I never
asked for this. I never asked for any of this. I never asked for her. But here
I am with the love of my life – the goddess of wealth, fortune, and prosperity
herself, Lakshmi. My wife had a strange and complicated history before she
chose me to be her husband. She was the daughter of the asuras (or demons) and
was previously wedded to Indra, the king of the devas (or gods). The problem
was, no one seemed to appreciate Lakshmi for anything except the wealth and
beauty she brings. The asuras trapped her into the ground so they could preserve
the wealth of gold and minerals. After Indra made Lakshmi his wife, she
presented him with three gifts: a wish fulfilling tree, cow, and gem. It’s not
every day you can get such extravagant gifts from a beautiful being. For this
reason, Indra was worried and fearful that she would leave for someone worthier
than him, which may be true now but it wasn’t at the time. So before she could
have the possibility of realizing Indra’s faults, he lashed out and subconsciously
created reasons for her to leave. He became more hedonistic, bringing more
women and wine home to indulge in simple pleasures. Soon after, Lakshmi became
tired of his behavior and left him to become the ocean of milk.
Now, this
is where I came in. Indra, devastated by the loss of his wife, asked me to find
a way to get her back. To which I replied that he must offer a beautiful
mandala and churn the milk to make her form. Indra followed my suggestions and
brought over every deva he could to help churn the milk around a mountainous
island. Upon realizing that the threads of the mandala would ruin and separate
once it’s placed in the ocean, Indra feared he could not perform such task to
win back his wife. I, being a good friend, turned into a turtle avatar Kurma for
him to set the mandala on my back so it would be dry and safe as we churned the
milk. However, our efforts were futile because we were simply going in one
direction. It was then that I brought the asuras over to help, regardless of
their feud with the devas. If it wasn’t for their desire to get their daughter
back, the asuras would have never agreed to help. Together, the devas and
asuras worked together, going in opposite directions churn the milk ocean and
give form to their beloved Lakshmi.
Once
formed, both the devas and the asuras celebrated for the return of the goddess,
and begged her to decide who she wanted to go home with: Indra in the heavens
or the asuras in the subterranean realms. This was when Lakshami chose me. Her
reasoning? She hated that the asuras only wanted to keep her and her treasures
buried deep beneath the grounds and that Indra and the other devas only
cherished her for the treasures she gave them. Everyone took her for granted. Everyone except
me apparently. Lakshmi claimed me as her husband because I saw her for who she
was and did not try to control or possess her. To the dismay of the asuras and
the other devas, they lost their most prized possession, while I gained the
best thing I could have never asked for.
 |
| Vishnu and Lakshmi |
Author's Note: Part C of Pattanik's "Seven Secrets of Vishnu" discussed Lakshmi's story with the Indra and the asuras, and also discussed Vishnu, his second avatar (Kurma), and Lakshmi's newfound love for him. I thought this development was interesting and was almost a twisted Romeo and Juliet story but instead, Juliet ends up with Mercutio in the end. I wanted to view this story from Vishnu's point of view because it seemed like he did absolutely nothing to try to win Lakshmi's love, but he got her in the end and their love becomes everlasting.
Bibliography: Devdutt Pattanik's "Seven Secrets of Vishnu"
