Tuesday, 23 March 2010

Lalitha Sahasranama - 130

130 Satho dhari – She who has a thin belly
We come across this in several scriptures when devi's beauty is described.what does it imply are we talking only about the external beauty or is there an inner meaning to it.let us see how scriptures look at it.soundarya lahiri describes her thus:

Nisargha ksheenasya sthana thata bharena klamajusho

Namanmurthe narree thilaka sanakaii –sthrutayatha eva

Chiram thee Madhyasya thruthitha thatini theera tharuna

Samavasthaa sthemno bhavathu kusalam sailathanaye

Oh daughter of the mountain,

You who is the greatest among women,

Long live your pretty hips,Which look fragile,

Which are by nature tiny,Which are strained by your heavy breasts,

And hence slightly bent,And which look like the tree,

In the eroded banks of a rushing river.

Perhaps some of the most enthralling parts of the Lalitha Sahasranama are those, which describe the incredible beauty of the Devi, a Being so dazzling that in one of the opening stanzas, the splendor of her toe nails is described as so radiant that it dispels the darkness of ignorance in the devotees prostrating at Her feet. ‘‘Nakhadidhiti sanchhanna namajjana tamoguna.’’And so, the Lalitha Sahasranama extols Her as Sagara Mekhala, She whose girdle is the sea. Whose shapely nose is like a freshly blossomed Champaka bud. Whose lips outshine the redness of fresh coral and bimba fruit. Whose person is so fragrant with the scent of sandalwood paste that She is Chandanadrava dhighangi, whose smile is so radiant that it floods the mind of Kamesvara, Her consort.Who is sometimes Raktavarna or rosy complexioned, sometimes Shyamabha or of a shining darkness, sometimes Shuklavarna or white complexioned, sometimes even Pitavarna or golden yellow. Her eyes, like the petal of a lotus (Padmanayana) or of a doe (Mrugakshi), are so beautiful that She is Vamanayana and Kamakshi, the beautiful eyed One. Her form is so exquisite (Charurupa) and her smile so charming (Charuhasa), that She is Mohini, the bewitching beauty and Shobana, the radiant beauty.

We worship the Goddess Saraswati, one of the Devi’s five avatars (the other four being Durga, Savitri, Lakshmi and Radha) as the Goddess of learning and wisdom. She is Veda-Janani—Mother of the Vedas, who feeds not only our bodies but also our souls as Gyanada—the giver of Supreme Knowledge. She is Gayatri or the Gayatri mantra itself. Without her we would’ve been mute, because She is Gomata—the source of speech. She is Bhasharupa, the embodiment of language. She is Kalavati—the fountainhead, the presiding deity, the very embodiment of all art. She is Kavyakala—the art of poetry. From her springs rhythm and music because She is Layakari. She who is all knowing, has nothing more to know.

Perhaps, the Devi’s most beloved aspect is that of the Mother. And so the Lalitha Sahasranama is replete with names for the Devi in her most powerful but most benign aspect — the Divine Mother. Vishvagarbha or She who has the universe in her womb. Brahma-janani — the Mother of everything. Sri Mahi — Mother Earth. Pranada, the Giver of life, Pranesvari, the Queen of all forms of life.We fervently invoke her presence because She is Duhkhahantri, who ends all sorrows, but like a mother, doesn’t stop there and becomes Sukhaprada, enveloping us with peace and joy. There is room for all in her compassionate embrace, because She is Bhedanashini, destroying disparity and because She is Nirbheda — without any differences. Where She is, there is no fear. Because She is Mrutymathani, the destroyer of that terrible fear that haunts all who are born –– the fear of death.She is the mother who guides us through the right path. She is the mother who empowers us because She is Iccha-shakti-Gyana-shakti-Kriya-shakti- Svarupini, the power of will, knowledge and action. In her presence, obstacles melt away because She is Vighna Nashini. In her purifying radiance, we are freed from sin because She is Parampaapanashini. And so, She is Vandaru jana Vatsala — who loves her devotees like a mother. Or then, She is just simply — Mata.