by Terry McCombs
Terry McCombs maintained the "God/dess of the Month Club" on soc.religion.paganism for several years, producing monthly cross-cultural deity profiles. His November 2003 entry honored Sarasvati, the Hindu goddess whose name means "Flowing Water" — the river of learning that runs through all culture.
Sarasvati is the goddess of speech, knowledge, music, and the arts; she is said to have invented the Sanskrit language itself so that she could write down the four Vedas. Her festival, Vasant Panchami, is celebrated in late January or February, and libraries and schools are considered her temples. McCombs traces her correspondences across traditions — finding her counterparts in Nabu of Babylon, Thoth of Egypt, Athena of Greece, and Ogma of the Celts — the same principle of wisdom-made-word, learning made sacred.
Preserved here from the Usenet archive as a working document of early internet-era comparative paganism.
Name: Sarasvati ("Flowing Water"). Also: Sarawati, Yang can-ma (Tibetan), Vak Devi (Goddess of Speech), Brahmi (First Female Principle), Sha-tarupa (Hundred Formed), Savitri (Life-giver).
Symbols: Lotus, veena or vina (Indian stringed instrument), book or scroll, peacock, white swan or goose, the colors white and yellow.
Usual Image: A beautiful woman wearing yellow or white with four hands — representing the four aspects of human personality in learning: mind, intellect, alertness, and ego. In her hands she holds a veena, a book, a lotus, and prayer beads. Sometimes shown holding a drum or a pen, or making a sign of blessing. She sits on a peacock or a white swan or goose.
Rules: Goddess of learning, knowledge, speech, and music. She is said to have invented the Sanskrit language and to be the direct inspiration for all science.
Holy Books: The Vedas — and really all books, particularly those about science, learning, scholarship, or music.
Holy Days: Vasant Panchami or Saraswati Day, celebrated every year on the 5th day of the bright fortnight of the lunar month of Magha (generally late January to mid-February). It is believed to be her birthday.
Place of Worship: Altars situated in libraries and all places of learning.
Major Taboos: Disrespect for learning and knowledge. Some say that Sarasvati and the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi, are jealous rivals — and that pursuing wealth alone will assure that Sarasvati's gifts will desert you. This may go some way toward explaining why so many rich people can act so stupidly, as well as the whole "impoverished scholar" phenomenon.
Relatives: Brahma (father or consort). Some say she was the first being created by Brahma when he divided himself, making her the female half; others that she was born from a gush of water from his side. Others say that Shiva is her father and Durga her mother. In Buddhism she is the consort of Manjushri, the bodhisattva of wisdom.
Form of Worship: As with other Vedic goddesses: flowers, incense, prayers, chants.
Synodeities: Nabu (Babylonian), Thoth (Egyptian), Athena (Greek), Minerva (Roman), Bo Hsian (Taoist), Mimir (Norse/Icelandic), A'as (Hittite), Ifa (West African), Ogma (Celtic).
In one version of the Vedic creation myth, Sarasvati was the first being created after Brahma — some say his female half, others that she flowed out of him as the first river. Shortly after she came into being, she walked shyly around him, and Brahma was seized by the first lust.
So great was his desire that as she walked around him he grew another face at each of the four directions so that he would not have to turn his head to see her, and when she floated above him he grew a fifth face on top of his head. (This fifth face was later burned off by Shiva.)
Each of the four faces began to speak poetry directed at the goddess. Because of this, she invented writing so that these words could be preserved — and thus was Sanskrit born, so that she could write down the four Vedas.
After this, they retired into seclusion for 147,688,000 years — one hundred divine years — during which they created everything that exists. There are other myths in which she has different and sometimes less auspicious origins, and among the Buddhists she is a human, a bodhisattva, but still a human.
However, in almost all versions she is the goddess of speech, learning, wisdom, and music. She is said to be the direct inspiration of all science and scholarship. As well as the inventor of Sanskrit — one of the world's oldest written languages — which some claim in its pure form is capable of fantastic things: chants that can cause things to burst into flames, that can change reality.
As an inveterate reader, I have to pay my respects to a goddess about whom it is said that all libraries and places of learning are her temples.
Colophon
Written and posted by Terry McCombs to soc.religion.paganism in November 2003 as part of his monthly "God/dess of the Month Club" series, which profiled deities from across the world's traditions. Original Message-ID: [email protected].
Preserved from the Usenet archive for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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