The
Nav-Durga project and series has been a beautiful journey for me as an artist,
as a devotee, as a woman & as a human being.
The
research ahead of this series made me realise the depth of the concept of Nav-Durga
& how it can be compared to the life, the journey, the trails and
tribulations of any individual, be it a woman or a man.
The
power, the “Shakti” of Maa Durga, is not restricted or limited to the domain of
any particular sex, religion or creed. It is rather universal.
Though,
that power, that shakti, can only be aroused by those who are ready to embrace
and acknowledge it from within, the choice and willingness to search and
receive it, depends on an individual's capacity.
For
the nine nights of Navratri that Maa Durga fought, each night she defeated one
demon, Kama(lust), Krodha(anger), Moha(attraction), Lobha (greed), Mada
(pride), Matsara(Jealousy), Swartha(selfishness), Anyaya(injustice) and
Amanvayata(cruelty).
Likewise,
it is for us to fight the devils both inside out if we want to find true
meaning and do justice to our human birth...
As
for respecting woman because the Goddess was a woman... I would say, hold
respect, compassion & love for all beings irrespective of sex, religion or species!
I
want to thank and send out ton loads of love to each one of the nine Devis who
got featured in this series.
Trina,
Udita, Varsha, Mrinalini, Ritushri, Sudhana, Meghlayana, Bhavini and
Alaknanda...
I want to thank Ashish, Meghlayana and Vatsala for all the technical and moral support.
Without their support, I couldn't have done this!
And
last but not the least, I want to thank each and everyone who extended their love
to this project...shared and bestowed it with such loving comments on my Instagram and Facebook handles!
| SHAILAPUTRI |
The FIRST form of Navdurga is SHAILAPUTRI.
She is the daughter of the King of Mountains (Himalayas). In Sanskrit mountain is referred to as “Shail” and Putri means daughter, thus she is named “Shailputri”.
Maa Shailputri, is the absolute embodiment of Mother Nature, as Prakriti, she looks after all living organisms including human beings, animals, trees, shrubs, plants and even tiny living things on Earth.
She is the Goddess of Muladhara Chakra also known as Root Chakra who, upon awakening, begins Her journey upwards to spiritual awakening.
Goddess Shailaputri, symbolises the power of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. She has within her the embodiment of all the Gods. In one word, she is the world.
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| | SHAILAPUTRI | |
| BRAHMACHARINI |
The
SECOND form of Navdurga is BRAHMACHARINI.
Brahmacharini
means a devoted female student who lives in an Ashrama with her Guru along with
other students. It is also the name of the second aspect of the goddess Durga.
In
spite of being a Goddess, she cannot escape learning and has to go through the
life of a pupil under the watchful eyes of a Guru.
Brahmacharini
signifies bachelorhood and purity.
This
stage of hers, symbolises spirituality and her search for knowledge and finally
attaining "Shiva" the ultimate truth!
With
an unslakable desire to make her dream come true, and undying love for SHIVA,
Goddess Brahmacharini is the one with confidence, competence and courage. The
true descendants of Goddess Brahmacharini are the ones whose stories chronicle
a tale of hardships, devotion & dedication.
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| | BRAHMACHARINI | |
| CHANDRAGHANTA
|
The
THIRD form of Navdurga is CHANDRAGHANTA.
Goddess
Mahagauri married to Lord Shiva is goddess who started applying half chandra on
her forehead because of which She is referred to as Chandraghanta.
Chandra
is moon that is related to mind. That aspect of the divine that charms the
mind, the embodiment of such eternal beauty is Chandraghanta.
According
to Shiva Maha Purana, Chandraghanta is the “Shakti”, of Lord Shiva in
the form of Chandrashekhara, each aspect of Shiva is accompanied by shakti,
therefore they are Ardhanarishvara.
Shiva
sees Chandraghanta's form as a great example of beauty, charm, grace and power.
Wherever
something appears beautiful to you, know it is the energy of mother
divine.
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| | CHANDRAGHANTA | |
|
KUSHMANDA |
The
FORTH form of Navdurga is KUSHMANDA.
She
is said to have created the universe with her radiant
smile. Ku refers to “a little” and Ushma refers
to “energy or warmth” and Anda refers to “cosmic egg”.
She has the power to live inside the sun, to empower the sun to radiate energy
and effulgence to the universe.
It
is believed that when the universe did not exist and there was literally
nothing but complete darkness everywhere, a ray of divine light appeared. It
soon started to take shape and too the form of a lady. The divine lady, the
first being of the universe was called Maa Kushmanda. She smiled and darkness
was eliminated. She created the Sun, the planets, the stars and the galaxies
and took the seat at the centre of the Sun.
This
form of divinity signifies a ball of life energy or prana. Whenever you feel
you are full of prana, know that it is an aspect of mother divine.
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| | KUSHMANDA | |
| SKANDAMATA
|
The
FIFTH form of Navdurga is SKANDAMATA.
She
is the motherly incarnation of Goddess Durga.
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| | SKANDAMATA | |
| KATYAYANI |
The
SIXTH form of Navdurga is KATYAYANI.
Believed
to be the destroyer of all evil, she is seen as a warrior goddess who was able
to bring peace to the world.
Maa
Katyayani is also known as Mahishasurmardini (Killer of Mahishasura), as
she was able to defeat and kill the evil demon Mahishasura.
She
is that which is born out of the seer aspect of consciousness. Katyayan is the
witness aspect. When you say, ‘I am not the body or the mind’ and go deep
within, becoming the seer of everything, then from that seer aspect of
consciousness, energy rises which has intuitive abilities. This aspect is
seeing beyond the senses, knowing beyond the logic and that energy is Katyayani.
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| | KATYAYANI | |
| KALARATRI |
The SEVENTH form of Navdurga is KALARATRI.
Where
there is no injustice that goes unpunished and no forgiveness granted to the
malicious.
When
no other forces work, she comes to being to destroy the sinful.
Kalratri can be related to the crown chakra (the Sahasrara chakra). She bestows the believer with siddhis and niddhis, specifically information, energy and wealth.
Also known as the Shubankari, which implies auspicious in Sanskrit, it’s stated that she provides auspicious and optimistic results making one fearless.
She
embodies deep dark energy, the dark matter that houses an infinite universe
that brings solace to every soul.
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| | KALARATRI | |
| MAHAGAURI
|
The
EIGHTH form of Navdurga is MAHAGAURI.
The
word Maha means great and the word Gauri means radiant hence the name Mahagauri.
She
is that beautiful energy of the mother divine which is knowledge and ultimate
liberation.
She
represents purity, energy and brilliance.
Goddess
Mahagauri, the consort of Lord Shiva is the homemaker. After all the trials of
tribulations of life she finally settles down.
In
that sense, Devi Mahagauri lives in every family.
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| | MAHAGAURI | |
| SIDDHIDATRI |
Ending
this series on Navdurga with a single frame, one frame that encompasses the NINTH
form of Navdurga, SIDDHIDATRI.
After vanquishing all forms of demons both inside and out, she finally sits in the lotus position in complete peace and tranquility.
Siddhidatri,
she is all pervasive, omnipresent and is the accomplished one.
Seeing
out of the box, thinking out of the box, going beyond the reasonable, logical
mind, knowing something much farther and wider is the attribute of Siddhidatri.
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