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Jai
Mata di - Maya |
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Maya, (Sanskrit: ma: not, ya: this)
in Hinduism, is many things. It encompasses the ideas of a state
of 'skewed perspective' (not quite
illusion), a creatrix energy (prakriti) and a personified goddess.
Maya is also the name of an Asura, who
was the father-in-law of the Lord of Lanka, Ravana and the father
of Mandodari. He is the archnemesis of Vishwakarma, the celestial
architect of the Gods. His knowledge and skills are compatible with
Vishwakarma. When Lanka was destroyed by Hanuman, it was the King
of Demons, Maya who had re-installed the beauty of that Island Kingdom.
Maya in Hindu philosophy
In Advaita Vedanta philosophy, maya
is the illusion of a limited, purely physical and mental reality
in which our everyday consciousness has become entangled, a veiling
of the true, unitary Self—the Cosmic Spirit also known as
Brahman. Maya originated in the Hindu scriptures known as the Upanishads.
Many philosphies or religions seek to "pierce the veil"
in order to glimpse the transcendent truth, from which the illusion
of a physical reality springs, drawing from the idea that first
came to life in the Hindu stream of Vedanta. Maya is neither true
nor untrue. Since Brahman is the only truth, Maya cannot be true.
Since Maya causes the material world to be seen, it cannot be untrue.
Hence Maya is called as indescribable. She (sic) has two principle
fuctions—one is to cover up Brahman and hide it from our mind.
The other is to present the material world instead of Brahman. She
is destructible. Consider an illusion of a rope being confused as
a snake in the darkness. Just as this illusion gets destroyed when
true knowledge of the rope is percieved, similarly, Maya gets destroyed
for a person when he percieves Brahman with the transendental knowledge.
A metaphor is also given—when the reflection of Brahman falls
on Maya, Brahman appears as God (the Supreme Lord). In the pragmatic
level, where the world is regarded as true, Maya becomes the divine
magical power of the Supreme Lord, to create and rule the world.
But Maya is God's servant—he can leave her any time he wishes.
He is not affected by the impiety of Maya, just as a magician is
not cheated by his own magic. Hence God is Bliss. However, the individuals
are the servants of Maya, hence they are in misery.
In Hinduism, Maya must be seen through
in order to achieve moksha (liberation of the soul from the cycle
of death and rebirth) - ahamkar (ego-consciousness) and karma are
seen as part of the binding forces of Maya. Maya is seen as the
phenomenal universe, a lesser reality-lens superimposed on the one
Brahman that leads us to think of the phenomenal cosmos as real.
Maya as the Goddess
In Hinduism, Maya is seen as the illusory
form of Devi, the Divine Goddess. Her most famous explication is
seen in the Devi Mahamaya, also known as Candi or Abhaya, which
is said to spring from the Devi Sukta passage of the Vedas.
Essentially, Mahamaya (great Maya) both
blinds us in delusion (moha) and has the power to free us from it.
Maya, superimposed on Brahman, the one divine ground and essence
of monist Hinduism, is envisioned as one with Kali, Durga, etc.
A great modern (19th century) Hindu sage who often spoke of Maya
as being the same as the Shakti principle of Hinduism was Shri Ramakrishna.
In the Hindu scripture 'Devi Mahatmyam,'
Mahamaya (Great Maya) is said to cover Vishnu's eyes in Yoganidra
(Divine Sleep) during cycles of existence when all is resolved into
one. By exhorting Mahamaya to release Her illusory hold on Vishnu,
Brahma is able to bring Vishnu to aid him in killing two demons,
Madhu and Kaitabh, who have manifested from Vishnu's sleeping form.
Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa often spoke of Mother Maya and combined
deep Hindu allegory with the idea that Maya is a lesser reality
that must be overcome so that one is able to realize his or her
true Self. |
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