It is well established in many
cultures that every woman mirrors in herself the divine feminine, and so has
always been identified with all that is sacred. In
There is also the idea that a tree,
like a woman is vulnerable to careless handling. A tree that has come into
flower or fruit will not be cut down; it is treated as a mother, a woman who
has given birth. The metaphoric connections between a tree and a woman are many
and varied. One such connection can be found in the fact that the word for
"flowering" and menstruation is the same in Sanskrit. In Sanskrit a
menstruating woman is called a 'pushpavati', "a
woman in flower". Menstruation itself is a form and a metaphor for a
woman’s special creativity; as such a woman's biological and other kinds of
creativity are symbolized by flowering.
It comes as no surprise that
prosperity and abundance are also visualized in the form of a female, namely
the Great Goddess Lakshmi. She is often shown holding a pitcher. This pitcher
or pot in addition to being likened to a womb is said to be the pot of bounty,
or prosperity. Goddess Lakshmi is often depicted
pouring the pitcher out for the benefit of her devotees.
Indian literature classifies women
into four types of which the highest is Padmini, the
Lotus Lady whose very breath contains the fragrance of the lotus. The sweet and
pervasive fragrance of the lotus is captivating. The nectar produced so sweet
that it is believed that the bee forgets to get out and remains veiled inside
the lotus when its closes for the night.
It is the very behavior of the flower that gives rise to its symbolism.
Sinking to the bottom of the water at night, it rises to the surface in the
morning, and spreads its petals on the surface.
The lotus is the symbol of absolute
purity and spiritual perfection; it grows from the muck below the murky watery
but it is untainted, unstained, unblemished by it. As the seed of the lotus
grows from the waters and from the earth's soil, it is a symbol of divine or
spontaneous generation. Birth such as that of the lotus implies an immaculate
and uncontaminated conception. Thus the lotus, as divine womb, becomes a potent
sexual metaphor. Padma or kamala, meaning lotus in Sanskrit, is a synonym for
the female generative organ. By
signifying the relation of the sensual to the spiritual, beauty to purity, and
the physical to the divine, the potent metaphor of the lotus again emphasizes
the inherent sacredness in women.
Indian aesthetic principles state in
a universal voice that all depictions of female forms should be endowed with
abundantly full breasts, a narrow waist and ample hips, symbolizing their child
bearing capacities and also the power to nourish and sustain their creations, a
la Mother Nature. All women have two natures, two distinct characters, as lover
and mother. As lover she represents the strength and creative power of the male
principle, which without her is sterile. She is his inspiration, the instrument
of his realization, the source of his pleasure. She is the image of Shakti, the
power and joy of the gods, who without her would have no existence. It is as
mother; however, that woman represents the transcendent aspect of the divine.
She is the supreme refuge in which the male plays no role. The goddess mother
is the sole source of being, the supreme state of consciousness, the principle of life itself.
A child's first master is always his mother.
It is not merely that she has given him life, or has nourished him with her
milk, but because she is the one who initiates the child into the society of
man and who teaches the first rudiments of language and behavior on which his
whole future development depends. As
Goddess this concept is embodied as Saraswati, the Goddess of wisdom, speech,
and the arts. She is depicted holding
the Vedas, the most ancient texts of yoga, and is the creator language. Woman symbolizes the wisdom of the community,
and the old woman is the keeper of the tribal lore and often the source of
tribal strength. She is priestess, prophetess, medium, oracle, and witch.
Skilled in herbs and cures, she is the natural healer and nurse.
As mother, woman is divine and is
worshipped. She is man's comfort, as he wanders through the deserts of the
world. She is forgiveness, charity, and limitless compassion, as such; woman is
an aspect of the Great Mother of all life. She embodies mystery through her
fruitfulness. Woman is associated with nature and the earth and because of this
men in a number of primitive societies refuse to interfere with agriculture,
believing it to be magically dependent on women. Because of her unique
physiological experiences, woman is responsive to the mysterious phases of the
moon, the cycles of the months, the seasons of the years and the rhythms of
nature.
Woman is the originator of families,
the preserver of the established order and the perpetuator of traditions, which
she imparts to her children. Through her the past is continued, not only in the
physical life of her children, but in the respect for traditional heritage that
she instills in them. As the Great Goddess rules the heavens, her earthly
counterpart, the woman, rules the home.
The Shaktisangama Tantra states:
Woman is the
creator of the Universe, the universe is her form; woman is the foundation of
the world, she is the true form of the body.
Whatever form
she takes, whether the form of a man or a woman, is the superior form.
In woman is
the form of all things, of all that lives and moves in the world.
There is no
jewel rarer than a woman, no condition superior to that of a woman.
There is not,
nor has been, nor will be any destiny to equal that of a woman; there is no
kingdom, no wealth, to be compared with a woman; there is not, nor has been,
nor will be any holy place like unto a woman.
There is not,
nor has been, nor will be any yoga to compare with a woman, no mystical formula
nor asceticism to match a woman.
There are
not, nor have been, nor will be any riches more valuable than woman.
With all humility, reverence, and awe I offer this to the
Goddess in all.