Honoring the Devi Shakti

This article written by Bhanumathi Narasimhan, sister of Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.

Navratri is traditionally celebrated in honour of Devi, the Divine Mother. The Divine Mother is symbolic of energy, a manifestation of the Divine itself. Each day of Navratri we honour specific qualities of divinity with different homas and with different intentions. It is this energy, which helps God to proceed with the work of creation, preservation and destruction.  Shakti means strength, power and energy, the womb for all creation, expressed as the mother aspect of the Divine. Shakti is the seed for all dynamism, radiance, beauty, equanimity, peace and nourishment.

Shakti is the life-force.  There are five aspects of creation: Asti, is-ness; bhati, knowledge and expression; Preeti, love; nama, name and rupa, form. Matter has two aspects, name and form. Consciousness has three aspects, asti, bhati and preeti. Maya is ignorance or delusion, not being aware of the three aspects of consciousness and getting caught up in name and form. Different functional aspects of the divine energy, Shakti, have different names and forms. The “i” (ee) in Shakti is energy.

Without the “i”, “Shiva” becomes “shava” which in Sanskrit means lifeless.  There are seven centres of energy or Shakti in the body called chakras in Sanskrit.  In the Saktha system of worship, there is focus on all the energy centers.  The Sri Chakra is thought to represent the whole body with the Devi in different forms, residing in different chakras. Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, has spoken in detail about the chakras. He says, “Different emotions are linked with each of these energy centres”.

The first chakra, muladhara, is located in the base of the spine. Here, the energy manifests as inertia or enthusiasm. The Devi residing in this chakra is five-faced representing the five sense organs. Musical instruments are also associated with these energy centres. Sound vibrations produced by bass drums are connected to this chakra.  The second chakra, swadhistana is the sex centre just four inches above the base of the spine. Here energy manifests as pro-creativity or creativity. Here, the Divine mother has four faces representing the four Vedas.

The third chakra, manipura, is the navel centre where energy manifests as four emotions: Generosity, joy, greed and jealousy (two positive and two negative emotions). Here, Devi has three faces representing srishti (creation), stith (maintenance) and laya (dissolution). Wind instruments like trumpets and clarinets are connected to this energy centre.  The fourth Chakra, anahata, is located in the chest region where energy manifests as three emotions- love, fear and hatred. Devi is represented with two faces, signifying inward and outward focus.

This energy centre is influenced by the sound vibrations of string instruments like the violin and harp. The fifth Chakra, vishuddhi, is located in the throat region where energy manifests as two emotions – gratitude and grief. In the vishuddhi chakra, Devi’s form has a single face. She is beyond all duality. The melody of the flute connects with this chakra.  The sixth Chakra, ajna, is located between the eyebrows where energy manifests as anger and alertness. Here, Devi is six-faced, representing the five senses (sight, hearing, smell, touch, taste) and the mind. Cymbals, chimes and bells connect with this energy centre.

The seventh chakra, sahasrara, is located on the top of the head where energy manifests as bliss. It is also called brahmarandhra. Devi is represented as a fully blossomed lotus of a thousand petals. All the qualities in creation belong to her and are blossomed to their complete potential. The conch is the musical instrument connected with this energy centre.