UMA: Goddess of the Mountains, India

Uma, daughter of the Snowy Mountains, is one form of the Great Goddess of India – the Devi. Uma herself is the hidden essence, the life-force. She alone knows the holy power and taught the Vedic gods that the divine lives in all things. She alone initiated them into the profound mystery of the universe.

Her name can mean “Light” or “Peace at Night.”  Or, it may be her mother’s cry – “U.Ma!” – “Don’t!” – on learning of her daughter’s extreme practice of self-denial. In her Parvati form, she wanders the mountains, a hermit, the embodiment of devotion. Her act of self-sacrifice born of love, enables her to see more clearly and brings the light that opens her eyes to make perception possible.

“It is during the ambrosial hours of the early morning, which I am inspired by Uma’s lifetime of meditation and devotion. May I also have the perseverance to follow my own difficult Path to a higher and sweeter place….”

Beverly Swan is the mother of sweet Niko

previous portraits home next