Eco-Friendly Navratri: How to Celebrate the Nine Days Sustainably in 2025?

Navratri is one of the most exciting and spiritual festivals in the Hindu calendar. This festival is celebrated with music, prayer, dancing, and devotion all over India. Navratri is a celebration of the nine forms of Goddess Durga over nine nights and ten days, and concludes with Vijayadashami or Dussehra. It usually falls during the month of September or October on the lunar calendar.

Navratri makes an even greater impact on the environment, from plastic decorations that are non-compostable to the water pollution as a result of immersing idols into the water. And, with the climate crisis worsening, it’s time we look for an eco-friendly alternative to the plastic problem. 

Here are some simple and easy ways to be more sustainable during your Navratri celebrations this year.

1. Eco-Friendly Idols

Every year, Navratri is celebrated by making idols of Goddess Durga and installing these idols in the pandals. People worship Durga maa idols, and it is the most important aspect of this indian festival. These idols are made from plaster of Paris and are painted with synthetic colors, both of which contain harmful ingredients like mercury and lead. When these idols are immersed in the river or lake, these ingredients pollute the water and harm aquatic life, as well as cause health hazards to humans.

Ways to consider this Navratri:

1. Clay idols: They are made from natural mud or clay, which easily dissolves in the water and does harm to the environment.
2. Natural paints: Idols painted with vegetable dyes or natural colors should be used to paint idols.
3. Seed idols: This is a new trend in 2025, these eco-idols have seeds embedded into them. After the festival, instead of immersing them in the water, we are able to plant these in our backyard, or in a pot, and grow plants from them.

Choose locally produced idols, and support small potters who are creating these sustainable idols, so that you are able to support sustainable practices and traditional craft.

2. Sustainable Decoration Ideas:

Decorations, while providing aesthetics to the Navratri festival, cause non-biodegradable waste like synthetic streamers, thermocol, glittery plastic items, which ultimately pollute landfills or pollute our water bodies. 

There are eco-friendly alternatives as follows:

• Fabric bunting and dupattas - long pieces of drapery with colorful cloth, old sarees, or dupattas can become drapes and backdrops.
• DIY decorations - Indulge kids and family to create decor out of unused old newspapers, coconut shells, dried flowers, or jute ropes. 
• Choose Natural Decor - Banana leaves, fresh flowers, turmeric paste, rice flour (kolam/rangoli), and earthen lamps can replace shiny plastic decorations while providing a natural festive look.

By repurposing what you have and opting for biodegradable materials, you are saving money and cutting down on waste.

3. Say No to Single-Use Plastic 

During Navratri, especially in community garbas, during food stalls and prasad distribution, often there is high consumption of plastic cups, spoons, plates, and bags. They are used for mere minutes, but are polluting for hundreds of years.

Please choose instead during Navratri (or otherwise):

• Compostable tableware: Use Compostable Plates & Compostable Bowls to serve prasad, and wooden cutting board to chop fruits. They will be strong, hygienic, and will compost as nature made them. Try to use these in your home when gatherings.
• Bags: Rather than using plastic wrappers, distribute return gifts or offerings in cloth or jute bags.

Also, encourage your guests and neighbors to do the same. Small collective actions can have a huge positive effect on our planet.

4. Green Lighting Choices

During Navratri, garba and dandiya nights are brightened up with lights. However, we often unnecessarily consume electricity, and also unnecessarily illuminate light pollution to the area.

Here are some eco-friendly lighting thoughts:

• LED lights:  Use LED string lights and bulbs. Up to 80% of energy is saved compared to an incandescent bulb. 
• Solar lights: Solar fairy lights and garden lamps will be in high demand in 2025, especially as solar products become available to us!
• Candles and diyas: Earthen diyas with vegetable oil or ghee are a traditional and spiritual way to light up your outside space and remain eco-friendly.  

Don't forget to turn off your lights during the day, power run your energy costs, and your carbon footprint contributes to energy savings; it's that easy.

5. Use an Artificial Tank for Immersion

Instead of immersing idols in water bodies, we can choose to immerse them in artifical tanks. You can even plant the idols, adding an eco-friendly touch to your festive celebration. 

Other immersion options:

• Artificial tanks or community immersion pools: Most municipalities now provide temporary tanks for immersion. They can help contain pollution and also make sure it is properly disposed of later.
• Personal immersion: If you have a small clay idol, you can immerse it at home, either in a bucket or tub. After you have immersed the idol, use the water to water your plants.
• Plant your idol: If you used a seed idol, you can follow the suggested post-Navratri ritual of planting it in a garden or pot. This is a great way to allow your devotion to continue!

Final Words

Celebrating Eco-Friendly Navratri does not have to compromise with our indian traditions. In fact, you are honouring our mother nature with this practice more consciously. While we welcome Goddess Durga into our homes and our hearts, let’s honour our Mother Earth as well. Whether you choose natural idols or simply say no to plastic, every little thing you do really can make a lifetime of impact. After all, Navratri is about renewal, power, and transformation; in 2025, let’s make that a green transformation.  

We wish you a joyful, colourful, Eco-Friendly Navratri!