• Feed RSS

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
 

NAURATRI FESTIVAL is one of the most important Hindu festivals of India celebrated with great religious fervor throughout the country and also abroad where Hindus reside. Nauratri means Nine Nights; Nau means nine and ratri means night. In this festival the nine forms of the Hindu Goddess is worshipped during a period of nine nights and ten days. Three days is devoted to worship of Goddess Durga - the Goddess of courage; three days to Goddess Lakshmi - the Goddess of Wealth and three days to Goddess Saraswati - the Goddess of Knowledge.Nauratri Festival is celebrated twice a year. Firstly in March-April, and secondly in October-November. On the 10th day after the October-November Nauratri the festival of Dussehra or Vijayadasami is celebrated. This festival is called Dussehra in Northern India while in Southern India, it is called as Vijayadasami.
This year the festival of Nauratri starts on the 5th October and culminates on the 13th October followed by Dussehra or Vijayadashmi on the 14th October.
Mythology
According to mythology the most popular legend associated with Nauratri is the slaying of the demon king, named Mahishasura by Goddess Durga.
Mahishasura was a powerful demon king who obtained a boon from God that his death should be only at the hands of a woman and not by any other living being. After receiving this boon he started performing violent acts on the beings of the earth.

Due to his violent acts, people started to pray to Goddess Durga to save them from this demon. Durga entered a war with him lasting nine days. The Goddess Durga eventually killed Mahishasura on the tenth day. The nine nights of Nauratri denote the nine nights of the war between Goddess Durga and Mahishasura.
The ninth day of Nauratri celebrations is special in that a special puja [ritual]called Kanya Puja is performed. Nine young girls, who have not yet reached the stage of puberty, are worshipped. These girls are said to symbolize the nine forms of Goddess Durga or Nau Durga. 
SIGNIFANCE OF THE NAME DURGA
The Sanskrjt word 'Durga', is derived from 'Durg' which means 'Fort'. In the DEVI PURANA,one of the books of Indian Mythology, it has been said that she had destroyed a formidable demon whose name was 'Durg' and it was because of this that she was given the name 'Durga'. 

In another scripture, entitled DURGA SAPTASHATI, very popular with the devotees of Durga and in the form of a litany, she has been described as DURGATI NASHINI—the destroyer of the factors that lead to one's moral and spiritual downfall. She is regarded as Divine Mother, who, out of her motherly love and kindness, acts as protector to her spiritual children and ends the hurdles and obstacles in their path of spiritual progress. She ends their weaknesses and supplements their efforts with her benign motherly grace.

IN THE DEVI BHAGWAT
It is stated in the DEVI BHAGWAT that that demons had defeated the devas or gods and turned them out of heaven. These gods were now moving about on the earth as ordinary beings. These now ordinary men approached Brahma to help them re-gain their heavenly happiness. Brahma took them to Shiva. 

With the blessings of the SUPREME GOD and the divine Trinity- Brahma,Vishnu and Shankar Durga appeared. 

She was blessed with many weapons by God and the divine Trinity for destruction of the demons.

THE WEAPONS OF DURGA 

Parasu[axe]; Gadda (Mace),Baan(Arrow),Vajra(Thunderbolt), Padma[Lotus], Dhanush(Bow);Asi [sword],Shul[The central part of the Trident of Shiva], Dhala[Shield], Swadershan Chakra [Wheel, depicting knowledge of the World and the self ]. 
Durga is shown on the background of a battlefield, riding a lion. She is shown crushing and slaying Mahishasura, the buffalo-bodied demon.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE LION AND BUFFALO DEMON
THE riding of a lion, killing a buffalo-bodied demon all have a meaning other than the literal.
Mahishasura the demon is shown with the body of a buffalo. 
A buffalo represents dullness, lack of intelligence and foresight, Tamoguna, i.e. ignorance and Ego. 

It is also said about a buffalo that if we take a piece of cloth unto it, it begins to fight, presuming the cloth to be another buffalo. 

It also represents meanness, jealousy and hatred. Therefore, killing of Mahishasura means destroying all the bad qualities it represents. The word 'Asura' [demon] means one who has qualities which are opposite of what deities have.

DEEPER MEANING OF THE LEGEND:

So, the whole legend, when deciphered, implies that Durga, the Divine Mother, destroyed the demoniac qualities in human souls when this world which was formerly the veritable heaven was turned into hell and when the deities of heaven had become ordinary men because of their subjugation to the demoniac or evil forces.
The other part of the legend which says that the deities who had now become ordinary men, approached Brahma, who led them to Shiva, means that, it was Shiva who through Prajapita Brahma, liberated human beings from their sorrows and sufferings, caused by their ignorance and demoniac qualities. 

GOD SHIVA THROUGH PRAJAPITA BRAHMA, gave great spiritual power to women in India that they became the strong fortress [Durga] of divine might. These spiritual imbibed sisters and mothers liberated those who were formerly gods [and now had become ordinary men] from the travail and torture inflicted by the evil qualities.

DURGA is, called Shakti because of the spiritual might inherited from Shiva and Brahma. She was the chief among BRAHMA KUMARIS the virgin daughters of Brahma, and protected them from the onslaughts of Maya. 

She led them fearlessly and gave them all the guidance and supplemented their efforts out of love and compassion. 

THE LION, on which she is riding, is symbolic of courage and of the ability of conquering difficult situations. Lion is also taken as a symbol of royal grace. It represents qualities that one requires to meet a challenge with courage, resoluteness and majesty. These are the qualities which embodies the chief of the spiritual daughters of God Shiva THE BRAHMA KUMARIS and Brahma.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE EIGHT ARMS AND WEAPONS
Durga is generally shown to have eight arms. These are representation of the eight spiritual powers.

Each arm is shown with a divine gift or a weapon.

The SwadarshanChakra represents the Knowledge of the different lives lived in the World Wheel of time;

The mace is the symbol of victory or control over one's physical senses;

THE SHUL, the pointed spike which the demon of body-consciousnss;

THE AXE is symbolic of cutting the root of attachment.

THE DAND OR RULE stands for strict spiritual discipline or observance of divine laws.; 

THE SWORD represents the power of knowledge to cut sex lust and ignorance;

THE SHIELD stands for tolerance and protection of the self from the attacks of Maya the forces of evil; 

THE THUNDERBOLT can destroy or burn anything on which it falls. It is symbolic of Tapasya which can destroy evil wherever it isand burn away one's evil sanskaras effectively.


--
 Your Divine Friend 
DR.BK.Satyanarayan

__._,_.___
Recent Activity:
Enjoy your stay at Rukhsana Group.
**********************************                      
Moderators Rukhsana Group:
Kazakhstani1303 & Mumtaz Ali.
Contact us at: kazakhstani1303@gmail.com
Rukhsana-owner@yahoogroups.com 
**********************************                      
.

__,_._,___
 


Daily Positive Thoughts:  October 09, 2013Steady Light of Hope

 

 

 

 

Statue of Liberty and WTC fire, New York, Sept 11, 2001

 

 

Steady Light of Hope


No matter how dark the situation, let me always hold on to the steady light of hope.

 

 

Enjoyable Journey

 
By engaging our intellects and living by our highest values we will maintain control over our selves and by extension, the choices we make in relationships. So when the unforeseen occurs our faith and strength gained from living our values will guide and protect us. Though our destinations, vehicles as well as the roads we traverse may all be different, remember however, the rules of the road are the same for us all. Therefore, HOW we drive is perhaps the key to an enjoyable journey.

 

The Power To Accommodate


Closely linked to the power of tolerance, the power to accommodate means having a heart so big and generous that I am able to rise above all differences of character and personality while interacting with other soul actors, knowing that every actor in the enormous drama of existence has a unique personality, contribution and role to play. Whereas tolerance heals wounds and removes hurt, accommodation accepts and values differences, observing them and ultimately absorbing them in my love, as an ocean absorbs the rivers that flow into it. While completing my own part as a river, I also need to be aware of God as the Ocean of Love and the Ocean of Wisdom and I as the master Ocean of Love. When I enter this consciousness through meditation, the goodness of all other soul actors becomes clear to me very naturally, and it is no effort for me to go beyond conflict and clashes of opinion. 

I become like my father, the Supreme Soul who is an Ocean of Love. My father sees every actor in this world drama as his child and his love is the same for each one of them (even though they have different personalities and roles) because he has the spiritual knowledge that every soul's original nature is loveful and the present nature is just an artificial one which has been acquired while coming into the process of birth and rebirth. In the same way, I too, experience myself to be a master Ocean Of Love and see all souls as my brothers and absorb their different natures. This is the power to accommodate which I can inculcate inside me through the practice of meditation.

 

 

Soul Sustenance 

Fear and the Law of Attraction

You should be careful with what you are afraid of, because you can invoke (call for or attract) it. 

Fear is like a magnet. If you are afraid that something will happen to you and you get obsessed about it happening, you are effectively invoking it to happen. 

If you are very afraid that something might happen to you and you begin to visualize that it might happen or how it might happen, this terrifies you and it closes you into a phobia and a state of fear. What you are doing is invoking it to happen, because the power of the mind and visualization is very great. If you are afraid that you might be robbed, or of meeting with an accident, or of losing, you are invoking the robbery, the accident and the loss. Fear of rejection produces rejection. 

That is how extraordinary the power of our mind is. That does not mean to say that we should not take the necessary precautions. An aged woman knows that to fall can mean her bones might break more easily. She should not be preoccupied with a fear of falling; she simply needs to apply attention and precaution when walking. But when precaution is confused with fear, it is not a healthy precaution or one that is free from worries. 

Message for the day


Experience of true peace brings easy success. 

Projection: Whenever things go wrong, we find ourselves worrying a lot about the situation or the things that are going on. Then our mind is no longer in peace but is busy worrying and breaking the situation into pieces. We find that we don't find the accurate solution immediately but are thinking in circles. 

Solution: While working to find solutions, it is more important to work at our own inner peace before we make an attempt to try and find a solution. With the right state of mind, we automatically find that the right decisions are being made by us thus giving us the right results. 



--
 Your Divine Friend 
DR.BK.Satyanarayan

__._,_.___
Recent Activity:
Enjoy your stay at Rukhsana Group.
**********************************                      
Moderators Rukhsana Group:
Kazakhstani1303 & Mumtaz Ali.
Contact us at: kazakhstani1303@gmail.com
Rukhsana-owner@yahoogroups.com 
**********************************                      
.

__,_._,___
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

__._,_.___
Recent Activity:
Enjoy your stay at Rukhsana Group.
**********************************                      
Moderators Rukhsana Group:
Kazakhstani1303 & Mumtaz Ali.
Contact us at: kazakhstani1303@gmail.com
Rukhsana-owner@yahoogroups.com 
**********************************                      
.

__,_._,___
 
[Attachment(s) from albarracin1220@gmail.com included below]

  ¡Gracias Mercedes!
 
 

__._,_.___

Attachment(s) from albarracin1220@gmail.com

1 of 1 File(s)

Recent Activity:
Enjoy your stay at Rukhsana Group.
**********************************                      
Moderators Rukhsana Group:
Kazakhstani1303 & Mumtaz Ali.
Contact us at: kazakhstani1303@gmail.com
Rukhsana-owner@yahoogroups.com 
**********************************                      
.

__,_._,___
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

__._,_.___
Recent Activity:
Enjoy your stay at Rukhsana Group.
**********************************                      
Moderators Rukhsana Group:
Kazakhstani1303 & Mumtaz Ali.
Contact us at: kazakhstani1303@gmail.com
Rukhsana-owner@yahoogroups.com 
**********************************                      
.

__,_._,___