Life goes on

“Mantra Hinong, Kriya Hinong, Bhakti Hinong …….” Forgive me for I lack the words of prayer, for having failed you, for doubting you….yet I stand before you now your name upon my lips….

The chant throbs in the air. Generations have mouthed these words year after year, their hands cupped together holding leaves from the sacred bel and flowers brought for the daughter, the mother, the cosmic bride.

She stands resplendent in her wedding finery with her right foot upon her lion’s back, her left planted firmly upon the demon’s shoulder. Her three eyes gaze upon her devotees, and her ten arms bear celestial weapons gifted to her by the male pantheon - her slender well-developed form wields them with athletic grace. She is dressed in red silk and ornaments of gold and white sponge-wood (Aeschymene aspera). Her skin glows with a golden sheen and curly black locks tumble down her back. The severed head of a buffalo lies on the ground and Mahish who has emerged from within brandishes a sword and shield.

Prince Mahish of the Chaitra dynasty ruled beyond the Vindhya mountains – that separated the northern part of India from the south. The mountain had submitted to the southern prince who crossed it at will to raid the lands of the Aryans. He battered down the doors of Indra’s kingdom. No one could stand up to him. Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva put their energies together. Parvati imbibed their powers – she would henceforth be known as Shakti and Mahishasura Mardini.

But the months that follow the harvest coincide with cosmic sleep. Who could have the temerity to invoke (bodhan) her at this untimely (akaal) hour?

Ram, prince of Ayodhya, had led his armies against the demon king of Lanka – Ravan. The battle was to begin on the Saptami but Ravan’s skill upon the battlefield was legendary. He was also protected by Shiva’s boon. Ram took care to keep Mahishasura Mardini on his right side. The recitation of the verses from the Chandi had begun two days in advance.

The battle begins and Ravan is proving to be invincible. The reluctant devi shies away from granting an audience. Desperate times call for desperate measures. A hundred and eight blue lotus blossoms are made ready. The chanting rises to a frenzied pitch and the blossoms are offered one at a time. But after the 107th there are no more. The goddess has removed the last one. The prayers will come to nought. Ram reaches out to gouge an eye from its socket. Mahishasura Mardini tests her devotee no further and on the moment of Sandhiskhan – the crossover period between Ashtami and Navami – Ravan is struck by a fatal arrow. He closes his eyes on the tenth day. The pyre is lit and victory celebrated – the Vijaya Dashami.

Notice how big strong men rush to her every time insurmountable trouble rears its head? Those that forget her once their demands have been met, and shamelessly return clamouring for aid when the need arises. Durga looks on ….sometimes with a benevolent expression at her errant brood, at times in mild reproach. Her expression softens with every passing day of the bodhan. The bond grows stronger …driving the devotees to tears when after a final meal together of curds and flat rice she is allowed to depart for her matrimonial home.

They have always troubled her. She has always been patient and forgiving. She who had been acknowledged by the dwellers of the Indus valley was discarded when a new generation appeared. They drove her from her land and the only devotees that survived lived to the south of the Vindhyas. The newcomers were led by Indra – king of their gods, Varun – the very air that we breathe and Agni – the god of fire. They were amenable to assimilation and Shiva found his place among the trinity. But his cosmic bride was rejected.

A travelogue dating from those early days – the Rig Veda – made no mention of her. But its tenth chapter, which had been added many generations later, was devoted exclusively to her – they called it the Sri Sukta. As to when it was composed no one can be certain but other texts – Samahita - that predated it continued to ignore her. Sri Sukta extolled Sri’s virtues and was followed by the writing of the Khilaratri Sukta that was devoted to Maha Lakshmi, Maha Saraswati and Maha Kali. Her name was no longer taboo.

The new Vedic way developing in the northern lands continued to sideline her until the age of the Yajur Ved. Its Shatpat Brahmin section has this to say:

The creator’s work is far from perfect. His creations will not multiply. Finally Shiva appears before him in his ‘ardhanareshwar’ form. He is conjoined with her, the body split down the center. Neither is complete without the other. Prajapati Brahma, the creator understands. He populates the earth with living creatures of every kind. Exhausted, he rests. Sri, in her divine beauty, issues from within him. The gods cannot withhold their envy. Kill her, they cry. Prajapati intervenes. He lets her live."

The Kena Upanishad, the addendum to the Sam Ved, said to have been composed in the 7th Century BC, at last restores her to her rightful position.

"The Brahman (the one and only supreme being) makes an appearance and is instantly challenged. The Brahman offers some straw. Agni is unable to burn it, Vayu, unable to blow it away. The king of the gods arrives. Indra is determined to learn the true nature of the power. He finds instead the sacred feminine, Uma or Himavati (Shakti). Humbled, Indra submits. Uma reveals to him the sacred knowledge."

At last, the name Uma appears – one that is familiar to every Bengali.

Uma or Sati, the daughter of Daksha Raj, the king of the Himalayas, and Menaka chooses to marry Shiva much against her parents’ wishes. When the tiger skin clad son-in-law smeared in ashes arrives, the mother of the bride swoons. The bridegroom then takes on his celestial appearance and takes away his bride. Still very embarrassed Dakhsha Raj refuses to acknowledge him.
Uma gets to hear of a great yagna that is being organized by her father. Though her husband has received no invitation, Uma is determined to attend it. Shiva advises against it but his young bride longs for her parents. Kuber arrives and places his store of gold and jewels at her disposal. Uma spurns his offer and uses instead the wild flowers of the forest to adorn herself. Menaka pines for her daughter for no celebration can be complete without her. She is overjoyed to see her but Daksha Raj is incensed. Unable to stand the sight of his daughter and her sorry plight he rants and raves at her choice of husband publicly humiliating her. Uma is inconsolable and commits suicide.
A distraught Shiva cannot tear himself away from her body. The destroyer’s duties are neglected. The earth can no longer bear its burdens. Vishnu uses his discus to destroy Uma’s body. The pieces drop to the earth.

The aniconic forms of the mother goddess retain their great energy and the Shakti Peeths are created. With no physical body to mourn Shiva sinks into a deep trance.

Himavan, the mountain king has two daughters – the gay and carefree Ganga and the docile Parvati. Ganga is irresistible and is invited to live in heaven. Parvati, on the other hand prays seriously for a husband. She places flowers daily before the meditating Shiva. A watching Kaam Dev lets fly an arrow. Shiva and Parvati’s union is guaranteed but the unfortunate Kaam Dev is reduced to ashes by the Shiva’s rage. The widow Rati approaches Parvati who intercedes on her behalf. Kaam Dev wins his life back.

A number of names have been used down the ages but they all refer to the one and only mother goddess. As Vedic practice merged with that of ancient India, assimilation rather than rejection proved to be the norm. All female goddesses drawn from every nook and cranny were incorporated into one. They would now be referred to as her manifold forms. She continued to be worshipped both in the manner of the ancient Indians and in the new way of the Vedic people.

By the 2nd Century AD, the Bhakti movement was in full swing. The common man clamoured for a simpler system by which the deities, who had been entrusted with the responsibility of teaching us to recognize the Brahman within ourselves, would become more accessible. Every community chose a deity each - one they could love and cherish like a family member. Like Krishna who fulfilled multiple roles as an infant, son, lover and father, Durga was adopted by Bengalis both as a daughter and a mother.

With the documentation of Chandi section of the Markandya Puran the worship of the goddess was standardised. It was not purely the Vedic way for it incorporated many ancient rituals. There would be no further alterations to her image and her mantras would now be chanted unchanged by the generations to come.