Do you know why the night is called Ratri? Ra means that which gives solace or rest, and Tri comes from three types of problems: the physical, environmental, and mental. That which gives you relief from these three types of difficulties is Ratri. The Night relieves people from everything. It takes you in its arms and puts you to sleep.
Navratri means the "new night" or the "nine nights", both of which mean the freshness that breaks through. A baby rests for nine months in the womb of its mother. Similarly, during Navratri, you come back to your source for these nine nights. During these nine nights, take your mind off the mundane and spend some time in self-enquiry: “Who am I?” “What is this world all about?” It is like taking a dip in the ocean of infinite consciousness.
When cravings and aversions, uncertainty, or fear consume your mind, you feel disturbed, unhappy, and unproductive. During these nine nights, you can get relief from all these by going to the source of energy within you, which is Shakti.
If you observe nature, a tree is present throughout, but its expression is very different. In the spring, trees and plants bloom, and nature blossoms to show itself; in the summer, fruits and flowers come; in the autumn, the leaves begin to turn colourful, then they fall, and in the winter, nature goes into itself. Like these festivities, Navratri is an expression of the divine consciousness and spirit. Although divinity is there throughout and beyond time, these are special times when time itself celebrates divinity. So, your spirit is being celebrated by the time.
Be immersed in devotion because the divine consciousness adores the unconditional love you have. Don’t think it is just you who longs for infinity; infinity longs for you, too! The ancient people put all the gods and goddesses on a lotus. What does that mean? When our consciousness has blossomed and become as delicate and beautiful as a lotus, it houses the divinity. Our mind is the thousand-petal lotus, and when our mind has blossomed like this, the divine is already there. You don't have to go looking for divinity anywhere outside.
