Parvati - The Supreme Being Godess - Orriginal source of Universal Energy

Adi Parashakti or Adishakti is the Supreme Being goddess in the Shaktism sect of Hinduism. She is also popularly referred to as "Parama Shakti", "Maha Shakti", "Mahadevi", Parvati, or even simply as "Shakti". "Parama" means absolute, "Satya" means the Truth as per many Shakta texts. The Devi Bhagavata Mahapurana states that Adi Parashakti is the original creator, observer and destroyer of the whole universe.

As per Shaktism, Adi Parashakti appeared as Divine Pure Eternal Consciousness i.e. Shoonya Bindu, the divine zero feminine energy, which then expresses itself as Prakriti (Universal Nature). Hence Adi Parashakti is Parama Prakriti.

Goddess Lalita Tripura Sundari is the original manifested form of Mother Adi-Parashakti. Goddess Parvati/Durga is Adi- Parashakti herself and is the perfect incarnation of Lalita Tripura Sundari. Goddess Lalita Tripura Sundari/ Parvati, the goddess of power, is considered as her saguna svarupa(Manifested form). That is, Lalita Tripura Sundari is the truest material form of the Goddess, possessing the three qualities (Sattva, rajas, or tamas). However, the Goddess Adi Para Shakti is also considered to be truly Supreme Spirit without form (Param Atman). She is the Great Goddess, and therefore, the source of all other goddesses. She is supreme and regarded as the "Absolute Truth" in Shaktism.

                                                    
Parvati or Uma is the Hindu goddess of fertility, love and devotion as well as of divine strength and power. Known by many other names, she is the gentle and nurturing aspect of the Hindu goddess Shakti and one of the central deities of the Goddess-oriented Shakta sect. She is the mother goddess in Hinduism, and has many attributes and aspects. Each of her aspects is expressed with a different name, giving her over 100 names in regional Hindu stories of India. Along  with Lakshmi (goddess of wealth and prosperity) and Saraswati (goddess of knowledge and learning), she forms the trinity of Hindu goddesses "Tridevi".

Parvati is the wife of the Hindu god Lord Shiva - the protector, the destroyer (of evil) and regenerator of universe and all life. She is the daughter of the mountain king
Himavanand queen Mena. Parvati is the mother of Hindu deities Ganesha and
Kartikeya. The Puranasalso referenced her to be the sister of the preserver god
Vishnu and the rivergoddess Ganga.

With Shiva,  Parvati is a central deity in the Shaiva sect. In Hindu belief, she is the recreative energy and power of Shiva, and she is the cause of a bond that connects all beings and a means of their spiritual release. In Hindu temples dedicated to her and Shiva, she is symbolically represented as the arghaoo or yoni She is found extensively in ancient Indian literature, and hger statues and iconography grace Hindu temples all over South Asia and Southeast Asia.

Parvati is also known as Gauri or Shakti. She is considered the most powerful Goddess in the Hindu religion. All the other goddesses are considered either avatars of Parvati or manifestations of her. Her famous and most worshipped incarnations include Durga, Kali and Chandi.

Parvati is the daughter of the king of Himalayas and the second wife of Lord Shiva. She is a reincarnation of Lord Shiva’s first wife- Shakti/sati. Legend has it that after Shakti killed herself, Shiva went on a destruction rampage. He destroyed those responsible for Shakti’s death and then went to the Himalayas to meditate. On insistence of Narada, the king of Himalayas- Himavan, ordered his daughter Parvati to take care of Lord Shiva. Goddess Parvati fell in love with Shiva. With Manmatha’s help, Shiva fell in love with her. With Shiva, Parvati is depicted with two arms but when alone her idol is shown with four to eight arms. Her vehicle is the tiger or the lion.

The name Parvati literally means “She of the mountains” (since she is the daughter of Himavan). She is also known as Shailaja, Haimavathi and Shailaputri, which mean the same. According to the Durga Saptashati, Parvati has 108 names. The Lalita sahasranama lists over 1,000 names of Parvati. The contradictory names Parvati is known with Uma (the fair one) and Kali (the dark one) reflects her birth as Shakti and subsequent re-birth as Parvati. The opposite colours also depict the opposing nature of Parvati. One form of her is the placid and patient Uma while the other form, Kali, is capable of donning the destructive hat to remove obstacles.

Since Shakti was the goddess of power, Goddess Parvati also shares the attribute. She is the physical manifestation of Adi Parashakti. It is this quality that makes her omnipresent among all beings. Whether it is gods, the animals or the humans, power is necessary. She is worshipped by even the holy trinity (Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva).

There is no explicit mention of Parvati in the Vedic texts or a dedicated scripture for her. There is a mention of Parvati in the Kena Upanishad, the Puranas and the poems of Kalidasa.

Parvati is also the mother of one of the most powerful and important deities in the Hindu religion, Lord Ganesha. Lord Ganesha may be the son of Shiva and Parvati but the Shiva Purana, Skanda Purana and the Mudgala Purana, credit the birth of Lord Ganesha to Parvati only. Lord Ganesha was created by Parvati out of turmeric paste to guard the gates while she took a bath. After spending considerable time with the boy she got attached to him and considered Lord Ganesha as her son. After Ganesha was beheaded by his father it is believed that Parvati turned to Kali in her anger. It was because of her wrath that Shiva resurrected Lord Ganesha by giving him the head of an elephant. Ganesha is also known as Umaputra (Son of Uma) and Heramba (mother’s beloved).

Mahesh Bhatt.