Happy Basant Pachami

In Hinduism, Saraswati (less frequently romanized as Sarasvati) is the goddess of knowledge, wisdom, science, speech, and all arts-- music, painting, dance and literature. In India today, Hindus still revere Sarasvati as a goddess who is a reflection of the greater Mother, or Devi, and female dynamic energy, or Shakti. Her festival is held in late January or early February and prayer, called puja, is conducted. Since she is the goddess of knowledge, students often present her their books and supplies before they begin classes and her image sometimes appears on school gates. She is also the central deity of Indian Classical Musicians. Her consort is Brahma.

Sarasvatī can be found in Vedic texts, such as Rig Veda, and in Puranic texts, such as Ramayana. She likely originated as a Vedic river goddess; the river which once shared her name no longer exists, but where the banks of these rivers are believed to have once been, the earliest writing in India has been found. As a water goddess, she symbolises fertility, and prosperity. In the Rig-Veda(6,61,7) Sarasvati is credited with killing the asura (demon) Vritra, who represents drought, darkness, and chaos. She is often seen as equivalent to the other Vedic goddesses like Vāk (divine word, also romanised as Vac), Savitri (Illumination) and Gayatri. In the Shakta tradition (worship of Shakti or Devī, the female aspect of the divinity), Sarasvati represents intelligence, consciousness and cosmic knowledge. In later Puranic literature Saraswati (Brahmī) becomes the consort of the creator god Brahma. Some texts place her as a foil to Lakshmi, Goddess of wealth.

Saraswati in contemporary India

In India today, Hindus still revere Saraswati as the Goddess of Knowledge. On special days in the Hindu calendar special pujas are arranged for, and she is present in representation in many educational centers. In Indian Classical Music Saraswati is the patron Goddess, Mother of Music, of some of the world's greatest instrumentalists, Hindu or Muslim, among them Ravi Shankar and Ustad Bismillah Khan.

She is traditionally depicted in art as a beautiful woman with four arms in which she plays an ancient Indian stringed-instrument called a veena. She holds prayer beads and the Vedas and often a water pot, symbolizing plentitude. Generally she is shown wearing a white sari. Sometimes Sarasvati is seated on a lotus blossom, other times she is seated on or accompanied by a swan or a peacock