The great autumn Navaratri, nine nights of Goddess worship culminating in Vijayadashami. Each triad of nights invokes a different aspect of the feminine divine: days 1-3 honor Durga (destruction of impurities), days 4-6 honor Lakshmi (cultivation of wealth and virtue), and days 7-9 honor Sarasvati (attainment of wisdom). In Bengal, these days are Durga Puja, the most elaborate Shakta festival, when the goddess is believed to descend from Kailasa to her maternal home on earth.