Road to Siddhi by Understanding the Sri Durga Kavach

Road to Siddhi by Understanding the Sri Durga Kavach

SRI DURGA KAVACH

Prof. Biswajit Satpathy

P.G. Department of Business Administration

Sambalpur University

||Mārkaṇḍeya Uvāca||
Om yadguhyam paramam loke sarva rakṣākaram nṛṇām |
yanna kasya cidākhyātam tanme brūhi pitāmaha ||1||

Thus spoke Markandeya:
 O Brahmadeva, please tell me that what is so very secret and has not been told by anyone to anybody else and which Protects all human beings in this world.

||Brahmovāca||
asti guhyatamam viprā sarva bhūtopakārakam |
divyāstu kavacam puṇyam tacchṛṇuṣvā mahāmune ||2||

Thus spoke Bramha:
O Brahmin, there is Devi Kavach which is the most secret and useful to all beings. Please listen to that, O Great Sage. Durga is known by these Names:

prathamam śailaputrī ca dvitīyam brahmacāriṇī |
tṛtīyam candraghaṇṭeti kūṣmāṇḍeti caturthakam ||3||

The first form is SHAILAPUTRI- Daughter of the King of Himalayas; second is BRAHMACHARINI One Who observes the state of celibacy; third is CHANDRAGANTA- One Who bears the moon around Her neck fourth is KOOSHMANDA- Whose Void contains the Universe

pañcamam skandamāteti ṣaṣṭham kātyāyanīti ca |
saptamam kālarātrīti mahāgaurīti cāṣṭamam ||4||

Fifth is SKANDAMATA- Who gave birth to Karttikeya; Sixth is KATYAYANI Who incarnated to help the Devas; Seventh is KALARATRI- the fiercest form of Durga; Eight is MAHAGAURI- One Who made great penance

navamam siddhidātrī ca nava durgāḥ prakīrtitāḥ |
uktānyetāni nāmāni brahmaṇaiva mahātmanā ||5||

Ninth is SIDDHIDATRI- One Who grants Moksha .These are the nine forms of Maa Durga  (Nava Durga) as mentioned by Brahma.

Everyone will agree that some people spend their entire life wondering how to be successful in life, but never figure it out. You will be surprised to find out that the secret really comes down through certain key areas. Personal success is achievable for anyone who practices these areas – or keys to success.

Everyone wants personal success and to learn the keys to success. Everyone wants to have a happy, healthy life, do meaningful work, and achieve financial independence. Everyone wants to make a difference in the world, to be significant, to have a positive impact on those around him or her. Everyone wants to do something wonderful with his or her life.

Over and over, I have found that the keys to success are a single piece of information, a single idea at the right time, in the right situation, and change your life. I have also learned that the great truths are simple.

 

We All Have One Common Goal

Luckily for most of us, personal success is not a matter of background, intelligence, or native ability. It’s not our family, friends, or contacts who enable us to do extraordinary things. Instead, the keys to success are our ability to get the very best out of ourselves under almost all conditions and circumstances. It is your ability to adapt and change your life.

You have within you, right now, deep reserves of potential and ability that, if properly harnessed and channelled, will enable you to accomplish extraordinary things with your life.

Keys to Success

The keys to success lie in understanding the Sri Durga Kavach. In the Sri Durga Kavach, Brahma tells about the nine form of Maa Durga in the chronological order. The understanding of these forms and chronology can bring success or Siddhi in our life.

The first form of Mother Durga is Sailaputrī, the daughter of Saila or Himalaya. This form represents Maa Parvati. Parvati took a vow to marry Lord Shiva. Her vow was such that nothing could distract her from her goal. She continued to pursue her objective in spite of several obstacles. Her promise was as great as Himalaya and so her name Sailaputr. So the first key to success is that you decide exactly what you want and where you want to go. Fix a goal and make a promise to persist until you succeed.

The second form is Brahmachāriṇī meaning the Mother who roams in Brahma.  The goddess Brahmacharini wears white clothes, holds a japa mala (rosary) in her right hand and Kamandal, a water utensil in her left hand. The word Brahmacharini stems from two Sanskrit roots:

1.    Brahma, means "the one self-existent Spirit, the Absolute Reality, Universal Self, Personal God, the sacred knowledge".

2.    charini is the feminine version of one who is a charya, which means "occupied with, engaged, proceeding, behaviour, conduct, to follow, moving within, going after"

Brahmacharini is also known as Tapacharini. This name signifies that we must devout ourselves to the goal we have set. So to fulfil the goal one has set up, one has to constantly acquire knowledge and engage oneself in accomplishing the desired goal. This is the second key to success.  

The third aspect of Mother Durga is Chandraghaṇṭa. Chandra symbolizes the Mana. Mana is mind. Maa Chandraghanta keeps her third eye always open. It means that you must try to accomplish your goal by using your intellect. The Third Eye is a very clever bit of natural evolution that allows you to see the patterns in your life. Even more amazing, your third eye can reveal these patterns to you by overlaying this information on top of your other senses. Third eye is the mind power which provides the non-dualistic thinking. Try to analyse the happenings before you actually do it. Using your mind you can very well understand the pros and cons of an event. This analysis is the key to your success.

The fourth form of the Mother is Kūṣhmāṇḍa. When the universe was non-existent and darkness prevailed everywhere, Maa Kushmanda produced the cosmic egg, bringing light to the universe. Through her brilliance She created this cosmos.  Kushmanda is the power and strength of the Sun. Her luminosity gives the Sun its brightness. She gives directions to the Sun. She is the Mother of all creation. This Swarup of Maa Durga is the source of everything. Since she created the universe, she is called Adiswarup and Adishakti. To accomplish our goal we are to be creative, think outside the box and be energetic. Innovation is the key to success. This is what we learn from Mother Kūṣhmāṇḍa.

Skandamātā is the fifth form of Goddess Durga, meaning Mother of Skanda, her name comes from word, Skanda another name of Kartikeya. It is believed that She awards devotees with power and wisdom. To achieve success both power and wisdom is needed. So the key is to do away with laziness and be wise for getting success in any endeavour.   

Katyayani is the sixth form amongst Navadurga or the nine forms of goddess Shakti. She is first mentioned in the Taittiriya Aranyaka part of the Yajurveda.   Skanda Purana mentions her being created out of the spontaneous anger of Gods, which eventually led to slaying the demon, Mahishasura, mounted on the lion given to her by Goddess Parvati. She is worshiped as Mahishamardini. She signifies the killing of negativity. Martin Seligman has studied the connection between positivity and performance. In one study he measured the degree to which insurance salespeople were optimistic or pessimistic in their work, including whether they attributed failed sales to personal deficits beyond their control or circumstances they could improve with effort. Optimistic salespeople sold 37 percent more policies than pessimists, who were twice as likely to leave the company during their first year of employment. Seligman research shows that people can transform a tendency toward pessimistic thinking into positive thinking. The key to success lies in positivity.

Kalaratri (sometimes spelled Kaalratri) is the seventh of the nine forms of Mother Durga. This form of Goddess is believed to be the destroyer of all demon entities, ghosts, spirits and negative energies, who flee upon knowing of her arrival. Kaalratri is also known as Shubankari, meaning auspicious/doing good. Every one of us we know that in our life we are sometime dominated by negative forces. These negative forces are due to Tamashik inert nature. Maa Kali or Kalaratri rules over the night and killed demon Raktabija and drank the blood to prevent getting birth of another Raktabija. This is symbolic. Mother Kalaratri prevents her devotees from all negative forces. This is most essential part of getting success. We are to kill the negative forces that obstruct our prosperity. Kali rules over Kala i.e time. Time is most precious thing in our life. The key to success lies in utilizing the time properly and do away with Tamashik nature or Guna.    

The eighth form is Maa Mahagauri. The name Mahagauri means extremely white, as she was white in colour and very beautiful (Maha, महा = great; Gauri, गौरी = white). This is the brilliance that radiates during the austere penance for attending success. Severe sacrament is required for achieving success. Nothing comes easily. Struggle is the key to success. 

Siddhidhatri is the ninth form of the Goddess Durga the meaning of her name is Siddhi means supernatural power or meditative ability or success, and Dhatri means giver or awarder. She is worshipped on the ninth day of Navaratri (nine nights of Navadurga); she fulfils all the divine aspirations and completes the mundane. This is ultimate form of Maa Durga. Here we enjoy the success and happiness for all our efforts.