18. MAHALAKSHMI: The Khadgamala Devis Series

[Guest guest]

There are eight devatas guarding the second layer of the outer

enclosure wall (the Ninth Enclosure), which is colored as the red of

the rising sun. They are the famous Seven Mothers (Saptamatrka),

plus one added – Mahalaskmi. To learn more about the Saptamatrikas,

see our homepage:

 

http://www.shaktisadhana.org/Photo%

20Gallery/Matrikas/Saptamarkas.html

 

The LAST of the Eight Mothers (and the 18th of the Khadgamala

Devis) is MAHALAKSHMI, the "Great Form" of Lakshmi.

 

At Her least subtle level, i.e. as consort of Vishnu, Lakshmi is

shown only with two hands. When worshipped in Her own right, she is

shown with four hands -- seated on a lotus throne, holding padma,

shankha, a pot of divine nectar [amritha kalasha] and a fruit (bilva

or citron). Her four hands signify her power to grant the four types

[chatur vidha] of human pursuits [purusharthas]: (1) right behavior

[dharma]; (2) acquisition of wealth [artha]; (3) bodily pleasure

[kama]; and (4) spiritual realization [moksha].

 

Her greatest form, MAHALAKSHMI, an aspect of Durga, is shown with

eight hands. The four additional hands hold bow, arrow, mace and

discus are added. These weapons add a distinctly warlike aspect to

MAHALAKSHMI -- She shifts our sadhana into overdrive; giving us the

weapons we need for inner battles against our inner demons and

attachments, as described in Devi Mahatmyam and elsewhere.

 

In the scheme of the Khadgamala, each of the Eight Mothers

represent a human passion that must be overcome and controlled

before we can enter further into Sri Chakra. We worship each passion

as an aspect of Devi, then internalize it; and when we internalize

each deity, we *become* Her, so that She is not separate from us. In

that way, we "conquer" each passion, just as – in the first enclosure

wall – we conquered each siddhi.

 

MAHALAKSHMI here represents Her subtle aspect as Mind --

specifically Sovereignity of the Mind.

 

So what's so bad about this characteristic? Why should we wish to

overcome it? Well, the problem is not with the MIND per se -- it is

necessary and useful for navigating the demands of our everyday

lives in this world. Rather, MAHALAKHSMI represents the trap of

totally IDENTIFYING with this limited, individual MIND. We become

trapped when our Mind rules us, rather than us ruling our Mind. In

our sadhana, we must reach beyond the individual mind -- accessing

first what Jung referred to as the Overmind; and then beyond, into

ever-higher levels of consciousness, with the ultimate goal being

CONSCIOUSNESS ITSELF -- the transcendent consciousness that the

Tripura Rahasya refers to as Lalita Tripurasundari, the Ultimate

Form of DEVI.

 

MAHALAKSHMI's mantra here is:

 

aim hrim shrim maHAlakshmi matru devi shrI pAdukAM poojayaami

 

Continuing to circumambulate clockwise around the second layer of

the wall of the First Enclosure, turn the corner and MAHALAKSHMI

sits at the next corner ahead of you (looking at a flat yantra facing

East, the would be the lower righthand or SOUTHWEST corner).

 

Into MAHALAKSHMI, the ten Siddhis are absorbed, along with all of

the Seven Mothers: MAHALAKSHMI now contains them all.

 

We have obviously not exhausted all there is to say about

MAHALAKSHMI. But this is enough for purposes of the Khadgamala. We

are not writing full essays on all the aspects and all the mantras of

MAHALAKSHMI. Let your intuition and visualization guide you more

deeply into Her meaning for you.

 

As we often state, the beauty of the Khadgamala Stotram is that

NOTHING is required for its recitation except for your time,

attention and concentration: You need simply sit and recite the

Stotram. The mantra given just above is not part of the stotram; it

is offered merely for informational purposes. The entire stotram is

self-contained, as explained in earlier posts.

 

The full text of the KS (along with a FAQ that answers most common

questions about it) can be found by clicking the photo on the front

page of this Group, then selecting DOCUMENT from the menu that

appears.

 

[With sincere thanks and appreciation to Sri Amritananda Natha and

Sri Bhasurananda Natha, who kindly provided detailed and substantive

content for this commentary.]

 

Aum MAtangyai NamaH