Durga Mataji

At a certain point in her history Durga becomes associated with the god Shiva as his wife. In this role Durga assumes domestic characteristics and is often identified with the goddess Parvati. She also takes on the role of mother in her later history. At her most important festival, Durga Pooja, she is shown flanked by four deities identified as her children: Karttikeya, Ganesh, Saraswati, and Lakshmi. It also seems clear that Durga has, or at least at some point in her,, history had, a close connection with the crops or with the fertility of vegetation. Her festival, which is held at harvest time, associates her with plants, and she also receives blood offerings, which may suggest the renourishment of her powers of fertility.
Counterbalancing Durga s liminal, peripheral nature, which at times seems to threaten dharmic stability and to inhibit the spiritual quest for moksha, is her role as protector of the cosmos. Dominating her mythology is her role as the destroyer of demons who have usurped the position of the gods. As a great warrior she is created by the gods and acts on their behalf. While she is often said to transcend the male gods who create her and to excel them on the battlefield, she acts for their welfare. In doing this he acts to maintain or restore cosmic harmony and balance.
"The Dassera is likewise the soldier's feast. Princes and soldiers offer the most solemn sacrifices to the arms which are made use of in battle. Collecting all their weapons together, they call a Brahmin purohita, who sprinkles them with tirtham (holy water) and converts them into so many divinities by virtue of his mantrams. He then makes Pooja to them and retires. Thereupon, amidst the beat of drums, the blare of trumpets and other instruments, a ram is brought in with much pomp and sacrificed in honour of the various weapons of destruction. This ceremony is observed with the greatest solemnity throughout the whole Peninsula. . . . It is known by the special name of ayuda-Pooja (sacrifice to arms), and is entirely military."
The worship of Durga also came to be associated with the military success of both the Pandava brothers in the Mahabharata and Rama in the Ramayana. Although her worship by the heroes was not part of either epic tradition initially (the incidents are not found in the critical editions of either epic), a tradition has developed that insists that the worship of Durga was necessary to the success of the heroes in both epics. Durga is worshiped twice in the Mahabharata: in Virata-parva by Yudhishthira and in Bhisma-parva by Arjuna. In the latter case the occasion of Durga s praise is clear. The setting is just before the great battle that is the highpoint of the entire epic. Krishna instructs Arjuna as follows: "0 one having great arms, standing in the face of battle, say a hymn to Durga for the purpose of defeating your enemies". The hymn that Arjuna then offers is full of references to Durga s military might and prowess. The goddess appears to Arjuna and promises him victory, after which the text says that anyone who hears or recites the hymn will be victorious in battle.