1000 Names of the Great Mother, Primordial Goddess, Holy Spirit or Ruh of Allah

[Guest guest]

12) SRI NIJARUNA-PRABHA-PURA-MAJJAD-BRAHMANDA-MANDALA

 

— Her red brilliance engulfs all Universes.

— All created Universes are only Her Radiance.

 

Sri Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Ass. Ad and Printers, 1989.

 

http://www.adishakti.org/

http://www.al-qiyamah.org/

 

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PRAYER TO MOTHER

 

Salutations to the Divine Mother who exists in all beings in the

form of intelligence, mercy and beauty, salutations, O Sweet Mother,

the consort of Lord Siva. O Mother Parvati! Thou art Lakshmi, Thou

art Sarasvati. Thou art Kali, Durga and Kundalini Shakti. Thou art

in the form of all objects. Thou art the sole refuge of all. Thou

hast enchanted the whole world. The whole universe is the play of

Thy three Gunas. How can I praise Thee? Thy glory is indescribable.

Thy splendour is ineffable. Protect me. Guide me, O Loving Mother!

 

O Adorable Mother! Thou hast generated this great illusion by which

all people walk deluded in this world. All sciences have come from

Thee. Without Thy grace, no one can get success in spiritual Sadhana

and salvation in the end. Thou art the seed for this world. Thou

hast two aspects, viz., the unmanifested aspect or Avyaktam and the

manifested aspect or the gross universe. The whole world gets

dissolved in Avyaktam during Pralaya. Give me the divine eye. Let me

behold Thy real majestic form. Help me to cross over this illusion,

O Kind Mother!

 

O Compassionate Mother! I bow to Thee. Thou art my saviour. Thou art

my goal. Thou art my sole support. Thou art my guide and the remover

of all afflictions, troubles and miseries. Thou art the embodiment

of auspiciousness. Thou pervadest the whole universe. The whole

universe is filled with Thee. Thou art the store-house of all

qualities. Do Thou protect me. I again and again salute Thee. O

Glorious Mother! Salutations to Thee. All women are Thy parts. Mind,

egoism, intellect, body, Prana, senses, are Thy forms. Thou art Para

Shakti and Apara Prakriti. Thou art electricity, magnetism, force,

energy, power and will. All forms are Thy forms only. Reveal to me

the mystery of creation. Bestow on me the divine knowledge.

 

O Loving Mother! Thou art the primal energy. Thou hast two aspects,

namely, the terrible and peaceful. Thou art modesty, gentleness,

shyness, generosity, courage, forbearance and patience. Thou art

faith in the heart of devotees and generosity in noble people,

chivalry in warriors and ferocity in tigers. Give me strength to

control the mind and the Indriyas. Make me worthy to dwell in

Thee. Salutations unto Thee.

 

O Mother Supreme! When shall I have equal vision and placid state of

mind? When shall I be established in Ahimsa, Satyam and

Brahmacharya? When shall I have Thy cosmic vision? When shall I get

deep abiding peace and perennial joy? When shall I enter into deep

meditation and Samadhi?

 

O Radiant Mother! I have not done any spiritual Sadhana or service

of teachers. I have not practised any Vrata, pilgrimage, charity,

Japa and meditation or worship. I have not studied religious

scriptures. I have neither discrimination nor dispassion. I have

neither purity nor burning desire for liberation. Thou art my sole

refuge. Thou art my only support. My silent adorations unto Thee. I

am Thy meek suppliant. Remove the veil of ignorance.

 

O Gracious Mother! Prostrations unto Thee. Where art Thou? Do not

forsake me. I am Thy child. Take me to the other shore of

fearlessness and joy. When shall I behold Thy lotus feet with my own

eyes? Thou art the boundless ocean of mercy. When philosopher's

stone turns iron into gold by contact, when the Ganges turns impure

water into pure water, can'st Thou not turn me, O Divine Mother,

into a pure soul? May my tongue repeat Thy Name always!

 

Sri Swami Sivananda in GEMS OF PRAYERS

 

 

 

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THE INDIAN CONCEPT OF THE DIVINE MOTHER

 

Since the dawn of civilisation, when the primitive man lived in a

matriarchal society, the worship of the Divine Mother came into

practice. Later on, as civilisation progressed, the matriarchal

pattern gradually faded out, and the father became the head of the

family unit, where he was treated as the man in authority and to

whom everyone looked for guidance and approval. Consequently, there

was a change in the concept of God as such; the Fatherhood of God

was established. But Mother worship persisted simultaneously, since

this concept was psychologically more appealing to the devotee, the

mother being nearest in filial affection to the child. Subsequently,

a synthetic harmony between the Motherhood and Fatherhood of God was

developed by the Hindu religion; the people worshipped Sita and

Rama, or Radha and Krishna together.

 

The concept of the human mind is based on relative experience.

Subjective idealism, therefore, in its initial stages, takes the aid

of objective and relative analogies. God is neither limited to

abstract or concrete concepts. But it is easier to establish a

conscious relationship with the Providence in terms of benevolent

fatherhood or affectionate, kindly motherhood than by the concept of

an unfathomable void. God is devoid of qualities, in reality, but a

relative superimposition of the positive ideals of goodness and

virtue is essential for self-culture and spiritual progress of the

aspirant.

 

Mother is very kind to her child. You are more free with your mother

than with anybody else. It is the mother who protects you, nourishes

you, consoles you, cheers you and nurses you. She is your first

preceptor. She sacrifices her all for the sake of her children. In

the spiritual field also, the aspirant has very intimate

relationship with the Divine Mother.

 

The Upasana or the worship of the Universal Mother leads to the

attainment of knowledge of the Self. The Yaksha Prasna in

Kenopanishad supports this view. Approach Her with an open heart.

Lay bare your mind with frankness and humility. Lay your thoughts be

pure and sublime. Become as simple as a child. Pulverise your

individual entity, the egoistic nature, cunningness, selfishness and

crookedness. Make a total, unreserved, ungrudging self-surrender to

Her. Chant Her Mantras. Worship Her with faith and devotion.

 

Navaratri is the most suitable occasion for doing intense Sadhana.

These nine days are very sacred to Mother. Plunge yourself in Her

worship. It is an occasion symbolising the victory of the higher,

divine forces over the lower, negative qualities that find their

expression in injustice, oppression, aggrandisement, greed,

selfishness, hatred and a host of other undivine forces that add to

the suffering of man.

 

Worship the Mother in all Her manifestations. She is the creative

aspect of the Absolute. She is symbolised as Cosmic Energy. Energy

is the physical ultimate of all forms of matter and the sustaining

force of the Spirit. Energy and Spirit are inseparable. They are

essentially one. The five elements and their combinations are the

external manifestations of the Mother. Intelligence, discrimination,

psychic power and will are Her internal manifestations. Humanity is

Her visible form. Service of humanity is, therefore, the worship of

the Divine Mother.

 

Feel that the Mother sees through your eyes, hears through your

ears, and works through your hands. Feel that the body, mind, Prana,

intellect and all their functions are Her manifestations. The one,

universal life throbs in the heart of all. How can there be any room

for hatred and selfishness, when by hating another you are but

hating the Mother, when by being selfish to another you are but

denying your own self. Drive deep this consciousness within your

heart. Always meditate and practise this ideal of divine oneness.

Mother's grace is boundless. Her mercy is illimitable. She is

pleased with a little purity of heart. The sacred Navaratri is

approaching. Do not lose this glorious opportunity. Make a definite

and sincere attempt to obtain the grace Of the Mother. She will

transform your entire life, and bless you with the milk of divine

wisdom, spiritual insight and Kaivalya! May you all obtain the grace

of Mother Durga!

 

Sri Swami Sivananda

[Guest guest]

58) SRI PANCA-BRAHMASANA-STHITA

 

— Seated above the Five: Sri Brahma, Vishnu, Rudra, Isna and

Sadasiva.

 

Sri Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Ass. Ad and Printers, 1989.

 

http://www.adishakti.org/

http://www.al-qiyamah.org/

 

 

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THE WORSHIP OF THE DIVINE MOTHER

 

Devi is synonymous with Shakti or the Divine Power that manifests,

sustains and transforms the universe as the one unifying Force of

Existence. In fact, worship of Devi is not sectarian, it does not

belong to any cult. By Drive or Shakti we mean the presupposition of

all forms of existential power, the power of knowledge, of

omniscience. These powers are the glorious attributes of God—you

may call Him Vishnu or Siva or as you like. In other words, Shakti

is the very possibility of the Absolute's appearing as many, of

God's causing this universe. Shakti and Shakta are one; the power

and the one who possesses the power cannot be separated; God and

Shakti are like fire and heat of fire.

 

Devi-worship or Shakti-worship is therefore worship of God's

glory, of God's greatness and supremacy. It is adoration of the

Almighty. It is unfortunate that Devi is misunderstood as a

bloodthirsty `Hindu Goddess.' No. Devi is not the property of

the Hindu alone. Devi does not belong to any religion. Devi is the

conscious power of the Deva. Let this never be forgotten. The words

Devi, Shakti, etc. and the ideas of the different forms connected

with these names are concessions given to the limitations of human

knowledge; human comprehension. Bhagavan Sri Krishna says in the

Gita, " This is only my lower nature Shakti, beyond this is my

higher nature, the Original Shakti, the life principle which

sustains this entire universe. " The Upanishad says, " The Para

Shakti, the Supreme Power of this God is heard of in various ways,

this power is the nature of God manifesting as knowledge, strength

and activity. " Truly speaking all beings of the universe are

Shakti worshippers, for there is none who does not love and long for

power in some form or other. Physicists and scientists have proved

now that everything is pure imperishable energy. This energy is only

a form of Divine Shakti which exists on every form of existence.

 

Since Shakti cannot be worshipped in its essential nature, it is

worshipped as conceived of in its manifestations, viz., creation,

preservation and destruction. Shakti in relation to these three

functions is Sarasvati, Lakshmi and Kali. These, as is evident, are

not three distinct Devis, but the one formless Devi worshipped in

three different forms. Navaratri is the festive occasion of the

'nine-day-worship of Maha-Kali, Maha-Lakshmi and Maha-Sarasvati'

the Divinity of the Universe adored in three ways. Sarasvati is

cosmic Intelligence, cosmic consciousness, cosmic knowledge. Worship

of Sarasvati is necessary for Buddhi-Shuddi, Viveka-Udaya, Vichara-

Shakti for Jnana for Self-illumination. Lakshmi does not mean mere

material wealth like gold, cattle, etc. All kinds of prosperity,

glory, magnificence, joy, exaltation or greatness come under the

grace of Goddess Lakshmi. Sri Appayya Dikshitar calls even final

Liberation as " Moksha Samrajya Lakshmi. " Hence worship of

Lakshmi means the worship of Divinity, the power that dissolves

multiplicity in unity. The worship of Devi is therefore the

explanation of the entire process of spiritual Sadhana in all its

aspect. During Navaratri, observe strict anushthana, and purify your

inner spiritual nature. This is the most auspicious time in the year

for Mother-Worship. Read Sapthasathi, or Devi Mahatmya and Lalita

Sahasranama. Do Japa of the Mantra of Devi. Perform formal worship

with purity and sincerity and absolute devotion. Cry for the Darshan

of Mother Devi. The Divine Mother will bless you with the knowledge,

the peace and the joy that know no end. May the Divine Mother bless

you all!

 

Sri Swami Sivananda