lost. We find that after the season, they speak the same way (indecently), do the same wrong and unethical things. Harbor the same bad company, abuse children, spouse, etc. In this way we will never become better Hindus. We have to remember that people judge or misjudge our religion by the things we say and do. Our lives must reflect the teachings of our Dharma, Hinduism.
Let it be known here that I do not wish to discourage my Hindu siblings, but I wish that by this writing I may be able to shine some light of transformation into their lives that will help and encourage them to correct themselves, and try to live better Hindu lives. After all, we must be proud to be Hindus and to have so many occasions that help us to live better lives.
In conclusion, I would like to wish all Hindus a fruitful and prosperous Nava- Raatri, and may they be inspired to walk the path of righteousness and truth. Please attend your Mandirs’ service.