a) Indra requesting Divine Mother to share the method to pray to her through her Suktam
Verse 1
शक्रः –
विश्वारणे नमस्तुभ्यं नमो विश्वविभूतये।
सर्वासामपि सिद्धीनां नमस्ते मूलहेतवे ।। 1 ।।
viśvāraṇe namastubhyaṃ namo viśvavibhūtaye|
sarvāsāmapi siddhīnāṃ namaste mūlahetave || 1 ||
Brief Meaning:
इंद्र ने कहा – विश्व की अरणीभूते (उत्पत्तिस्थानभूते) आपको नमस्कार है, विश्व विभूति स्वरूप आपको नमस्कार है |
Indra (Sakra) – O Vishwarne, I salute thee, the source of the universe, and offer adoration to thee who resides in the universe in all its glory. O primary cause of all spiritual power acquired through mantra worship.”
Interpretation/Purport
Indra is also known as Sakra, and the word means mighty, or powerful, and is used as an adjective for Indra in Rigveda.
Indra offers prayers to Mother Goddess and call her – Vishwarane, which is a beautiful name and comes from Vishwa + Arani. Vishwa means the world, and Arani is a piece of wood.
When rubbed against one another, the wood (arani) produces fire and symbolizes life.
“Hence, when Indra sang the praises of the Divine mother, the first word he said was Vishwarane. The arni wood from which the whole world got life. The friction between these pieces of arni wood is sustaining nature. He gave such a beautiful, deep, and subtle name” ~OS
Vishwarane is the fire or the life or source of this world, and thus an beautiful and apt name for Divine Mother.
There is a beautiful story around rubbing of arani & Maharishi Veda Vyas in Devi Bhagawatam.
Maharishi Vedavyas and Story of Birth of Sukadeva
Once Ved Vyasaa, sat in his ashrama on the banks of golden river Saraswati, and saw two sparrows feeding their newly hatched chick. Vyasa had never seen such deep love, and devotion, in any living creatures as he saw in those parent birds, as they thrust the food they softened by their own beaks into the child’s open mouth.
Vyasa thought,” If these sparrows who will never see their child again once they fly, love their young one so much, how much will a man love a child, who expects the world of his child. Surely, to caress and nurture one’s own child is the greatest joy that exists in this world. How can a man die in piece, unless he has a son to whom he can leave his wisdom and possessions, a son who will touch fire to his corpse and perform the last rites, so that his soul can rise up to heaven?”
With this desire arising in his mind, he set out to Meru, to perform sadhana so that he could be blessed with a son. He met Narada as he arrived on Meru, who guided him to worship Devi Bhagavati, for obtaining a son.
Thus Maharishi Veda Vyasa immersed himself in worshipping the Devi, with the sacred vag beej (syllable) (Aing, ऐं ), which he had heard from Devarishi Narad. He sat in magical forest of karnikar trees on Meru, and worshipped Devi and Lord Shiva for 100 years, without eating. Vyasa’s tapasya was so intense, that his hair resembled golden colors of flame. Bhagvan Shiva, who is compassionate and always smiling appeared in front of Maharishi Veda Vyas and blessed him with a son, as pure as fire, earth, air and ether, and one who will be wise and brave and full of compassion.
He went back to his ashrama, and due to exhaustion from long penance, felt hungry. Thus he fetched arni sticks and began rubbing to make a fire, so he could cook himself some food.
As he rubbed the wood, he wondered, How will I have a son when I have no wife? I don’t want to live in a Grishasta Ashram. Live in relationships are not common. I don’t want to live in a grihastha ashram. Meanwhile an apsara (dancer in heaven) Ghritachi, is going through the path of wind, who was very seductive.Now Maharishi Ved Vyas is thinking he can have a son through her too but she is a celestial nymph. In this time a swell of desire originates in his body. Meanwhile, Ghritachi gets scared and flies away. However, the desire was so storing that he possessed Gritachi the apsar,a in his mind. His semen is ejaculated and falls on a arani stick. It is said that Sukadev was produced from that. Suka Maharaj started walking immediately after he was born.
Hence, when Indra sang the praises of the Divine mother, the first word he said was Vishvarane. The arni wood from which the whole world got life. The friction between these pieces of arni wood is sustaining nature. He gave such a beautiful, deep, and subtle name.
Verse 2
आदिदेवात्मभूतायै नारायणकुटुम्बिनि।
समस्तजगदाराध्ये नमस्ते पद्मयोनये ।। 2 ।।
ādidevātmabhūtāyai nārāyaṇakuṭumbini|
samastajagadārādhye namaste padmayonaye
आदिदेव महाविष्णु की प्राणवल्लभे आपको नमस्कार है | नारायण की कुटुम्बिनी आपको नमस्कार है |
समस्त जगत की आराध्य तथा कमल से उत्पन्न होने वाली आपको नमस्कार है ||२ ||
“(Indra says) I salute you, who is one with the ancient God and the consort of Narayana. O Goddess, born of the lotus and manifest throughout the universe, I prostrate myself before you.”
Interpretation
Most descriptions of Sri Lakshmi picture her as seated on a lotus. Her crystal clear form also appears to be of the same color as the lotus, due to reflection.
The scriptures recommend worship of Devi with lotus flower because it represents purity, prosperity and beauty. All these are also the qualities of Mother. Hence Lakshmi is seen as being non-different from the lotus. Her residence is in the lotus hearts of the sincere and the devoted.
She is the eternal Parabrahmana free from all Gunas or qualities. However, she acquires various attributes or Gunas and appears as the Saguna Brahman to shower her grace on the less evolved devotees, incapable of grasping the mighty truth of Nirguna Brahman.
She resides on lotus and is born of lotus. Lotus stays amidst all the dirt, yet remains pure and pristine. The inner lotus does not bloom till you have existential questions around the purpose of your life, to bloom back to who you are.
Verse 3
त्वत्प्रसादाच्छ्रुता मन्त्रास्त्वदीयाः सिद्धयो मया।
आराधनं च सर्वेषां यथावदवधारितम् ।। 3 ।।
tvatprasādācchrutā mantrāstvadīyāḥ siddhayo mayā|
ārādhanaṃ ca sarveṣāṃ yathāvadavadhāritam || 3 ||
आपकी कृपा से मैंने आपके मंत्रों को तथा आपकी सिद्धियों को सुना और आपकी सिद्धियों को सुना और सबकी आराधना की विधि भी मैंने यथावत निश्चयपूर्वक जान लिया है |
Oh Mahamaye, I have listened to all your Mantra with your grace and also learnt how to make them favourable. I have also learnt how to do your worship.
Interpretation
Indra shares that he has heard all the mantras and siddhis of Divine Mother, and ways to worship Her, which are shared by Mother in earlier chapters of Lakshmi Tantra.
Verse 4
इदानीं श्रोतुमिच्छामि त्वद्वक्त्राम्बुजनिः सृतम्।
त्वत्सूक्तस्य विधिं कृत्स्नमुपसन्नोऽस्म्यधीहि भो ।। 4 ।।
idānīṃ śrotumicchāmi tvadvaktrāmbujaniḥ sṛtam|
tvatsūktasya vidhiṃ kṛtsnamupasanno’smyadhīhi bho || 4 ||
Now, I want to hear from your divine lips the procedure of worship of your Suktam. I am in your refuge O Bhagwati. Please share with me.
Interpretation
After having prayed to Mother Sri, Indra asks Divine Mother, to share the secret of praying and worshipping here through her Suktam. Like an ideal eligible student, he also mentioned that he has taken Her refuge.
There are various ways for remembering God- (a) Mantra, (b) Suktam (c) Sahasranam (d) Yantra
a) Mantra is the sonic energy/ sound energy representation of that deity. Example – One of the key Bhagawan Vishnu’s Mantra is – Om Namo Sri Bhagvate Vasudevaya.
b) Suktam is a hymn to eulogize the God in that form. Example – Purusha Suktam, Sri Suktam.
c) Sahasranam, as the name indicates, is a series of 1000 names of the divine. Examples are – Vishnu Sahasrnama, Lalitha Sahasranama
d) Yantra – While picture is a visualization of deity, yantra is a representation of the deity in shape. Yantra is the diagram representation of deity. Example – Sri Yantra, etc.