Lakshmi

Fortune can rise from muddy waters. Such is one message we gain from the energy of Laxmi (Lakshmi). If you or someone you know needs the energy of good fortune, of wealth, of prosperity, and even of fertility, then Laxmi is the source.

Laxmi’s origins come from hard times. In ancient times, demons had defeated the gods, so the lore goes.

The gods, desperate, asked the great creator, Brahma, to churn “the Ocean of Being” that nectar, the sweet source of immortality, might rise and be theirs. Among the things that surfaced in the churning was Laxmi. She, like a lotus flower, rose from muddy waters and became the consort of the force of moral order, Vishnu; hence, you often will see the calm-faced goddess surrounded by lotus. You also will see her bathing coins and even anointing accounting books. For tending to such mundane things as money can be sacred if your intention for making and spending money is appropriately directed. But like the Greek Venus, Laxmi also holds the energy of love, especially in areas of fertility. Wealth for Laxmi can come in many forms – money, courage, education, and progeny.

Among the many names of Laxmi (related to the Sanskrit for “goal” or “aim”) are Padma (One Who Lives Among Lotus), Padmasundari (One with a Lotus’s Beauty), and Bhoodevi (The Earth-Goddess Who Nurtures Life).

Laxmi figurines fit ideally in offices and other places of commerce where monetary exchange occurs. Anyone starting a new business, needing to boost a new business, or simply asking for a right understanding of prosperity would benefit from a Laxmi figurine. A business owner might even give one to each employee. But Laxmi’s gentle touch with fertility also makes her an appropriate gift for couples seeking to have a new baby or who recently have become pregnant. She would be an ideal presence at a baby shower. A friend needing the wealth of courage in troubled times or a person venturing off to college who might need the wealth of education might appreciate Laxmi on their side.

Caveat: Laxmi works best with those people who have appropriate discrimination for how best to use wealth in any form for the benefit of others.

Biography provided by Jeff Davis: Author of The Journey from the Center to the Page: Yoga Philosophies and Practices as Muse for Authentic Writing. His essays, articles, short stories, and poems have appeared in publications around the country and in London. He is a former senior yoga teacher at Bliss Yoga Center in Woodstock, NY and founder of WEN Barn & Gardens in Accord, NY. He resides near Woodstock, NY, between the Catskill Mountains and the Shawangunk Mountains with wife Hillary.