Today I reflected on the meaning, the symbolism and the necessity of Navrathri.

9 Nights, the story I was told as a child was based largely on the Goddess and Her three forms, each representation of Herself in different moods. The story goes that She fought the evil demon Mahishasura for 9 days and 9 nights, and on the 10th day which we refer to as Vijayadasmi, She finally defeats him, chops off his head and he lays dead at Her feet. She stands over him in Her form as the Fearful One, the power that destroyed world’s greatest evil. Thus, giving Her the name Mahishasuramardini.

But God Forms are merely forms. Why were they given forms in the first place?

Everything is just energy manifesting in different forms. This energy, however, is formless, and it cannot be destroyed nor can it be created. It can be changed from one form to another though. And I suppose this is where the whole idea of God forms took place.

This is my understanding of the Universe and the way it works. We are all part of the Universe. If the Universe is energy, then so are we.
Some call it Universe- I call it God.

We are but forms of energy, manifested in what we are today. As we are.

So God Forms – I think, that we think, that we think in pictures. So that's why we put a form to the formless.But the real reason behind forms is to ultimately realize that there is no form at all.
We and He are One – So we and the Universe are One.
The Universe, is everything..and nothing.
The Universe is what we want it to be.
We are, just the essence of nothing.

Navrathri.

9 nights dedicated to the Feminine aspect of this energy, Shakti. Each night is special because the journey it takes is one so individual and unique, it only means something if you understand the true essence of nothing.

The first 3 nights are dedicated to Durga – the aspect of Shakti at its most fearful, most powerful. ‘She’ is depicted as the feared one, the terrifying one who destroys the demons. Demons – those negatives that reside within us. I’d like to think they are forms of energy that are manifested within us which hinders us from achieving the Real Goal, whatever that may be to each of us individually.

When they are removed, so to speak, then comes Lakshmi. The derivative of Shakti that bestows wealth. Wealth is to have – but to have what? Money? Gold? Love? Happiness?
Here’s the thing – we already have all this.

We have them ...they are just unmanifested.
So in these three nights, this form of Shakti is focused on so we may ‘manifest’ what we already have.

Saraswati – the last three nights. Shakti is worshipped in this form as the energy of wisdom. Knowledge and wisdom – another large reservoir of what already exists within us. We tap into this energy on the last three nights, after having discarded what is not needed to achieve our goals, and manifesting wealth which we already have – because now we are ready and prepared to receive the dawning that knowledge and wisdom is already part of us. We have all the answers – its just a matter of allowing it to surface.

Out of respect for this wisdom, we revere the Feminine energy in the form of Saraswati.

And the tenth day, Vijayadasami?

It’s the day the awakening occurs.

That we and Him are One – and so, we and the Universe are One.
The Universe is everything and nothing, depending on how we wish to see it.
Everything that is Real is Unreal.
If dust you think, dust you become.
If God you think, God you become.

So really, in the essence of nothing, lies the beginning of everything.

There was a point in life where you were nothing more than just a person I saw once a week. The only words exchanged were those of greetings, and maybe a smile and nod of acknowledgement.

Today, I cannot thank the Lord enough for blessing me with your presence in my life.

This one's for you, Suhu anna.

WHAT MAKES HIM WHO HE IS TO ME.

1. He disapproves of my appetite, and makes that a well known fact especially to me.
2. He constantly drops reminders that I am, in fact, gaining weight.
3. He ridicules and teases me to an extent that I cannot explain.
4. He makes fun of my height.
5. He delibrately calls me the WANITA youth coordinator(the right term is assistant youth coordinator), because he knows I hate it.
6. He gets embaressed and all awkward when I openly tell him I love him.
7. He totally gets awkward when I give him a hug, which he tries to brush off.
8. He scolds me when I do stupid things. And its actual shelling that I get, not just a remark.
9. He took time off from work to fix my car.
10. He told the guy who hit my car that he was MY BROTHER :)
11. He listens when I whine about work, and my 'problems' which really aren't problems.
12. He was there to catch me and point me in the right direction when my own nerves and senses failed me.
13. He shared my pain, my sorrows and my worries.
14. He made me smile and brush away my fears.
15. He told me the guy who said no just threw away a chance of a lifetime.
16. He promised he'll be here to 'interview' any other guy who comes my way.
17. He calls to make sure I'm home if we leave late from meetings/dinner/etc.
18. He didn't take me to watch Kanthaswamy :P
19. He changed my life.
20. He's my hero, MY brother.

The love that you shower on me, in your own way, is one that I have been blessed with for eternity. Never a day goes by where I don't thank God for my brothers..and anna, you are everything a sister could ever ask for.
I ask for forgiveness, for all the wrong decisions, wrong words, and silly mistakes that I have made, knowingly or unknowingly.
Every word of advice and encouragement you have given me, I will always remember.
I love you very very much anna.
I know Swami will shower you with all the love and blessings, always and forever.

I will miss you so much.

Come home soon.

With all my love,
your little sister darshi.

Kahlil Gibran on Love

When love beckons to you, follow him,
Though his ways are hard and steep.
And when his wings enfold you yield to him,
Though the sword hidden among his pinions may wound you.
And when he speaks to you believe in him,
Though his voice may shatter your dreamsas the north wind lays waste the garden.
For even as love crowns you so shall he crucify you.
Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning.
Even as he ascends to your height and caresses your tenderest branches that quiver in the sun,
So shall he descend to your roots and shake them in their clinging to the earth.
Like sheaves of corn he gathers you unto himself.
He threshes you to make you naked.
He sifts you to free you from your husks.
He grinds you to whiteness.
He kneads you until you are pliant;
And then he assigns you to his sacred fire, that you may become sacred bread for God's sacred feast.
All these things shall love do unto you that you may know the secrets of your heart, and in that knowledge become a fragment of Life's heart.
But if in your fear you would seek only love's peace and love's pleasure,
Then it is better for you that you cover your nakedness and pass out of love's threshing-floor,
Into the seasonless world where you shall laugh, but not all of your laughter, and weep, but not all of your tears.
Love gives naught but itself and takes naught but from itself.
Love possesses not nor would it be possessed;
For love is sufficient unto love.
When you love you should not say, "God is in my heart," but rather, "I am in the heart of God."
And think not you can direct the course of love, for love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course.
Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself.
But if you love and must needs have desires, let these be your desires:
To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night.
To know the pain of too much tenderness.
To be wounded by your own understanding of love;
And to bleed willingly and joyfully.
To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving;
To rest at the noon hour and meditate love's ecstasy;
To return home at eventide with gratitude;
And then to sleep with a prayer for the beloved in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips.

I'm here to vent out some frustration, annoyance and anger at the way things are going at the moment. I HATE it. With a vengeance.