Akhilandeshvari (pronounced Ah-keel-lan-desh-vah-ree). “Ishvari” in Sanskrit means “goddess” or “female power” and the “Akhilanda” means essentially “never not broken.” In other words The Always Broken Goddess. Sanskrit is a tricky and amazing language and I love that the double negative here means that she is broken right down to her name.
But this isn’t the kind of broken that indicates weakness and terror. It’s the kind of broken that tears apart all the stuff that gets us stuck in toxic routines repeating the same relationships and habits over and over rather than diving into the scary process of trying something new and unfathomable.
Akhilanda derives her power from being broken: in flux pulling herself apart living in different constant selves at the same time from never becoming a whole that has limitations. Although she is constantly broken into pieces she always has a serene look on her face. We live in a society that prizes control with a “get over it” attitude so it’s really a surprise that she is not known as well as some of the other Hindu gods. She can help us in our darkest times: when we get our heart broken when we fail when we are shattered into a thousand pieces and stuck crying on the floor in a wet snotty heap. She helps us heal and reach a new level of enlightenment.
What is most beautiful about Akhilandeshvari is that the very thing we dread the most is the very source of her power: she is in pieces. She is broken constantly moving and creating new experiences and wisdom out of the broken pieces. Nothing in life is entirely whole and once you accept that you are always broken like Akhilandeshvari then you too will feel a sense of serenity. You accept that you will fail sometimes and that is okay. If you didn’t fail in the past you wouldn’t be the person you are today.