2023-02-16 06:27:16 by ambuda-bot
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INTRODUCTION
5
to think of it as an active power Hence the
distinction that we draw between the quiescent
Brahman and the active Isvara In Sakta theology
this distinction is transferred to Siva and Sahti S117
corresponds to the inactive Brahman and Sahti cor-
responds to the active Isvara And as the word 'Śakti'
is of feminine gender in Sanskrit, the personification
results in a goddess S111s Sakti, and Sal ti is SIV
as Brahman is Isvara and Isvara is Brahman In fact,
they are only two different aspects of the same Reality
They are the static and the dynamic aspects of the
sume Spirit They are as inseparable as fire and heat
or sun and sunshine But Sakti, the dynamic aspect of
the Reality, is more important to us, as we are caught up
in this dynamic universe of created beings and have in
us an urge to transcend our present state
If Isvara, as we said above, is a poetic conception of
the Absolute, Isvari or Sakti or Devi is certainly a more
poctic one And as we generally fear our fathers and
love our mothers, the concept of mother goddess
appeals more to our hearts than that of a father-god
Also in the representation of a female deity, there is
more scope for grace and beauty, and hence for
greater poetry and art Accordingly in the Lahta
sahasranama, which is a stotra addressed to a goddess,
we see poetry and romance, religion and philosophy
occultism and psycholozy vying with one another in
coining names for the deity The author his embodied
in this litany not only the Puranic story of Lalita and
her fight with the demon Bhanda but also the philosophy
and the ritual of Sri Vidya The most striking
5
to think of it as an active power Hence the
distinction that we draw between the quiescent
Brahman and the active Isvara In Sakta theology
this distinction is transferred to Siva and Sahti S117
corresponds to the inactive Brahman and Sahti cor-
responds to the active Isvara And as the word 'Śakti'
is of feminine gender in Sanskrit, the personification
results in a goddess S111s Sakti, and Sal ti is SIV
as Brahman is Isvara and Isvara is Brahman In fact,
they are only two different aspects of the same Reality
They are the static and the dynamic aspects of the
sume Spirit They are as inseparable as fire and heat
or sun and sunshine But Sakti, the dynamic aspect of
the Reality, is more important to us, as we are caught up
in this dynamic universe of created beings and have in
us an urge to transcend our present state
If Isvara, as we said above, is a poetic conception of
the Absolute, Isvari or Sakti or Devi is certainly a more
poctic one And as we generally fear our fathers and
love our mothers, the concept of mother goddess
appeals more to our hearts than that of a father-god
Also in the representation of a female deity, there is
more scope for grace and beauty, and hence for
greater poetry and art Accordingly in the Lahta
sahasranama, which is a stotra addressed to a goddess,
we see poetry and romance, religion and philosophy
occultism and psycholozy vying with one another in
coining names for the deity The author his embodied
in this litany not only the Puranic story of Lalita and
her fight with the demon Bhanda but also the philosophy
and the ritual of Sri Vidya The most striking