902)
Sri Vijnana-Kalana
The Knower.
The Perceiver.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
907) Sri
Tattvamayi
The Mother of the Ultimate State of Consciousness.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
"She
is Brahma Vidya the knowledge of the Immensity. As the power of
manifestation, Sakti appears at the root of the three aspects of
existence, as Reality (Sat), Consciousness (Chit), and Experience (Ananda).
As Reality, She is the power of action (kriya) that is, of causation. She
is as well the power of multiplicity. As Consciousness, She is the power
of understanding and the power of the flow of knowledge. As Experience,
She is the power of enjoyment and of cognition, of realisation, of
transcendent knowledge and the consort of Siva."
Natchintanai
219
911)
Sri Sadasiva-Kutumbini
The Matriarch of His Family.
The Matriarch of Creation.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
"The
rituals surrounding worship of the goddess vary widely throughout India.
Goddesses are venerated as consorts of gods and they are worshiped
together or in adjacent temples. But goddesses may be worshiped
separately, often within shrines of wood, mud and thatch.
The
importance of the visual images of the Great Goddess is emphasized by the
context of worship across the Indian subcontinent. A form of Hindu worship
is called puja. Puja is the act of showing reverence to a god or goddess
through divine invocations, prayers, songs, and rituals. An essential part
of puja is making a spiritual connection with the divine and most often
that is facilitated by darshan, or "seeing" an image of a god or
goddess. Darshan, however, is not merely "seeing" but is a
dynamic exchange between the devotee and the deity. While the devotee
"sees," Devi also presents herself for darshan and bestows
blessings upon worshipers, who by their act of seeing, have made
themselves receptive to the transfer of grace. It is this concept of the
dynamic interaction between devotee and Devi that lies at the heart of the
creation of images of the Great Goddess and their temples.
Throughout
history, even in areas where worship of the Great Goddess did not gain
primacy, her main forms as a wish-bestower, especially Lakshmi, goddess of
wealth, and Sarasvati, goddess of learning, have been important. Devi is
worshiped as a mother who always desires the well being of her children.
Supplicants may request specific help: that a disease be healed, an
examination passed, or a job secured. While some forms of Devi worship are
common throughout India, others are regional. Worship of forms such as
Draupadi, heroine of the Mahabharata and Radha, beloved of Krishna, are
restricted to specific geographical locations. Temples and festivals for
Draupadi are found in south India, while Radha is celebrated in the north.
Festivals
in India are timed according to the lunar month with certain days of the
lunar month sacred to particular deities. While Devi is worshiped
throughout the year, specific manifestations of the Great Goddess have
specific days dedicated to them. There are also many regional variations
in festivals. Goddess festivals in rural areas do not follow any fixed
calendrical cycles. During festivals it is common for images of the
goddess to be dressed and taken out of the temple for public display and
processions, thus allowing darshan for the throngs of people who take
part.
While
celebrated throughout India, in Calcutta the Durga Puja is of enormous
significance. During this ten day festival, celebrated in late September
or early October, images are created of Durga standing astride the buffalo
demon. Made of wood, straw, covered with clay, and then painted in bright
colors, Durga is paraded through the streets and at the end of the
festival the images are submerged into the Ganges, thus returning Devi to
her source. Durga is here worshiped as the warrior goddess, the slayer of
the demon. But the timing of her festival to coincide with the harvest
also associates her with fertility.
Another
popular festival, Divali, is associated with the goddess Lakshmi. She is
honored with lighted lamps and fireworks during the Hindu new year in late
autumn. Lakshmi is worshiped by businessmen who understand that without
the blessings of the goddess of wealth they will not prosper. In the
countryside where Lakshmi's primary association is with abundance and
fertility, the worship of Lakshmi during Divali is seen as important to
agricultural success. The lighting of lamps invokes the blessings of the
goddess and banishes the demon of misfortune."
Smithsonian
Institution (The
Great Goddess)
920) Sri
Sadodita
Ever Present in minds of devotees.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
925) Sri
Kaulini-Kevala
The Power behind Time.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
"God
is beyond Time
God
is not subject to Time; He has no age; His existence can not be measured
in any units of Time. This implies that He is not subject to death like
other things of the universe which have a limited life.
Sayeth
Guru Nanak:
"Whoever
is born is subject to death." (P. 227, Adi Granth)
"O
Lord, Thou art Supreme Spirit and beyond Time." (P. 103, Adi
Granth)
So
God is Eternal; He is causeless; no body has created Him."
Pritam
Singh Gill, The Trinity of Sikhism
(Pritam Singh Gill, The
Trinity of Sikhism, 1990, p. 78.)
934)
Sri Visva-Mata
The Measurer of the Universe.
The Saksi of the Universe.
The Witness of the Universe.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
935) Sri
Jagaddhatri
The
Sustainer of the Universe.
The
Protector of the Universe.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
938) Sri
Pragalba
The Most Powerful.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
939) Sri
Paramodara
Of Supreme Generosity.
The One who readily responds to the prayers of Her devotees.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
940) Sri
Paramoda
The Form of the Ultimate Bliss of Realization.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
952) Sri
Sasvataisvarya
Having the Eternal Kingdom.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
960) Sri
Lokatita
Seated above Sahasrara or Sadashiva- Loka in body.
Transcends all Universes.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
963)
Sri Samatmika
The Essence of Peace.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
965) Sri
Bala
The First Movement towards Creation.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
980)
Sri Jnanagamya
Reached only by Knowledge.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
991) Sri
Sadadhvatita-rupini
Transcending all 6 Paths of reaching the Ultimate.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
995) Sri
Sarvanullanghya Sasana
Whose command none i.e., not even Trimurtis can transgress.
Sri
Lalita Sahasranama
(Sri
Lalita Sahasranama, C. S. Murthy, Assoc. Advertisers and
Printers, 1989.)
1000) Sri
Lalitambika
The Mother Sri Lalita.
"Since the Mother transcends the
universe She sports, She is said to be Sri Lalita." (Padma
Purana)
"Lalita:
lit. One who plays. The Padmapurana says: "Having passed beyond the
worlds She plays; hence She is called Lalita." Above Sakti and Siva,
there exist various manifestations of Parasakti and of Sadasiva; each has its
own grades and spheres; but Mahasakti, which is the same as Parasiva, crossing
all worlds, has Her residence in that supreme sphere called Maha-kailasa,
Aparajita, etc. Her body is formed of pure and concentrated sattva
without any admixture of rajas and tamas; whereas the other saktis
merely have a preponderance of the sattva quality over the other two (rajas
and tamas) and not of pure sattva. Hence She is the Highest, the
prototype of Parabrahman. There are many secret manifestations of this Goddess,
but in this work that particular manifestation termed Kamesvari and known as
Lalita is referred to.
Lalita
also indicates that this (deity) is fond of elegant things (srngarasa)
the most wonderful because such history was not heard of before, nor was it
similar to any."
R.
A. Sastry, Lalita-Sahasranam
(R. A. Sastry, Lalita-Sahasranama, The Adyar Library and Research
Centre, Madras, 1988, p. 7.)
"To
make up for the imperfect performances in this age of Kali, which is noted
for the prevalence of sin and delinquency on the part of the
people in doing their duty, there is no protective mantra except the
repetition of this (Lalita) Sahasranama. To a thousand names
of Vishnu a single name of Shiva is preferred. To a thousand names of
Shiva a single name of Devi preferred . . . Therefore, it should be
repeated daily to ward off the sins of the Kali age. The ignorant do
not recognise this hymn of Devi as the best. Some devote themselves to
the names of Vishnu and others to the names of Shiva. Rarely one in
this world is devoted to the names of Lalita. It is by repeating the
names of other deities in hundreds of thousands of births that faith is
generated to repeat the names of Sri Devi. Just as it is in the last of
all his births that a person devotes himself to Srividya, so it is that
the repetition of this Sahasranama is taken by him, whose birth is the
last."
Brahmanda-Purana
O
mankind! if ye have a doubt about the Resurrection, (consider) that We
created you out of dust . . .
And
verily the Hour will come: there can be no doubt about it, Or about (the
fact) that Allah will raise up all who are in the graves.
Yet
there is among men such a one as disputes about Allah, without Knowledge,
without Guidance, and
without a Book of Enlightenment.
surah
22:5-9 Al Hajj (The Pilgrimmage)
(Abdullah
Yusuf Ali, The Holy Qur'an, 1989.)
