Mahalakshmi
Every question on the site tagged Mahalakshmi, each answered from a timestamped source rather than a summary written from memory.
Notes from our sources
Shakradi Stuti: the Saptashati hymn for wealth trouble
The second hymn the speaker names is the Shakradi Stuti, shlokas 1 to 27 of the fourth chapter of the Durga Saptashati, the praise of Bhagavati by Indra and the other gods. He says reciting these 27 shlokas makes Bhagavati remove even the biggest Lakshmi-related problem, because it belongs to the Madhyama charitra and was made by the wealthy gods for regaining their wealth after Mahishasura had seized it all — so through these shlokas Mahalakshmi shows special grace. He adds that each shloka also has an independent prayoga with the presence of all the Mahavidyas, but calls that a most secret subject he is revealing only gradually; for now, those without time should recite the 27 shlokas.
Which of the four Saptashati hymns to adopt, by the devotee's ishta
The speaker says one of the four stutis should be taken into one's life, and matches them to the devotee: a devotee of Mahakali should do the Ratri Suktam; a devotee of Bhagavati Mahasaraswati the Jai Durga Stuti of the eleventh chapter; an exclusive upasaka of Mahalakshmi the Shakradi Stuti, the 27 shlokas of the fourth chapter; and one who is a devotee of any form of Bhagavati, wants the grace of all her forms and sees his Mother, his Durga, his Kali in every shakti — the fiercest kind of upasaka — should never leave the Tantrokta Devisuktam. He says these four have the power to change life, each has its own independent prayoga, and doing them now means that when, by the Devi's grace, a learned Guru who makes such things happen appears in life, they will be of great use.
Tantrokta Mahalakshmi kalash: what it is and when it is made
The speaker presents a set of tantrokta samagri for making a tantrokta Lakshmi Kalash, also called a dhan-lakshmi or dhanada Lakshmi potli, a Prayoga for the night of Sharad Purnima, Dhanteras or Diwali. It can also be made to please the Lakshmi of one's own kula. Sixteen items go into it because sixteen is very dear to Bhagavati Lakshmi: Shodashi is sixteen, Kamala is sixteen, and the Shri Suktam too has sixteen suktas.
Preparing the items for the Mahalakshmi kalash: sunset sitting, cow-milk wash, no dhaniya, kumkum tilak
On Sharad Purnima, the speaker says, sit for the puja in Pradosha kaal, at sunset, with Dhoop and lamp lit and the Kalash placed first. Wash every item in raw cow milk, wipe it and dry it fully, in the sun if possible; do not leave the Haldi soaking, and do not wash the Kapoor. Whole dhaniya used to be put in, but people drop it in damp or the kalash stays damp and insects breed, so dhaniya is not to be used at all now and kamal gatta and the other items take its place; everything must be dry. Then give each item a Kumkum or Roli tilak while saying Mahalakshmyai Namah, or any Mahalakshmi mantra one holds; the uninitiated use Mahalakshmyai Namah, tilak and mantra again and again until every single item is charged.
Sankalp for installing the tantrokta Lakshmi kalash
Before anything goes into the Kalash, the speaker says, a Sankalpa is taken: with flower, Akshat, a little Dakshina and Kusha in the hand and a little water added, speaking one's own name and Gotra, in Sanskrit with full vidhi-vidhan if one can. The sense of it: that Bhagavati Mahalakshmi be established in my kula for ever and always dwell in it, and for that I today resolve to install a tantrokta Lakshmi kalash and to charge all its items and bind them in the kalash. The akshat and flower are then left beside the kalash.
Why the Lakshmi kalash is charged with Mahalakshmi Ashtak and not Shri Suktam
The speaker says the Mahalakshmi Ashtakam has endless glory and is the best choice here. The Shri Suktam, he says, may be recited by men who wear the Yajnopavita; others have to learn it, because it is a Rigvedic sukta and the svara must be pronounced correctly, so most people cannot do it, and women should not do it at all, it being forbidden in many places and said so by scholars. When the three worlds had lost their Shri through the curse of Durvasa rishi, it was this Ashtak that Indra recited; Mahalakshmi was pleased and, as a blessing, appeared again from the samudra manthan as one of the fourteen ratnas, which is why she is called the daughter of the Kshir Samudra. So everyone is to charge the items with the Mahalakshmi Ashtak alone, the one beginning "Namastestu Mahamaye Shripithe Surapujite, Shankha Chakra Gada Haste Mahalakshmi Namostute"; he says he will put a PDF link in the description.
Ghee lamp in the speaker's name after learning the Lakshmi kalash vidhi, against rin dosha
For freedom from Rina Dosha, the speaker asks that whoever does this prayoga light, as far as they are able, one or five ghee lamps before Bhagavati Mahalakshmi in his name, so that no rin dosha remains between the two of them and both are freed from it.
Who are Mahakali, Mahalakshmi, and Mahasaraswati, and what does each govern?
The three goddesses Mahakali, Mahalakshmi, and Mahasaraswati are said to govern the most fundamental forces of the universe — power and destruction, wealth and prosperity, and knowledge and creativity respectively — forming the foundation of many Hindu rituals and practices.
How does Mahalakshmi's warrior iconography connect to the origin of Durga?
Beyond her role as goddess of wealth and harmony, Mahalakshmi is depicted as a mighty warrior brandishing weapons — the author states the gods combined their strengths into her form to vanquish the asura Mahishasura, with the widely worshipped form of Durga said to manifest, in essence, from Mahalakshmi herself.
Daily practice after the Mahalakshmi kalash is installed
Every day, the speaker says, sit before the installed Kalash and recite the Mahalakshmi Ashtakam at least eight or else sixteen times; Mahalakshmi certainly gives her kripa within a year. Nothing in this kalash spoils: in the dhaniya version the coriander goes bad if it gets damp, since humidity differs from region to region, but here only items that do not spoil have been used, along with the most divine use of the mantra. Install the kalash yourself at home and see, he says: nothing will go bad, it will last a long time, and the kripa of Bhagavati Mahalakshmi will come.
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