The Secret Doctrine of Goddess Lalita
(Sri LalitaAṣṭottara Rahasyārthamu)
Synopsis
In the 54 nāma-s we discussed so far, from the first nāma (śri māta) to the last nāma (sarvamōhinī), we have discussed the descent of the Goddess from the un-manifest to the manifest. As mahāśakti, She is the creator-sustainer-destroyer of the universe. As jaganmāta, She is the Divine Mother who nourishes the Universe. How can such a mother willfully drown Her children in the ocean of saṃsāra? Shouldn’t a mother have only love and compassion, for her children? It is natural for one to wonder why the Divine Mother operates in such a seemingly vengeful manner towards Her creation. We answered this question earlier. But let us discuss it in more detail now.
There is no doubt that Devi is the Divine Mother. Because She is the mother, She does not hate us, nor does She willfully throw us into the ocean of saṃsāra. In reality, She does not move from Her natural state as Pure Consciousness at all. That there is a world is only a notion imagined by the ignorant mind. Due to avidyā (nescience), we have forgotten the real nature of our Self, which is undifferentiated Pure Consciousness. Instead, we have divided it into two fragments, the finite self (jīvā) and the world (jagat). Because of this fragmented view of the Self, we are subject to three afflictions - physical, environmental, and karmic. We ascribe our suffering to the tirodhāna śakti or the concealing power of Devī.
The truth is Devī never really concealed Herself from us. Since She is Consciousness Itself, She is shining everywhere as Existence-Consciousness (sat-cīt). Whatever we perceive, jīvā or jagat, we are aware of its existence (Beingness). Without any distinction, whether it is “me or “mine,” everything presents itself as sat-cīt, Existence-Consciousness. Since She shines as presence everywhere, how can Devī conceal Her true nature? It is our own limited mind and intellect that fail to recognize the truth.
Hence, it is only a misconception produced by a faulty vision that makes us think Devī descended from Her abode, created this world, and trapped us helplessly in it. In reality, however, neither did She descend into the world nor did She trap us in it. These are mere notions, imagination, and not the Absolute Truth. We cannot ascribe descent or delusion to the Goddess. The problem is the jīvā, the notional separate-self, born out of ignorance that drowns itself in an imagined saṃsāra and erroneously ascribes its plight to the Goddess.
Hence, we are to blame ourselves, and not the Divine Mother for our suffering. It is our ignorance, our inability to recognize the divine nature of our own Self that is the problem. It is ignorance that keeps us separate and away from our true Self, which is Devī Herself. That separation, the distancing of ourselves from our source, is the descent (avarohaṇa). The moment Knowledge arises and ignorance is removed, we will find ourselves back in the lap of the Divine Mother. This realization or knowledge of the Self is the ascent (ārohaṇa). The ascent and descent of the Goddess must be understood as the ascent and descent of the jīvā.
We have now completed the study of the nāma-s that describe the descent of Devī. In the next chapter, we will study the 54 nāma-s that describe Her ascent.