Do You Know How Strong You Are?

Parvati

As I contemplated what to pick for this month's mantra, I reached for the internet and found out that they are celebrating Durga this month in India. And we did her two months ago. However, Parvati we have never done and she is one of my favourites.

Parvati is the consort of Shiva and the mother of Ganesha the elephant headed god that many are familiar with. The story I love about her is this; She knew she was destined to be with Shiva but he had renounced life to practice as a yogi in the mountains. Instead of tricking him or trying to to seduce him, she was awstruck by his practice and left her life at home to become a yogi. Her family laughed and told her that women could not be yogis, only men, but she paid them no attention and off she went (early feminist for the win). She imitated his physical practices practicing asana, meditating, and trying to reach enlightenment of her own. It was through this practice that Shiva noticed her and felt her energy and fell in love. It was through this love that he was brought to the present moment and out of a deep state of meditation where his consciousness was one with the attman. He was still needed on earth to be a destroyer after all.

Parvati represents the power of practice, determination, and self transformation. I love this a bunch. We call on her when we want to deepen our comittment to our practice and self development. For me right now this looks like making a point of putting what nourishes me first. We are going through a lot of changes at home and getting ready to put our house up for sale and I know that I have a lot of work ahead of me. So it will be important to make sure that I take care of myself. That means exercise, rest, connecting with others, and tackling that to do list without procrastinating . I feel like I am up to the task.

What are your go to habits to keep yourself your best? What do you do to grow as a human? Are there stories you cling to that you can reexamine and put down? Do you need to deal with feelings you avoid? Do you really need to clean out that junk drawer? Parvati reminds ourselves of the stregnth it takes to become the best version of ourselves. And that it is within us and we can tap into it when we need to.

There are many mantras I found dedicated to Parvati, but I chose a simple one:

Om Shri Parvati Namaha

You can hear me chant it here 108 times. You can read about her son Ganesha here.