|| padmalayam padmakaram
padma patra-nibheksanam
vande padma-mukhim devim
padma-nabha-priyam aham ||

“I offer my obeisance’s unto the Goddess who is the abode of lotuses, who holds the lotus, whose eyes resemble the petals of a lotus, whose face is like a lotus, and who is dear to the Lord who has a lotus navel.”


Draped in a red sari, adorned with gold ornaments, seated on a lotus, pot in hand, flanked by white elephants, the image of Goddess Lakshmi embellishes most Hindu homes and business establishments.

Maa Lakshmi, is the Goddess of wealth and prosperity, both material and spiritual. The word “Lakshmi” is derived from the Sanskrit word Lakshya, meaning “goal” or “aim” Lakshmi, therefore, represents the goal of life, which includes worldly as well as spiritual prosperity. As a female counterpart of Lord Vishnu, Mata Lakshmi is also called “Shri”, the female energy of the Supreme Being.

 

Lakshmi emerged from the Milky Ocean, when the Gods (Devas) and demons (Asuras), churned it for amrita (the divine nectar) along with a host of further items such as cosmic poison, Chandra (the Moon), Kalpa Vriksha (benevolent divine tree), and the medicinal sage-God Dhanvantari holding the golden pot of amrita.

Shri is the divine name of the feminine form. Shri is written atop most documents and spoken before addressing the Gods, teacher, holy man or any revered individual. The word evokes grace, affluence abundance, auspiciousness and authority. When the word is spoken or written an aura of holiness is established. Whatever follows is imbued with divine blessing.

In Her images and pictures, Lakshmi is depicted in a female form with four arms and four hands representing the four directions and thus symbolising the omnipresence and omnipotence of the Goddess. They also represent the four goals in life as taught by Hinduism. The upper left back hand represents dharma, (implying duty). The lower left frontal hand represents Artha (implying material wealth). The right lower frontal hand represents Kama (signifies desire) and the upper back right hand represents Moksha (suggests salvation). In the upper left hand, Goddess Lakshmi holds a half-blossomed lotus which is essentially red. The lotus has streaks of whiteness and is not fully blossomed. The red in it represents Rajas guna, the functional aspect, and the white represents Sattva guna the purity aspect. Activity and purity are two basic traits of dharma, which symbolizes progress in both mundane and spiritual walks of life side by side.

The right upper hand is holding a lotus, which in its full bloom abundantly opened. This lotus has a red base, with a blue tinge. The red in it represents Rajas guna (activity) and the blue represents ‘Akasha’ (space). They signify total evolution. Here it is significant to note that there are two frontal arms and two arms rising from the back of the two frontal arms. The frontal arms represent “Preya Marga” the manifest, pleasant ways of the world. Preya marga represents Artha (prosperity) and Kama (desire). The other two back arms signify the “Shreya Marga” representing Dharma (duty) and Moksha (salvation). This cycle is subtle and is conveyed to the seeker through four hands and arms, i.e. Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha, the four fold domains of Human endeavour (Purushartha).

The lower left 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; but also symbolize prosperity at all levels.

The right lower hand, which is held in Abhaya Mudra, signifies the assurance of freedom from fear. Abhaya in Sanskrit means fearlessness. Thus this mudra symbolises protection, peace, and the dispelling of fear. It is made with the right hand raised to shoulder height, the arm crooked, the palm of the hand facing outward, and the fingers upright and joined. In Hindu philosophy Kama means both worldly and non-worldly desires. The Bhagavad Gita says fear is caused by unfulfilled desires. The ultimate gift of the Goddess is the blessing of deliverance from fears.

Devi Lakshmi is illustrated wearing red attire, embellished with a golden lining. Like the lotus, the colour red symbolizes Rajas, which means creative activity. The golden embroidery indicates prosperity. This re-affirms the idea of prosperity in general. This is in keeping with her being the Goddess of prosperity. Goddess Lakshmi is the deity most associated with the lotus to indicate that while we should enjoy the wealth & prosperity showered by her we should try not to be too attached to material wealth.

The owl sitting on the left side of Lakshmi, where gold coins are falling, indicates darkness. An owl, generally speaking, is a night bird. Although the owl is very clever it cannot see clearly in the daytime. So this represents the distortion of attitudes in material prosperity. Excessive attachment to wealth shows ignorance (darkness) and disturbs the economic balance in society. If a person does not keep their balance when they gain possession of a lot of material resources, then they can easily become a nuisance to themselves and to others.

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 colour here implies purity. Wisdom has been occasionally represented in the form of an elephant in Hindu stories. The symbol of four elephants suggests that the chain of Purushartha (endeavour), dharma, artha, kama and moksha has to be continuously strengthened with wisdom, purity and charity.

Thus, we see that the image of Goddess Lakshmi represents prosperity and activity for achievement of liberation and attainment of self-realisation.

Lakshmi has many aspects which generally correspond the various forms of wealth. Traditions recognises eight forms collectively known as Ashtalakshmis (eight forms of Lakshmi), each representing a particular type of wealth namely, Adilakshmi (First), Dhanyalakshmi (crops), Dhairyalakshmi (courage), Gajalakshmi (elephants), Santanalakshmi (children), Vijayalakshmi (victory), Vidyalakshmi (education), and Dhanalakshmi (riches).

Whenever Lord Vishnu incarnates on earth in a human form, Lakshmi incarnates along with Him and plays Her part in restoring Dharma. Some of Her most known incarnations are those of Vedavati, Sita, and Rukimini.

May Mother Lakshmi´s grace be ever upon us all. May we think of ourselves as fortunate to receive Her divine grace for success in all our endeavours.


Goddess Lakshmi