Grooming the Goddess
Originally uploaded by flickr photographerno1
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Grooming the Goddess
Grooming the Goddess
Originally uploaded by flickr photographerno1
The entire lot is on flickr please check it out..
Erica and Goddess Durga
Erica and Goddess Durga
Originally uploaded by flickr photographerno1
Erica is Catholic girl from the Lal Bagh viciinity, and her gesture is not about religion, she is a devout church going Christian , here she is showing respect to a much revered and saintly divinty Goddess Durga , her actions the corner stone of parental good upbringing.
This is the true ethos of Indian multi- secular ethos.
Its our children who lead the future , a future without bigotry, a future well entrenched in our collective survival as Indians beyond the pale of religiosity
At the Lotus Feet of Durga Mata
At the Lotus Feet of Durga Mata
Originally uploaded by flickr photographerno1
This was shot by a bystander kid on my Nikon D70
Durga Sloka
Durga symbolizes the power of the Supreme Being that maintains moral order and justice in the universe. Durga is also known as "Shakti". Worship of the goddess Shakti is very popular among the Hindu people. Durga stands for the unified symbol of all divine forces; Strength, Morality, Power, Protector. Slokas on Goddess Durga form the part of prayers offered to the goddess. Durga (Devi) Shlokas / Slokas are as follows:
"Yaa Devii Sarvabhuuteshhu Maatrirupena Sansthitah
Yaa Devii Sarvabhuuteshhu Shaktirupena Sansthitah
Yaa Devii Sarvabhuuteshhu Shaantirupena Sansthitah
Namastasyaih Namastasyaih Namastasyaih Namo Namah"
Meaning: Goddess Durga is omnipresent. She is the personification of Universal Mother. She is a Mother, who is present everywhere and who is embodiment of power and energy. Great mother, who is present everywhere and who is embodiment of Peace. I bow to that mother, I bow to Durga, I bow to Shakti.
Durga (Devi) Stuti
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Vishnu Maayethi Sabdita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who dwells in all creatures in the name of Maya of Vishnu.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Chetanetyaabhi Dheeyate
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Devi, who abides in all creatures as realization.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Buddhi Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who dwells in all creatures in the form of intelligence.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Nidraa Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Devi, who lives in all creatures in the form of sleep.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Kshudhaa Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who dwells in all creatures in the form of appetite.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Chaayaa Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who lives in all creatures in the form of meditation and reflection.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Shakthi Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Devi, who dwells in all creatures in the form of Shakti, the creative power.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Thrishnaa Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who dwells in all creatures in the form of thirst.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Kshaanthi Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Devi, who lives in all creatures in the merciful form.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Jaati Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who dwells in all creatures in the form of race.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Lajja Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Devi, who lives in all creatures in the modest form.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Shaanthi Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who dwells in all creatures in the form of peace (Shanti).
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Shradha Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who lives in all creatures in the form of unshakable faith (Shraddha).
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Kaanthi Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who lives in all creatures in the form of beauty or brilliance (Kaanti).
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Lakshmi Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who dwells in all creatures in the prosperous form.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Vritti Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Devi, who dwells in all creatures in the form of motion.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Smrithi Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who lives in all creatures in the form of memory.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Dayaa Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Devi, who dwells in all creatures in the form of mercy or kindness (Dayaa).
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Tushti Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who lives in all creatures in the form of satisfaction.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Matru Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Devi, who lives in all creatures in the form of Mother.
"Yaa Devii Sarva Bhooteshu Braanthi Roopena Samsthita
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who dwells in all creatures in the form of illusion (Bhram).
"Indriyaanaamadhistaatri Bhootaanaam Chaakileshu Yaa
Bhooteshu Satatam Tasyai Vyaaptidevyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the all pervading goddess, who continuously controls the senses of all creatures and governs all elements.
"Chiti Roopena Yaa Kristnam Yetadhyaapya Sthithaa Jagat
Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namaha"
Meaning: I bow again and again to the Goddess, who pervades this world and controls in the form of awareness.
www.iloveindia.com/spirituality/sloka/durga-sloka.html
Durga Ma and PhotographerNo1
Durga Ma and PhotographerNo1
Originally uploaded by flickr photographerno1
Yes I am proud to be a Shia Pandit a term used derogatory to my fascination for Hinduism, and the saffronisation of my Hindustani soul so be it.
I share my countrys cultural plurality , and perhaps its the Hindu gods specially Lord Shiva and Lord Ganesha and Durga Mata or Goddess Parvati that drag me away from my own world to shoot them in their splendour and share all this with you, as my knowledge of Hinduism is limited and because I am ignorant I add links to relevant posts for the westerners who read me or see my pictures.
From
www.iloveindia.com/spirituality/goddesses/durga/index.html
Characteristics : Strength, Morality, Power, Protector
Other Names : Jagdamba, Shakti, Bhagwati, Devi, Maa
Weapon : Trident, Chakra, Snake, Conch shell, Mace, Bow, Long sword, Thunderbolt
Abode : Trikoota Mountain
Vehicle (Vahana) : Lion
Mula Mantra : Om Sri Durgaya Namah
Durga Gayatri Mantra: Aum Girijaye Cha Vidmahe
Shiva Priyaye Cha Dheemahi
Tanno Durga Prachodayat
Durga
Maa (Mother) Durga symbolizes the power of the Supreme Being that maintains moral order and righteousness in the universe. Worship of the goddess Shakti is very popular among the Hindus. Durga stands for the unified symbol of all divine forces (Shaktis). Goddess Durga is the divine mother, who protects people from evil forces of selfishness, jealousy, hatred, anger and ego. Mother's love and her kindness towards her child, is the best example of pure love in this whole universe.
Likewise, the love of Maa Bhagwati (Durga) towards her devotee (Child) is pure and serene. Maa (Mother) never asks for a favour from her child. She pours her kindness and warmth on the child without desiring anything in return. The love of Jagdamba is like a free flowing river. Durga loves her each and every devotee (Child) without any discrimination.
Origin of Goddess
Durga It is believed that once the existence of the universe was under a threat by Mahishasura (the demon). The Gods pleaded Shiva to protect their world from the evil forces. Lord Shiva asked the three goddesses, Saraswati, Maa Kali and Maa Lakshami to release their powers (shaktis). The Power emerged in a female form. The Divine light emerged and a goddess of exceptional power appeared with many arms. She was beautiful as well as ferocious.
Durga was an extremely gorgeous girl with full of rage. The gods named her Durga, the invincible one and they furnished her with all their arms. Durga rode on a lion to the top of a mountain. In a violent battle, she killed Mahishasura and thus, saved the world from the demon's threat.
Durga - The Image
The word Durga has been derived from Sanskrit language which means a fort or a place that is difficult to reach. In the Images, Shakti is visible in the female form, wearing red clothes. Goddess has eighteen arms, carrying many items in her hands. The red color symbolizes fierceness and it suggests that goddess destroys evil and protects people from pain and misery caused by evil forces. Durga riding a tiger shows that she holds infinite power and uses it to save virtue and destroy evil. The eighteen arms holding weapons signify the unattainable energy that Maa Durga possesses. Different weapons suggest the idea that she can face any evil force without consideration.
Origin of Durga Mata
Origin of Durga Mata
Originally uploaded by flickr photographerno1
I spent amost two hours and I was on my 29th fast, tired I had walked from the Funeral of a friends father at Shivaji Park crematorium to Sena Bhavan from where I took a bus for the workshops at Lal Bagh..
www.durga-puja.org/origin-of-durga-the-mythology.html
Origin of Durga - The Mythology
Devi is the great goddess of the Hindus,the consort of Shiva and she is worshiped in various forms corresponding to her two aspects: benevolence and fierceness. She is Uma, "light"; Gauri, "yellow or brilliant"; Parvati, "the mountaineer"; and Jagatmata, "the-mother-of-the-world" in her milder guise. The terrible emanations are Durga "the inaccessible"; Kali, "the black"; Chandi, "the fierce"; and Bhairavi, "the terrible."
Descent of the Goddess
Durga, a beautiful warrior seated upon a tiger, was the first appearance of the great goddess. The circumstance of her miraculous arrival was the tyranny of the monster-demon Mahishasur, who through terrific austerities had acquired invincible strength. The gods were afraid of this water-buffalo bull because neither Vishnu nor Shiva could prevail against him. It seemed that the joint energy of Shakti was only capable of vanquishing Mahisha, and so it was the eighteen-armed Durga who went out to do battle.
Battlefield
She went to battle on her ferocious mount lion, armed with the weapons given to her by the other Gods. Durga is one of the angry and aggressive aspects of the goddess Shakti, whose role in Hindu mythology was to fight and conquer demons and also personify the Sakti or female aspect of any male deity. In the battle, she fought and killed the evil Mahishasura and restored heaven to the Gods. Since then the goddess is invoked for protection from the powers of evil. Durga Puja is observed in her honor, to celebrate her victory over evil.
Revered Mother
She has been worshiped from about 400 AD, but probably earlier, to the present. Her literary references are chiefly the Ramayana and Mahabharata, epic and Puranic texts, and she is mentioned by name in Vedic literature. In general, Durga is regarded in northern India as the gentle bride epitomizing family unity while in southern India she is revered more in her warrior aspect
Durga Mata at Lal Bagh
Durga Mata at Lal Bagh
Originally uploaded by flickr photographerno1
I visited the Lal Bagh area today, to shoot the Durgas , at the workshops , most of them had left last night , i shot over 100 pictures and this is one pictorial activity that I dont miss..
The gold on the person of The Durga Mata is real and belongs to the pandal.An average statue of this size costs Rs 6000/Today is the first day of Navratra , the Dandiya Dance begins tonite..
Durga Mata at Wikipedia
In Hinduism, Durga (Sanskrit: "the inaccessible"[1], Bengali: দুর্গা) is a form of Devi, the supreme goddess. In Bengal, she is said to be the mother of Ganesha, Kartikeya as well of Saraswati and Lakshmi.[2]
Durga is depicted as a warrior woman riding a lion or a tiger with multiple hands carrying weapons and assuming mudras, or symbolic hand gestures. This form of the Goddess is the embodiment of feminine and creative energy (Shakti).
In Hinduism, Durga (Sanskrit: "the inaccessible"[1], Bengali: দুর্গা) is a form of Devi, the supreme goddess. In Bengal, she is said to be the mother of Ganesha, Kartikeya as well of Saraswati and Lakshmi.[2]
Durga is depicted as a warrior woman riding a lion or a tiger with multiple hands carrying weapons and assuming mudras, or symbolic hand gestures. This form of the Goddess is the embodiment of feminine and creative energy (Shakti).
Durga in the Hindu tradition
According to the narrative from the Devi Mahatmya of the Markandeya Purana, the form of Durga was created as a warrior goddess to fight a demon. The demon's father Rambha, king of the demons, once fell in love with a water buffalo, and Mahishasur was born out of this union. He is therefore able to change between human and buffalo form at will (mahisha means "buffalo"). Through intense prayers to Brahma, Mahishasura had the boon that he could not be defeated by any man or god. He unleashed a reign of terror on earth, heaven and the nether worlds.
Eventually, since only a woman could kill him, the trinity bestowed a dazzling beam of energy upon the Goddess Trinity (Saraswati, Lakshmi, and Parvati), transforming her into the goddess, Durga. Her form was blindingly beautiful with three lotus-like eyes, ten powerful hands, lush black hair with beautiful curls, a red-golden glow from her skin and a quarter moon on her forehead. She wore a shiny oceanic blue attire emitting fierce rays. Her ornaments were carved beautifully of gold, with ocean pearls and precious stones embedded in it. Her face was sculpted by Shiva, torso by Indra, breasts by Chandra (the moon), teeth by Brahma, bottom by the Earth, thighs and knees by Varuna (water), and her three eyes by Agni (fire). Each god also gave her their own most powerful weapons, Rudra's trident, Vishnu's discus, Indra's thunderbolt, Brahma's kamandal, Kuber's gada, etc. Himalayas gifted her a fierce whitish golden lion. On the end of the 8th and beginning of the 9th day of waxing moon, Chanda and Munda came to fight the goddess. She turned blue with anger and goddess Chamunda leaped out of her third eye. Her form was the most powerful one with 3 red eyes, blood-filled tongue and dark skin; who finally killed the twin demons with her sword. This form of the divine goddess is worshipped during the sandhikshan of Durga Puja festival, as sandhi/chandi puja. Finally on the tenth day of waxing moon, goddess Durga killed Mahishasura with her trident.
The word Shakti, meaning strength, reflects the warrior aspect of the goddess, embodying a traditional male role. She is also strikingly beautiful, and initially Mahishasura tries to marry her. Other incarnations include Annapurna and Karunamayi (karuna = kindness).
The 4 day Durga Puja is the biggest annual festival in Bengal and other parts of Eastern India, but it is celebrated in various forms throughout the Hindu universe.
The day of Durga's victory is celebrated as Vijaya Dashami (East and South India), Dashain (Nepal) or Dussehra (North India) - these words literally mean "the tenth" (day), vijaya means "of-victory". In Kashmir she is worshipped as shaarika (the main temple is in Hari Parbat in Srinagar).
The actual period of the worship however may be on the preceding nine days followed by the last day called Vijayadashami in North India or five days in Bengal, (from the sixth to tenth day of the waxing-moon fortnight). Nine aspects of Durga known as Navadurga are meditated upon, one by one during the nine-day festival by devout shakti worshippers.
In North India, this tenth day, signifying Rama's victory in his battle against the demon Ravana, is celebrated as Dussehra - gigantic straw effigies of Ravana are burnt in designated open spaces (e.g. Delhi's Ram Lila grounds), watched by thousands of families and little children.
In Gujarat it is celebrated as the last day of Navaratri, during which the Garba dance is performed to celebrate the vigorous victory of Mahishasura-mardini Durga.
The Goddess Durga worshipped in her peaceful form as Shree Shantadurga also known as santeri , is the patron Goddess of Goa. She is worshipped by all Goan Hindus irrespective of caste and even by some Christians in Goa.
Goddess Durga is worshipped in many temples of Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durga
Navratra
Navratra literally means '9 nights'.
During these days and nights, prayers are offered to 'Mother Goddess’ Hindus believe that the Mother stands for everything that is everywhere in the Universe. As ' Mother Durga' She sits on a Lion. Mother Durga gives us the power to eat, breathe, walk, etc. Mother Laxmi gifts us all the wealth that we possess, and all the wonderful things that money can buy. Mother Saraswati, gifts us knowledge. So before studying and before you appear for your exams, do not forget to say: ‘Om Saraswati Namah’
During the 9 days of Navratra people dance the Garba Dance. It symbolizes the Dance of Creation. It celebrates the Creation of the Universe. The word 'Garba' stems from 'Garbha' which means the ‘womb’ and symbolizes the 'Dance of Creation'
Whether we pray to Mother Goddess or not, She thinks of us all the time. She holds us in our arms when we feel sad, in the form of our own mother, or friend. Mother Laxmi gives us various gifts from time to time. As Mother Saraswati, she teaches us all the wonderful things that we need to learn. And as Mother Kali, She scolds us when we are naughty.
These days comes twice in a year and celebrated in different parts of India in different ways
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navratra
Dandiya:The Great Indian Social Dance
sumesh.wordpress.com/2006/09/29/dandiyathe-great-indian-g...
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