THE DIVINE FLOWER LOTUS
Lotus the world's most
beautiful flower is also considered as the most sacred flower .Throughout many
cultures over time; the lotus has been a powerful image and a spiritual symbol
in Hindu, Buddhist and Egyptian religions.
Few flowers have found such prominence in legends as the lotus. The
Hindu, Buddhist and Jain religions have amassed a wealth of fascinating stories
about lotus. In Hinduism, the flower is said to be the center of the universe.
There is a story that it arose from the navel of God Vishnu, and at the center
of the flower sat Brahma known as Brahma Kamal, the Lotus of Lord Bramha, the
flower on which he is sitting on, It is
also known as King flower.
The starting life of this
flower is not as beautiful as its blossom When lotus seed begins to sprout ,it is under the mud making
its home in ponds or lakes where the water remains fairly still on the surface
But under the surface ,the lotus seed is
surrounded by mud, insects , dirty condition .Despite these conditions lotus sprout
pushes aside each of these and makes its way to the clearer surface finally
freeing itself from the harsh life conditions below rises above water into the
clean air . It is then the lotus bud
slowly unfolds each beautiful petal to the sun, basking in the worldly beauty
surrounding it. The lotus flower is ready to take on the world. Despite
born in dark muddy conditions the lotus grows,
rises above all adversities to bloom as a beautiful flower. This pattern of
growth signifies the progress of the soul. It is very similar to human life as
said Swami Vivekananda about life, “Life is the unfoldment and development of a
being under circumstances tending to press it down.”(1)
Lotus is a
symbol of purity and resurrection. Lotus flower represents an awakening,
spiritual growth and enlightmant .Unfolding its thousand petals one by one,
each opening of the petal is the gradual unfolding of the consciousness on the
path of enlightenment, impurities of unenlightened (naïve) thinking fade away, and
the individual consciousness steers its path to enlightenment When it unfolds
its thousand petals it becomes thousand forms of God but when it closes its
thousand petals it becomes One (Brahman)
(2). The thousand-petal lotus signifies spiritual illumination As the
lotus is pure even born in the
muddy water, So the soul is also pure even living in
impure environments.
The lotus could be thought
as awakened mind, which grows naturally towards the warmth and light of truth
and love. It may appear fragile on the surface, but it is flexible and strong securely anchored underneath water like an elevated soul of monk
who is unaffected by the surroundings he lives, his mind is fixed at only one
point - attaining the goal of enlightment. This pattern of growth signifies the
progress of the soul from the primeval mud of materialism, through the waters
of experience, and into the bright sunshine of enlightenment.
The lotus is also the
foremost symbol of beauty, prosperity and fertility. According to
Hinduism, within each human inhabiting the spirit of the sacred lotus which is our
inner lotus that too has never seen drop
of mud or dirty water. It is pure and bright
(glistening). It represents eternity, purity and divinity and is widely used as
a symbol of life, and ever-renewing
youth. Lotus in spite of being in water never gets wet, it is not bothered
about its surrounding but it blooms and performs its job and vanishes, it is
representative of somebody who carries out their tasks with little concern for
any reward and with a full liberation from attachment. The ultimate aim of living beings is to
perform its karma without bothering about the external factors. In the Bhagavad
Gita,(3) man is adjured to be like the lotus--he should work without
attachment, dedicating his actions to God--untouched by sin like water on a
lotus leaf and the beautiful flower standing high above the mud and water .
The bloom of legends: This flower
is frequently mentioned in the ancient Sanskrit Hindu scriptures, as padma
(pink lotus), kamala (red lotus), pundarika (white lotus) and utpala (blue
lotus). The earliest reference can be found in the Rig Veda around 1500 BC
mention white and blue lotuses and Atharva Veda compares lotus with human
heart. Twin youths who are the Gods of dawn, known as Ashwins wear blue lotus
garlands. The Hindu, Buddhist and Jain religions have amassed a wealth of
fascinating stories about lotus . Each of the three Brahminical deities,
Brahma (the Creator), Vishnu (the Protector) and Siva (the Merger) are
associated with this plant. In Vedic scripture, the body of Lord Krishna, an
incarnation of Lord Vishnu, is described as being like a bluish new-grown lotus
flower. The lotus flowers are also associated with the sun, as it opens its
petals at dawn and closes at dusk.
Scientufic background : The genus name Nelumbo means "sacred bean."Researchers
report that the lotus has the remarkable ability to regulate the temperature of
its flowers to
within a narrow range just as humans and other warm-blooded
animals do.
Dr. Roger S. Seymour and Dr. Paul Schultze-Motel, physiologists at the University of Adelaide in Australia,
found that lotus flowers blooming in the Adelaide Botanic Gardens maintained a temperature
of 30–35 °C (86–95 °F), even when the air temperature dropped to 10
°C (50 °F). They suspect the flowers may be doing this to attract coldblooded insect pollinators.It
can be related with meditating monks who remain steady whatever the
surroundings are unaware of the surrounding
. People who are elevated soul are attracted by the meditating monk like
bees attracted towards the flower .A story of Swami Vivekananda can be quoted
here once Swami Vivekananda was meditating in a cave in mount Abu without
any awareness about the environment outside. An advocate Faiz ali (4) who used
to see him every day in the same position, was attracted by his personality and
asked his introduction then took him to Maha Raja Ajit Singh. That’s how Ajit
Singh,Raja of Khetri met Swami
Vivekananda.
Leaves of lotus Not only
the flowers but its large, leaves
represent the flourishing of surrounding cultures. Peltate (with the leaf-stalk
attaching to the centre, rather than the edge) rise
above the water surface on 1 to 2 m long petioles. The leaves may be as large
as 60 cm in diameter. The strikingly
water-repellent leaf surface has inspired the term 'lotus effect'. This term
describes the leaves' self-cleaning capacity which is a result of dirt
particles being picked up by water droplets due to a complex nanostructure of
the leaf surface that minimizes adhesion. It symbolizes people with high spiritual thoughts although live in the worldly experience yet
they are unaffected by others.
The lotus flower and its
meaning in Hinduism: Perhaps one of the
strongest associations of the lotus flower with religion is that is observed in Hinduism.
Different colour lotus have different meanings in Hindu religion.
1.White
lotus : this color lotus is
known to symbolize being awakened, and represents a state of mental purity, and
that of spiritual perfection; it is also associated with the pacification of
one’s nature. White lotus flower has special significance in Hinduism, where
its meaning is strongly associated with goddess Saraswati and Brahma . This lotus is considered to be the womb of
the world.
2.Blue Lotus: The blue lotus flower is
associated intelligence and knowledge. A blue Lotus in Buddhist
art it is always depicted as being
partially open and the centre is never observed. . It is the lotus of Manjusri,
and also one of the attributes of Prajnaparamita, the embodiment of the
'perfection of wisdom'.
3.Purple Lotus: known to be
Mystic and is associated with esoteric sects. It can be shown depicted as
either an open flower or as a bud. The eight petals of the purple Lotus are
representative of the noble eightfold path; one of the principal teachings of
the Buddha. Following this path is thought to lead to self awakening, and is
considered one of the noble truths.
4.Pink
lotus : this is the supreme lotus and is considered to be the true
lotus of Buddha.
5.Red lotus: This signifies
the original nature & purity of the heart (hrdya). It is the lotus of love,
compassion, passion & all other qualities of the heart. It is the flower of
Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion.
The Lotus and Hindu deities: Many of the gods and goddesses of Hinduism
are linked to the flower, for example the goddess of prosperity Laxmi is often
described as goddess of fortune, is
depicted as seated atop a fully opened pink lotus. In her right hand she holds
a lotus. Saraswati the goddess of learning is seated on a white lotus. Likewise
Brahma, the god of creation is depicted as emerging from a lotus that crawls
from the Naval of the sustainer Lord Vishnu. Krishna is often described as
“lotus eyed one” referring to his divine beauty. The Goddess of Power, Durga,
was created by Lord Siva to fight demons and was adorned with a garland of
lotus flowers by Varuna.The lotus used as a divine seat for a deity signifies
their divinity and is called as Padmasana or Kamalasana. In various regions of India, lotus blossoms are
offered in worship of Lakshmi during Deepavali; to Durga in Durgapuja and to
Lord Siva during Mahasivaratri. Scripture indicates at least a 6,000-year
association of the lotus with Hindu culture and religion. It is given profound
significance in mythology, epics, scriptures, Sanskrit literature and
historical records, and it is the prevailing motif in sculptures, temple
carvings, architecture, paintings and cave murals . Numerous references to the
lotus can be found in the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, slokas, kathas and other
ancient Sanskrit literature. The most common Sanskrit names for lotus are
Kamala, Padma and Pankaja, and Hindus have always considered the flower highly
sacred
Lotus in Budhdhism: Every
important Buddhist deity is associated in some manner with the lotus, either
being seated upon a lotus in full bloom or holding one in their hands. In some
images of standing Buddhas, each foot rests on a separate lotus. According to
esoteric Buddhism, the heart of the beings is like an unopened lotus: when the
virtues of the Buddha develop therein the lotus blossoms. This is why the
Buddha sits on a lotus in bloom. Lotus in Yoga In the postures of hatha
yoga, the lotus position, padmasana, is adopted by those striving to
reach the highest level of consciousness, which itself is found in the
thousand-petalled lotus chakra at the top of the head.
. References
1.(In volume 1, page 281 of
The Life of Swami Vivekananda (Advaita Ashrama), there is the following
passage:, ‘After the usual formalities the Raja asked him, “Swamiji, what is
life?” The Swami replied, “Life is the unfoldment and development of a being
under circumstances tending to press it down.
Padma puran
Bhagbad Gita
4 Faiz Ali an advocate in the court of Raja
Ajit Singh. Mani Shankar Mukherjee's The Monk As Man: The Unknown Life of Swami Vivekananda, on 4 June 1891
5.( The study, published in
the journal Nature, is the latest discovery in the esoteric field of thermoregulation,
heat-producing, plants..
According to the
Lalitavistara, “the spirit of the best of men is spotless, like the lotus in
the muddy water which does not adhere to it.” Also, “In esoteric Buddhism, the
heart of the beings is like an unopened lotus: when the virtues of the Buddha
develop therein, the lotus blossoms ;
that is why the Buddha sits on a lotus bloom
[ALPANA GHOSE]
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