The sacred land of India has time and again experienced divinity of gods and goddesses for the welfare of living beings since time immemorial. In this life which is dominated by Maya, individual experiences sorrow, grief, fear, diseases, etc. Hence, one worships goddess Durga to get rid of these issues from his life. Sri Durga is known as Brahmacharini on earth as her second manifestation. This form of the goddess is full of light, strength, and tapas (penance). Goddess Brahmacharini incarnated on the second day of Navaratri. She destroyed the demons with her penance and strength. She always blesses her devotees generously and fulfills their desires out of kindness. Goddess holds a rosary in the right hand and a kamandalu (vessel) in the left hand. Brahmacharini is related to Sacchidananda. The one who bestows sacred experience of Sacchidananda form of Brahman to the devotees. Hence the goddess which ultimately leads the sadhaka to the divine experience of Parabrahman is Brahma-chaarini. With her worship, one gains control, morality, strength, confidence, and sattvic nature. One gets rid of imprudence, discontent, and greed. There is the enrichment of enthusiasm, courage, and patience in life. One becomes more aware of his deeds. The one who makes life beautiful, happy, prosperous and enriched is goddess Brahmacharini. She is the one who dispels bad qualities like fear, lethargy, ego, and ignorance. She makes the way of life more accessible, makes the individual pure and refined and finally confers all kind of happiness to her children. She is the embodiment of light and hope for those who have deviated from their path and those who have lost patience in the time of crisis. Goddess Brahmacharini is the aspect of the divine which motivates the devotees to achieve the goal of their life and to achieve excellence in their respective paths.
Mythological tale of Goddess Brahmacharini
As per the information in the Puranas, Devi Brahacharini was born in the family of king Himalaya. Her mother was Maina. Once upon a time, while wandering in different places, sage Narada visited the Himalayas. King of Himalayas gladly received him and served him well with utmost respect and welcomed him. After discussing whereabouts with the sage, king Himalaya asked him about the future of his daughter also. After seeing the palm of the girl, Narada told many things about her life. However, he mentioned about obstacles in her marriage also. After the departure of the sage, Maina asked her husband about the wedding of her daughter and expressed her concerns after the prediction of Narada. King Himalaya narrated all the details as said to him by Sri Narada. King also told that Narada had suggested several austerities (vratas) and anushthanas be followed for overcoming marital issues and getting the desired husband. As suggested by the great sage, daughter of Himalaya, Brahmacharini started rigorous penance which continued for thousands of years. Brahmacharini did penance in the forest and consumed minimal food such as fruits or plant products for thousands of years. This is explained by sriGoswamiTulasidas in his RamcharitManas as “kachhu din bhojanvaaribataasa | keenhkachhuk din kathinupavaasa ||” which means that the penance was so deep and intense that even the gods and lord brahma had to acknowledge it and had to visit the place. As a result, Lord Brahma granted her the boon of getting lord Shiva as her consort. Thus, Goddess Brahmacharini married lord Shiva with the power of her penance.
