Difference between revisions of "Maya, Buddha's Mother"
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− | The woman who gave [[birth]] to [[Buddha Shakyamuni]] is called in the [[scriptures]], [[Mahamaya]], meaning Great [[Maya]]r [[Mayadevi]], the [[Goddess]] [[Maya]]. In [[Tibetan]], she is called Gyutrulma. In English, she is generally called [[Queen Maya]], a designation that obscures more than it reveals. | + | The woman who gave [[birth]] to [[Buddha Shakyamuni]] is called in the [[scriptures]], [[Mahamaya]], meaning Great [[Maya]]r [[Mayadevi]], the [[Goddess]] [[Maya]]. In [[Tibetan]], she is called [[Gyutrulma]]. In English, she is generally called [[Queen Maya]], a designation that obscures more than it reveals. |
[[File:Buddha4.jpg|thumb|250px|]] | [[File:Buddha4.jpg|thumb|250px|]] | ||
− | [[Maya]] is actually the [[Sanskrit]] term for [[Illusion]] in the [[sense]] of an interplay of [[Substance]] and [[Energy]] that contributes to our believing that there is something "there." ([[Substance]] itself can be variously analyzed or described. [[Buddhists]] refer to the [[skandhas]] or "heaps.") When our [[bodily]] organs of [[perception]] interact with the interplay, we usually call the product of the interaction, [[Reality]]. So [[Mahamaya]] actually means The Grandest Deception (or, [[Illusion]]) of all -- that which convinces us of [[Existence]]. | + | [[Maya]] is actually the [[Sanskrit]] term for [[Illusion]] in the [[sense]] of an interplay of [[Substance]] and [[Energy]] that contributes to our believing that there is something "there." ([[Substance]] itself can be variously analyzed or described. [[Buddhists]] refer to the [[skandhas]] or "heaps.") When our [[bodily]] {{Wiki|organs}} of [[perception]] interact with the interplay, we usually call the product of the interaction, [[Reality]]. So [[Mahamaya]] actually means The Grandest Deception (or, [[Illusion]]) of all -- that which convinces us of [[Existence]]. |
− | In the [[traditional]] [[Indian]] [[view]] generally called [[Hinduism]], the three combinants are "personified" as great [[goddesses]]. (The other two are [[Shakti]], that is [[Activity]], and Prakriti -- Matter, or what we can call [[Nature]].) There can be no [[life]] or [[existence]] without any of them, but we rely especially upon [[Maya]]. It is her conduct that makes the others perceptible, for without her we would have no access -- we would not be able to read [[existence]] or, [[reality]]. | + | In the [[traditional]] [[Indian]] [[view]] generally called [[Hinduism]], the three combinants are "personified" as great [[goddesses]]. (The other two are [[Shakti]], that is [[Activity]], and [[Prakriti]] -- Matter, or what we can call [[Nature]].) There can be no [[life]] or [[existence]] without any of them, but we rely especially upon [[Maya]]. It is her conduct that makes the others perceptible, for without her we would have no access -- we would not be able to read [[existence]] or, [[reality]]. |
− | In the [[Hindu]] [[tradition]], [[Maya]] is also understood as the maiden-aspect of the [[Indian]] Mother [[goddess]], [[Kali]]. She is Mahakali. She is our mother in the [[sense]] of the Giver of [[Perception]]. | + | In the [[Hindu]] [[tradition]], [[Maya]] is also understood as the maiden-aspect of the [[Indian]] Mother [[goddess]], [[Kali]]. She is [[Mahakali]]. She is our mother in the [[sense]] of the Giver of [[Perception]]. |
Un-deified, [[Maya]] is a "veil of [[illusion]]," or a wondrous display, a [[magical]] dance -- a trick that employs {{Wiki|distraction}} to keep us bound to [[samsara]], the [[Wheel]] of [[Existences]]. | Un-deified, [[Maya]] is a "veil of [[illusion]]," or a wondrous display, a [[magical]] dance -- a trick that employs {{Wiki|distraction}} to keep us bound to [[samsara]], the [[Wheel]] of [[Existences]]. | ||
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[[Mythology]] | [[Mythology]] | ||
− | Maya's name appears also in {{Wiki|Greco-Roman}} (or, Classical) [[mythology]]. There was extensive commercial [[contact]] between [[India]] and the Mediterranean lands long before the [[time]] of Alexander of Macedon (ca. 350 BCE.) However, whether the {{Wiki|Greek}} name had a different origin or not, is not as relevant as the fact that there, [[Maya]] or Maia was an [[earth]] [[goddess]]. Maia is usually explained as meaning Maker, for she is seen as the [[cause]] of the spring season when all that we have seen [[die]] away before winter now springs back to [[life]]. Therefore we have come to use her name to designate (in the northern hemisphere,) May, the month of flowers -- the [[time]] of [[rebirth]]. | + | Maya's [[name]] appears also in {{Wiki|Greco-Roman}} (or, Classical) [[mythology]]. There was extensive commercial [[contact]] between [[India]] and the Mediterranean lands long before the [[time]] of Alexander of Macedon (ca. 350 BCE.) However, whether the {{Wiki|Greek}} [[name]] had a different origin or not, is not as relevant as the fact that there, [[Maya]] or Maia was an [[earth]] [[goddess]]. Maia is usually explained as meaning Maker, for she is seen as the [[cause]] of the spring season when all that we have seen [[die]] away before winter now springs back to [[life]]. Therefore we have come to use her [[name]] to designate (in the {{Wiki|northern hemisphere}},) May, the month of [[flowers]] -- the [[time]] of [[rebirth]]. |
[[File:Buddha22.jpg|thumb|250px|]] | [[File:Buddha22.jpg|thumb|250px|]] | ||
− | In the [[mythology]] of {{Wiki|ancient Greece}}, Maia was once the youngest of the group of stars called the Pleiades (children of Pleione, another name for Aphrodite.) Atlas, their father, was a Titan who was punished for taking part in a revolt against the [[gods]], and so was sentenced to bear the [[heavens]] [no, not the [[world | + | In the [[mythology]] of {{Wiki|ancient Greece}}, Maia was once the youngest of the group of {{Wiki|stars}} called the {{Wiki|Pleiades}} (children of Pleione, another [[name]] for {{Wiki|Aphrodite}}.) Atlas, their father, was a {{Wiki|Titan}} who was punished for taking part in a revolt against the [[gods]], and so was sentenced to bear the [[heavens]] [no, not the [[world]] on his shoulders. Unable to bear their father's {{Wiki|humiliation}}, Maia and her sisters fled to [[highest]] [[heaven]] and can be seen there as the group known as The {{Wiki|Pleiades}}. |
− | But wait. Maia is called Grandmother of [[Magic]]. Seduced by Zeus, she gave [[birth]] to Hermes, the Transformer -- the one who is a [[Master]] of Disguise, a Trickster and the psycho-pomp (guide of [[souls]] to the land of the [[dead]].) The planet {{Wiki|Mercury}} is named for Hermes, and in [[Sanskrit]] the name is [[Budh]]. | + | But wait. Maia is called Grandmother of [[Magic]]. Seduced by {{Wiki|Zeus}}, she gave [[birth]] to {{Wiki|Hermes}}, the Transformer -- the one who is a [[Master]] of Disguise, a Trickster and the psycho-pomp (guide of [[souls]] to the land of the [[dead]].) The {{Wiki|planet}} {{Wiki|Mercury}} is named for {{Wiki|Hermes}}, and in [[Sanskrit]] the [[name]] is [[Budh]]. |
− | The [[activity]] of the child, Hermes ({{Wiki|Mercury}}, to the Romans) is reminiscent of the [[Indian]] [[god]], {{Wiki|Krishna}}. While still an infant, Hermes stole the cattle of the {{Wiki|sun}}. From the shell of a tortoise, he created the lyre, and he also invented the flute from the hollow reeds of a marsh. | + | The [[activity]] of the child, {{Wiki|Hermes}} ({{Wiki|Mercury}}, to the Romans) is reminiscent of the [[Indian]] [[god]], {{Wiki|Krishna}}. While still an {{Wiki|infant}}, {{Wiki|Hermes}} stole the cattle of the {{Wiki|sun}}. From the shell of a {{Wiki|tortoise}}, he created the lyre, and he also invented the flute from the hollow reeds of a marsh. |
Barbara Walker (The Woman's {{Wiki|Encyclopedia}} of [[Myths]] and Secrets, 1986) points out some other associations. Under the entry [[Maya]]: | Barbara Walker (The Woman's {{Wiki|Encyclopedia}} of [[Myths]] and Secrets, 1986) points out some other associations. Under the entry [[Maya]]: | ||
− | "[[Magic]]," title of the Virgin [[Kali]] as the creatress of [[earthly]] [[appearances]], i.e., all things made of matter and perceptible to the [[senses]]. She also gave [[birth]] to the [[Enlightened One]], [[Buddha]]. | + | "[[Magic]]," title of the Virgin [[Kali]] as the creatress of [[earthly]] [[appearances]], i.e., all things made of {{Wiki|matter}} and perceptible to the [[senses]]. She also gave [[birth]] to the [[Enlightened One]], [[Buddha]]. |
− | The same [[Goddess]], called Maia by the {{Wiki|Greeks}}, was the virgin mother to Hermes the [[Enlightened One]], who had as many [[reincarnations]] as the [[Buddha]]. Sometimes Maia's partner was Volcanus ({{Wiki|Greek}} Hephaestus, the [[divine]] smith and fire-god). This was another mythic mating of male [[fire]] and {{Wiki|female}} [[water]]. [[Hindus]] said [[Agni]] the fire-god was the [[consort]] of Kali-Maya, though he was periodically swallowed up and "quenched" by her. According to the [[Tantric]] phrase, the [[Goddess]] quenched a blazing lingam in her yoni. | + | The same [[Goddess]], called Maia by the {{Wiki|Greeks}}, was the virgin mother to {{Wiki|Hermes}} the [[Enlightened One]], who had as many [[reincarnations]] as the [[Buddha]]. Sometimes Maia's partner was Volcanus ({{Wiki|Greek}} Hephaestus, the [[divine]] smith and fire-god). This was another [[mythic]] mating of {{Wiki|male}} [[fire]] and {{Wiki|female}} [[water]]. [[Hindus]] said [[Agni]] the fire-god was the [[consort]] of Kali-Maya, though he was periodically swallowed up and "quenched" by her. According to the [[Tantric]] [[phrase]], the [[Goddess]] quenched a blazing [[lingam]] in her [[yoni]]. |
− | As the virgin mother of [[Buddha]], [[Maya]] embarrassed [[ascetic]] [[Buddhists]] and was soon written out of the script. Like [[ascetic]] {{Wiki|Christians}} speaking of Christ's [[birth]], some [[Buddhists]] claimed the [[Enlightened One]] could not touch his mother's "parts of [[shame]]" and so was born through an opening in her side. This mythic Caesarian section seems to have been bungled, for a few days later [[Maya]] [[died]] -- "of [[joy]]," as [[Buddhist scriptures]] rather fatuously put it. | + | As the virgin mother of [[Buddha]], [[Maya]] embarrassed [[ascetic]] [[Buddhists]] and was soon written out of the script. Like [[ascetic]] {{Wiki|Christians}} {{Wiki|speaking}} of Christ's [[birth]], some [[Buddhists]] claimed the [[Enlightened One]] could not {{Wiki|touch}} his mother's "parts of [[shame]]" and so was born through an opening in her side. This [[mythic]] Caesarian section seems to have been bungled, for a few days later [[Maya]] [[died]] -- "of [[joy]]," as [[Buddhist scriptures]] rather fatuously put it. |
Nevertheless, [[Maya]] remained very much alive as one of Kali's most revered [[manifestations]], because the very fact of "[[Existence]]"-- the material cosmos-demanded her presence. As Zimmer analyzed her: | Nevertheless, [[Maya]] remained very much alive as one of Kali's most revered [[manifestations]], because the very fact of "[[Existence]]"-- the material cosmos-demanded her presence. As Zimmer analyzed her: | ||
Mahamaya.jpg | Mahamaya.jpg | ||
[[File:|thumb|250px|]] | [[File:|thumb|250px|]] | ||
− | Maya-Shakti is personified as the world-protecting, feminine, maternal side of [[Ultimate]] [[Being]], and as such, stands for spontaneous, [[loving]] acceptance of life's tangible [[reality]] . . . [S]he affirms, she is, she represents and enjoys, the delirium of the [[manifested]] [[forms]] . . . . Maya-Shakti is Eve, "the [[Eternal]] Feminine," das Ewig-Weibliche: she who ate, and tempted her [[consort]] to eat, and was herself the apple. From the point of [[view]] of the masculine principle of the [[Spirit]] (which is in quest of the enduring, eternally valid, and absolutely [[divine]]) she is the pre-eminent enigma. | + | Maya-Shakti is personified as the world-protecting, {{Wiki|feminine}}, maternal side of [[Ultimate]] [[Being]], and as such, stands for spontaneous, [[loving]] [[acceptance]] of life's tangible [[reality]] . . . [S]he affirms, she is, she represents and enjoys, the {{Wiki|delirium}} of the [[manifested]] [[forms]] . . . . Maya-Shakti is Eve, "the [[Eternal]] {{Wiki|Feminine}}," das Ewig-Weibliche: she who ate, and tempted her [[consort]] to eat, and was herself the apple. From the point of [[view]] of the {{Wiki|masculine}} [[principle]] of the [[Spirit]] (which is in quest of the enduring, eternally valid, and absolutely [[divine]]) she is the pre-eminent enigma. |
− | In herself [[Maya]] [[embodies]] all three aspects of the maternal trinity. Her colors were white, red, and black, the colors of the [[Gunas]], or the Virgin-Mother-Crone. Like every other [[form]] of [[Kali]], she was [[Creator]], Preserver, Destroyer. She was also a [[spirit]] dwelling perpetually in women. A [[Mahayana]] text says, "Of all the [[forms]] of [[Maya]]n is the most important." | + | In herself [[Maya]] [[embodies]] all three aspects of the maternal {{Wiki|trinity}}. Her colors were white, red, and black, the colors of the [[Gunas]], or the Virgin-Mother-Crone. Like every other [[form]] of [[Kali]], she was [[Creator]], Preserver, Destroyer. She was also a [[spirit]] dwelling perpetually in women. A [[Mahayana]] text says, "Of all the [[forms]] of [[Maya]]n is the most important." |
− | Maya's son [[Buddha]] | + | Maya's son [[Buddha]] [[Shakyamuni]] was surrounded by her [[symbols]]. He entered his [[trance]] of [[meditation]] under her [[sacred]] fig [[tree]], which protected him from the weather. On his return from the soul-journey, his first [[symbolic]] act was to accept a dish of curds from a maiden on [[Full Moon]] Day in the month of May, the greatest of [[Buddhist]] {{Wiki|festivals}}. |
− | Not only the month but many other [[traditions]] attest to the great age and wide distribution of the [[Goddess]] [[Maya]]. She was more than the Maia who mothered Hermes; she was also Maga the Grandmother- [[goddess]] who bore Cu Chulainn's mother; and the Mandaean Christian's Almaya, called "Eternity," or "the [[World]]," or "[[Beings]]"; and Maga or Maj the May-maiden in Scandinavia. Like the [[Hindu]] [[Maya]] who brought forth [[earthly]] [[appearances]] at creation, the Scandinavian one personified the pregnant [[womb]] of chaos before the beginning: Ginnungagap. In this the World-virgin was associated with the [[idea]] of [[magical]] [[illusion]], creating "[[appearances]]" like her [[Hindu]] counterpart. | + | Not only the month but many other [[traditions]] attest to the great age and wide distribution of the [[Goddess]] [[Maya]]. She was more than the Maia who mothered {{Wiki|Hermes}}; she was also Maga the Grandmother- [[goddess]] who bore Cu Chulainn's mother; and the Mandaean Christian's Almaya, called "{{Wiki|Eternity}}," or "the [[World]]," or "[[Beings]]"; and Maga or Maj the May-maiden in Scandinavia. Like the [[Hindu]] [[Maya]] who brought forth [[earthly]] [[appearances]] at creation, the Scandinavian one personified the {{Wiki|pregnant}} [[womb]] of {{Wiki|chaos}} before the beginning: Ginnungagap. In this the World-virgin was associated with the [[idea]] of [[magical]] [[illusion]], creating "[[appearances]]" like her [[Hindu]] counterpart. |
− | This [[universal]] Creatress-name may have reached the western hemisphere also. The [[Maya]] [[people]] of Yucatan [[offered]] sacrifices in the same way as in {{Wiki|northern India}}, at the same seasons, determined by the same stars. Mayan "scorpion stars" were the same as the [[constellation]] Scorpio on [[Hindu]] and {{Wiki|Greek}} charts. As in [[India]], Mayan [[divine]] images were painted | + | This [[universal]] Creatress-name may have reached the {{Wiki|western}} hemisphere also. The [[Maya]] [[people]] of Yucatan [[offered]] sacrifices in the same way as in {{Wiki|northern India}}, at the same seasons, determined by the same {{Wiki|stars}}. Mayan "{{Wiki|scorpion}} {{Wiki|stars}}" were the same as the [[constellation]] [[Scorpio]] on [[Hindu]] and {{Wiki|Greek}} charts. As in [[India]], Mayan [[divine]] images were painted blue and Mayan women pierced the left nostril for insertion of a [[jewel]]. Another version of the Creatress seems to have been the Mother [[Goddess]] Mayauel of the Mexican Agave, called "Woman with [[Four Hundred]] Breasts," with a strong resemblance to the world-nurturing Many-Breasted Artemis and other eastern [[forms]] of the [[deity]] who mothered all the world's creatures. |
Our Mother | Our Mother | ||
− | [[Maya]] is not only the [[Buddha's]] mother; she is our mother too. Without her, we would not be here. Without the [[world]] of [[appearances]], we could not be born in the precious [[human]] [[body]] that affords us an opportunity to discern Her, and our own [[True Nature]]. | + | [[Maya]] is not only the [[Buddha's]] mother; she is our mother too. Without her, we would not be here. Without the [[world]] of [[appearances]], we could not be born in the [[precious]] [[human]] [[body]] that affords us an opportunity to discern Her, and our own [[True Nature]]. |
Mother of All [[Buddhas]] (Satrig Ersang) | Mother of All [[Buddhas]] (Satrig Ersang) | ||
Line 56: | Line 56: | ||
The Stepmother | The Stepmother | ||
− | Seven days after giving [[birth]] to the [[Buddha]] of our eon, [[Mayadevi]] [[died]]. Legend has it that was [[reborn]] as a [[deva]] in the Trayatrimsha [[Heaven]] ruled by [[Indra]]. Her sister, and likely co-wife, [[Mahaprajapati]], raised the {{Wiki|prince}}. One [[tradition]] holds that there were 32 nurses appointed to his care: eight to carry him around, eight to suckle him, eight to bathe and dress him, and another eight just to amuse him. | + | Seven days after giving [[birth]] to the [[Buddha]] of our [[eon]], [[Mayadevi]] [[died]]. Legend has it that was [[reborn]] as a [[deva]] in the [[Trayatrimsha]] [[Heaven]] ruled by [[Indra]]. Her sister, and likely co-wife, [[Mahaprajapati]], raised the {{Wiki|prince}}. One [[tradition]] holds that there were 32 nurses appointed to his care: eight to carry him around, eight to suckle him, eight to bathe and dress him, and another eight just to amuse him. |
[[File:Uddha04.jpg|thumb|250px|]] | [[File:Uddha04.jpg|thumb|250px|]] | ||
Line 72: | Line 72: | ||
Dust of the [[rivers]] does murmur and weep | Dust of the [[rivers]] does murmur and weep | ||
Hard and sharp laughter that cuts to the bone | Hard and sharp laughter that cuts to the bone | ||
− | Ah, but ever face within your face does show | + | [[Ah]], but ever face within your face does show |
Going gladly now to give himself his own | Going gladly now to give himself his own | ||
And twelve yellow willows shall fellow the shallows | And twelve yellow willows shall fellow the shallows | ||
− | Small waves and thunder be my pillow | + | Small waves and [[thunder]] be my pillow |
Upon the gleaming [[water]] two swans that swim | Upon the gleaming [[water]] two swans that swim | ||
And every place shall be my native home | And every place shall be my native home | ||
− | The east gate like a fortress dissolve it away | + | The [[east]] gate like a fortress dissolve it away |
− | The west gate like a prison O come break it down | + | The [[west]] gate like a {{Wiki|prison}} O come break it down |
Island I remember living here | Island I remember living here | ||
Wandering beneath the [[empty]] skies | Wandering beneath the [[empty]] skies | ||
Line 87: | Line 87: | ||
In [[time]] her [[hair]] grew long and swept the ground | In [[time]] her [[hair]] grew long and swept the ground | ||
And seven blackbirds carried it out behind | And seven blackbirds carried it out behind | ||
− | It bore the holy imprint of her [[mind]] | + | It bore the {{Wiki|holy}} imprint of her [[mind]] |
As green-foot slow she moved among the seasons | As green-foot slow she moved among the seasons | ||
− | The great man, the great man, historians his [[memory]] | + | The great man, the great man, {{Wiki|historians}} his [[memory]] |
− | Artists his [[senses]], thinkers his {{Wiki|brain}} | + | {{Wiki|Artists}} his [[senses]], thinkers his {{Wiki|brain}} |
Labourers his growth | Labourers his growth | ||
Explorers his limbs | Explorers his limbs | ||
And soldiers his [[death]] each second | And soldiers his [[death]] each second | ||
− | And mystics his [[rebirth]] each second | + | And {{Wiki|mystics}} his [[rebirth]] each second |
− | Businessmen his nervous system | + | Businessmen his {{Wiki|nervous system}} |
− | No-hustle men his stomach | + | No-hustle men his {{Wiki|stomach}} |
[[Astrologers]] his [[balance]] | [[Astrologers]] his [[balance]] | ||
Lovers his loins | Lovers his loins | ||
His {{Wiki|skin}} it is all patchy | His {{Wiki|skin}} it is all patchy | ||
− | But soon will reach one | + | But soon will reach one glowing hue |
[[God]] is his [[soul]] | [[God]] is his [[soul]] | ||
[[Infinity]] his goal | [[Infinity]] his goal | ||
The {{Wiki|mystery}} his source | The {{Wiki|mystery}} his source | ||
− | And civilisation he leaves behind | + | And {{Wiki|civilisation}} he leaves behind |
Opinions are his fingernails | Opinions are his fingernails | ||
Line 112: | Line 112: | ||
Be thou the [[joyful]] player | Be thou the [[joyful]] player | ||
[[File:Buddhas.life.b.018.jpg|thumb|250px|]] | [[File:Buddhas.life.b.018.jpg|thumb|250px|]] | ||
− | The wanderer no [[sense]] does make | + | The {{Wiki|wanderer}} no [[sense]] does make |
His [[eyes]] [[being]] tied in the true love's knot | His [[eyes]] [[being]] tied in the true love's knot | ||
− | The [[trees]] perceive his [[soul]] | + | The [[trees]] {{Wiki|perceive}} his [[soul]] |
Do not detain him long | Do not detain him long | ||
Dear little [[animal]] dark-eyed and small | Dear little [[animal]] dark-eyed and small | ||
Caring for your fur with pointed paws | Caring for your fur with pointed paws | ||
− | This hawk of [[truth]] is swift and flies with a still cry | + | This {{Wiki|hawk}} of [[truth]] is swift and flies with a still cry |
A small sweetmeat to the [[eyes]] of night | A small sweetmeat to the [[eyes]] of night | ||
O dandelion be thou thine | O dandelion be thou thine | ||
− | Reflecting the {{Wiki|sun}} in sexual glory | + | Reflecting the {{Wiki|sun}} in {{Wiki|sexual}} glory |
In every-changing tongues | In every-changing tongues | ||
The every-changing story | The every-changing story | ||
Line 130: | Line 130: | ||
Blessed O blessed are they of the [[air]] | Blessed O blessed are they of the [[air]] | ||
Your [[eyes]] are the [[eyes]] | Your [[eyes]] are the [[eyes]] | ||
− | Of the | + | Of the glad land |
Ye twelve that will enter the seasons | Ye twelve that will enter the seasons | ||
The great ship, the ship of the [[world]] | The great ship, the ship of the [[world]] | ||
Long [[time]] sailing | Long [[time]] sailing | ||
− | Mariners, mariners, gather your skills | + | Mariners, mariners, [[gather]] your skills |
− | {{Wiki|Jesus}} and Hitler and Richard the [[Lion]] [[Heart]] | + | {{Wiki|Jesus}} and {{Wiki|Hitler}} and Richard the [[Lion]] [[Heart]] |
Three [[Kings]] and Moses and {{Wiki|Queen}} Cleopatra | Three [[Kings]] and Moses and {{Wiki|Queen}} Cleopatra | ||
The Cobbler, the Maiden | The Cobbler, the Maiden | ||
The mender and the maker | The mender and the maker | ||
The sickener and the twitcher | The sickener and the twitcher | ||
− | And the | + | And the glad undertaker |
The shepherd of willows | The shepherd of willows | ||
The harper and the archer | The harper and the archer |
Latest revision as of 14:07, 30 December 2014
The woman who gave birth to Buddha Shakyamuni is called in the scriptures, Mahamaya, meaning Great Mayar Mayadevi, the Goddess Maya. In Tibetan, she is called Gyutrulma. In English, she is generally called Queen Maya, a designation that obscures more than it reveals.
Maya is actually the Sanskrit term for Illusion in the sense of an interplay of Substance and Energy that contributes to our believing that there is something "there." (Substance itself can be variously analyzed or described. Buddhists refer to the skandhas or "heaps.") When our bodily organs of perception interact with the interplay, we usually call the product of the interaction, Reality. So Mahamaya actually means The Grandest Deception (or, Illusion) of all -- that which convinces us of Existence.
In the traditional Indian view generally called Hinduism, the three combinants are "personified" as great goddesses. (The other two are Shakti, that is Activity, and Prakriti -- Matter, or what we can call Nature.) There can be no life or existence without any of them, but we rely especially upon Maya. It is her conduct that makes the others perceptible, for without her we would have no access -- we would not be able to read existence or, reality.
In the Hindu tradition, Maya is also understood as the maiden-aspect of the Indian Mother goddess, Kali. She is Mahakali. She is our mother in the sense of the Giver of Perception.
Un-deified, Maya is a "veil of illusion," or a wondrous display, a magical dance -- a trick that employs distraction to keep us bound to samsara, the Wheel of Existences.
Maya is not a Trickster in the sense of an agent that purposely misleads or misguides. She is not Mara in disguise. Her majesty, ingenuity and intricacy generously permits us, or inspires us, to glimpse the possibility of "Enlightenment." It is our own failings that distract us from this objective.
Mythology
Maya's name appears also in Greco-Roman (or, Classical) mythology. There was extensive commercial contact between India and the Mediterranean lands long before the time of Alexander of Macedon (ca. 350 BCE.) However, whether the Greek name had a different origin or not, is not as relevant as the fact that there, Maya or Maia was an earth goddess. Maia is usually explained as meaning Maker, for she is seen as the cause of the spring season when all that we have seen die away before winter now springs back to life. Therefore we have come to use her name to designate (in the northern hemisphere,) May, the month of flowers -- the time of rebirth.
In the mythology of ancient Greece, Maia was once the youngest of the group of stars called the Pleiades (children of Pleione, another name for Aphrodite.) Atlas, their father, was a Titan who was punished for taking part in a revolt against the gods, and so was sentenced to bear the heavens [no, not the world on his shoulders. Unable to bear their father's humiliation, Maia and her sisters fled to highest heaven and can be seen there as the group known as The Pleiades.
But wait. Maia is called Grandmother of Magic. Seduced by Zeus, she gave birth to Hermes, the Transformer -- the one who is a Master of Disguise, a Trickster and the psycho-pomp (guide of souls to the land of the dead.) The planet Mercury is named for Hermes, and in Sanskrit the name is Budh.
The activity of the child, Hermes (Mercury, to the Romans) is reminiscent of the Indian god, Krishna. While still an infant, Hermes stole the cattle of the sun. From the shell of a tortoise, he created the lyre, and he also invented the flute from the hollow reeds of a marsh.
Barbara Walker (The Woman's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets, 1986) points out some other associations. Under the entry Maya:
"Magic," title of the Virgin Kali as the creatress of earthly appearances, i.e., all things made of matter and perceptible to the senses. She also gave birth to the Enlightened One, Buddha.
The same Goddess, called Maia by the Greeks, was the virgin mother to Hermes the Enlightened One, who had as many reincarnations as the Buddha. Sometimes Maia's partner was Volcanus (Greek Hephaestus, the divine smith and fire-god). This was another mythic mating of male fire and female water. Hindus said Agni the fire-god was the consort of Kali-Maya, though he was periodically swallowed up and "quenched" by her. According to the Tantric phrase, the Goddess quenched a blazing lingam in her yoni.
As the virgin mother of Buddha, Maya embarrassed ascetic Buddhists and was soon written out of the script. Like ascetic Christians speaking of Christ's birth, some Buddhists claimed the Enlightened One could not touch his mother's "parts of shame" and so was born through an opening in her side. This mythic Caesarian section seems to have been bungled, for a few days later Maya died -- "of joy," as Buddhist scriptures rather fatuously put it.
Nevertheless, Maya remained very much alive as one of Kali's most revered manifestations, because the very fact of "Existence"-- the material cosmos-demanded her presence. As Zimmer analyzed her:
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Maya-Shakti is personified as the world-protecting, feminine, maternal side of Ultimate Being, and as such, stands for spontaneous, loving acceptance of life's tangible reality . . . [S]he affirms, she is, she represents and enjoys, the delirium of the manifested forms . . . . Maya-Shakti is Eve, "the Eternal Feminine," das Ewig-Weibliche: she who ate, and tempted her consort to eat, and was herself the apple. From the point of view of the masculine principle of the Spirit (which is in quest of the enduring, eternally valid, and absolutely divine) she is the pre-eminent enigma.
In herself Maya embodies all three aspects of the maternal trinity. Her colors were white, red, and black, the colors of the Gunas, or the Virgin-Mother-Crone. Like every other form of Kali, she was Creator, Preserver, Destroyer. She was also a spirit dwelling perpetually in women. A Mahayana text says, "Of all the forms of Mayan is the most important."
Maya's son Buddha Shakyamuni was surrounded by her symbols. He entered his trance of meditation under her sacred fig tree, which protected him from the weather. On his return from the soul-journey, his first symbolic act was to accept a dish of curds from a maiden on Full Moon Day in the month of May, the greatest of Buddhist festivals.
Not only the month but many other traditions attest to the great age and wide distribution of the Goddess Maya. She was more than the Maia who mothered Hermes; she was also Maga the Grandmother- goddess who bore Cu Chulainn's mother; and the Mandaean Christian's Almaya, called "Eternity," or "the World," or "Beings"; and Maga or Maj the May-maiden in Scandinavia. Like the Hindu Maya who brought forth earthly appearances at creation, the Scandinavian one personified the pregnant womb of chaos before the beginning: Ginnungagap. In this the World-virgin was associated with the idea of magical illusion, creating "appearances" like her Hindu counterpart.
This universal Creatress-name may have reached the western hemisphere also. The Maya people of Yucatan offered sacrifices in the same way as in northern India, at the same seasons, determined by the same stars. Mayan "scorpion stars" were the same as the constellation Scorpio on Hindu and Greek charts. As in India, Mayan divine images were painted blue and Mayan women pierced the left nostril for insertion of a jewel. Another version of the Creatress seems to have been the Mother Goddess Mayauel of the Mexican Agave, called "Woman with Four Hundred Breasts," with a strong resemblance to the world-nurturing Many-Breasted Artemis and other eastern forms of the deity who mothered all the world's creatures.
Our Mother
Maya is not only the Buddha's mother; she is our mother too. Without her, we would not be here. Without the world of appearances, we could not be born in the precious human body that affords us an opportunity to discern Her, and our own True Nature.
Mother of All Buddhas (Satrig Ersang)
Maya's prophetic dream.
Right after the Birth, which was not "through her side."
Buddha returning to earth after repaying his mother's kindness.
Prayer, Repaying the Kindness of Mothers.
Robin Williamson lyrics for "Maya." *
Purchase remastered cd The Incredible Stringband's [Wee Tam &] The Big Huge, Elektra, orig. release, 1968.
The Stepmother
Seven days after giving birth to the Buddha of our eon, Mayadevi died. Legend has it that was reborn as a deva in the Trayatrimsha Heaven ruled by Indra. Her sister, and likely co-wife, Mahaprajapati, raised the prince. One tradition holds that there were 32 nurses appointed to his care: eight to carry him around, eight to suckle him, eight to bathe and dress him, and another eight just to amuse him.
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See the Tarot, the 21st or ultimate card of the major arcana, called The World.
Enlightenment: The word, bodhi is better translated, Awakening.
- Maya (Lyrics by Robin Williamson, The Incredible Stringband, 1967. )
MAYA (Robin Williamson. The Incredible String Band, 1967.)
Dust of the rivers does murmur and weep
Hard and sharp laughter that cuts to the bone
Ah, but ever face within your face does show
Going gladly now to give himself his own
And twelve yellow willows shall fellow the shallows
Small waves and thunder be my pillow
Upon the gleaming water two swans that swim
And every place shall be my native home
The east gate like a fortress dissolve it away
The west gate like a prison O come break it down
Island I remember living here
Wandering beneath the empty skies
In time her hair grew long and swept the ground
And seven blackbirds carried it out behind
It bore the holy imprint of her mind
As green-foot slow she moved among the seasons
The great man, the great man, historians his memory
Artists his senses, thinkers his brain
Labourers his growth
Explorers his limbs
And soldiers his death each second
And mystics his rebirth each second
Businessmen his nervous system
No-hustle men his stomach
Astrologers his balance
Lovers his loins
His skin it is all patchy
But soon will reach one glowing hue
God is his soul
Infinity his goal
The mystery his source
And civilisation he leaves behind
Opinions are his fingernails
Maya Maya
All this world is but a play
Be thou the joyful player
The wanderer no sense does make
His eyes being tied in the true love's knot
The trees perceive his soul
Do not detain him long
Dear little animal dark-eyed and small
Caring for your fur with pointed paws
This hawk of truth is swift and flies with a still cry
A small sweetmeat to the eyes of night
O dandelion be thou thine
Reflecting the sun in sexual glory
In every-changing tongues
The every-changing story
The book, man, bird, woman, serpent, sea, sun
Blessed O blessed are they of the air
Your eyes are the eyes
Of the glad land
Ye twelve that will enter the seasons
The great ship, the ship of the world
Long time sailing
Mariners, mariners, gather your skills
Jesus and Hitler and Richard the Lion Heart
Three Kings and Moses and Queen Cleopatra
The Cobbler, the Maiden
The mender and the maker
The sickener and the twitcher
And the glad undertaker
The shepherd of willows
The harper and the archer
All sat down in one boat together
Troubled voyage in calm weather.