Thursday 28 January 2021

January Full Moon Altar: Lakshmi


My first altar of the new year honours Lakshmi, Hindu Goddess of Abundance. She confers wealth and all the good things of life -- everything that money can and cannot buy. The way to honour Lakshmi is to display gratitude and thankfulness for what she has already given us, not to complain about or focus on what we lack.

Her sacred colours of red and gold are reflected in the red satin altar cloth, the white candles wrapped with gold ribbon and the gold (chocolate) coins which surround her.  Two tarot cards complete the altar, each one being the Nine of Pentacles, often called the "Plenty Card." The left card is from the Morgan-Greer deck and the right is from the Triumph of Life deck.

A friend gave me this lovely statue of Lakshmi about 12 years ago. She had bought it at an auction, thinking she was buying only one statue but then discovered she had, in fact, bought a case lot of twelve! Talk about abundance! So she had a lot of them to give away, LOL! I wrote a poem about it which you can read here, if you want.

May Lakshmi shower us all with abundance this year and every year!

But don't worry, she is firmly opposed to any spread of Covid-19 abundance, because it is most certainly NOT a good thing of life.


[Photo of Lakshmi Altar © Debra She Who Seeks, January 2021]

40 comments:

baili said...

hahahaahaha
the last image came all of sudden and made me laugh hahaha

how sweet of your friend to give you such lovely gift ,India is neighboring country and there culture is much popular in people of our country through tv shows
fascinating yes kind of :)
blessings ,health peace to you my dear Debra!

Sixpence Notthewiser said...

Ohhhh I'm all in for this.
Love the altar! Lakshmi sounds like my kind of goddess.
And I share her disdain for the virus. What's not to like?

XOXO

^.^ said...

Thank you for making me smile:) cat.

Parnassus said...

Hello Debra, Is your altar supposed to represent an abundance of gold or an abundance of chocolate?

The difference of perspective is interesting. Lakshmi produces an abundance, so there is always more at the time of need. My Fighting Money God, on the other hand, fights to keep the treasure he has, reflecting a mindset of scarcity.
--Jim
p.s. I especially love today's cartoon!

Marie Smith said...

Love the chuckle at the end. It looks like the goddess of abundance does deliver however, according to your friend’s auction success. Hope the goddess delivers for all of us, Debra. If asking helps, vaccine, please.

Bob said...

If Lakshmi can wash her hands, nobody has an excuse not to do likewise!

anne marie in philly said...

we SHOULD be grateful for what we have. and we DON'T want COVID-19! I snorted at the cartoon. and the altar is lovely.

pam nash said...

Ohhhhh nice. Makes me think I should be more proactive with my small alter.

Lady M said...

Very nicely put together. I am cracking up over the hand washing.

jono said...

Imagine the massage that Lakshmi could give!

Moving with Mitchell said...

Poor Lakshmi. And to think WE’VE been complaining. I'd put some aloe vera on that altar.

Leanna said...

That virus cartoon made me giggle. It would be perfect above a sink in a doctor's office or hospital.

Guillaume said...

Must be hard for her during the pandemic.

brewella deville said...

Very nice. A lot of small business owners around here set up small altars like this, but I've never asked about them because I don't know if that would be considered intrusive, insensitive, or rude. I'm looking forward to learning more about your altars.

Mistress Maddie said...

Now that was a intresting read. I know you mentioned you have many statues. Where do you keep them all? At the end, a over all picture of them all together, would be cool to see I bet.

bobbie said...

Beautifully done, and i love the giggle at the end!

e said...

Love your altar. I missed this full moon - I saw it as I was going to visit my dad last night... oops. I'll have to put the rest on my calendar.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

@ Mistress Maddie -- I keep about a dozen or so scattered throughout my apartment, but the rest of them are kept in a special wall cabinet. It's crowded but they're safe from breakage and behind glass so I don't have to dust them constantly! That's the problem with collections, isn't it -- where do you keep them all?!?!

Rommy said...

Very cool altar. And how lucky were you to get a statue for free? Hopefully you'll get an abundance of health this full moon.

Boud said...

I really like the idea of these little altars. And Lakshmi lived up to her reputation at the auction! One of me? Take twelve!

Martha said...

LOL! Love the alter and the ending here was perfect!

Magic Love Crow said...

Beautiful Debra! I love her and I love the altar! I am still laughing with your cartoon! LOL! Big Hugs!

Joanne Noragon said...

How happy she looks. And has a toe ring. My daughter has a toe ring that has not been removed since it went on (she says). And she's an executive these days.

Martha said...

I LOVE your alter. That statue is gorgeous.

Mike said...

The Goddess of Abundance has blessed my body.

Brian Joseph said...

It is a very nice alter. I like the colors.


I really live the last image :)

peppylady (Dora) said...

I just got my yule altar taken down and haven't yet put up my Imbolc altar. Life doesn't always go my way. But it been good life.
Coffee is on and stay safe

Kirk said...

With that many hands she needs an abundance of soap.

G. B. Miller said...

Love the dirty look she's giving in the toon. Brilliant!

Kay G. said...

Haha all those hands to wash! Like we shouldn't complain about our hair, what about Medusa? 😀

Fundy Blue said...

The altar is beautiful, and the statue of Lakshmi is exquisite, Debra. Focusing on gratitude and thankfulness is a powerful source for good in one's life. I know I've been showered with the good things in life. Have a good one!

This N That said...

I saw that moon lat night..Gorgeous..I hope you stay on Lakshmis' good side..Glad I don'e have all those hand s to wash..I can always count on you for a chuckle..

Forsythia said...

Just finished a novel about India and, thanks to your post, I realize the irony in the name of one of the key characters. Her name is Lakshmi. She was born wealthy, but was married to an idealist who gave up his wealth to work for Indian independence. She never forgave him.

Suz said...

I love her and I love this altar.
That last photo really cracked me up. My sentiments exactly!

Richard said...

Very nice. Poor Lakshmi, with all those hands to wash! She can do it!🖖🤲🤝👐🖐💖

DVArtist said...

You altar is really beautiful. Nice giggles too.

Rain said...

That is a beautiful altar Debra. I love how you explained all of the details and the significance!

miruspeg said...

Debra may you always be blessed with abundance.
Hugs
Peggy xxx

Adam said...

Handwashing must be a chore

The Captain said...

I love this 🤩