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“Spiritual hunger is common to all; but tastes differ.
There are different forms of God to suit all tastes.”
- Swami Yogaswarupananda, of the Divine Life Society,
a Vedanta-based foundation in Rishikesh.

Deepavali Special
Significance of Ma Lakshmi’s Symbols

Gyan Rajhans P. Eng.
BHAJANAWALI RADIO PROGRAM

In my 24 year Hindu religion radio and web-cast I have explained the significance of symbolic representations of the main Hindu deities numerous times for our children. I have been doing this because the form and the weapons showed in each Hindu idol or picture have deeper symbolic meanings. Unless they are properly understood, our younger generation may lose faith in idol-worship and the temples enshrining them may become deserted in future. This, I am afraid may happen sooner than we can imagine, especially in a foreign land, like Canada, US & UK. For the survival of our Hindu temples built in the foreign lands, our children must gain a clearer understanding of the significance of these Divine Representations.

The word “Lakshmi”

Goddess Lakshmi is worshipped in India and around the world on the Deepavali (festival of lights) for both worldly and spiritual prosperity. Since I have explained the eight reasons to celebrate the Deepavali elsewhere, I am only going to concentrate on Goddess Lakshmi in this article.

The word Lakshmi originates from "Laksya" or "Laksma" which means "goal". Lakshmi, by semantic implications is the goddess of the supreme "goal". Another Sanskrit word "Laksha" means a lac (lakh) or a hundred thousand (rupees,dollars,pounds etc.). She is said to be Lord Vishnu's consort. The word "Vishnu" is related to the word Vishva, (the created world) and means one who is present in every atom of the creation. His consort has to have powers and majesty conducive to life and its maintenance. Lakshmi is the active principle, which helps Vishnu sustain the creation. Another name for Lakshmi is "Shri" which means grace and competence. It means the power of wealth, knowledge, purity and physical powers. The highest state of "Shri" is always present in the Brahman (cosmic principle). He is known as Shripati, the Lord of Shri.

Symbols of Lakshmi

The Four Arms & Four Hands

As in other deities four arms represent four directions, a symbol of her being omnipotent and omnipresent. The two frontal arms through two frontal hands symbolize the activity in the objective world and two back arms through two back hands symbolize the activity at the subjective level. In Goddess Lakshmi’s case upper left back hand represents dharma, (duty). The lower left frontal hand represents Artha (material wealth). The right lower frontal hand represents Kama (desire) and the upper back right hand represents Moksha (salvation).

Half open Lotus (Upper left hand)

In the upper left hand Goddess Lakshmi holds a half-blossomed lotus, which has a hundred petals. In philosophical terms, the number 100 represents the state of Sadhana. This lotus represents dharma also. Dharma means one's duty or the task to which one is born in the particular time or place. In other words this means "one's allotted task". Notice that this lotus is basically red. It is not in full blossom. It has streaks of whiteness. The red in it represents Rajoguna, the functional aspect, and the white represents Satoguna the purity aspect. Activity and purity are two basic traits of dharma. In other words this symbolizes progress in both mundane and spiritual walks of life side by side.

Gold Coins (Lower left hand)

Invariably this 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; they also symbolize prosperity at all levels.

Abhaya Mudra (Right lower hand)

Now we come across the right lower hand, which is held in Abhaya Mudra (the pose signifying assurance of freedom from fear). In Hindu philosophy Kama means both worldly and non-worldly desires. The Gita says fear is caused by unfulfilled desires. The ultimate gift of the goddess is the blessing of deliverance from fears.

Lotus in The Right Upper Hand

This hand is holding a lotus, which is fully opened; a lotus with one thousand petals (in contrast to the upper left hand holding half open lotus having a hundred petals), which is synonymous with sahasra-ra-chakra (the highest point in the evolution of the Kundalini Shakti). This lotus has a red base, with a blue tinge. The red in it represents "Rajas" 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 ambits of Human endeavour (Purushartha).

The Red Sari (dress)

Lakshmi is shown wearing a red sari. It is again the colour of Rajas, which means creative activity. The golden embroidery indicates plenty. This re-affirms the idea of prosperity in general. This is in keeping with her being the Goddess of prosperity.

Sitting on Lotus

The goddess is shown sitting on a lotus. This posture means "Live in the world, but do not be possessed by the world". The lotus keeps smiling on surface of water. Its origin is in mud, deep under water but its flowering is above the water-surface. Detachment and evolution is the message of this poetic symbol.

The Owl

The owl sitting on the left side of Lakshmi, where gold coins are falling, represents darkness. An owl, generally speaking, is a night bird. It is very clever. It can't see clearly in the daytime. It represents perversion of attitudes in material prosperity. Undue attachment to wealth shows ignorance (darkness) and disturbs the economic balance in society. If man does not keep his balance when he gets a lot of material resources, he is bound to become a nuisance to himself and to others around him.

Four Fair Elephants Pouring Water (From Golden Vessels)

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 hue here means purity. Wisdom has been occasionally represented in Hindu mythology by the form of an elephant.

The symbol of four elephants pouring water from golden vessels on the goddess 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 idol or picture of Goddess Lakshmi represents prosperity and activity for achievement of liberation and attainment of self-realization.

Om Tat Sat. Shree Ganesharpanmastu

Gyan Rajhans, an internationally recognized heath & safety professional has been broadcasting the only non-commercial Vedic religion radio program in North America since 1981 & worldwide web cast on www.bhajanawali.com since 1999. Mr. Rajhans has published extensively on religious and spiritual matters. Some articles are available on the Bhajanawali web site. He has translated Sri Mad Bhagvad Gita in English for the younger generation. Mr Rajhans has been conferred various titles, including that of Rishi by Hindu Prarthana Samaj of Toronto Hindu Ratna by Hindu Federation of Toronto. He received Canadian Journalists' and Writers' Club (CEJWC) award for 2005 in the Internet category - Opinion - for his Spirituality columns in South Asian Outlook e-Monthly.]

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