The Lakshmi of Lakshmi Puja is not Mayadevi

Lakshmi is a goddess in Hinduism, and she is considered to hold great importance in society. She is regarded as the goddess of wealth, and there is a belief in Hindu society that if she can be pleased, one can earn wealth and attain prosperity. That is why Lakshmi is worshipped. Moreover, one day in a year is specially observed as Lakshmi Puja. In Tihar, which is celebrated for five days as Yamapanchak, Lakshmi Puja falls on the third day. But this article is not a discussion about this goddess Lakshmi; rather, it is about dispelling the confusion spread by Buddhists themselves in Buddhist society, claiming that she is not Lakshmi but Mayadevi, the mother of Gautam Buddha.

Among Buddhists in India and Nepal nowadays, there is a growing tendency to look at everything only through a Buddhist lens and to claim everyone and everything as Buddhist. At a time when incidents of Hinduisation of not only the teachings of Gautam Buddha, but also Buddhist artworks, Buddhist sites, and many other subjects are being exposed one after another, it is natural for such doubts to arise. Once doubt arises, curiosity increases and study begins. Study leads to a conclusion of whether it is true or not. In this process, it must be assumed that doubt has arisen among Buddhists regarding Lakshmi and Lakshmi Puja. Although it has not really been refuted from the Hindu point of view, here this doubt, assumption, or claim is refuted from the Buddhist point of view itself.

Although in Hinduism as a whole, Lakshmi is accepted as one goddess, it is found that Lakshmi also has many names. One of those names is Gajalakshmi. In the image of Lakshmi worshipped during Lakshmi Puja, Gajalakshmi is usually found. She is being bathed with water by two elephants on her right and left. It is found that Buddhists have claimed this very Gajalakshmi to be Mayadevi, the mother of Gautam Buddha. According to them, the worship offered to Buddha's mother Mayadevi was Hinduised and came to be called Lakshmi and Lakshmi Puja. This confusion is not among all Buddhists, but it is spreading, first from India and now in Nepal, among a limited section. Now the question arises, what is the basis for this confusion spreading among Buddhists?

In the context of Mayadevi, the episode of the elephant comes up once. Mayadevi had dreamed that a white elephant had entered her womb. In reality, this is a sign that Bodhisattva Shvetaketu, who was in the Tushita heaven, had come to earth to attain Buddhahood. Ten months later a child is born, and that same child (Bodhisattva) attains Buddhahood at the age of thirty-five and becomes the Buddha. At the time when he became famous by the name Gautam Buddha after attaining Buddhahood, mother Mayadevi was no longer alive. She had died on the seventh day after giving birth to the child.

There is no custom or tradition of worshipping Mayadevi in Buddhist society. This is also not a logical thing. The reason Gautam Buddha is worthy of worship is that he attained Buddhahood. Just because he is worthy of worship does not automatically make his relatives also worthy of worship. In Buddhism, first and foremost the Samyaksambuddha, and then Arhats and Bodhisattvas, are worthy of worship. Devas are also beings entangled in suffering and who have not yet attained liberation, like other beings, and therefore are not worthy of worship. Buddha and Arhats are worthy of worship because they have destroyed defilements and have been liberated from the cycle of birth and death. Since Arhats and Bodhisattvas are innumerable, they do not have the same status as the Buddha. Speaking of relatives, Gautam Buddha's father Shuddhodana, stepmother Prajapati Gautami, wife Yashodhara, some brothers, and elder sister were Arhats. But mother Mayadevi was not an Arhat. After death, Mayadevi was reborn in the Trayastrimsha heaven as a devaputra. According to Buddhist accounts, he went to the Tushita heaven to preach the Dhamma to his mother who had shown him compassion by giving birth to him. There he preached the Dhamma for three months to her and other devas and returned. According to this account, Mayadevi was not an Arhat and there is no need to worship her.

In some Buddhist sites including Sanchi, sculptures are found depicting a woman with elephants on her right and left. On this basis alone, it can be understood that this has been taken as a sculpture of Mayadevi. This bears resemblance to Gajalakshmi. But it is not Mayadevi. From the Buddhist point of view, the meaning of this sculpture is not clear. Therefore, study should be done in this regard; that is a separate matter.

Lakshmi, who is popular in Hindu society, is not a Buddhist character. To consider her as Buddhist and to go around claiming accordingly is a lack of sufficient knowledge about Buddhist philosophy and tradition. Even so, there remains a need for further information. On the very day of Lakshmi Puja, in Nepal, Newar Buddhists have a custom of worshipping Goddess Vasundhara in their Aagam room, calling it Lakshmi Puja. Lakshmi and Vasundhara are not the same, but both are related to wealth. Possibly, because Hindus worship on this day in connection with wealth, under that very influence, Buddhists also worshipped their own Vasundhara according to their own faith. This Vasundhara has no relation to Mayadevi. Similarly, in Newar society, there is a custom of worshipping Mahalakshmi on this day. Lakshmi and Mahalakshmi are also not the same; the character and importance of the two are found to be different. Mahalakshmi is worshipped by tantric methods, which may even be objectionable to Hindus who perform traditional Lakshmi Puja. Even the form of the picture used to worship Lakshmi and Mahalakshmi is different.

It is a very sensitive matter that Buddhist subjects are being encroached upon and misinterpreted over time. In view of this, it is good that Buddhists nowadays are beginning to become aware. But in the name of becoming aware, going around calling everything Buddhist and stubbornly insisting on it is counterproductive. Mistaking Gajalakshmi for Mayadevi due to a lack of necessary information about one's own self is a lack of knowledge. At the same time, the fact that there is no tradition of worshipping Mayadevi in Buddhist society and that it is also not logical ultimately puts Buddhists to shame.