The Breath of Durga

curiosity about the name

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The word breath unequivocally refers to breathing and, as an elective tool of evolution, it could not be missing. But Durga…who is she? 

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Durga is a female deity of the rich pantheon of Hindu worship. In Hinduism the divine figures mediate between the earthly world and the otherworldly world, they are incarnations of powers and forces present in every human being. When a divinity is evoked there is a will to awaken and harmonize some powers already present in our being. So what powers is Durga associated with?

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Literally du difficult ga to go: it is the one that is difficult to reach, to conquer; in the masculine it means "fortress". Durga is the one who cannot be conquered.

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The very rich Indian iconography shows us the many faces of the goddess Durga. The deity appears in 10  versions, each of which exalts some aspects of the goddess, from the wildest and wildest to the most composed and pacified. In the myth, Durga is the combative and maternal goddess, the invincible, the one who, while acting with all her determination and strength  to destroy the demons and the king of demons, does not lose her appearance composed and her feminine dignity. Durga is a mélange of all those gifts and qualities that make every woman a thousand women. And above all Durga fights and wins every battle without ever "disheveling". 

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In Hindu iconography Durga moves in space riding a lion (later she will become a tiger because there are few lions in India), a symbol of personal power, majesty, courage and ardor. Durga, riding the lion, is Queen.

It is said that her form was of a blinding beauty, and that each divinity gave her a special gift: the face was sculpted by Śiva (who is none other than the erotic ascetic), the bust by the god of Thunderbolt (Indra), the breast from the Moon (Chandra), the teeth from the Creator  (Brahma), the buttocks from the Earth, the thighs and knees from the Wind (Varuna) and his three eyes from Agni (the Fire). His golden body has ten arms.

Each god also gave her his most powerful weapon: Śiva the trident, Visnu the discus, Indra thevajra, weapon from which lightning springs. These are just some of the attributes present in the hands of the goddess because the goddess has 10 hands and in the arsenal that Durga waves in the air by throwing herself against her enemies there are also mace, sword, shield, spear, bow and arrow, and a couple of pacifying objects such as the shell, which symbolizes the power of sound, and the lotus flower, emblem of perfection and purity.

As for the last hand, when it is not busy blocking some demon to strike it with its multiple weapons,  is in Abhaya mudra, the gesture of "fear not", symbol of refuge and protection of souls.

In short, Durga is  the portrait of a cosmic superhero who probably has her origins in tribal cults, outside the orthodox circuits of the Brahmins. Cults associate it with the hilly regions of central India, the home of savages, who honor it with offerings of flesh and blood. 

Durga is the goddess who is not afraid to look into the depths, and who in that depth  is capable of recognizing the inner demons and destroying them. The goddess is pure power, she is the eternal shakti, and her victory is over the ego. Durga lets out every 'I' and 'mine', every attachment, every repulsion, every fear. The goddess, with iron determination and regal detachment, sets her gaze on the target, nocks the arrow and shoots. And he wins. Always.

Durga is feminine at its peak, she is a warrior and a mother, she embodies the destructive power and the creative power, strength and control of strength. His smile is sweet, indeed very sweet, pure honey. A smile that gives comfort like a light in the dark. It is the feminine capable of stepping into the dark without being touched by the dark. Despite all the weapons with which she is equipped, Durga is never dark: she is a motherly and comforting deity. Even when she fights she does it with peace in her heart and therefore even when she is engaged in epic battles, her face is not angry but instills peace, tranquillity, security and a sense of protection. Durga's combativeness is dictated by necessity, never by cruelty. Her courageous, aggressive and intransigent being is justified by the desire for peace. Defeating the inner demons to live in peace, this is his task. This is his, and ours,  power.

Durga reminds us that conflicts and battles take place within us, that our demons are inner demons, and that these enemies return to our lives in disguise whenever we give them a chance. For this it is necessary to act with determination and firmness of mind.

Summoning Durga means creating an inner bond with the qualities needed to win the battles against the attacks of the ego. Evoking Durga means calling into awareness our innate courage, combativeness, dynamism, steadfastness, dignity, and the will not to let anyone, absolutely anyone, discount us. Without ever forgetting, when we take up arms for battle, to face the enemy while also wearing our maternal smile.

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As for external conflicts, in which we sometimes happen to be involved, Durga bestows consideration, royalty,  total respect and the mother's smile thanks to which others yield.

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I like to think that Durga occasionally blows into us inviting us to battle and with her breath she facilitates our journey by indicating demons and enemies to face, providing the right weapons  for each battle and nourishing the extraordinary feminine strength present in each of us. Jaya Jaya!

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Roxana