Kimberly Simon

“Goddess of: • sacred and mundane partnership • patron deity of yoginis, discipleship, and esoteric study • marriage and motherhood • asceticism, commitment to practice, power to practice intensely in yoga, meditation, or athletics • homemaking known for civilizing the wild aspects of the ascetic masculine Recognize Parvati in: • forest groves and mountains • yoga studios • partnerships between self-actualized individuals • unusual domestic situations • working mothers”
― Sally Kempton, Awakening Shakti: The Transformative Power of the Goddesses of Yoga

“She’s also showing us a deeper truth about spiritual life: that if we’re willing to make the necessary sacrifices, we can have it all. We can have enlightenment and intimacy together. We can know our transcendent bliss-self, and we can realize that bliss in passionate relationship. The secret Parvati shows us is that the relational form of self-realization requires just as much conscious effort as to realize the transcendent self. Both paths begin with self-cultivation. Parvati has realized that she can’t “have” Shiva unless she cultivates in herself the qualities of stillness, stamina, and devotion. To embody love requires absolute commitment, radical courage, and rigorous self-cleansing. The great desire has to be separated from smaller desires and tested in its own fire.”
― Sally Kempton, Awakening Shakti: The Transformative Power of the Goddesses of Yoga

“power of self-transformation • balancing of the worldly and spiritual sides of life • commitment to practice”
― Sally Kempton, Awakening Shakti: The Transformative Power of the Goddesses of Yoga

“Shiva’s seed is discharged outside Parvati. It is so fiery and hot that no container can hold it, until it is finally held in the Ganges River, where it is incubated and finally born as the child Skanda, or Karttikeya. Karttikeya eventually reunites with his parents and becomes the general of Shiva’s celestial army.”
― Sally Kempton, Awakening Shakti: The Transformative Power of the Goddesses of Yoga