Katyayani : The Vir-Ragini

[Guest guest]

When I meditated one night on the word "virgin" at the

Feet of Kali, it struck me that the word, while not a

Sanskrit word, was very like one, since it combines

the syllables "Vir", meaning "heroic", and "ragin", or

"ragini", ("passionate")in a specifically feminine

sense. A "Vir-Ragini" could thus signify a woman who

has mastered her emotional nature and harnessed it to

the service of God. Since women are known for their

"emotional" natures, this is no mean feat, since

overcoming one's own "Pra-Kriti" ("tendencies" or

"natural responses") is considered the supreme

heroism. The Heroic path is not limited to men...in

fact, the world could use more women on the "heroic"

path to get things moving! The world has no shortage

of children, for instance, so women who were willing

to sacrifice their personal selfish desire for

children for the greater good, thus "mastering" their

animalistic biological cravings, and dedicate their

lives to spiritual pursuits or to good works to

benefit ALL children would be an example of what I am

talking about.

Lilith M.

--- "N. Madasamy" <ashwini_puralasamy

wrote:

>

> Katyayani means "Virgin", "Eternal Virgins".

>

> The concept of Virgins is rather different from an

> ancient and

> modern conception. From an ancient conception,

> virgin had little to

> do with abstinence from sexual intercourse.

> Virginity is an

> indication of an independent autonomous woman. A

> woman who does not

> require to answer to any man. A woman who knows what

> she wants. This

> is what being said about Kali "No man can own Kali

> or tell her how

> to act for she is mad with the love of the Divine"

>

> If Our body is the temple. Going to the temple, is

> like diving deep

> within us. The sanctum is the place were our

> "Goddess" resides. The

> moment we enter into the "temple", we undergoes a

> metamorphosis. Our

> secular character remains without. We shed it, like

> a snake shedding

> its sledge. Once inside we may have said to die to

> time and returned

> to the World Womb, the World Navel, the Earthly

> paradise – To the

> Goddess. That is what happens in Skandamata. We go

> back to the

> Mother, to the Goddess. We have seen the light. We

> have become the

> ligth. "When changes is happening deep within us and

> in this

> transformation, you are never the same again". We

> emerge from the

> temple a spiritually reborn person. We become

> Katyayani. We becomes

> the "Eternal Virgins".

>

> The sword she carries signifies the breaking away of

> the karmic

> bond. Katyayani is the power that breaks this cycle

>

>

>

>

>