Today, we are delighted to introduce Maa Santoshi (goddess). Namaste!
Although one may find little literature on Maa Santoshi. She is one of the unsung deities of Hindu Religion.
Santoshi comes from the Hindi word Santosh. Santosh means content and happy. Goddess Santoshi is a symbol of content, love, hope, forgiveness and happiness. She has very less room in Hindu scriptures.
Even modern day gurus and scholars have little knowledge about her. I truly feel her importance and value in contemporary times, where everyone is running for being no 1. This rat-race has killed the feeling of satisfaction and happiness within us. We have stopped accepting reality and want more of everything.
Whether it’s money, time, wealth or fame. But, have we realised the value of contentment ? No, not yet.
Hence, we need to focus on our basic needs and wants. We should be happy and content with whatever we have. Nothing more, nothing less, only apt. This is what we needed to learn from this goddess.
How did Maa Santoshi born?
Maa Santoshi is a granddaughter of Lord Shiva and Daughter of Lord Ganesha and has very little mention in religious text. As per Ganesh Puran, on the day of rakhi purnima ; Raksha Bandhan, Shiva family was celebrating Raksha Bandhan. Goddess Mansa tied Rakhi on the wrist of his brother Lord Ganesha.
In return, Lord Ganesha gave gifts to her. After watching this both the sons of Lord Ganesha asked him for a sister to celebrate the festival. In the beginning, Lord Ganesha refused the demand.
Later, persistent requests by both of his sons melted his heart away. Sage Narada was also present there. Lord Ganesha and both his wives Riddhi and Siddhi ignited the pious flames from their hands and gave birth to the goddess Santoshi.
What is the appearance of Maa Santoshi?
Goddess of happiness and satisfaction happily sitting on lotus with a smile on her beautiful face. She is sitting on lotus floating over the sea of milk. lotus symbolises the state of being pure and complete in itself despite being into the ocean of greed and desires.
Prominently, she is a four- handed goddess wearing a red saree. She is sitting in Padmasana (cross legged position). She holds a sword in one hand and a trident in another hand. Her rear hand is having a bowl of sugar and her fourth hand is in Varah mudra (showing palm) with . Both the weapons in her hand represent her power of destroying the toxins of greed, desire and selfishness from the human being.
Additionally, the bowl of Mishri ( crystallised sugar) symbolises the peace, harmony and simplicity of life. Further, her fourth hand is in varaha mudra which symbolises giving and forgiving.
And, she is wearing a garland of flowers along with gold ornaments. Her head is crowned with golden crown. All the deities in hinduism has great significane and influence in our lives. So is Santoshi Maa in our lives has a special value.
How to worship Maa Santoshi?
Indeed, Goddess Santoshi is a kind hearted version of Goddess Durga. She is gentle, calm and peace loving. She sympathises with her devotees and takes care of their happiness and harmony. Goddess Santoshi is worshipped with great devotion all over the country.
Friday is considered an auspicious day for her. Her followers observe fast for 16 consecutive fridays to fulfil their wish.
- On the day shukrawar vrat( friday fast) women take a head bath early in the morning.
- Her followers place a picture of goddess Santoshi on a clean table covered with a piece of red cloth.
- They install a kalash (pot) filled with clean water and coconut over it.
- Devotees keep jaggery and Chana (roasted gram horse) as her bhog.
- They also offer flowers, banana and kumkum to deity. After lighting a lamp in desi ghee, women read a loud vrat katha in front of deity.
- Lastly, they recite aarti.
What not to do?
Be cautious, sour foods are strictly prohibited. After observing fast for the whole day, in the evening , devotee take simple food without khata (sour) and jaggery and chana as prasad.
It is advised to observe the fast with full devotion and determination for 16 consecutive Fridays makes the goddess happy.
Moreover, she blesses her devotees by filling their wishes and vanishing all the negative energies from their lives.
Devotees organise Udhyapan (concluding ceremony) at the end where eight boys are offered a feast without sour items.
Which special story to be heard on the fasting day?
Once, there was an old widow in a village. She used to live with her seven sons and seven daughter-in-laws. All of them were working except the younger one. He used to be lazy and non working.
Once, his wife said to him that your mother serves you leftover food of your elder brothers. He denied and said that I will check first myself. After few days, there was a celebration of festival at home in which variety of food was cooked and served. To check the accuracy he made excuse to be sick and slept in the kitchen. He was watching beneath his bedsheets. His mother served all the tasty and delicious food to all the seven elder brothers.
Lastly, when they were done, she took left overs from their used dishes and served in a new dish. She called him for lunch. After watching this he felt furious and left the home for finding suitable job outside the village.
He suddenly recalled his wife who was making cakes out of cow dungs in the backyard of the house. He told her that he is leaving for a job and she should take care of herself. She also replied that he should not worry about her and go calmly to find a good job.
She asked for a thing from him as a souvenir. He gave his ring to her. In return , she made an impression of her hands filled with cow dung on his back.
He went to a remote area and found a job under a merchant. He started working under him for mere salary. He worked hard for the job and learned all the transactions and accounting of the shop.The merchant was happy with his hard work and determination and made him partner of 50% of profit within seven days.
In 12 years, he became a famous businessman and the merchant handed over all the business to him and went to the foreign country.
Here in the village, the daughter in law was troubled by father in law and mother in law. She was made to do all the household chores and served half the food she needed. She was sent to jungles to collect wood.
Once, while collecting wood from the jungle she saw many women performing puja. She stopped and heard the Santoshi maa vrat katha from their mouths. She asked those women who were performing the Maa Santoshi Vrat about the goddess, procedure of performing fast and rules of this puja. One of the women told her about santoshi mata vrat katha. This is to worship the goddess.
One who worshipped goddess and observe fast get all the happiness.The person is blessed with wealth, money, goodluck, happiness, harmony by the deity. All the poverty, calamity, worries and tensions wiped out.
Barren woman gets the child. Unmarried girls get married to suitable guy. Married woman are blessed with luck and love of husband. Court cases are resolved. Any quarrel in the house or any misfortune vanishes by observing this fast.
One should be determined to be pious and well willed to perform puja without touching and eating khatta (sour) food in the house.
One should offer jaggery and chana to goddess according to demand and need of time and as per the devotion and money constraints.
Within 3 months, goddess fulfil the wish. On fulfilment of desire, one need to perform Udyapan (concluding ceremony). In udayapan, devotee has to make poori out of 2.5 kg wheat flour, kheer( dessert) of milk and rice and chana.
All this food should be offered to eight boys. These boys can be from family and friends. If couldn’t arrange from family they could be from Brahmin family. It should be carefully examined that none of the boys eat sour item.
Even, at home also no one should eat sour food in the house. She went back to home.
Next Friday, she went to jungle to collect wood and sold those woods in market. Whatever money she got by selling woods she bought jaggery and chana. She went to the temple and prayed to goddess with weeping she said, “Maa, I am ignorant woman, helpless and very sad. Please, help me. Hey Goddess! please be kind and take away all my sorrows and pains. Goddess got compassion, one Friday pass another Friday she received a letter from Husband. Third Friday she received money from Him.
Her family members made taunts on her that she will become haughty by getting so much money. Daughter-in-law was sad and went to temple and cried in front of the deity that I don’t want money, I want to see my husband. The Goddess thought of reminding her husband about his wife. While he was sleeping, Goddess went to his dream and ask him to go back to his village. He went back to the village after lighting a diya ( lamp)of ghee (clarified butter) by taking name of Maa Santoshi and all his work completed.
Daughter-in-law used to take rest at the temple every day. While she was relaxing, she noticed dusty and windy air. She asked the goddess why so much dust is there in the air.
Goddess replied your husband is coming. Now, go and be ready and make three bundles of these woods. Keep one near the river so that the traveller will make food and have rest then will go back to village. And, take rest of the bundles to home. After returning to the village, he met all his family members and saw his wife in a poor state.
He recognised her after watching the ring in her finger. He asked his mother for another floor to stay. He went to the third floor of the house and started staying like a king.
Daughter-in-law was very happy and asked her husband to perform udyapan. She invited sons of her sister -in -law for the feast. She was decieved by the children as they ate imli( sour fruit) just after the feast.
This angered goddess resulting in misfortune to daughter-in -law. She asked for mercy from goddess and promised to do the udyapan again more carefully and responsibly. This time, her udayapan was done correctly.
Goddess blessed her with a beautiful son. She used to visit the temple with her son daily. One day, goddess decided to visit her house and went to her house in a scarry awatar. This made all the family members afraid. But, daughter-in-law recognised goddess and went to her.
Her whole family asked for forgiving their misdeeds. Goddess blessed them with love and prosperity.
Hope you like the write-up. There are many temples in India and abroad all devoted to Maa Santoshi. We will be covering the details in upcoming blogs.
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