रविवार, 3 अगस्त 2014

Lakshmi the Goddess of Wealth



Lakshmi is perhaps the most popular of the goddesses since she is regarded as being especially close to the people, caring for everyone and unconcerned with their background or even their actions. She is like a woman who is perfect in many ways but is easily enticed by flattery and worship. When she is won over by her worshipers, she will grant them gifts of love, wealth and good fortune - which are after all the most desirable things in the world. But although she can be easily attracted, Lakshmi can also easily be tempted away by another devotee who might call a little louder or with greater endearments than the first one. When she leaves, her gifts often (though not always) go with her. Because of her faithlessness, she became known as Chanchal, "the Fickle One."
During the festival of Diwali in October or November, Lakshmi roams the Earth in search of a place to spend the night and bestow her gifts. All over India hundreds of little oil lamps are lighted and placed around houses and roof-tops and even floated in ponds and streams to attract her to them. The whole of India is like a fairyland, glittering and twinkling in devotion to this lovable goddess who never stays with anyone for long but is an eternal wanderer.
At the beginning of creation, when the powers of the gods were beginning to wane because a curse had been put on them by a sorcerer, they went to see the supreme godVishnu. He advised them to churn the celestial ocean to obtain a life-giving draught of nectar. As they did so, the waves began to ripple with excitement, and floating on top of them was a lotus flower. From this stepped the goddess Lakshmi.
When her beauty was revealed, even the heavens sang her praises and the heavenly dancers performed for her alone. All the world's streams and rivers flowed towards her and their waves beckoned to the heavenly elephants to suck up the pure waters in their trunks and bathe the exquisite goddess in them. When she had completed her bath, Lakshmi dressed herself in jewels and garments that were beautiful beyond description. Then the ocean gave her its own gift-a garland of fragrant and never fading blooms.
Lakshmi was young and beautiful, with skin the color of gold with a sheen of pearls on it. Her large, luminous eyes were the shape of lotuses. Her black hair rolled own in waves to her knees. She wore so many exquisite jewels that she was like a vision of flashing, glowing lights as she stepped from the ocean's foam and walking over to Vishnu, she embraced him tenderly, making the watching gods and demons sick with jealousy and longing. Lakshmi was born solely to be Vishnu's wife, and although she was much desired by other gods, she remained faithful to her husband Vishnu and was reborn many times to accompany his incarnations - and each time a great love story was created. When Vishnu was born as the dwarf Vaman, she was born as Kamla; when he was Parasuram, she was his wife Dharini; when he was Rama, she was Sita, and when he was Krishna she was Rukmini.
In short, whenever Vishnu was born as a man, Lakshmi appeared as his human wife. When he was a god, she was a goddess. Vishnu is the male in everything and Lakshmi the universal female.

Courtesy-www.allaboutbharat.org


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