A speech or a status does not need the long katha. It needs the name, the vehicle, what is in the hands, and why that day is counted. That is what follows. The number of arms is not told the same way in every house. Where the tellings differ, it is marked.
Shailputri
Daughter of the Himalaya. The name is tied to the telling of Parvati’s birth after Sati. The vehicle is a bull. Trident and lotus in the hands. Both two arms and four arms are described. Day one opens with her. Kalash and barley sit on this morning.
Brahmacharini
On foot. No vehicle is counted. A japa mala in one hand, a kamandalu in the other. The tapas form. Homes tell the penance undertaken for Shiva. Mishri is the bhog. Cloth is often red or white, by local habit.
Chandraghanta
A moon shaped like a bell on the brow, hence the name. Vehicle a lion, sometimes called a tiger. Ten arms are the common description: trident, mace, sword, lotus. Day three. If children forget the name, “the mother with the bell” is enough.
Kushmanda
Eight arms. Lion. Kamandalu, bow, lotus, a pot of amrit — the list swells and shrinks. The name is linked to kushmanda. Day four. Kushmanda is also how the search is typed.
Skandamata
Skanda, that is Kartikeya, in the lap. Lion. Four arms are the household description. Day five. Banana is set as bhog. The stress is on the mother, not on a battle form.
Katyayani
Named from the telling of the sage Katyayana. Four arms. Lion. Sword and lotus. Day six. Many homes start preparing kanya pujan on this day. Waiting until Ashtami is also a custom.
Kalaratri
The dark form. Vehicle a donkey. A sword in hand, elsewhere a khadga and the varada mudra. Day seven. Do not rush the night lamp out. Do not seat a fast on a story meant to frighten children. The form is the night, not a person.
Mahagauri
White cloth. Bull. Four arms. Day eight. The telling is of the calm form after tapas. Coconut comes as bhog. If white cloth is missing, a light colour will do.
Siddhidatri
Day nine. Four arms. One telling seats her on a lotus, another gives a lion. Discus, conch, mace and lotus is one circulating description. Havan, the girls’ meal and aarti often gather here. Vijayadashami is the next tithi.
यह जानकारी हिंदू पंचांग, पुराण-कथा और घर-क्षेत्र की रीत से ली गई है। तिथि स्थानीय पंचांग से बदल सकती है। रंग और भोग एक आधिकारिक सूची नहीं। फल, नौकरी या रोग की गारंटी नहीं। वेबसाइट जिम्मेदार नहीं।
