On Navaratri evening, they all went to a local Durga temple to perfrom the traditional Abishekam with the traditional offerings of fruits, herbs, and of course a new silk sari, for which Kanchipuram is famous.
An Abishekam is a ritual bathing and so it requires lots of milk (in the bags)and yards of beautiful fresh flower malas.
The abishekam begins with a lot of fresh water.
And milk...
Scented sandalpaste is very cooling and smells wonderful!
Vibhuti is purified and scented ash from yagyas and is associated with Shiva. Because Durga is considered to be a form of Parvati,(Shiva's wife), vibhuti is sprinkled over the murti.
After each offering is poured over the Durga, the priests perform a brief puja in whcih flowers, fruit, coconut, and light are offered to the murti. In this photo notice how they clear her face of the vibhuti and apply sandalpaste to her forehead and kumkum to her lips.
Finally, the murti is dried and dressed in a new silk sari and decorated with all the fresh flower malas. In this photo she is standing on a water buffalo which is one of the forms that the demon Mahishasura took in the story of Navaratri. If you look closely you can see how the horns have been outlined with sandalpaste below her feet.
