Ghatasthapana

The fifteen-day Dashain festival begins with Ghatasthapana. Ghatasthapana means installation of a holy water jar in the house, for invoking the supreme Goddess Maha Laxmi popularly known as Durga Bhawani. Barley is sowed on big earthen pots coated with cow dung. The pots are kept covered so the seeds that sprout in ten days turn yellow. The sprouts, which symbolize good harvest, will be decoratively placed on the heads of family members later on in the festival as a blessing.

 

It is also the first day of Nawaratha (nine nights) when people revere one Goddess after another on each night (Nava Durga). As there is no other independent number after nine, the complete set of nine in Nawaratha as according to the Hindu religion, represents the universe.