Durga Navratri, or the nine (nava-) nights (-ratri) of Durga, are celebrated in the first 9 days of the bright half of the month (starting from the day after Amavasya) of Aswayuja/Asvina in the Indian lunar calendar (usually in end of September or early October). This period of nine days is the beginning of the festival season in all parts of India as the period of Navratri concludes with Dasehra (or victory day or Vijaya-Dashami) on the tenth day of the festival. The nine-day festival honors the role of three prinicipal female Goddesses in the Hindu pantheon – Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati.