Sanatan Shiv Mandir in Samabula, which is managed by the Shree Sanatan Dharm Pratinidhi Sabha of Fiji, hosted a Kanya Puja ceremony as part of its ongoing Navratri festival celebrations, honouring young girls through a traditional ritual that holds deep cultural and spiritual significance.
Sabha trustee, Lalita Sharma says Kanya Puja, also known as Kumari Puja, is an important part of the Navratri festivities, symbolising purity, strength, and divinity.
She says that during the ceremony, girls under the age of nine are worshipped as representations of Goddess Durga.
Sharma says girls are warmly received, offered food, and given gifts as a sign of respect.
She says the ritual takes place twice annually, during Ram Naumi and Navratri, with devotees coming together to participate and receive blessings for prosperity and well-being.
The trustee says that with only a few days left until the Navratri festival concludes, people should focus on worship, and parents should spend more time with their children, teaching them to grow into better human beings.
