Shakti

 The Navratra celebrates womanhood as it is a festival dedicated to Shakti, the strength of the feminine principle, the woman power. Given the times today, what does being a Shakti mean? 

Traditionally, Shakti was especially venerated in the Shiva tradition, as the feminine concept, and by extension as the respective consorts of all the male deities. Apparently, the tantriks believe in the Shakti concept as well. As I do not know enough of that field and as i am not interested in it, i do not want to discuss it.

What does Shakti mean today? Shallow critique would immediately decry its  consumerist debasement in wearing a particular colour per day. Well, beyond such obvious and rather typical breast beating, what does Shakti mean today?

Awareness is all, I would say. As it is, awareness is easily accessible to most all, given the multi-media mode of communication. The only initiation one constantly needs to upgrade is instilling the honeybee habit.

 What does a honeybee do? It can extract  honey from the wildest flower. In the process, it helps pollination so much so that it is believed that if there were no honeybees, the entire would collapse in no time. The honeybee is ever busy and never bothers anyone. Provoked unnecessarily though, its fatal sting is of the worst type.

I suppose, that could be quite an apt metaphor for being a Shakti. Constantly search for the best in every possible way to keep on improving yourself (collecting the honey even from the wildest flowers), help others grow in the process (pollination), be so active and involved in your process of building yourself that the silliness-es around do not even enter your orbit, and yet when provoked beyond tolerance, give such a stinging response that the bully beats a retreat from harassing not only you but other innocent victims. 

Thus one becomes Durga as well as Mahishasurmardini, given the very many "mahish" in very many forms that one encounters most everywhere, i suppose. That would be the real Shakti, beyond the rituals and the daily decking up for the nine days, including the dance festivities, i would say!

Pratima@Shakti is the power to constantly re-invent oneself to a still better selfhood.