About
The story of princess Vedavati is timeless and inspiring. This digital short adaptation treats the story with delicate concern for the message of purity, importance chastity and spiritual persistence which is a hallmark of all spiritual cultures. Arts and crafts are central to the joy of Sahaja Yoga. Through this tiny project, the Sahaja Yogis of Midwest America hope to string together a powerful message through the viral medium of a digital short movie.
This movie is dedicated to the eternally inspiring world teacher, Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi. She has been a source of love and knowledge for all the cast and crew and we remain forever obliged for the wondrous world of Sahaja collectivity She has created. This loving collectivity is the fertile earth from which this project sprouts.
Inspiration for the production
Amongst many chapters of the Devi Mahatmyam, Vedavati’s story was a small one, but struck me very much as a unique and fantastic example. It showed two things: the fall of a Realized soul due to bad Mooladhara and the high importance of chastity and purity; and above all the mechanism of exposure that Mahamaya uses to expose Ravana’s nature to her incarnation.
This story is amongst 2,3 stories that I like to recollect on a rainy afternoon to anyone who cares to listen. It is fascinating to know interesting subplots in the fabric of Mahamaya. e.g. Kai Kai would always regret that she was the instrument of Rama’s exile, so she begged him to become her biological son in a later life. True to that, when Vishnu came as Shri Krishna, Kai Kai was Shri Krishna’s biological mother, Devaki. However, that completed the boon and Shri Krishna was separated from her immediately and raised by Yeshoda.
Recently I recollected this story with its moral underpinnings at the Brazilian Youth Seminar, so it was fresh in my mind. It shows a young woman’s seeking journey and shows how eastern women dealt with challenges to chastity. It is tragic, how the medium of films and videos is flooded with romantic stories showing people falling in love, having extra-marital affairs, physical affection & public display of romance. This mesmerises impressionable youth to believe, that when you are faced with sensual temptation, you just succumb to it in the name of romantic adventure. However, in the east there are heriones who have given up their lives to save chastity.
Also shows that a politically powerful realized-soul, Ravana, can succumb to lust and fall from grace. This makes us alert that having self-realization is a privilege and arrogance can only weaken us and take us to destruction.
We wanted a message, that would not be “preachy”, but subtle and enjoyable. A dual message through which we hope will serve as an inspiration to the upcoming generation who are struggling with issues about pre-marital relationships, boundaries of behaviour and level of spiritual aspiration. Examples inspire us to think higher, meditate deeper, love better and be en guard. — RHD