Facts about Lakshmi
Often, Vishnu is pictured standing while Lakshmi sits on the ground leaning upon him.
Lakshmi is also commonly pictured in the presence of one or more elephants, a symbol of royal authority.
Sometimes, these elephants shower Lakshmi with water, which may serve to suggest the fertilizing power of rain.
By lighting lamps and creating a cacophonous clatter of pots and pans, Hindus believe that they are assisting Lakshmi as she banishes another demon, her older sister Alakshmi, associate with misfortune.
During the festival Lakshmi is invoked so as to mitigate the effects of the demon king's rule.
Later, when Lakshmi left the world after she was insulted by Indra, the world lost all its vigor and vitality in her absence, gaining it back only when she returned.
The boons requested or Lakshmi most commonly are marital fidelity, longevity of the marital partner, fertility of crops, and acquisition or preservation of wealth.
Lakshmi is worshiped during the Kaumudi-purnima festival where women venerate her on a mound of new grain, recounting a story of Lakshmi's disappearance resulting in the subsequent deterioration of crops.
Lakshmi is also closely associated with Indra, who at one point ruled over the entirety of the Vedic devas as the prevailing sky god.
Cosmologically, Lakshmi's fertility is conceived of as Vishnu's maya, that is, the magical power that allows him to spawn the material aspect of the universe.
Considering all these male consorts, as well as the general inconsistency of material fortune, it is not surprising that Lakshmi gained a reputation for being somewhat indecisive in character.
Lakshmi's traditionally accepted vehicle is the owl, a bird that sleeps through the day and prowls during the night.
Lakshmi and Vishnu are celebrated as the archetypal figures of marital bliss, and Lakshmi is recognized in her role as a devoted wife.
Just as Vishnu incarnates into the material world to restore dharma when it has declined, so too does Lakshmi, accompanying him in the form of his wife.
Lakshmi is thereafter linked to Lord Vishnu as his queen, and together they reside in Vaikuntha, his heavenly court.
People also put small candles outside their homes in the hope that Lakshmi will stop by to bless them.
Occasionally, Vishnu and Lakshmi are merged into one bisexual figure, suggesting their inseparable unity.
Lakshmi's main consort is Vishnu, the exalted god responsible for preservation of the universe.
The Vedic Sri transformed into later conceptions of Lakshmi as the matron of royalty and dignity.
Throughout her history, Shri-Lakshmi has also played the role of a wife or queen to various other divine monarchs in the Hindu pantheon.
Lakshmi's association with the fertile earth and Indra's association with the sky and other celestial phenomenon marks them as the archetypal mythological pair of earth mother and sky god.
Often, it is Lakshmi who acts as the advocate for the request of a given mortal.
One myth tells the story of how Lakshmi's association with Indra caused him to pour down fertile rains, thereby allowing crops to grow.
Physically, Lakshmi is depicted as a radiant, shapely woman dressed in exquisite garments and precious jewels.
Lakshmi arises from the churned ocean of milk (earning her the epithet Jalaja or "daughter of the sea") and is immediately attracted to Vishnu in his position of authority.
The early Vedas do not give mention Lakshmi by name but they do praise Shri, one of her various epithets.
Lakshmi (Sanskrit: ??????? lak?m?) is the Hindu goddess of wealth, luck, royalty, beauty and fertility.
Most notably, Lakshmi incarnated as Sita, wife of Rama, the seventh avatar, as well as Radha, consort of Krishna, the eighth avatar.
In another fitting match, Lakshmi was also associated with Kubera, king of the forest-dwelling race of gods called Yaksas.
Considering the importance of these boons, and her reliable reputation for granting good luck, Lakshmi has established herself as one of the most widely worshiped Hindu deities.