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She is also worshipped as the Goddess of thoughts of truth and forgiveness. She is mentioned in the Rig Veda as well as Puranic texts.
She originated as a river goddess. Her name in Sanskrit means "She who has lakes or pools." In the Hindu philosophy of Vedanta, She is considered as the feminine energy and knowledge aspect -Shakti of Brahman. To reach the final path to Moksha, or Liberation from reincarnation, achieve self-realization through divine knowledge we must worship Saraswati and seek true knowledge. She represents intelligence, consciousness and cosmic knowledge.
Saraswati stuti mentions that she is the only Goddess whom all the three gods of Hinduism worship Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva and also the demons (asuras), gandharvas (the divine musicians) and the nagas (the divine serpents) equally worship Mata Saraswati.
Her vaahan the Swan is sacred and symbolizes that Saraswati has not only the knowledge of Absolute Truth but also the experience of the Highest Reality. The white swan often sits besides her who if offered a mixture of milk and water, it is said that swan will drink the milk alone symbolizing the discrimination between the good and the bad or the eternal or non-eternal.
She is depicted near a flowing river, association with lotus and swan probably relating to her early origin. Sometimes a peacock is shown beside her teaches us not to be proud of external appearances and be wise to know the eternal truth.
She has four arms representing four aspects of human personality
g: mind, intellect, alertness and ego. A book represents sacred Vedas representing the universal, divine, eternal, true knowledge and her perfection of all the sciences and scriptures. A mala (garland) of white pearls represents the power of meditation and spirituality. A pot of sacred water represents creative and purified powers. A veena the musical instrument represents her perfection of all arts and sciences.
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Jain Education Intemational
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| SR No. | 003213 |
| Book Title | Shardanjali |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | Purnima A Desai |
| Publisher | Shikshayatan Cultural Center, Newyork USA |
| Publication Year | 2007 |
| Total Pages | 130 |
| Language | Hindi |
| Classification | Book_Devnagari |
| File Size | 6 MB |