तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय

     Most of us who are graduated from India must have seen or heard this line somewhere on the front pages of our text books. A line which is picked up originally from “Bruhdaranyak Upnishaad” is a prayer to Maa Saraswati – Goddess of Knowledge. The original mantra is:

असतो मा सद्गमय

तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय

मृत्योर् मा अमृतं गमय

“From the unreal, lead us to the Real; from darkness, lead us to Light; from death, lead us to Immortality.”

    Being part of Saraswati Pujan last week on the auspicious day of “Gyan Pancham” was certainly a wonderful experience. As such it is recommended to students and I was never part of it while studying in school or college. But I have no regrets, because I think today there is a vast difference in education and knowledge. There are hardly few who wants knowledge from education or there are hardly few who wants to give knowledge through education. Prime motive of education today is to stand out in a competition of getting good marks and finding a good job.

     But a good job or money may not complete you. In order to grow we need knowledge and that’s why we pray the divine energy to lead us to light. The process is similar of growing of a tree. Once you have planted a seed, it will grow in the direction of light. That seed, that quest, that desire is necessary to be inside and you’ll find your way or create one to grow. Knowledgeable are called Enlightened. It’s a process to remove darkness of your ignorance and moving towards light of knowledge. Ever noticed while asking experts what do we say? We say “Throw some light” :-)

     And that is why we pray goddess Saraswati. Consort of creator of this universe lord Brahma, always found in soothing white attire. You’ll find peacock and swan beside her. Peacock symbolizes material attractions of world which are to be overlooked in order to get knowledge. Swan has a capacity to differentiate milk and water from the mixture, which signifies that you should be focused about your goals, follow right things and leave unnecessary things behind.

     In most photos and idols, you’ll find Saraswati sitting and Laxmiji (Goddess of wealth) standing. Because Laxmiji doesn’t believe in staying at a place permanently :-). While Maa Saraswati stays with us throughout several incarnations. She is the one who gives us knowledge about how to handle difficult situations in life, the one who makes us strong while things don’t work out. Happiness & miseries are results of our Karma, but knowledge is something which guides us to deal with them, frees us from the cycle of life and death, leads us to light.

तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय!! :-)

© Bridge Soul