Invoking Lakshmi: The Goddess of Wealth in Song and Ceremony - Hardcover

A multifaceted portrait of Lakshmi, Hindu goddess of wealth and prosperity. Includes translations of verses used to invoke this goddess.

Beautiful, beloved Lakshmi is the Hindu goddess of wealth, happiness, and abundant good fortune. This fascinating book is the first comprehensive guide to this celebrated goddess, her worship, and the deeper spiritual domain of prosperity she reveals. Constantina Rhodes presents over five hundred elegantly translated Sanskrit verses, including devotional songs, mantras, visualizations, and ceremonial instructions that devotees use to invoke Lakshmi.

Rhodes uses these texts to develop a richly detailed portrait of Lakshmi, revealing unexpected dimensions of this enigmatic deity. Even as Lakshmi is best known as a goddess of wealth and well-being, she also maintains a strong esoteric presence, expressing herself as Siddhi, the magnificent Tantric goddess of spiritual power, and as Kundalini Shakti, the transformative cosmic force that exists within each individual. These identities express the “prosperity consciousness” that is the essential nature of the goddess and the divine source of all wealth. Invoking Lakshmi is not only a matter of calling upon the external form of the goddess but also of aligning one’s consciousness with the very essence of prosperity.

Rhodes is a skilled scholar of ancient texts ... She is also a fine writer and a person who has a very deep appreciation of Hindu spirituality herself. In this highly readable book on the goddess Lakshmi, Rhodes analyzes and integrates material from a wide range of traditional sources ... Highly recommended. CHOICE

Constantina Rhodes teaches in the Program in Religion at the City University of New York’s Hunter College. Her books include Shaiva Devotional Songs of Kashmir: A Translation and Study of Utpaladeva’s Shivastotravali and Meditations on Shiva: The Shivastotravali of Utpaladeva, both also published by SUNY Press.