God Series:Episode 5-God as Mother!

Today on UCP we take a break from the elements although we have one more element to go...WATER! However we do so with good reason...you see our parent blog Meady's Musings along with its Purple Elephant and Little Mouse are celebrating Blog Action Day 2010 and the action on that day is well...WATER! It's about getting water to the world over! It's also Global Handwashing Day courtesy the people at Clean the World...so we are planning to join forces with them also on that day so on UCP we will celebrate God as WATER!

However it is also fitting to celebrate mother on the God series right now anyway as in Hinduism it's the festival of Nav Ratri...the nine nights celebration of the Mother as Divine!

Now we here on UCP since its inception have been surrendering to the Divine Mother...sitting on her lap...and even at times if necessary suckling at her breasts for nourishment...so we are no strangers here to celebrating God as Mother...so we need not even write a fresh post on this but merely dance forth and celebrate with her instead as we recall all our loving memories with her over the years! :) So let's crank up ours and one of the fav bhajans of all time by all Hindu fans of the Divine Mother as well...'Mein To Aarti Utaaroon' from the classic film 1970's film- 'Jai Santoshi Maa'!


The Divine Mother Leadership Series lasted for nine nights earlier this year as we celebrated each night of that Nav Ratri Festival with a post as follows:
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7
Day 8
Day 9

Celebrating the Divine Mother on Mother's Day

I surrender onto the Divine Mother Again!

I Surrender onto the Divine Mother!

Worshipping the Divine Mother!

Jai Santoshi Maa-A Film of Ultimate Surrender to the Divine Mother!

Happy Durga Ashtami 2009!

JAI JAGAT JANANI MAA DURGE!

And see you on Friday!

Worshipping The Divine Mother!

As today is the last day of Nav Ratri and a Friday normally considered auspicious in Hinduism for the worship of the Divine Mother and in anticipation of a certain pilgrimage of mine in the morn I ask you to pray, ponder and meditate on the following aspects of the Divine Mother as intepreted through Universal Collective Prayer...

Jai Santoshi Maa! - A Film of Ultimate Surrender to the Divine Mother!

I've seen the 1975 Indian film all through my life growing up...seen it several times and the song clips. My mum now owns the dvd of it! :) I've often wondered though how people can be so mean while watching it...if I ever had a company slogan it would be "Don't Be Mean!" akin to Yahoo's "Do No Evil" perhaps! :) In this film there are some mean people and things being done to this lady...made me wonder growing up if some of the meanest people exist in India (but I think some of it has to do with resources per person so it is a matter of survival) alongside some with very strong faith in the Universe! :)

I never got when seeing this film why the ladies put the limes thingy in the lady's prayer stuff and why Santoshi Maa got mad in the first place...I mean isn't she all knowing so...but I guess the Universe works in mysterious ways and so pretending to be mad would have been to teach the meanies a lesson and to test the faith of the lady who did no harm...

Either way the film stands as an ultimate work in showing ones surrender onto the Divine Mother and it has one of my favourite offerings to the Divine Mother ever on its soundtrack...'Mein To Aarti Utharoon Re Santoshi Mata Ki' sung by Usha Mangeshkar, the song done in worship just before the meanies put the limes in...I also like the dancey sequence done here too it kinda makes you want to get up and dance with the ladies even the meanies...but why didn't they whip out actual mangeeras?:)...we used to whip out actual mangeeras when I use to dance...So I'm sharing that tune with you and some others from the film whose soundtrack is overflowing with super tunes in surrender to the Divine Mother! :)In the second tune-'Madad Karo Santoshi Mata' it is where the ultimate surrender occurs after the meanies put in the limes and everyone feels the wrath except the devotee but she is blamed and then the devotee surrenders...check it out! Although like with any real ultimate surrender it requires some tears...

I Surrender onto the Divine Mother!- Again!

On the prayers I've taken a break for self reflection and meditation all this week following the example of the supreme yogi that is the Shiv man! So I've not posted anything today to mark Nav Ratri...however I did take part in the prayers on a personal level...I realise I have a responsibilty to my readers to keep up with the prayers as it manifests and so for this I apologise but I can't connect to the dance if I dont also go into the cave...and recall that I did post about my surrender to the divine mother in the last Nav Ratri here and leave you with a link to this post on Intent by my brother in Universal Collective Prayer, Vashi Ram Chandi...

Vashi's post about Nav Ratri on Intent

See also my comments on the post to him where I note my favourite Ganesh aarti just for so that I will repost here as well along with the Durga Chalisa version which I listened to this morning and evening in my personal prayers...