Navratri – Significance of Durga Lakshmi & Saraswati

Sadhguru: Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati – they also represent tamas, rajas and sattva. Sattva will touch you. Saraswati never happened; that means you are in the cycle; you are in the trap of life and death. If you are aware enough, little-little supports that nature offers is good to make use of. This is the first night of Navratri, and this night and this day… the coming day after this, is dedicated to the feminine nature of the divine. Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati are used as the symbols of these three dimensions of the feminine. They also represent the three basic qualities of existence – tamas, rajas and sattva. Tamas literally means inertia. Rajas means activity, passion. Sattva, in a way, is breaking of boundaries, dissolution, melting and merging. Among the three celestial objects to which the very making of our bodies are very deeply connected – the earth, the sun and the moon – Mother Earth is considered tamas, the sun is rajas, moon is sattva. Those who aspire for power, for immortality, for strength, they will worship those forms of feminine which are referred to as tamas, like the Kali or the Mother Earth. Those who aspire for wealth, for passion, for life, and various other gifts that the material world has to offer, they naturally aspire towards that form of the feminine which is referred to as a Lakshmi or the sun. Those who aspire for knowledge, knowing, transcendence, immortality of not the body, but transcending the limitations of the mortal body, they will aspire for that aspect of the feminine which is referred to as the sattva, or Saraswati is the representative of that, or the moon. This is arranged in this way, because it's after all from the Earth that we arise, and we could live an active life which is rajas, the second nature of the Devi. The third one may come your way, or may not. If you have to bring her down into you, you have to strive. Otherwise, she will not get down to you. Kali is on the ground. Lakshmi is sitting on a flower. Saraswati is riding a peacock. The Linga Bhairavi has been consecrated with three basic chakras. This man (Referring to Dhyanalinga) has all the seven. She has only three chakras to represent three… these three dimensions of tamas, rajas and sattva. Tamas is the nature of the earth, and she is the one who gives birth. The whole… the gestation period that we spend in the womb, our womb time is tamas, it's like a… a state which is almost like hibernation, but it's growing. So, tamas is the nature of… the earth, of your birth. The moment you come out, then you start activity – rajas begins. If you are aware enough, or fortunate enough, sattva will touch you, otherwise the color of rajas… It's good as long as the going is good. When the going gets bad, rajas is going to be super bad. So, what was absolute inertia, now has become a dynamic rajas. This may transcend, or may again go back to the same thing. Durga-Lakshmi, Durga-Lakshmi… Saraswati never happened. That means you are in the cycle, you are in the trap of life and death, life and death, life and death. Transcendence is yet to come. So, these two will anyway happen. What is in a state of inertia will get into a state of rajas and activity, and again fall back and become inertia for a certain period of time, and again get back into activity. This is happening to you as an individual, this is happening to the planet, this is happening to the galaxy, this is happening to the whole cosmos. It goes into a state of inertia, and then becomes dynamic, and again goes into a state of inertia. But the important thing is, this one (Referring to oneself) has the capability to break the cycle and transcend. So, these three dimensions of the Devi are enshrined in the form of Bhairavi, or Linga Bhairavi. You must be able to draw these three dimensions of existence, and sustenance for yourself, because you need all these three. The first two are needed for your survival and well-being, the third is an aspiration to go beyond. So, Navratri starts off with this, not only fabulous symbolism, it is also energy-wise true. Every month – it is not just once in a year… Every month after amavasya, the first three days are like this. Amavasya is a state of inertia, where the five elements are going through a certain integration within themselves. The next day is in a placid, inertia state, then it gets active, then there is room for transcendence, the moon begins to appear. This is why the third day's moon is held as very important. You know? Moondrampirai. The third day's moon is held as very important because the possibility of transcendence has opened up. What was in a state of inertia, and then in a state of activity and entanglement, now has opened a possibility of transcendence. Every month it is happening. This particular month is a little more pronounced because this amavasya was more pronounced than the rest of the amavasyas during the year. So, these nine days, above all, to approach every aspect of life in a celebratory way, this is most important. If you approach everything in a celebratory way, you learn to be non-serious about life but absolutely involved. The problem with most human beings right now is, if they think something is important, they will become dead serious about it. If they think it is not so important, they will become lax about it. They don't show the necessary involvement. That's not it. The passage, the secret of life is in just this – seeing everything with a non-serious eye, but absolutely involved, like a game. That's the reason most profound aspects of life are approached in a celebratory way, so that you don't miss the point. So, this Navratri, we… there are certain things happening in the temple. Making use of little-little supports that nature offers is good to make use of. Going on your own steam is not impossible, not many people made it, that's all. So, make use of these nine days.