RIG VEDA: She is the early epithet for Goddess Aditi. Lajja Gauri means "free", "unbound", or "limitless". Rig Veda 1.89.10: Aditi is the sky; Aditi is the air; Aditi is all gods ...Aditi is the Mother, the Father, and Son; Aditi is whatever shall be born.
DEPICTION: She is depicted as a lotus-headed goddess, naked and adorned with jewels, Her legs raised in a birthing or sexual position, exposing Her vulva. There are writing to suggest indecency of her sexually suggestive exposition. Hindu iconography is replete with fertility depictions. Lajja Gauri’s fertility aspect is also linked to Tantra where the Yoni is deemed sacred. Gauri’s symbolic representation of Yoni or womb as blooming Lotus Flower denotes a blooming youth with an exposed vulva.
Her squatting position is called ‘uttanpad’ with les open, as in childbirth where her feet are placed to facilitate full exposure or opening. This is refered to as ‘vegetative fertility’ symbolically abundance of crops and good progeny. Indeed blossoming lotus is an icon in Tantra. In Sri Yantra she is depicted as a Yoni. Like most ancient fertility goddesses, Lajja Gauri is shown headless. A lotus replaces her head to give more prominence to her genitals.
Gauri is the Infinite Mother who rules over our conscious and unconscious minds; the past and the future of the universe. She is one of the few goddesses who are mentioned in the early Vedas.
She is the guardian of all life and the supporter of all creatures. She is also the keeper of light that illuminates all life and ensures consciousness. On the human level, Her image appears as the female giving birth, the embodiment of the idea of fertility. On the divine level, She is the embodiment of regeneration, of life. And on the cosmic level, Her images suggests the universal laws and the process of generation of life.
She is invoked for abundant crops as well as for good progeny, and as the ultimate protector, She provides Her children with safety, spiritual enlightenment, and material wealth. She is honored with a crystal is this reminiscent of the unlimited sky: the blue topaz. There are writings suggesting crystal of dark blue topaz and a candle of similar color make an excellent mini altar that can bring her power to removing limits and boundaries in your life that are causing pain.
SHAKTAM: Lajja Gauri finds her connections in Shaktam vis-à-vis fertility and motherhood. First and foremost, Gauri is a manifestation of the supreme Mother Goddess Devi. In the South, Gauri is linked to Sati and Parvati myths warranting a Shakta cult worship. Here Lajja Gauri refers to the Innocent Creatrix or the Creator Deity. In Shaktam or Shaktism, Goddess Devi is treated to have given birth to the Trinity even though Siva is treated as the creator.
As Aditi, she is the ever free feminine energy of the Sky. Here she is prana of Adya Shakti. Lajja Gauri also menifests as Renuka, wife of sage Jamadagni. Renuka is worshipped for fertility just as Matangi and the grama devata Yallamma. Yallamma means ‘everybody’s mother’. Gauri also takes the form of Kotari and Kotavi, nude folk goddesses. She is also known as Kott Mahika and Kotmai, known in their rural settings.
Hara Hara Mahadeva
By Yogi Ananda Saraswathi copyright material