The active Mother (Shakti) stands on the inactive Father (Shiva)
(Concluded from Part 4.)
No other spiritual agency has received the attention She has, under such a variety of names, and yet has been so little understood
The Divine Mother has been known to sages throughout the centuries, around the world, in religions from Advaita to Zarathustreanism. But the myriad names She has been called and the lack of integrated studies of Her have sometimes proved confusing.
I’d like to summarize the names I’ve found linked to the Mother. I’ve given one or two references for each use, though many more could have been given. This list has been derived by starting with undoubted epithets like “Holy Spirit,” “Divine Mother,” and “Shakti,” and then noting what other synonymous terms are used by the same enlightened source.
These are full or partial synonyms for the Divine Mother:
Adyasakti (or Ancient Power) (Sri Ramakrishna in GSR, 218 and 460.)
Ahunavairya (Zarathustra in GZ, 8-9.)
Amen (Revelation 3:14; Shankara, CJD, I; Sri Yukteswar Giri, HS, 23 and 24; Paramahansa Yogananda in AY, 237n and 363n and SCC, 1, 17 and SCC, 2, 22.)
Amin (Paramahansa Yogananda in, 237n.)
Aum or Om (UPAN 50 and 53; Sri Ramakrishna in GSR, 299; Sri Yukteswar Giri, HS, 24; Paramahansa Yogananda, AY, 143-4, 237n, 363n, 484, and 487n and SCC, 1, 15-6 and 19 and SCC, 2, 22.)
Breath of God (Job 33:4; Solomon in APO, 191.)
Comforter or Comforter Spirit (Zarathustra in GZ, 217; Jesus in John 14:16 and 14:26 and 15:26; Hildegard of Bingen in IHB, 9; Paramahansa Yogananda, AY, 144n and 363n and SCC, 1, 19.)
Cosmic Power or Energy (Sri Ramakrishna in GSR, 116; Paramahansa Yogananda, SCC, 2, 22; Swami Sivananda in KYW, 25.)
Cosmic Sound (Paramahansa Yogananda, AY, 237, SCC, 1, 15 and 17 and SCC, 2, 22.)
Cosmic Vibration (Paramahansa Yogananda, SCC, 1, 15-6, 17, and 56 and SCC, 2, 22.)
Creator, Preserver, and Destroyer (UPAN, 37; Zarathustra, GZ, 187, 227 and 240; Sri Ramakrishna in GSR, 32, 107, 135, and 653; Paramahansa Yogananda, SCC, 1, 15-6.)
Divine Mother (Lao Tzu in WOL, 53, 72, and 105; Paramahansa Ramakrishna in GSR, 32, 107, 136, 200, and 299; Swami Sivananda Sarasvati in KYW, 25; Nikhilananda in VIV, 24; Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov, LAS, 1, 15, 21, 22, and 28; Da Free John in KOL, 132; etc.)
Divine Power (Sister Vandana, NJ, 190-1.)
Durga (Paramahansa Ramakrishna in GSR, 216.)
Embodiment of Om (Sri Ramakrishna in GSR, 299.)
The Fashioner of all things (Solomon in APO, 191.)
Holy Ghost (Jesus in Matthew 12: 31-2; John 14:26 and 20:21-2; Paramhansa Yogananda, AY, 143-4, 363n, and 487n and SCC, 1, 15-6 and 19 and SCC, 2, 22.)
Holy Spirit (Solomon in APO, 195; Zarathustra, 217 and 227; Luke 11:13.)
Holy Vibration (Paramahansa Yogananda in SCC, 1, 56.)
Hum (Paramahansa Yogananda, AY, 237n.)
Kali (Sri Ramakrishna in GSR, 107 and 634; Nikhilananda, “Introduction,” to GSR, 9-10; Nikhilananda, “Vivekananda” in VIV, 24; Paramahansa Yogananda, AY, 10, 40n, and 41.)
Kundalini (Swami Sivananda in KYW, 25 and 30; GSR, 182.)
Logos (Annie Besant, AW, 44; Vivekananda in Nikhilananda, VIV, 422.)
Matrix (Lao Tzu in WOL, 105; Sri Aurobindo, SOY, 3.)
Maya (Sri Krishna in BG, 80; Shankara in CJD, 49; Sri Aurobindo, UP, 27; Nikhilananda, HIN, 42-3 and 45; Swami Sivananda in KYW, 26.)
Mother – See Divine Mother.
Mother Nature, Mother of nature (Swami Sivananda in KYW, 26; Paramahansa Yogananda, AY, 10 and 41; Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov, CML, 19; Nikhilananda in GSR, 9-10.)
Mother of the universe (Nikhilananda, “Vivekananda” in VIV, 24.)
Natural Law (Solomon in Proverbs 1:8-9, 3:1, and 6:20; Jesus in
Matthew 12:31-2; St. Paul in Romans 8:2; Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov, CML, 18-9; Krishnamurti, AFM, 25.)
Nature (Paramahansa Yogananda, AY,40n and 41 and SCC, 1, 33; John Redtail Freesoul, BI, 11-2.)
Noise of many waters (David in Psalm 93:3-4; Ezekiel 43:1-2.)
Personal God or Saguna Brahman (Paramahansa Ramakrishna in GSR, 32, 149, 218 and 277.)
Power of God, Power of the Lord (Solomon in APO, 191; Swami Sivananda in KYW, 25.)
Prakriti/Procreatrix (Sri Krishna in BG, 103, 104, and 106; Sri Aurobindo, UP, 27; Ramakrishnananda, GDI, 1 and 8: Swami Sivananda in KYW, 26; Paramahansa Ramakrishna in GSR, 32 and123; Nikhilananda, “Introduction” to GSR, 9-10; Paramahansa Yogananda, SCC, 1, 33.)
Prana (UPAN , 35-8; Paramahansa Yogananda, AY, 484; Swami Sivananda in KYW, 26.)
Primal Energy, Primal Power (Sri Ramakrishna in GSR, 116 and 135; Swami Sivananda in KYW, 25.)
Primordial/Primal Energy (Sri Ramakrishna in GSR, 107 and 242.)
Relative Plane (Sri Ramakrishna, GSR, 653.)
Saguna Brahman See Personal God or Saguna Brahman.
Shakti Sri Ramakrishna in GSR, 116; Swami Sivananda in KYW, 25-6.)
Sound-Brahman, Shabda Brahman, or Pranava (PR in GSR, 263; Swami Vivekananda in Nikhilananda, VIV, 422; Sister Vandana, NJ, 190-1.)
Sound of many waters (Paramahansa Yogananda, AY, 267-8.)
Sphota (Swami Vivekananda in Nikhilananda, VIV, 422; Usha, RVW, 74.)
Spirit of the Bridegroom (St. John of the Cross, CWSJC, 580.)
Spirit of God, Spirit of the Lord (Genesis 1:2; Exodus 35:31; Isaiah 11:2; Ibn Arabi, KK, 15-6; Paramahansa Yogananda in AY, 142 and 143.)
Spirit of Truth (Jesus in John 14:17.)
Spirit of Wisdom (Zarathushtra, GZ, 13 and 187; Exodus 28:3 and 35:31; Deuteronomy 34:9; Isaiah 11:2; St. Paul in Ephesians 1:15-7.)
Spouse (St. John of the Cross in CWSJC, 75.)
Syama (Sri Ramakrishna in GSR, 271.)
Voice in the Silence (Annie Besant, AW, 44; Mabel Collins, LOP, 22.)
Voice of many waters (St. John in Revelation 14:2; Paramahansa Yogananda in AY, 17n and SCC, 1, 19.)
Voice of one that crieth in the wilderness (Isaiah 40:3.)
Wisdom or Sophia (Zarathustra, GZ, 187 and 227; Solomon in Proverbs 3:19 and 9:1 and APO, 191 and 195; Isaiah 11:2; .Jesus in Matthew 11:19; John of the Cross in CWSJC, 75.)
Witness (St. John in Revelation 3:14 and Paramahansa Yogananda in AY, 143-4 and 237 and SCC, 2, 22.)
Womb of God, Womb of Brahman, womb of wombs; Brahmayoni (Sri Krishna in BG, 106; Sri Ramakrishna, GSR, 870; Yogeshananda in VSR, 41; Sri Aurobindo, SOY, 3.)
Word (Hermes, DPH, 8 and 17; Zarathustra in GZ, 8-9; John 1:1 and 1:3; Annie Besant, AW, 44; Sri Yukteswar Giri, HS, 23 and 24; Paramahansa Yogananda, AY, 143-4, 237n, and 363n, SCC, 1, 19 and SCC, 2, 22.)
The Mother will always be incomprehensible and Her significance will remain immeasurable
One day we shall be able to say with Solomon: “Happy is the man that findeth wisdom… She is more precious than rubies; and all things thou canst desire are not to be compared with her.” (79) But though we merge with Her and reap all the rewards of doings so, we can never know Her as long as we are human.
Only those who have achieved what Jesus called everlasting life, the immortality that the experience of vijnana, (80) or stable and permanent realization, confers reach a high enough vantage point even to begin to inquire into, let alone understand, Her mystery. Even then, they can only marvel and say, with Shankara:
“[The Mother] is neither being nor non-being, nor a mixture of both. She is neither divided nor undivided, nor a mixture of both. She is neither an indivisible whole, nor composed of parts, nor a mixture of both. She is most strange. Her nature is inexplicable.” (81)
Footnotes
For full details on these sources, see Bibliography here: https://goldengaiadb.com/index.php?title=FDL_Bibliography.
(79) Proverbs 3:13 and 15.
(80) Sri Ramakrishna: “There is a stage beyond even Brahmajnana, After jnana comes vijnana.” ( GSR, 288.) Ramana Maharshi calls it turiyatita and sahaja [permanent] nirvikalpa samadhi:
“Sahaja [samadhi] is also Nirvikalpa. You are probably meaning [Kevalya] Nirvikalpa, which is temporary, while the Samadhi lasts. The Sahaja Nirvikalpais permanent and in it lies liberation from rebirths.” (S.S. Cohen, Guru Ramana. Memories and Notes. 6th edition. Tiruvannamalai: Sri Ramanasramam, 1993, 88.) [Hereafter GR.]
“[The] Heart is the seat of Jnanam as well as of the granthi (knot of ignorance). It is represented in the physical body by a hole smaller than the smallest pin-point, which is always shut. When the mind drops down in Kevalya nirvikalpa [samadhi], it opens but shuts again after it. When sahaja nirvikalpa samadhi is attained it opens for good.” (GR, 96.)
“This is the final goal.” (Ramana Maharshi, Self-Enquiry. Trans. T.M.P. Mahadevan. https://www.realization.org/page/namedoc0/self/self_0.htm Downloaded 1 August 2005, answer to question 40.)
This is the ‘final goal’ in the sense that it frees an individual from the need to reincarnate in physical matter again, but it is not the final goal in terms of subsequent enlightenments. See “The Purpose of Life is Enlightenment – Ch. 11 – Enlightenment is Virtually Endless” at https://goldenageofgaia.com/2011/08/11/the-purpose-of-life-is-enlightenment-ch-11-enlightenment-is-virtually-endless/
(81) CJD, 49.