Statue of Goddess Durga

Goddess Durga (Sanskrit: ), meaning "the inaccessible" or "the invincible"; durga) is the most popular incarnation of Devi and one of the main forms of the Goddess Shakti in the Hindu pantheon. The four-day-long (Saptami to Dashami) Durga Puja is the biggest annual festival in Bengal, Assam, Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand and Nepal, where it is known as Dashain. It is celebrated likewise with much fervor in various parts of India, especially the Himalayan region, but is celebrated in various forms throughout the Hindu universe. The day of Durga's victory is celebrated as Vijayadashami (Bihar, Bengali), Dashain (Nepali) or Dussehra (Hindi) these words literally mean "the Victory Tenth" (day). In Kashmir she is worshipped as shaarika (the main temple is in Hari Parbat in Srinagar). The actual period of the worship however may be on the preceding nine days (Navaratri) followed by the last day called Vijayadashami inNorth India or five days in Bengal (from the sixth to tenth day of the waxing-moon fortnight). Nine aspects of Durga known as Navadurga are meditated upon, one by one during the nine-day festival by devout Shakti worshippers. Durga Puja also includes the worship of Shiva, who is Durga's consort (Durga is an aspect of Goddess Parvati), in addition to Lakshmi, Saraswati with Ganesha and Kartikeya, who are considered to be Durga's children. Worship of mother nature is done, through nine types of plant (called "Kala Bou") including a plantain (Banana) tree, which represent nine divine forms of Goddess Durga. In South India especially, Andhra Pradesh Dussera Navaratri is also celebrated and the goddess is dressed each day as a different devi Saraswati, Parvati, Lakshmi etc. for the nine days.