Navaratri - A Few Rare Stutis on DevI

http://www.brahminsnet.com/forums/showthread.php/1790-Navaratri-A-Few-Rare-Stutis-on-DevI#.UHryQ6WK1_Y.gmail

Navaratri is just a couple of days away and it is time to pray the Almighty in the feminine forms such as Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati for 9 days. Since last year, I had been thinking of sharing some rare Devi Sahasranamas and once again time is a constraint. In order not to miss the momentous occasion, I am sharing three short but very rare stutis - one each on Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati. Hopefully I will find time to share others in due course.

1. Maya Stavam - Sri Kalki Puranam - this is a very rare hymn where Goddess is prayed in the form of Vishnu Maya who is prayed in various forms (this is not my thesis - it is given so in the hymn itself!)

The hymn starts with the statement that Maya's story and Vishnu's story are inseparable (and same). And later in the hymn, Sage Shukha mentions the various forms in which the Maya is known various regions. This can be correlated to the Gayatri Stuti in Devi Bhagavatam by Lord Narayana "Adi shakte jaganmAtar bhaktAnugra kAriNI .." where the same message is given that Mata Gayatri herself is known various feminine forms. A similar statement comes from Goddess Parvati in Narada Pancharatra, a hard-core Vaishnavite Agama, where she declares that she herself is Lakshmi and takes the form of Sita, Radha, etc. in various incarnations of Vishnu. But these are not the only few - thousands will be such citations in the Purans)

In short, sarvam vishnu mayam as Sri Muthuswamy Dikshitar declares in his epochal composition "Sri Satyanarayanam Upasmahe" in Raga Shubha Pantuvarali. Only names are different - both masculine and feminine.

2. Lakshmi Stuti - Padma Puranam - this is a short prayer on Lakshmi in Padma Purana. This hymn also reiterates that Lakshmi indeed is known in various forms. And this is also the quintessence of prAdhAnIka rahasyaM (a tantric grantha which extols Lakshmi as the essence of the universe and everything originated from her - including the trinity).

(I am not sure about the meter of one of the stanzas - which seems a bit oddly longish but the original is given so)

3. Sarasvati Stuti - Padma Puranama - this is a short prayer on Sarasvati who is prayed both in the form of intellect as well as Sarasvati river.

May Durga, Lakshmi, Sarasvati protect us all from all evils and bestow us the best in our lives!