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God as Mother : Essence of Devi Mahatmyam-. Sri Swami Chidananda.

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 ================================================= ================================================== Monday, January 10, 2022. 6:00. AM. 13. Saptashati’s Lesson 14. FOURTH NIGHT : Lakshmi: The Supreme Sustainer  =============================== ================== Next, we have to transcend even the human nature with all its wrong conceptions and with its ego-sense, if we are to reach the higher divine consciousness. This process of overcoming even the human side of the aspirant’s consciousness is symbolised by human sacrifice or Narabali. The arrangement of the Saptashati in the three aspects of first the killing of Madhu-Kaitabha, secondly the killing of Mahishasura, and thirdly the killing of the brothers Shumbha and Nishumbha with their host of demons, symbolises the different stages of Sadhana. Madhu and Kaitabha represent the gross form of the lower nature of man. Mahishasura represents the next stage, the annihilation of the Rajo-Guna aspect. When we come to the third pa...

GOD AS MOTHER : Essence of Devi Mahatmyam-13. SRI SWAMI CHIDANANDA

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 ====================================================================== ========================================= Monday, November-15, 2021. 6:00. AM. #GOD AS MOTHER : Essence of Devi Mahatmyam 13. Manifestations of Durga in Spiritual Sadhana. - Swami Chidananda. ======================================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mother Durga thus manifests Herself in and through the form of the Guru, in the form of an aspirant in the aspirant himself to rise to a higher plane, in the form of a ruthless self-criticism and a self-examination; and when this analysis reveals to the seeker the picture of his lower animalistic self in all its detail then the Mother has to be invoked by him as a strong resolution and a strong determination to completely root out these evil tendencies because this aspect of the Mother is absolutely necessary if one has to start pr...

GOD AS MOTHER : Essence of Devi Mahatmyam-12. SRI SWAMI CHIDANANDA.

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 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thursday, September 9, 2021. 6:55. AM. 12. Sacrifice the Beast in You. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sacrifice the Beast in You : The Sadhak’s task is, therefore, to first and foremost entirely eradicate all that is gross, all that is animalistic, brutal and beastly in his nature. These qualities have to be thoroughly overhauled and taken out of his nature. After this process is done, the transformation of the human nature has to be taken in hand and it has to be sublimated, and transformed into a higher divine nature. It is recisely this study of man as a composite being containing the lower animalistic nature and then the human nature endowed with discrimination, consciousness of higher ideals of a noble divine purpose of this human birth upon this earth, and the ...

GOD AS MOTHER : Essence of Devi Mahatmyam-11. SRI SWAMI CHIDANANDA

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.----------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- Thursday, August 12, 2021. 6:53.AM. 11. Not Destruction but Transcendence. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Thus destruction upon the spiritual level ultimately comes to express itself as a positive transcendence where a series of progressive constructions are undertaken, by a series of destruction of each lower form so that it may give place to each succeeding form higher than itself. Thus, we see that this process of transcending is a desideratum and not something to be shirked; for as long as we are clinging to the lower, as long as we refuse to let the lower go, we will not be able to attain the higher. It is the intervention of the divine power in this aspect of destroying lower that makes it possible for the attainment of the higher. As today we are to specially consider this application of Mother in Her aspect of Durga...

GOD AS MOTHER : Essence of Devi Mahatmyam-10. SRI SWAMI CHIDANANDA

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. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Monday, June 14, 2021. 10:24.AM. 10. Life Involves Destruction ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. We find that this entire world and the life of man is pervaded by destruction. Without destruction there can be no life. The destruction is ultimately a part of a continuous constructive process. This philosophy of destruction can be realised even through an observation and a study of man’s everyday life. Annagatah Pranah refers to man’s life which is founded upon physical body. If we withdraw this food, man’s body cannot last. Let us take this process of nourishing the body and keeping up life. The very process of producing food is based upon a continuous series of destruction. We have first of all—if we desire to cultivate grain—to destroy all thorns, weeds and jungle-growth upon the surface of the earth. Then we have to break the surface of the earth a...

GOD AS MOTHER : Essence of Devi Mahatmyam-8 & 9. SRI SWAMI CHIDANANDA.

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  ---------------------------------------------------------------- Friday, April 30, 2021. 07:22.AM. 8. The Puzzling Kali,  9. THIRD NIGHT : Destruction: The Springboard To Construction ---------------------------------------------------------------- This indeed is the content of the Durga Saptashati, the scripture which we read during these nine days. It contains thirteen chapters which describe this process of the Mother giving battle to, on behalf of divine beings, and destroys the entire array of cosmic nescience, of wickedness, of all that is a negation of the Supreme Truth. Each aspect of this negation of truth is depicted in this great scripture which is a wonderful allegory, by some particular demon; and these demons are given appropriate names and forms according to those aspects of nescience. And the thirteen chapters describe how Mother using numerous forms annihilates all the aspects of evil, of nescience, ignorance and this cosmic delusion. And at the end the Supr...

THE ESOTERIC SIGNIFICANCE OF THE DEVI-MAHATMYAM - 5. SRI SWAMI KRISHNANANDA.

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 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday, March  24, 2021. 07:24. AM. Post-5. ---------------------------------------------------------------- So, through the worship of Maha-Kali, Maha-Lakshmi, and Maha-Sarasvati, we worship Mula-Prakriti, Adi-Sakti in her cosmic dance-form of transformation, prosperity and Illumination. In the beginning, what happens to a Sadhaka? There is a necessity of self-transformation. It is all hardship, rubbing and cleaning, washing, sweeping, etc. That is the first stage through the worship of Maha-Kali, who brings about a destruction of all barriers. Then what happens? There is tremendous prosperity. You become a master and a progressive soul commanding all powers, getting everything that you want. This is the second stage. In the first stage, it looked as if you were a poor person, having nothing, very weak. But, when you overcome this weakness, by removing the barrier of Tamas, you become prosperous. Nobody can ...