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Tirtha

havan

Chandi Havan

चण्डी होमCaṇḍī HomaThe fire rite accompanying recitation of the Durga Saptashati

The seven hundred verses of the Durga Saptashati are recited and offered into fire. Families keep it at Navratri, and at thresholds where a household wants to act together.

From
₹11,000
Duration
5 hr – 40 hr
Languages
en · hi · bn · or · mr · ta · te
Performed as
At Your Home · At a Temple in India · Guided by Video

Why this ritual

What the rite is for

The Durga Saptashati — also called the Devi Mahatmya — is a text of seven hundred verses across thirteen chapters, embedded in the Markandeya Purana. It narrates three episodes, and it is recited as a whole rather than in extracts, which is why the rite takes as long as it does. In the havan the verses are recited and ahuti offered on each, so the fire and the reading move together for hours. Navratri is when most households keep it, and it is common at a new undertaking, at a marriage in the family, or simply once a year as a kula observance. What it asks of a family is time and presence — a full reading is not a short thing, and the tradition treats the sitting itself as the offering. It carries no promise about outcomes.

Textual basis

Where it comes from

The text sits in the Markandeya Purana, chapters 81 to 93. Recitation is prefaced by the kavacha, argala and kilaka, and closed with the Devi Suktam; the Navarna mantra is used for the ahuti. The scale is counted in recitations: a single path with havan, Navachandi with nine, Shatachandi with one hundred and Sahasrachandi with one thousand, the larger ones performed by a group of ritviks over several days. Bengal, Odisha and Assam keep their own Saptashati paddhati with different anga mantras; a Bengali household will usually want a Bengali-trained purohit for it, and we match accordingly.

Vidhi

The rite, step by step

Timings are approximate and vary with the pandit's paddhati.

Samagri

What the vidhi calls for

And why each item is used.

  • Durga Saptashati text

    1 piece

    The full text, not an abridgement. It is placed on a stand and returned to the family afterwards.

    Included in the kit

  • Red hibiscus and marigold

    2 bundle

    Red hibiscus is the flower particularly associated with the Devi in eastern practice, and it is offered through the reading.

  • Palash samidha

    3 bundle

    Included in the kit

  • Havan samagri

    4 kg

    Included in the kit

  • Cow ghee

    2 kg
  • Honey

    250 ml
  • Black sesame

    500 g
  • Red cloth for the vedi

    3 metre
  • Copper kalash

    1 piece
  • Coconut

    4 piece
  • Sindoor

    50 g
  • Oil lamps

    9 piece

    Nine lamps, one for each night of Navratri, kept burning through the reading.

Packages

What differs between tiers

Stated plainly: the counts, the number of pandits, and the time it takes.

  • Essential

    One full recitation of the seven hundred verses, with havan.

    ₹11,000

    Duration
    5 hr
    Pandits
    2 pandits

    Included

    • Kavacha, argala and kilaka
    • One complete Saptashati path
    • Chandi havan with Navarna ahuti
    • The text given to the family

    Not included

    • Kumari puja

    at home · in india · guided

  • Traditional

    Most chosen

    Navachandi — nine recitations by a group of ritviks over two days, with kumari puja.

    ₹31,000

    Duration
    12 hr
    Pandits
    5 pandits

    Included

    • Everything in Essential
    • Nine complete recitations across two days
    • Kumari puja with food, clothing and gifts
    • Recording of the purnahuti and aarti

    at home · in india

  • Complete

    Shatachandi — one hundred recitations by eleven ritviks over five days at a Devi temple.

    ₹75,000

    Duration
    40 hr
    Pandits
    11 pandits

    Included

    • Everything in Traditional
    • One hundred recitations over five days
    • Performed at Dakshineswar or a Devi temple of your choosing
    • Annadana for one hundred and eight
    • Certificate stating the number of paths completed

    in india

Who performs it

Pandit requirement

Two pandits for a single path — one reciting, one at the fire. Five for Navachandi and eleven for Shatachandi, where the recitations are divided among the ritviks and counted separately.

Questions

What families ask

Choose a muhurat

We will show you the auspicious windows for this rite, in your timezone and in India’s, and why each one was suggested.

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Traditional guidance, offered for reflection. Not medical, legal or financial advice.