Next Sunday, 11 November is "Dhanteras" and next Tuesday, November 13 is Diwali. Millions of Hindus will worship the Goddess of wealth and prosperity namely Lakshmi on these two days.
In my 32 year of Hindu religion radio and web-casts I have explained the significance of symbolic representations of the main Hindu deities numerous times for our younger generation. I have been doing this because the form and the weapons showed in each Hindu idol or picture have deeper symbolic meanings. Unless they are properly understood, our younger generation may lose faith in idol-worship and the temples enshrining them may become deserted in future. This, I am afraid may happen sooner than we can imagine, especially in a foreign land, like Canada, the US & UK. For the survival of our Hindu temples built in the foreign lands, our younger generation must gain a clearer understanding of the significance of these Divine Representations.
Hence, I am explaining Goddess Lakshmi's symbols once again on the occasion of Dhanteras and Diwali.
Let us first learn the meaning of the word "Lakshmi".
The word “Lakshmi”
As I said above Goddess Lakshmi is worshiped in India and around the world for both worldly and spiritual prosperity.
The word Lakshmi originates from "Lakshya" which means "goal". Lakshmi, by semantic implications is the goddess of the supreme "goal". Another Sanskrit word "Laksha" means a lac (lakh) or a hundred thousand (rupees,dollars,pounds etc.). Many believe that the word "Lakshmi" may have been derived from "Laksha" signifying the power of wealth.
Now, the significance of Goddess of wealth, Lakshmi's symbols:
The Four Arms & Four Hands
In Goddess Lakshmi’s case upper left back hand represents Dharma (duty). The lower left frontal hand represents Artha (material wealth). The right lower frontal hand represents Kama (desire) and the upper back right hand represents Moksha (salvation).
Half open Lotus (Upper left hand)
In the upper left hand Goddess Lakshmi holds a half-blossomed lotus, which has a hundred petals. In philosophical terms, the number 100 represents the state of Sadhana. Notice that this lotus is basically red. It is not in full blossom. It has streaks of whiteness. The red in it represents Rajoguna, the functional aspect, and the white represents Satoguna, the purity aspect. In other words this symbolizes progress in both mundane and spiritual walks of life side by side.
Gold Coins (Lower left hand)
Invariably this hand of the goddess is shown dropping gold coins on the ground, where we find an owl sitting. The dropping of coins represents prosperity in all directions, or total prosperity. The gold coins do not only represent money; they also symbolize prosperity at all levels.
Abhaya Mudra (Right lower hand)
Now we come across the right lower hand, which is held in Abhaya Mudra (the pose signifying assurance of freedom from fear). The Gita says fear is caused by unfulfilled desires. The ultimate gift of the goddess is the blessing of deliverance from fears.
Lotus in The Right Upper Hand
This hand is holding a lotus, which is fully opened; a lotus with one thousand petals (in contrast to the upper left hand holding half open lotus having a hundred petals), which is synonymous with sahasra-ra-chakra (the highest point in the evolution of the Kundalini Shakti). This lotus has a red base, with a blue tinge. The red in it represents "Rajas" and the blue represents 'Akasha' (space). They signify total evolution.
The Red Sari (dress)
Lakshmi is shown wearing a red sari. It is again the colour of Rajas, which means creative activity. The golden embroidery indicates plenty. This re-affirms the idea of prosperity in general. This is in keeping with her being the Goddess of prosperity.
Sitting on Lotus
The goddess is shown sitting on a lotus. This posture means "Live in the world, but do not be possessed by the world". The lotus keeps smiling on surface of water. Its origin is in mud, deep under water but its flowering is above the water-surface. Detachment and evolution is the message of this poetic symbol.
The Owl (not shown in the above picture)
The owl in some Lakshmi pictures is shown sitting on the left side of Lakshmi, where gold coins are falling, represents darkness. An owl, generally speaking, is a night bird. It is very clever. It can't see clearly in the daytime. It represents perversion of attitudes in material prosperity. Undue attachment to wealth shows ignorance (darkness) and disturbs the economic balance in society. If man does not keep his balance when he gets a lot of material resources, he is bound to become a nuisance to himself and to others around him.
Four Fair Elephants Pouring Water (From Golden Vessels)
In common pictures of Lakshmi, we see four whitish elephants pouring water drawn from the ocean on the goddess. This water is contained in golden vessels. Those four elephants represent the four directions—North, South, East, and West. The white hue here means purity. Wisdom has been occasionally represented in Hindu mythology by the form of an elephant.
The symbol of four elephants pouring water from golden vessels on the goddess suggests that the chain of Purushartha (endeavour), dharma, artha, kama and moksha has to be continuously strengthened with wisdom, purity and charity.
In the final analysis, we see that the idol or picture of Goddess Lakshmi represents prosperity and activity for achievement of liberation and attainment of self-realization.
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