A few days ago Pune was in the midst of the Navrati Festival! It's overall centered on the worship of the Goddess, but is practiced differently across the country depending on which goddess is more prevalent in a region. (Still kind of confused on this. Anyone want to help me out in the comments?)
Anyways, my internship is located in a poorer area in a rented office. The landlord and the family live downstairs and right next door. During the final day of Navrati I heard drums and cymbals which made me automatically made me think of Ganpati and street processions. I looked out onto the streets, but did not see anything.
My co-worker then asked me to follow her. I hoped that it had something to do with the music, and I was right!
My landlord's family was in the middle of celebrating the Goddess in the coolest form of worship I've ever seen. There were tree or four people playing the drum and everyone else was singing, it was so infectious. Even the moody teenager in the corner couldn't help but clap to the beat.
All the while one woman was sitting in front of the alter alight with incense and flames that are present at most puja. No, actually she wasn't sitting. She was spinning. Arms moving in circles above her head, eyes closed, and whole body moving with the beat of the drums she seemed almost possessed!
I later learned that this was the whole point.
According to my co-worker, what I had witnessed was actually supposed to be the Goddess possessing her. So basically I'm super good at guessing.
As a gender rights activist, she then went on to describe how idea of Navrati and the Goddess possessing women is one of the pinnacles of empowerment. Dancing free of inhibition is a rare thing for a woman in most parts of India, so this practice is both personally and sexually liberating.
Basically, they're challenging the establishment by means of the establishment (in this case mainstream Hinduism). And it couldn't have been more beautiful.
Anyways, my internship is located in a poorer area in a rented office. The landlord and the family live downstairs and right next door. During the final day of Navrati I heard drums and cymbals which made me automatically made me think of Ganpati and street processions. I looked out onto the streets, but did not see anything.
My co-worker then asked me to follow her. I hoped that it had something to do with the music, and I was right!
My landlord's family was in the middle of celebrating the Goddess in the coolest form of worship I've ever seen. There were tree or four people playing the drum and everyone else was singing, it was so infectious. Even the moody teenager in the corner couldn't help but clap to the beat.
All the while one woman was sitting in front of the alter alight with incense and flames that are present at most puja. No, actually she wasn't sitting. She was spinning. Arms moving in circles above her head, eyes closed, and whole body moving with the beat of the drums she seemed almost possessed!
I later learned that this was the whole point.
According to my co-worker, what I had witnessed was actually supposed to be the Goddess possessing her. So basically I'm super good at guessing.
As a gender rights activist, she then went on to describe how idea of Navrati and the Goddess possessing women is one of the pinnacles of empowerment. Dancing free of inhibition is a rare thing for a woman in most parts of India, so this practice is both personally and sexually liberating.
Basically, they're challenging the establishment by means of the establishment (in this case mainstream Hinduism). And it couldn't have been more beautiful.
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