INSIDE: One of the most ubiquitous symbols, the beautiful lotus flower has significance across many cultures and religions. Lotus meaning connects to ideas of spiritual enlightenment, cycles of rebirth, and self-realization. Read on to learn more!

 

Master horticulturists advise how perennials grow back year after year, at least for a few years. These low maintenance plants just need the proper growth conditions and good soil. 

And then there's the lotus flower, which makes the durability of perennials look like nothing!

Lotuses are aquatic plants that emerge from deep, thick, sludgy mud to blossom into stunning, delicate yet sturdy flowers.

They don’t just grow perennially. For instance, scientists found lotus seeds carbon dated dried lake beds in China to find the age of lotus seeds and discovered that some of them are nearly 500 years old and full lotus flowers have grown from them. 

Some people have taken this as a sign of immortality, but the scientists point out that it isn’t a continuous life but rather a truly fascinating study in the steadfast durability of the plant.

Perhaps this adds muster to the lotus meaning throughout history since it's a symbol of rebirth and regeneration and of the struggle against our human nature to reach spiritual consciousness.

What is a Lotus?

There are several species of lotus flowers that grow in the wild and are also cultivated for botanical gardens today. The lotus belongs to the Nelumbo genus of aquatic plants and to either the species Nelumbo nucifera or Nelumbo lutea.

Often, we link the lotus to water lilies because they often grow together. However, the lotus has unique characteristics that set it apart from any other flowers.

Physical Characteristics of the Lotus

The lotus grows in marshes, rivers, and lakes since they flourish in humid, wet climates. You can find lotus flowers in a range of colors, including white, pink, purple, red, blue, and gold, although the most common ones are white and pink.

In reality, however, this color only represents the outer shell of the disc-shaped flower. A lotus flower actually harbors two petal hues. Near the center of the lotus are yellow or yellow-green colored petals, and on the outside, white or pink.

These petals come layered around the hard center stigma where pollinators facilitate the plants reproduction. The layers seem ordered to slowly peel back and reveal a whole intact layer like an onion but with a subtle floral aroma.

Atop the water, lotuses actually root deep into the water through their strong stems that connect to the mud-layered bottom. It is this origin point that grants such depth in the lotus flower meaning.

Growth Process of the Lotus Flower

Beginning in murky water, the lotus seed germinates and sprouts underwater. While modern cultivation often places lotus flowers in more pristine ponds and man-made water features, lotus flowers naturally grow in less appealing environments.

Lotus flowers thrive in muddy water that is mostly stagnant, fostering the growth of natural debris like algae and attracting insects and fish. Even with layers of pond weeds, algae, and reeds, the lotus manages to emerge from below. 

The seed sprouts and the thick stem reaches upward. Eventually, when it breaks the water’s surface, the flower can bloom. Some lotuses lie on the water while others extend and levitate above the surface.

Lotus flowers open during the day and then retreat back into the water. The petals tightly enclose the core of the flower, protecting the center from being tainted by the dirty waters around it.

It is an amazing feature, this inward retreat back into a flower bud. The bright outer petals maintain their vibrancy, protected inside as the flower withstands contact with mud and grime.

In its ability to survive these sopping conditions, scientists realized that the lotus flower has a human-like ability to regulate its internal temperature against its outer environment. This helps it maintain stasis and grow.

The Lotus in Modern Contexts

While the lotus flower has a deep history dating back over 145 million years, as found in ancient iconography, it still holds major influence and relevance in modern cultures. We’ll talk about the lotus meaning in the next section, but for now, let's look at a few interesting contexts in the everyday.

You’ll find lotus in cultures around the world if you just look at your plate. In India, China, and some African countries, popular dishes incorporate parts of the lotus.

The seeds and tube-like stems have nutritional value that greatly supplement everyday diets. The lotus flower is therefore farmed to be used in recipes that range from main dishes to crispy snacks.

Owing to its pervasive presence in some regions and attached to its deep spiritual symbolism, two countries have deemed the lotus meaning significant to their national identities. Vietnam and India have named the lotus as their national flowers.

State iconography used the blue lotus flower to symbolize the union of Upper and Lower Egypt. Now, the white lotus is popularly considered one of Egypt’s national flowers.

Symbolism of the Lotus Flower

It's hard to fully capture the lotus meaning in words, but Helena Petrovna Blavatsky tried valiantly in 1893 in her book The Secret Doctrine: The Synthesis of Science, Religion, and Philosophy.

Here's a great quote from the book:

“There are no ancient symbols without a deep and philosophical meaning attached to them, their importance and significance increasing with their antiquity. Such is the Lotus. It is the flower sacred to Nature and her Gods, and represents the Abstract and the Concrete Universes, standing as the emblem of the productive powers of both Spiritual and Physical Nature.”

Across many religions and cultures, the lotus, in its difficult emergence from dark depths, has carried meanings related to rebirth and reincarnation, enlightenment and spiritual awakening, and the chakras and elements. 

Rebirth & Reincarnation

The lotus meaning resonates on a physical level as a symbol of rebirth, as well as a sign of fertility and vitality. It sprouts from the Earth’s womb, a creation that seemingly comes from nothing.

The lotus feeds through its thick stem, an umbilical cord to the center, and grows through the silted waters, which are like amniotic fluid. It emerges as a flower, the petals like layers of skin giving form to a human.

Enlightenment & Spiritual Awakening

Digging deep into the spiritual connections to the lotus, cultures have made ties to the symbolism of self-realization and emerging into enlightenment.

By rooting into the earth, the lotus represents grounding into the stability and balance of earth so that you can learn and grow towards divine consciousness.

When the flower abounds above the water and opens its petals into a beautiful bowl shape, it shows the attainment of spiritual knowledge and the opening of the soul to the higher realms beyond the physical earth.

The full form of the lotus flower depicts the integrated body, mind, and spirit systems that come into union from our human bodies to enlightenment. While we swim through our mortal lives, if we maintain our roots with the earth and seek connection with the divine above the water, we can remain unwavering in our spiritual quests.

The Chakras System

This integration of our body systems as seen in the lotus roots, stem, and flower has direct links to the 7 chakras, a powerful energetic map embedded in ancient Indian religions and Ayurvedic health practices.

In maps of the chakra system, the lotus flower often appears as the node for each point along the body. In this way, it represents the growing lotus plant.

As the crown chakra gives passage into the soul star chakra, some images of the system show an open lotus flower above the head. The bowl of the flower catches the divine energy and lessons from the spiritual realms above and feeds them back into the sushumna nadi, the spinal energy column or the lotus stem.

Elements of Nature 

In other spiritual healing traditions, the lotus’s growth cycle represents the 4 natural elements: Earth, Water, Air, and Fire.

• In Earth, the lotus has its deeps roots in the mud.
• In Water, the plant emerges through the water and is fed by life water.
• In Air, the lotus blossoms as it finds the open sky and wind.
• In Fire, the lotus color burns over the petals, its healthiest iteration in the heat of sunlight and summer.

These lotus meanings extend into the cyclical nature of seasons and correspond to our own living human loop. 

• Starting in Autumn, the lotus seed rests in the earth, gaining its nutrients and life blood.
• In Winter, the lotus grows through the cold depths of the water
• It emerges in the air of Spring to take form.
• In the fire of Summer, the lotus adopts its full form and opens to show the radiance that comes with true, complete growth. 

Lotus Meaning Across the Cultures

Amidst these rich symbols, the lotus meaning takes different shapes across different religions and cultures around the world. Let's dive into those now...

Buddhism

Buddhist traditions have many uses of the lotus symbol. In general, the lotus stands for the law of cause and effect, which is constantly at play in our lives as we seek enlightenment.

In Buddhism, the lotus represents purity and growth through the purification process. Buddhist thought emphasizes detachment as we seek enlightenment and rise above the temptations and suffering in our human form.

Thus, the waters through which the lotus grows symbolizes our worldly existence that we must traverse through in order to break into the light of nirvana, shown as the open, blossoming lotus flower. 

The different parts of the lotus show signs of strength, perseverance, and fortune that arise in spiritual study. Its growth stages, especially when the lotus bud ascends the water, link to the process of awakening:

• Closed – Before awakening, ready to receive and let go
• Slightly Opened – Realizing enlightenment within your own spiritual body
• Full Bloom – Pure enlightenment and full self-awareness 

One of the great Buddhist texts of the Mahayana tradition is titled the Lotus Sutra for its incredible importance in teaching the steps to enlightenment. 

The various colors of the lotus flower petals also hold particular meaning in Buddhism. White has special ties to the goddess of the sacred center, White Tara, and it lends its name to the Dalai Lama’s title as the “Lord of the White Lotus.” The pink petals represent perfection as the Great Buddha himself.

The rarer colors like purple and gold signify, respectively, spiritual awakening in some sects of Buddhism and the worlds accessed beyond through enlightenment.

In the well-known and powerful Buddhist mantra, “Om Mani Padme Hum,” the third term, Padme, means lotus.

Hinduism 

As Buddhism sprang forth from ideas in Hinduism, it's not surprising to find innumerable lotus flower meanings in this ancient Indian religion. 

The lotus flower grows abundantly in India’s climate. Its importance is apparent in its widespread use in architecture, and is perhaps best exemplified in the modern Baha’i Lotus Temple in New Delhi.

Similar to Buddhist meaning, the lotus in Hinduism connects with the idea of reaching higher spiritual realms. The growth of the lotus demonstrates life’s potential to traverse human darkness to reach spiritual enlightenment, and the flower is seen as a deep part of the human soul.

Thus, ideas around fertility, prosperity, vitality, and divinity lie in the lotus.

Through religious iconography tracing through centuries, the lotus flower has been depicted as a throne for many Hindu gods and goddesses, like Vishnu, Brahma, Lakshmi, and Saraswati. Often, gods and goddesses are seen holding the sacred flower in their hands.

In religious mythology, Vishnu, also known as the Lotus-Eyed One, sprouts a lotus flower from his navel. From this flower emerges Lord Brahma, the Creator. Thus the lotus is seen as the root of divine life.

Yoga, with ties to Hindu traditions, incorporates the lotus meaning in physical forms or asanas.

Padmasana, the lotus pose, refers to a cross-legged, seated position that is ideal to facilitate a meditative state. The lotus configuration of the legs helps perfectly balance the body and align the sushumna nadi and chakras.

In this position, the yogi can enter ultimate meditation, free from physical discomforts and distractions to truly attain spiritual depths.

Egyptian

In Egyptian history, the lotus has ties to many different gods and deistic traditions:

• Atum-Ra, the Sun God – Held the lotus as a symbol of the sun
• Horus – Used the lotus as a throne
• Nefertum, God of Healing, Beauty & Fragrance – Wore a crown of lotus flowers
• Osiris – Related to the cult of Osiris in mummification traditions

Both the blue and white lotuses are commonly found in hieroglyphs and tombs. As a hieroglyph, the lotus represents the cardinal number 1000.

In the 1922 discovery of King Tutankhamun’s mummified body, blue lotus flowers, now endangered, were found scattered around the tomb and over the body. 

The blue lotus had powerful ceremonial and medical uses in ancient Egypt. Its fragrance and beauty made it a staple in funerals as well as occasions like births and celebrations. It also had narcotic capacities used in sacred shamanic healing practices as well as recreationally.

The lotus meaning in Egyptian traditions link to both earthly living and the divine afterworld. The opening and closing of the lotus flower each day symbolizes recreation and rebirth, and its retraction into the mud demonstrates the journey to the underworld.

Chinese

The lotus flower’s Chinese context closely links to Buddhist thought.

Echoing ideas of purity and perfection, in China, the lotus meaning involves soul cleansing and that outer beauty actually comes through understanding and believing the divine truth.

The lotus is Buddha’s holy seat, and it comprises one of the 8 precious things in Buddhist thought. 

In Taoism, another widely practiced belief system in China, the lotus or “Gentleman’s flower,” brings wisdom, harmony, and partnership.

Similar to Egyptian history, the lotus has medical uses in the Chinese culture. It's also a popular wedding flower.

Final Thoughts 

The lotus flower ties us to ancient ideas around our spiritual self-realization and the journey we take on earth, through hardship and mistakes, to understand our place in the divine. 

The lotus meaning provides us with important reminders of our soul purpose and the union of body, mind, and spirit. That’s why the lotus symbol has found representation in powerful new forms, including crystals shaped into lotus flowers and carved pendants.

The lotus is a gift of nature that continues to endure and flourish, even on a physical planet that isn't always able to sustain such pure life and meaning.