For many Telugu families, Navaratri does not begin at a temple. It begins at home, in a corner of the puja room, with a brass or copper pot filled with water, crowned with mango leaves and a coconut. This is the kalasham, and installing it – kalasha sthapana, called ghatasthapana in North India – is how the household invites the Goddess to stay for the nine nights.
This guide explains the practice step by step, as it is commonly followed. It is not a rulebook. Customs differ from family to family and region to region, and where your elders or family priest follow a different method, theirs is the one to keep.
In Hindu worship, a pot of water crowned with leaves and a coconut is one of the oldest ways of creating a sacred seat for the divine. The same kalasham appears at weddings, housewarmings and vratams. During Navaratri it becomes the seat of the Goddess, and the family worships her there every day until Vijayadashami.
The kalasham is installed on the first day of Navaratri, Ashwayuja Shukla Pratipada. Panchangam makers generally recommend doing it in the first part of the day, while Pratipada tithi prevails; if that is not possible, the Abhijit muhurtham around midday is used. It is not done at night. Some panchangams also advise avoiding Chitra nakshatram and Vaidhriti yoga where possible.
Navaratri begins on Ashwayuja Shukla Padyami, the day after Mahalaya Amavasya. Because tithi timings differ from place to place, please take the exact day and muhurtham from your local Telugu panchangam or your temple's announcement rather than from a national website.
Nothing on this list is costly or difficult to find, and families of modest means have always adapted it. A sincere, simple kalasham is entirely acceptable.
Once installed, the kalasham is worshipped every morning, and in many homes again in the evening. The daily worship can be as simple as fresh flowers, kumkuma archana, a lamp and naivedyam, followed by a stotram. Families commonly recite the Lalita Sahasranamam, the Devi Mahatmya (Durga Saptashati), Devi Ashtottaram or a short mantra. Many keep a lamp near the kalasham, and some keep it burning continuously through the festival (akhanda deepam). If you do this, please place it safely, away from curtains and children.
Many families also follow the Navadurga, worshipping one form of the Goddess each day; you can read about each of them in our article on the nine forms of Goddess Durga.
A verse that many families recite at the end of every puja comes from the Narayani Stuti, the hymn of praise in Chapter 11 of the Devi Mahatmya:
सर्वमङ्गलमाङ्गल्ये शिवे सर्वार्थसाधिके ।
शरण्ये त्र्यम्बके गौरि नारायणि नमोऽस्तु ते ॥సర్వమంగళమాంగళ్యే శివే సర్వార్థసాధికే ।
శరణ్యే త్ర్యంబకే గౌరి నారాయణి నమోఽస్తు తే ॥sarvamaṅgalamāṅgalye śive sarvārthasādhike | śaraṇye tryambake gauri nārāyaṇi namo'stu te ||
"O auspiciousness of all that is auspicious, O gracious one who brings every aim to fulfilment; O refuge of all, three-eyed Gauri, O Narayani – salutations to you."
— Devi Mahatmya, Chapter 11, verse 10
Another verse from the same hymn is on our Varahi Narayani Stuti page, and a short japa mantra is on the Om Dum Durgayai Namah page.
The customs of these days are described in more detail on our Dasara / Devi Navaratri page.
On Vijayadashami, after the final puja, the Goddess is respectfully bid farewell from the kalasham (udvasana), with a prayer asking forgiveness for any shortcomings in the worship. Customs for what follows vary. Commonly, the coconut is broken and shared as prasadam, the water is poured at the foot of a tulasi or another plant, or sprinkled around the house, and the akshatalu and coin are kept in the puja room or given away. Follow what your elders do.
The kalasham is shared across India, but what surrounds it differs:
Fasting is a personal and family choice. Some keep a full fast, some eat one meal a day, and many simply avoid onion, garlic and non-vegetarian food. Elders, children, pregnant women and anyone with a health condition should not feel bound by any fast.
The kalasham asks for very little: a clean corner, a pot of water and nine days of attention. What it gives a household is a rhythm – a lamp lit at the same hour, the same verses heard every evening, and children who grow up knowing that the Goddess once stayed with them for nine nights.