Mother Goddess Gouri 

Mother Goddess Gouri is the consort  of Lord Shiva. Though Shri Kaivalya Math has Shri Bhavani Shankar as the presiding deity, Shri Bhavani is conspicuous by absence here. Irrespective of their being Shaivaites or Vaishnavas, many families of GSBs religiously  worship Goddess Gouri on the previous day of Shri Ganesh Chaturti, called Gouri Tritiya. It is essentially a  worship by the married ladies, of course on their behalf male members assisted by priests, perform it, seeking the Mother’s grace and benedictions for progeny and also for  longevity of the husband, usually called mangalya. Mother Gouri will have the offering of a good number of ornaments of course symbolically, besides a comb and bangles. There will be decorated  coconuts called vayans and our ladies take special pain  to prepare a basketful of offerings to Her. A special and a sacred thread called ‘vayan dara’ will be offered to Her which, will be worn by the ladies after pooja. And this will be changed only during the next year’s pooja after getting the new one. As soon as the pooja  will be over the vayans will be gifted to the assembled ladies at the pooja starting with the mother-in-law. Interestingly the mother is always entitled  to receive  two vayans  As the custom would have it, all are not celebrating  this annual day unless the family has inherited this practice or custom from their elders. Wherever the custom prevails, the bride has to perform the first Gouri Pooja in the marriage hall itself, soon after the marriage ceremony is over, with 105 decorated vayans and the bride herself has to gift them away by touching the feet of elderly married ladies, seeking their blessings. Here, the mother-in-law will have the first preference followed by mother, but thereafter, the preference would be to those ladies who have their parents and in-laws still alive. Mother Gouri is the gentle form of Mother Goddess Durga who incarnates as Parvati. She has assumed many names like Shanta Durga, Mahalasa Narayani, Katyayani and Mahamaya 

(Pic show the annual Gouri ( popularly known as Vayana pooja) and Ganpati Pooja in GSB homes. The first vayana pooja by the newly wed in the marriage hall. ).