Kamala (Sanskrit for Lotus, which I had mentioned previously in La Femme Nikki? where I had hoped for a Haley-Harris competition) Harris’ grandfather – on her mother’s side – retired in Besant Nagar, close to Adyar, where my maternal grandfather settled (and that is why I was born there), famous for:
The Theosophical Society, is headquartered in Adyar. The campus, located on the south bank of the Adyar river provides a calm environment for quiet contemplation on comparative religion.
Named after the noted lady theosophist Annie Besant, Besant Nagar is one of the most preferred areas to reside in Chennai due to the presence of the beach.
And IIT-Madras, my alma mater, is not that far away. Following up on my previous post, Stotras to the Artificial, I did receive confirmation from Kaviraj Nair (CEO, Office of Institutional Advancement, IIT-M) about Usha Vance’s dad (and uncle and grandfather):
Lotus is an important flower in Indian mythology, as noted in Science (Vol. XVI. No. 410. Pp. 330. December 12, 1890):
The Botanical Mythology of Hindoos.
The queen of Indian flowers is the lotus…The allusions to this flower by Indian poets are innumerable. No praise is too extravagant for it.
Growing up, of course, I was naturally acquainted with Red and White versions, the former symbolizing Lakshmi (also called Sri (or Shri) or Padma, the anthropomorphized synonym for Kamala), Goddess of Wealth, whose consort is Vishnu, the Protector God, one of the Tri-Devas – The Hindu Trinity – who is also therefore known as Sri-dhara, One who holds Sri in his Heart), and the latter color symbolizing Saraswati, Goddess of Skillful Knowledge.
Here is an excerpt from Sri Suktam from the Rig Veda:
I hereby invoke Sri who is the embodiment of absolute bliss;
who is the embodiment of the fulfillment of all wishes;
who is seated on the lotus and is beautiful like the lotus.
Only later, I became aware that Blue Lotus is originally from the Nile, and is of importance in Egyptian and other mythologies.
Speaking about bliss, I could not help resist closing with this email ☺️:
