20th centuryIn Hinduism, Lakshmi is the Goddess who leads to one's goal (lakshya in Sanskrit), hence her name Lakshmi. For mankind, 8 types of goals are necessary - Spiritual enlightenment, food, knowledge, resources, progeny, abundance, patience and success, hence there are 8 or Ashta Lakshmis - Aadi Lakshmi, Dhaanya Lakshmi, Vidya Lakshmi, Dhana Lakshmi, Santaana Lakshmi, Gaja Lakshmi, Dhairya Lakshmi and Vijaya Lakshmi. First mentioned in the Śrī Sūkta of the Rigveda.Sri, a honorific term for Lakshmi, represents the material world of the earthly realm as the mother goddess, referred to as Prithvi Mata, and known by her twin identities as Bhu Devi, and sridevi (She is having another form along with these two called as Nila Devi). She is the wife of Vishnu, one of the principal deities of Hinduism and the Supreme Being in the Vaishnavism Tradition. With Parvati and Saraswati, she forms Tridevi, the holy trinity.Lakshmi is also an important deity in Jainism and found in Jain temples.Lakshmi has also been a Goddess of abundance and fortune for Buddhists, and was represented on the oldest surviving stupas and cave temples of Buddhism. In Buddhist sects of Tibet, Nepal and Southeast Asia, Lakshmi Goddess Vasudhara mirrors the characteristics and attributes of the Hindu Goddess Lakshmi with minor iconographic differences.Height 13.9cm