माता सरस्वती Goddess Saraswati

I offer my obeisance to you Rev. Sri. Sri Om Swamiji🙏🕉

Salutations to you Divine Maa Saraswati🙏

Mother Goddess in the form of Goddess presiding over knowledge and education. She is the consort of Lord Brahma.

सरस्वति नमस्तुभ्यं वरदे कामरूपिणि ।
विद्यारम्भं करिष्यामि सिद्धिर्भवतु मे सदा ॥

Saraswathi Namasthubhyam, varade Kama roopini,
Vidhyarambham karishyami, sidhir bhavathu me sada.

My salutations to Goddess Saraswathi,

Who can take any form,

Who is the bestower of all boons,

And I start learning now,

With the prayer to her,

To make it very effective.

या कुन्देन्दुतुषारहारधवला या शुभ्रवस्त्रावृता
या वीणावरदण्डमण्डितकरा या श्वेतपद्मासना ।
या ब्रह्माच्युतशंकरप्रभृतिभिर्देवः सदा पूजिता
सा मां पातु सरस्वति भगवती निःशेषजाड्यापहा ॥१॥

Yakundendu Thushara Hara Davalam, Ya shubra vastravrutham,
Ya veena vara danda manditha kara, Ya shwetha padmasana,
Ya brahmachyutha Sankara prbhruthibhi Daivai sada poojitha,
Saa maam pathu saraswathi bhagawathi Nissesha jadyabaha.

My saluations to Goddess Saraswathi,

Who is while like a Kunda flower,

Who shines like the full moon,

Who carries in her hand a Veena and a stick,

Who is seated on the throne of white Lotus,

Who is worshipped by the holy trinity,

With a prayer to drive away all my slothfulness.

She takes her Matrika (Warrior) avatar as Brahmani. Saraswati is not just the goddess of knowledge and wisdom but also she is the Brahmavidya herself, the goddess of the wisdom of ultimate truth. Her Mahavidhya forms are Matangi and Tara Mahavidya she manifests:

As Mahakali, she is the destroyer of ignorance and ego, and the darkness that surrounds the mind of the unlearned and lethargic.
As Parvati, she is Brahmavidhya, the ultimate truth.
As Lakshmi, she is Vidhyalakshmi, who provides wealth according to skill.
As Vidhya, she is the formless concept of wisdom and knowledge in all of its aspects.
As Gayatri, she is the personification of the Vedas.
As Savitri, She is the personification of purity, consort of Lord Brahma

The Greatest Poet & dramatist the world has ever seen.Mahakavi Kalidas lived in the Era of legendary King Vikramaditya in Ujjain about 2500 yrs ago,he was one of the nine Gems of the court of KingVikramaditya, his title Kavikulaguru (Preceptor of All Poets) bearing testimony to his stature. But Kalidasa was a Devi Bhakt and had been blessed by Kali Mata. Obviously, She cares for Her devotees. So once, when Kalidasa had a bloated head, She did something miraculous …

Below is one of the conversations he had with a stranger woman would make all of us re-think about how what we think about ourselves could be far superficial from the truth.

Kalidasa was once walking through the forest, and it took him all day long to reach to the end of it. Sun was fiercely tempered who seemed to suck every ounce of his energy. While he did not mind the sun, as there was nothing he could do about it, it was the lack of water that bothered him. His thirst became unbearable, and the sight of a woman passing with a pot of water could not make him happier.

He thus walked up to her hastily and called out,
Kalidasa – O Mother! Sun has been particularly harsh on me, and so is this unbearable thirst that pricks my throat like a thorn. Please be kind to share your water with me, I plead.
Woman – Son, I know how you must feel. My water is sure to vanish your thirst, but before you do not introduce yourself, I would not part with it. 

Kalidas did not want to waste a minute in small-talk. Every word that came out of his mouth seemed to torture his dry throat.

However, to not offend the old lady, he quickly replied,

Kalidasa – Very well! Consider me a wanderer.

Woman – How can you be a wanderer my son? There are only two wanderers in the universe, and they are the Sun and the Moon, who never cease in moving. Please tell the truth about your identity. 

Kalidasa was taken aback by this response. He cleared his throat and said, 

Kalidasa – I agree. Why don’t you treat me as a guest? 

Woman – No, you cannot be a guest, young man. There are only two guests in life, one is wealth, and the second is youth. Both are sure to arrive and depart, and never stay even when pleaded a million times! Tell me, who are you?

Kalidasa was at a loss of words at such a profound philosophy! However, the lady’s arguments charged him up. He replied, 

Kalidasa – O mother, I am patience. 

Woman – I don’t think so. There are only two patient creatures in this world. First is mother earth, who silently bears the burden of all our sins, and second is the trees that surround us. They are always bountiful to everybody without discrimination; even to those who mean harm to them. You are definitely no patient. Kalidasa increasingly became irritable with his loss and the thirst that seemed to aggravate his temper.

He snapped, 

Kalidasa – Well, I must be stubborn then!

Woman – No, my child. You are not at all stubborn. Nails and hair are the only two to display stubbornness. No matter how many times you cut them, they always grow back. So be truthful about who you are!

Kalidasa lost his patience. So much for a few sips of water. He yelled – 

Kalidasa – Well, I am a fool then!

Woman – How I wish that could be true! There are only two fools to walk on this earth, and you are not among them. First is a ruler who rules people without any adequate qualification, and second is the people who try to please that ruler only to be in his good books, even it means misguiding the ruler in his judgements. 

Kalidasa was awed at the intellect of this woman. He, considered as the greatest Sanskrit poet the world had ever seen could not stand tall before an old illiterate woman who must not even know how to read probably. He accepted his defeat and fell to the feet of the woman,

Kalidasa – O mother! How stupid I was to think that I know myself. Our meeting has shifted my perspective, and I cannot be more ashamed of myself. Pardon my ignorance, and show your mercy. Grant me some water, I beg. 

Saying this, Kalidasa lifted his teary eyes to catch the glimpse of the woman. What he saw made him think if he was actually present there, thirsty and defeated, or was it all just a dream? In the place of the old woman stood a magnificent figure that radiated like a moon! She was none other than Maa Saraswati who had graced Kalidasa with her divine presence. She spoke in a voice that was soothing than the water in this scorching heat.

She smiled and said,
Maa Saraswati – O Kalidasa! Stand up. While you are indeed a great scholar and your words have the healing power and the ability to transform lives, it is your ego about your abilities that belittles all your achievements. You are surely educated, but with your education, you have also given space to arrogance to fill your heart. Hence, I had to myself come to guide you. The mark of a true scholar is not his knowledge, but his humility. Your education is fruitless if it only feeds your ego. That would be a life wasted. A man like you with such revered intellect must understand and preach about how everything one receives and considers as his achievement, are not his to be proud of. All he must do is keep on learning for one never knows enough. So, you must be nothing but a learner, my child.

Kalidasa immediately stood up and folded his hands. He thanked Maa Saraswati for shattering his ignorance. He exclaimed that he has realized his mistake, and would hold on to these pearls of wisdom for eternity.

Maa Saraswati, smiled and finally offered the pot of water to Kalidasa whose thirst had been long sufficed. He thankfully accepted the pot with beaming eyes and drank water that tasted sweeter than the nectar! It wasn’t just his thirst for water, but thirst for knowledge also that had been quenched.

Divine Mother Goddess  Bless all with kindness, creativity and beautiful wisdom 🙏🦢

Jai Sri Hari🙏🕉

Siddhika Umesh

pic courtesy: pin interest 
Story courtesy : doerlife, and thanking a dear friend who shared this story on her timeline and helped me to format it a bit🙏