Age of Śaktī

Moon represents Ambikā who manifests as Durgā and all the śaktī of
the various devatā. She is the bindu which gives life to every akṣara.
If the akṣara represent the deva having the power to enlighten, their
very existence and identity depends on the soma-rasa (milk of
kindness) they receive from the Moon-mother. The bindu, by nature
is simply red, like the blood. And like the blood of the mother, it
creates every creature and gods as well. And yet the colour of the
blood is the same for all although it carries the body-code (DNA?) to
match the creature or the god to be created.

Tridevī Rūpa
The śaktī of the devatā manifests as mother, spouse and daughter –
in that order. The Śiva Purāṇa teaches that for knowledge worship
Sarasvatī and always help and feed young girls. These are the
daughters of men and must be looked after and fed so that the
society survives. They must be educated so that the society is
civilized. They must be taught the mantras and dharma else when
they become mothers, how can they teach their young ones. The
Śiva Purāṇa continues that for wealth and prosperity always help and
feed women. In this the most holy purāṇa is referring to middle
aged ladies who are married and have the power from a blessing of
Viṣṇu for sthiti – saṅsāra. They represent Lakṣmī devī and mere
worship of Lakṣmī without helping middle age women is not as
fruitful. The Śiva Purāṇa concludes that for true spiritual direction
always seek blessings of old women. Older women represent Pārvatī
and Ādi Śaṅkara sings गतिस्त्वं गतिस्त्वं त्वमे का भवानि (gatistvaṁ
gatistvaṁ tvamekā bhavāni[1]) showing that without Pārvatī it’s
impossible to reach Śiva. Without the bindu (dot), the nāda (crescent
moon) cannot be found.

Pañcadaśī: Age of Śaktī

A simple way to calculate the age of the Moon is progressing at 4
years per tithi. For example, if the tithi is śukla pakṣa daśamī the
tenth, age of śaktī = 4 × 10 = 40 years

Let s examine the age of the Tridevī used in the Pañcadaśī mantra.
1. Sarasvatī = क-ए-इ-ल-ह्रीं (k-e-i-l-hrīṁ) = 5 bīja = 5 tithi; Age of
Sarasvatī = 5 × 4 = 20 years. Therefore, in the pañcadaśī mantra
Sarasvatī is a child of 0-20 years. Just as Sarasvatī fled at the glance
of Brahmā, so also young girls flee at the advances of young men.
2. Lakṣmī = ह-स-क-ह-ल-ह्रीं (h-s-k-h-l-hrīṁ) = 6 bīja = 6 tithi; 6 × 4 =
24 years. In the pañcadaśī, Lakṣmī is a lady between 20 to 44 years.
Lakṣmī is very happy in her marriage to Śrī Viṣṇu portraying the
perfectly married couple. Young ladies relish the company of their
youthful lovers and nourish a healthy conjugal relationship with
their husband.

3. Kālī = स-क-ल-ह्रीं (sa-ka-la-hrīṁ) = 4 bīja = 4 tithi; 4×4 = 16 years;

In the pañcadaśī Kālī is visualised as an elderly lady in the age of 44
to 60 years. At this age bracket menopause gradually sets in and the
hot flashes can be very fearsome. Just as Śiva tries to flee and Kālī
blocks his way, so also many men experience a daunting time
dealing with their spouse passing through menopause and fleeing
seems to be a natural thing to do. The moon is full of sunlight and
it’s burning like the Sun and not manifesting much of its own cool
nature.

Ṣoḍaśī would be represented by the exact moment when a lady turns

sixty years of age and celebrates her ṣaṣṭī-pūrti pūjā.
Tīrtha: Spiritual Contact
Let us understand kṛṣṇa pakṣa. After its glorious peak at pūrṇimā the
moonlight starts to decline and we call this kṛṣṇa pakṣa. This decline
continues till its death in kṛṣṇa pakṣa caturdaśī (K14) which is the
29th tithi. At this time Śaktī is between 112-116 years old (29×4=116).
Amāvāsya represents its sojourn in the netherworlds where it is
punished for its various sins and at this time śaktī is between 116-
120 years (30×4=120).
The moment the Moon contacts the Sun at the ending moment of
amāvāsya is like a momentary contact with God. Oh! What a divine
moment to relish and this contact with the Sun cleanses many
karmas by the forgiving burning glances of the Sun. The Moon turns
a new leaf and passes through the first tithi śukla pratipada and
rebirths in śukla dvitīya. Spiritual contact is all about these
momentary contacts with different souls burning like the Sun with
their tapas. It causes the mind of men to turn around and seek a
better cleaner life. It gives the much-needed rejuvenation.

Spiritual contact can be with men who embody the energy of the
burning Sun and then these men are called ṛṣi or maharṣi as ‘all ṛṣi
ride in the chariot of the sun god Sūrya’. These men are addressed
as ‘Guru’ and a guru must possess this burning power and be able
to burn the sins in the mind of others. Spiritual contact can also be
with places like Kāśi (Varanasi) or Jagannāth Puri. Centuries of
prayers at the holy shrines have caused these places to retain the
burning power of the Sun that redeems many sins. The common
word for both gurus and pilgrimages of such high spiritual power is
‘tīrtha’.

This article shows yet another major difference between jyotiṣa and
astrology. Jyotiṣa is like astrology but way beyond.

[1] भवान्यष्टकम् (bhavānyaṣṭakam), Ādi Śaṅkara