Lakshmi Shank Suppliers and Info
BY: RICHARD SHAW BROWN
Sep 14, USA (SUN) — SRI (Socially Responsible Information).
Vande gurun!!! This is part of a letter sent to some Hindu websites that are wrongly selling common “lightning whelk” shells as real Valampuri lakshmi shank (dakshinvarti turbinella pyrum). At the bottom is a list of genuine lakshmi shank dealers.
Dear Hindu Puja Article Dealers, We would like to inform you that the shell you are selling as “dakshinavarti “ or Sri Lakshmi Shank is actually another type of shell named “Lightning Whelk” (busycon contrarium). It is not a “Conch” shell, what to speak of being a Lakshmi Conch. It is simply a case of misidentification. But to sell as such is fraud!
If you visit http://www.p-g-a.org/lakshmi-shank.html - you will learn about Sinistral Turbinella Pyrum, the REAL Lakshmi Conch ... And a LIGHTNING WHELK is positively NOT it.
The product you show is a Lightning Whelk, BUT, the text claims that it is a real genuine “Valampuri Lakshmi Shank” - I hope you are not fooling yourself and your clients into buying a “Lightning Whelk” shell as a genuine Lakshmi Shank? That is like selling a common dog and telling the client it is a divine winged horse. It is fraud and untrue!!! And the fact is the clients (devotees and temples) have been fooled, and they do NOT possess a real Lakshmi Shank! Not every shell is a Lakshmi Shank! Not every stone is a real Shalagram Shila!
The idea is to clean up all the wrong practices in Sanatan Dharma, and selling Whelk as Lakshmi Shank is fraud! (Plus SHAMEFUL). Sacred Lakshmi Shank is foremost a “Shank”, not a “Whelk,” and they are rare and costly. Not everyone can have one. It is better to use a genuine Conch, the normal left-sided Shank, rather than misusing a whelk shell that isn’t recommended in Shastra.
Prices for genuine (REAL) Lakshmi Shank start at least Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 3,000 per GRAM, and if average weight is 100 grams, that equals minimum cost of Rs. 100,000. (FYI, that is CHEAPER than a single “natural pearl” that weights only ONE GRAM, what to speak of rubies and sapphire values).
For those who can afford it - here is a list we have compiled of genuine Valampuri Lakshmi Shank suppliers:
Out of those listed above we and our friends have only done business with John Ravi and John Ramnath. But to our knowledge the others are bona fide too.
--->Always remember, Buyer beware!!! Real Lakshmi Shanks have 3 to 7 (natural) “ridges” in the conch cavity, so ‘no ridges’ means NOT SHANK (Ref. photo example).
Please Note: We do NOT sell Lakshmi Shanks nor Shalagram Shilas
Dandavats
Richard Shaw Brown
http://www.richardshawbrown.com
