DIVINE MOTHER
A Heart Large Enough for Many Religions
by Jonathan Ansley Ward
Lake Shrine Dawn
Lake Shrine, the fair
Where street lights glare
Shimmering across the lake
Soft sounds dare, break silence rare
As peeping birds awake
Lake Shrine, so fair
A blue jewel rare
In a mountain diadem
Stars fade with night, as dawning light
Shines from deep within
Ah! Floral wonderland of love, of calm
Glimpse of Divine Mother’s face
Gathered rains of Her compassion
Teardrop of her grace
Who is the Divine Mother, our common parent revered by many world religions? She has millions of followers — Her angelic qualities appealing to many.
In the book A Woman Clothed With the Sun a chapter is devoted to Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico. In 1531 a native Aztec, Juan Diego, was passing a remote hill when he heard someone calling him. He climbed to the summit and found a beautiful, young woman waiting for him. She asks that Juan go to the local bishop and request that a chapel be built on that hilltop. Interestingly, in centuries past a temple dedicated to the Mother-Goddess of the Aztecs had been on that spot. She tells Juan, “Dear little son, I love you. I want you to know I am the ever-virgin Mary, Mother of the true God who gives life and maintains it in existence.” The bishop wants to believe Juan, but asks for some sign that the woman is indeed our Mother Divine. Upon Juan’s return and hearing the bishop wanted a sign, She gathers rose petals and places them in the folds of Juan’s tunic. He gathers the sides to his chest so the petals would remain until he got back to the bishop. He returns to the bishop, and when lets his tunic folds down the bishop falls to his knees. The Divine Mother’s image was miraculously imprinted on the tunic. To this day Juan’s tunic with our Mother’s image remains on a nearby basilica altar. Scientists who’ve studied the image cannot explain the origin nor even how the centuries-old tunic remains together as it’s made of plant fiber.
Whether Aztec or Catholic, Moslem or Jew, Hindu or Buddhist the Lord in the form of the Divine Mother has been revered by Her children the world over.
In the Autobiography of a Yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda tells of meditating an entire morning on the Goddess Kali at the Dakshineswar Kali Temple north of Kolkata. His sister had asked him to help change her husband’s agnostic views. Yogananda went to the Kali Temple expressly to pray for his brother-in-law. Of the experience Yogananda writes, “Sometimes it is a test by God to delay the fulfillment of prayers, but He eventually appears to the persistent devotee in whatever form he holds dear. A Christian sees Jesus; a Hindu beholds Krishna or the Goddess Kali, or an expanding Light if his worship takes an impersonal turn.” Eventually, the Mother does appear to Yogananda and granted his prayer.
In 1976 I came to California to spend the summer organic farming. I passed through Los Angeles, and because I had a week to spare I volunteered at the Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine and Mahatma Gandhi World Peace Memorial. The shrine has been a pilgrimage site on Sunset Boulevard since its dedication in 1952. Initially, I helped build the stairs from the lake level up to where the newer temple stands today. We worked hard, and after three days the minister-in-charge, Brother Dharmananda, offered me a gardening position. I accepted, and within a few months I was also living there as a caretaker. Around the lake there are several statues of Quan Yin – the Chinese Buddhist “Mother of Compassion.” In the evenings I would meditate out by the Gandhi Shrine. I love Gandhi as an apostle of peace, but I was especially attracted to Quan Yin, whose statues stand at either side of the shrine containing a portion of Gandhi’s ashes. She, as an aspect of Universal Spirit, was the nightly focus of my devotions. I was attracted to Her aspects of mercy, forgiveness, and compassion. I had some bad karma to burn and I wanted Her help. Those four years at the Lake Shrine were a magical time for me — learning to meditate, serving, and making life-long friends. But what most appealed to me and perhaps wrought a change was the Mother Quan Yin. Her presence as an avatar of adoration is venerated in many world religions:
Islam
Allah, the Eternal One, was often referred to in feminine terms in early Islam. Over the centuries “She” became a “He” generally. However, many Moslems see Spirit as the Mother, and especially in the Sufi tradition this is so. There’s a wonderful story told of Mohamed; after the battle for Mecca, a frantic mother looked for her lost child. At last the child was found, and the mother took him to her breast. Mohamed asked his soldiers, “Do you think that mother could ever throw her child into fire?” They replied, “Of course not.” Mohammed then said, “Allah is even more loving, more merciful.” So Mohammed compared Allah with a mother and having the most loving and compassionate qualities. The great poet Rumi put it this way:
Woman is the radiance of God, She is not your beloved.
She is the Creator—you could say that She is not created.
Christianity
Mary, the virgin mother of Jesus, has been identified with the Universal Mother for centuries. She has appeared many times asking for prayers, peace, revival, and giving warnings to church leaders. Many times she appears only to the sight of children, while remaining invisible to others. She has appeared in Croatia, Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium, Mexico, among other places. I am also certain there have been thousands of Her appearances that have gone unreported, locked in a devotee’s heart as one of their fondest experiences. Ample proof of Her presence has been the many healings which have occurred at these sacred sites. At Fatima, Portugal over 70,000 people witnessed the Sun fall from the sky, spinning in dazzling colors before returning to its customary spot in the heavens.
Buddhism
In Buddhism an oft-quoted definition of nirvana or enlightenment is “nothingness.” Yet even in this pursuit of “nothingness” the Mother is worshiped. She is called Quan Yin or the Mother of Compassion and Mercy. In Buddhist lore She is called “the embodiment of the compassion of all Buddhas” or enlightened beings. Quan Yin is often referred to as the most beloved Buddhist deity, having miraculous powers to help those who appeal to Her. Buddhism itself seems to me a path of wisdom, yet here too is found the devotional concept of Divine Mother. So even nothingness includes someone beautiful, compassionate, and loving to whom we can appeal.
Hinduism
Hindus have many names for the Divine Mother. Most Hindus worship one Spirit, but see various deities as aspects of the One. Their statues and images are thus venerated as reflections of Spirit. The Mother’s names include Mahapakriti, Durga, Kali, Saraswati, and Parvati, among others. Each name is attached to certain lore and expressing different qualities. For instance, Saraswati is the Goddess of Music and Dance, where Durga is a Goddess of War, assigned to protect the righteous and defeat evil. The Goddess Kali is depicted with dark skin, a necklace of skulls, and dances on the chest of a reclining Lord Shiva (Lord of Destruction or Change). She represents God’s shakti energy and the violent and benevolent aspects of nature. A dear friend of Hindu descent recently wrote to me:
“I was blessed to be born in a culture where the Mother is treasured and worshipped as Ma Durga. Growing up, seeing the huge processions and celebrations at the time of Durga Puja was beautiful. Meeting my Guru [Paramahansa Yogananda] and starting on the spiritual path has given me a much deeper understanding of what the Mother Divine as Durga really means (the Shakti energy as the rising kundalini in the spine at the time of enlightenment). Marrying the outward rituals with the inner celebration of Kriya Yoga [meditation technique] has been an enormous blessing in my life.”
Judaism
In the Jewish tradition the term Shekhinah refers to the the feminine aspect of God as mother, nurturer, protector, and compassionate one. The 20th century brought a resurgence of Kabalalism or mystical Judaism, and with it came a feminine aspect of God. She is wonderful counterbalance to God as a king, father, and judge. Shekhinah translates as “She that dwells within,” and She is the same Divine Mother worshiped throughout the world.
Mother Nature or Mahapakriti, and the Aum Vibration
Quoting Genesis: “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was God” — the Word having the sound of many waters. To Hindus this primal sound or vibration is called Aum. Some consider the Heavenly Father to be the invisible, vibrationless Spirit, while they consider the Divine Mother as the outward, visible, ever-changing aspect of the Divine. So the Word or Cosmic Vibration arising from Spirit would be the Mother in Her most primal form. Maya is the delusory force that makes it appear that creation is separate from its Creator, but in truth the Father and the Mother are one.
Through Affirming Her Presence the Mother can Remain with Us
In his book Whispers from Eternity, Paramahansa Yogananda describes the Mother beautifully: “The countless worlds delineate Thy form — million-eyed, moon-garlanded, infinite in adornments and glories. In Thy changing robes are woven the dreams of creation, preservation, and destruction.”
Is it possible that we too can experience the Mother Divine, just as the Aztec Juan Diego and others? Well, I’ll tell you my secret (secret no more!): Through practice I discovered the Mother’s omnipresence. She can be seen in every flower, every smile, every kind word, and every noble action, everywhere! Through affirming this truth, She can remain visible and with us, and are not the Mother’s compassion, forgiveness, and unconditional love a bounty worthy of an inner crusade of remembrance?
Jonathan Ansley Ward 