by Somya Devi | Mar 22, 2015 | Astrology, Holy Days
Today is World Water Day! All over the globe we are coming together to honor the earth’s waters and the water element. We especially bring our awareness to water in her physical form, the rivers, lakes, streams, and oceans, and the rains and groundwaters that support our life here on the planet. A synchronized prayer for water is intended for 6pm PST. We call in the rains to nourish the earth and cleanse all that needs to be washed away. This is a good day to practice water conservation through shorter showers, remembering that much of the world’s population does not even have the abundance of water that an average shower takes for their whole day’s supply. You may find a local group performing a cleanup of rivers, lakes or beaches, to offer some energy back to the sacred waters. This is especially potent added to the current astrology climate, where we just experienced a Solar Eclipse in Pisces on Friday. This was in the nakshatra Uttara Bhadrapada, which, like Pisces, relates to the deep emotional waters within us. Much has been churned up to the surface, so offering our prayers to this element will help smooth the fluidity of cleansing. We are also on the third day of Navaratri, the Hindu festival to the supreme goddess, Devi. Water is considered a feminine element as it relates to the emotions, and in Hinduism is embodied in the form of the goddess, Ganga. She is the personification of the holy river Ganges, considered to have the power to cleanse all impurities from the mind of the spiritual seeker. All waters on earth, especially those in which we offer our prayers, are considered extensions of Ganga. The water element is also represented by the concept of Soma, which refers to the mind and the feminine moon, and the cool, purifying liquid that descends during meditation creating a state of bliss. (This is the counterpart to Agni, the fire element relating to the Sun which rises from the root.) Today, give homage to the water element and the goddess to allow those cooling energies to sooth and nourish all life on earth, both internally and externally. Om Gam Gangaye Namaha
by Somya Devi | Mar 21, 2015 | Astrology, Holy Days
Happy Navaratri! Today begins the Hindu holiday of the “Nine Nights” that celebrate Devi, the Divine Mother Goddess, in her many forms. Two major Navaratri celebrations happen each year with the change of seasons, in March/April, bringing in the spring, and in September/October, celebrating the harvest and preparing for winter. This Navaratri begins on the first day of the lunar month Chaitra, the first month of the Vedic calendar year. The goddess represents the “Shakti” or divine energy that is the vehicle through which we experience life in order to know “Shiva,” representing the divine consciousness behind it all, and so we celebrate her. For three nights each we worship the goddess in the forms of Durga, Laxmi, and Sarasvati. These goddesses represent the stages we must go through on our spiritual journey to reach the state of pure consciousness bliss. Durga is often known as the “demon-slayer.” This symbolizes the demons or negative tendencies of our minds that we must destroy in order to move forward in life with peace in the heart and mind, as well as the external obstacles we must overcome. Laxmi is known as the goddess of wealth or prosperity. This represents not just material wealth, but a spiritual wealth we seek to acquire in the form of virtues, or positive qualities, like compassion and devotion. Sarasvati, riding a swan, the highest-flying bird and vehicle for prana (the breath and life force that sustains us), represents the higher knowledge that can be attained after we purify ourselves, as well as all kinds of knowledge that we study and practice in our service. The divine truth realized through these three (through different forms of spiritual practice) is indeed the peace and oneness of pure consciousness bliss. Navaratri is a good time to practice yoga, meditation, and rituals to bring about divine-mother qualities in ourselves and in the world. Especially with the chaotic energies that are accompanying the solar eclipse of today, focusing on spiritual practices and mindfulness is especially important in the coming days. Allow the demons to be destroyed, and call upon your higher qualities to attain peace and lightness within yourself, and then let it spread to others so all of creation can be uplifted in harmony.
Follow @somyadevi on Instagram
