Chaitra Navratri 2023: The Hindu community celebrates Chaitra Navratri in the months of March or April, during Chaitra's Shukla Paksha. This year, Navratri will begin on March 22 and last for nine days, ending on Ram Navami on March 30. The festival celebrates the nine different avatars of Maa Durga named Shailputri, Bhrahmacharini, Chandraghanta, Kushmanda, Skandmata, Katyayani, Kaalratri, Mahagauri, and Siddhidatri. During the nine-day festival of Navratri, eating rajasic and tamasic foods like onions, garlic, and meat is prohibited while following a sattvik diet is encouraged.
Foods prepared with only healthy, organic, plant-based ingredients—including fruits, nuts, vegetables, seeds, milk, legumes, and another naturally occurring bounty—make Sattvik cuisine, which is essentially vegetarian in nature. Sattvik cuisine strictly forbids the consumption of any animal meat. During Navratri, Hindu devotees are forbidden from eating anything that has been processed, tinned, or packaged because these foods are not alive and fresh.
The following foods should be avoided during Navratri:
Non-vegetarian food: Foods, including meat, poultry, fish, and eggs, are typically avoided during Navratri because they are said to be tamasic, meaning they have a detrimental effect on the body and mind.
Garlic and onions: Refrain from eating onions and garlic during Navratri, as they are considered rajasic, meaning they stimulate the senses and may cause restlessness.
Grains: During Navratri, avoid eating grains like wheat, rice, and oats instead eat gluten-free substitutes like amaranth, buckwheat, and water chestnut flour.
Legumes: Because they are seen as tamasic during Navratri, some people choose to avoid legumes like lentils, beans, and chickpeas.
Processed foods: During Navratri, processed foods should be avoided because they frequently contain refined flour and sugar, which aren't thought to be healthy as well as alive. This includes packaged snacks and sweets.
Also, avoid foods that are fried or removed from their natural state; instead, a large portion of the food must be high in water content, such as fruits, vegetables, and leaves.
