Navaratri 2017 : Goddess Skanda Mata worshiped on fith day

Navaratri 2017 has been begun. The festival is one of the major festivals of Hindus, it is meant to celebrate nine ‘avatar’ of different forms of Goddess Durga - Shailputri, Brahmacharini, Chandraghanta, Kushmanda, Skanda Mata, Katyayani, Kalratri, Maha Gauri and Siddhidatri. This time Navaratri falls on March 28. The fifth avatar of mother goddess Durga is ‘Skanda Mata’. She is a mother of lord Kartikeya who is also called as Skanda. She is a leader of gods in the battle against the demons. On the fifth day of Navaratri is completely dedicated to the goddess Skanda. Goddess holds Lord Skanda in the form of her infant, the name of the goddess driven from her infant. The goddess holds a lotus in her right hand. As per the description of the goddess, she has a bright complexion, three eyes including one on the forehead and the goddess has four arms. The goddess has depicted seated on the lotus flower due to which the goddess is also known as ‘Padamasani’. (Written by Pratibha Tripathi)