Goddess parvati is regarded as the power of Lord Shiva and alike Lord Shiva, Goddess parvati also have both the mind and the terrible aspects as well.
Goddess parvati have many different names such as Uma, Gauri, Kali, Durga, Haimvati, Lalita etc. She is two very powerful forms which are the goddess Dura (Goddess beyond the reach) and the goddess Kali ( the goddess of destruction). Parvati is the mother of the universe and thus also regarded as the Amba and Ambika whose meaning is mother. As Lalita, she represents the beauty.
When the goddess is being seen along with the Lord Shiva, then the Goddess have only two hands in which she is holding blue lotus in the right hand and left is loosely kept by the side. But when she represents individually, then the Maa is shown with four hands in which two of the hands are holding the blue and red lotus and other two is kept in the varada and the Abhaya mudras.
Goddess parvati is very beautiful and have a charming personality. Married women worship parvati for having a happy married life. When a family picture of Lordess Shiva, Maa parvati and their sons Ganesha and Kartikeya are seen together, then they are regarded as a symbol of unity and love.
As per the purana mythology, the earliest incarnation of mata parvati was the sati. Also known as the dakshayani, the daughter of Daksa and who got married to Lord Shiva. Once upon a time, Daksha performed a great Yagna and insulted God shiva by not inviting him or even sati. But then also, sati went to the yagna. But she got disappointed as daksha did not behave pleasantly with sati and even didn’t acknowledge her presence by not even offering her the Prasad for lord shiva. Due to this treatment by daksha, sati got too disappointed and ended up her life burning herself in the fire of the yagna.
As the sati died and left shiva lonely, shiva get too depressed and sad. He just renounced the world and went to a silent place into deep meditation at the snow covered peak in the Himalayas. At that time, the demons from the utter place, drove the devas out of the heavens.
The divine homemaker:
When parvati was by the Lord shiva side, shiva become a family man, inspired by her beauty, shiva also get fond of fountain head of art, dance and drama. But alongside he continued to meditate as well. Parvati even sometimes get angry at the care free attitude of Lord Shiva as he did not seem to take interest in the household aspects of their family. But afterwards parvati came into the unconditional terms and make peace within their family. The consequent marital bliss between Shakti and Shiva ensured harmony between Matter and Spirit and brought stability and peace to the cosmos. Thus parvati was started to known as Ambika, the goddess of household, marriage, motherhood and the family.
Ten features of Parvati Mata:
1) Given here are the ten aspects of Parvati, termed as Dasamahavidyas. These are the representations of transcendent knowledge and power.
2) The first is Kali who is the goddess of time that destroys everything.
3) The second one, Tara is the power of golden embryo from which the universe evolves. She also stands for void or the boundless space.
4) The third one Sodasi literally means ′one who is sixteen years old’. She is the personification of fullness and perfection.
4) The fourth, Vidya Bhuvanevari represents the forces of the material world.
5) The fifth one, Bhairavi stands for desires and temptations leading to destruction and death.
6) The sixth Vidya Chinnamasta represents the continued state of self-sustenance of the created world in which is seen continuous self-destruction and self-renewal, in a cyclic order. She is a naked deity holding her own severed head in hand and drinking her own blood.
7) Dhumavati, the seventh one personifies the destruction of the world by fire, when only smoke (dhuma) from its ashes remains.
8) The eighth, Vidya Bagala is a crane – headed goddess. She represents the ugly side of living creatures like jealously, hatred and cruelty.
9) Matangi, the ninth Vidya is the embodiment power of domination.
Goddess Parvati is the power and divine consort of Lord Shiva. She is said to have both mild and terrible aspects like Shiva. Parvati is known by different names like Lalita, Uma, Gauri, Kali, Durga, Haimavati etc. Two of her fierce and very powerful forms are Durga and Kali.
Appearance of Goddess Parvati:
When Parvati appears with Shiva, she has two hands, the right hand holding with a blue lotus and the other is left by the side. When represented independently, she has four hands in which two holding red and blue lotuses and the other two exhibiting the Varada and Abhaya mudras. Married women adore Parvati for their happy married life. Pictures of Shiva, Parvathi and their sons Ganesha and Kartikeya depicts an ideal example of family unity and love.
