How I was Born Part 2
I Finally Emerge
If you have made it to Part 2, you are ready to hear about how I have finally came to be.
While the Asuras and the Devas were churning, the ocean began to violently move with water thrashing everywhere. The powerful amrita began to form under the water's surface and developed into this bright ball of light. The harder and longer they churned, the bigger and brighter the ball became. Finally, after hours of churning, the ball exploded, and the ocean turned into a blinding light.
While the entities kept churning, powerful creations began to develop in the ocean of light. First, three categories of Goddesses were created from the light. I was the first one.
All I remember was sleeping and suddenly being awake. I was asleep in a lotus, wrapped up in its petals. My body was twirling inside the petals when all of a sudden they opened up. All I could see was white. I emerged from my lotus and looked at the place around me. As I floated around, thousands of thoughts came to my mind.
"Your name is Lakshmi."
"You are the goddess of fortune, prosperity, and wealth."
"Your mission is to teach the humans of the four ways of life: dharma, kama, artha, and moksha."
"You are a part of the holy trinity."
I looked down at my body, and saw I was wearing a gorgeous pink gown with gold embroidery. I had small lotuses in my hair and one in each hand.
I looked around and realized I was in an ocean. I glanced up and saw the Devas and Asuras churning above me. As I watched the entities struggle to move the mountain in the middle, I noticed movement to my right. The Apsaras began to be born.
Several gorgeous young women emerged by my side dancing. At first, they appeared very small, and then, just as quickly as they came they grew to be my size. They were all dressed in angelic-like clothing that was flowing freely in the water. When one of them spoke, she told me their name and that they were the female spirits of clouds and water. Their mission in life was to rule over the performing arts and control the fertility rituals of humans.
Finally, the last of the devis arrived, Varuni.
Varuni emerged to our left in a beautiful wine-colored dress. She appeared angry and confused. When she spoke, she told us her name and her fondness for the creatures near the head of the snake, the Asuras. She swam to the surface of the ocean and hasn't spoken to us since.
Animals began to emerge next to us, each developing from small balls of light.
Kamadhenu appeared first. She explained she was the mother of all cows, and her purpose in life is to birth cows and provide her owner with all of his desires.
Airavata came next along with many other smaller elephants. He had ten tusks and five trunks. He eventually became the vahana for Surya the sun and Mahabali, one of the good asuras.
Uchchaihshravas was the last of the animals to emerge. He was a seven-headed horse with the ability to fly. Both he and Airavata were spotless white and went on to live wonderful lives as vahanas and companions for other entities.
Many other items began to appear all around us, most of them of extreme value. The Kaustubha appeared first which is the most valuable jewel in the world as it fulfills all of the owner's wishes. Second, the Parijat emerged from the light. It is a gorgeous tree with blossoming flowers that has the power to never die. The Sharanga came next, a gorgeous powerful bow. Fourth was a moon called Chandra, and then was Dhanvantari, a powerful physician, and he was holding a jar containing the amrita. Objects began to appear simultaneously now. Among those included a conch called the Shankha and a wish-fulfilling plant called Kalpavriksha.
Once all of the entities stopped appearing, Dhanvantari floated to the surface and was the second to leave the ocean. We all followed him and finally we were out of the water. Dhanvantari lifted the pot of amrita in the air for whomever wanted to take it. With the Asuras being extremely weak from the poison, the Devas easily grabbed it from the physician. They gave the amrita to Vishnu who then distributed it among the Devas. They all quickly drank it and began to glow.
The last of Asuras either died or ran off, leaving the valuable objects in the hands of the Devas. The Devas were back in power and left the scene victoriously. Throughout the years, they distributed the objects to one another and to other powerful entities.
As for the Asparas and I, we floated to the heavens where we remain. Our bond is stronger than most as we emerged from the same ocean and share a common history with one another. Together, alongside many other Gods and Goddesses, we protect the universe and humans that roam it.
I've added some terms below in order to clarify and Hindu terms used that might not be familiar to you yet!
Dharma: Aspect of truth and realityKama: Desire, wish, longing; one of the four goals of being a humanArtha: Sense, goal, meaning, purpose; one of the four goals of being a humanMoksha: Release from cycle of rebirthVahana: A Hindu entity used as a vehicle by another Hindu entity
Let me know what you think on my comment wall!
Bibliography: The Churning of the Ocean, Amar chitra katha Vol. 538 Image Source: Google Image Lakshmi, Google Image Apsaras, Google Image Varuni, Google Image Kamadhenu, Google Image Airavata