God Of India

The Elephant God Of India

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There is no doubt and western historians accept the fact the Hindu civilization is perhaps the oldest in the world. It predates by almost 4500 years the Christian era, which really starts with the birth of Christ. Equally accepted is the fact that the elephant is closely interwoven in Hindu ethos and culture. The elephant has been used as an instrument of war and also as a herald for temple worship. This fascination of the Hindu with the elephant has to be understood in the context of one of the prominent Hindu Gods Ganesh having a trunk as a nose. In addition the abundance of the elephant during all periods of history to the present day is also a factor that has made the elephant a distinct part of Hindu culture.
The ancient Indian epic the Mahabharata makes the first mention of the elephant as an instrument of war. The battle between the Pandavas and the kauravas on the plains of kuruskshetra a town about 100 miles from Delhi is the first recorded use of the elephant as a part of military arsenal. Subsequently the elephant became the main stay of Hindu armies. The commander in chief usually went to battle mounted on an elephant. The elephant was a decisive element in battles fought on plains and without gun powder. It must be recorded that the Hindus were the first to use the elephant for war and the last to discard it as well.

Hindu Art

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Indian art is filled with traditional history and devotional in nature. Its uniqueness is that it centers around Indian history, art and religion. In order to understand and relate to Indian art you must have knowledge of its Indian religious status and the political history.
To fully understand the encompassing work of the artist, you must first understand the nature of India ancient art history along with its political nature. In times past the rulers of India sponsored the arts and therefore had a profound influence over it.
Indian art purposefulness is devotional in nature and therefore to fully understand its meaning is to delve into the underlining meanings as they pertain to the India historical past.
When looking to buy this art there are a few variances of style to be aware of such as batik and or miniature paintings and sculptures.

The Gods Of India

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India covers such a vast geographic territory that its parts can be talked about in isolation and it is almost like talking like an entire country in it. Regions in India differ in their landscape, climate, culture and tradition. The one thing which is common no matter where you go is the magic and sense of fulfilment you are bound to experience.
South India tours are extremely fascinating. The region is steeped in religion and fine art. You will find plenty of temples, monasteries and churches. Each state in South India has its own unique flavour and character which helps contribute to the diversity of the country.
Andhra Pradesh is most commonly known for housing the most prosperous and revered temple in the world. The temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu, is located in Tirupati, a small town on a hill. Regarded most highly by every Hindu in India, this temple attracts millions of devotees all year round. Some come with faith which cannot be deterred, while others come out of sheer curiosity. The capital city of the state, Hyderabad, is extremely popular for its Moghul influence. You will find plenty of Muslim flavour in the architecture, food and even customs in this area. Pearls and semi precious stones are a speciality of Hyderabad.

Pictures Of God

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With a title like this, how could any writer not take a look? And once I read the summary description and browsed a view pages through Amazon, I decided I needed to read it. I down loaded it onto my Kindle and quickly read it over the weekend. Loved it!
Part of my attraction to this book has to do with the perspective of the author. Brian Godawa is a professor of apologetics and begins the book by providing a picture of himself and his approach to the scriptures. He does this to help you fully appreciate what has changed in his approach to scripture and also to show that he has shared the mindset of most evangelical Christians of this era.
Logical reasoning was his strength. He could convincingly argue the historical basis for scripture, the logical reasoning behind God's laws and His plan of redemption and the need of man for God's salvation. In spite of this, he found that even when others would acknowledge the wisdom of his reasoning, that didn't necessarily bring them into a relationship with God. Something was missing.
He begins to look at scripture with a fresh eye and realizes that (as many people had previously pointed out to him) the Bible is a very confusing book. The book of Jeremiah is known for its lack of chronology. The story jumps around from present to past. The four gospel don't always mesh in their details. Why didn't God lay out his 'manual for living' in a more concise manner? Did He make a mistake? Did the writers misunderstand His directions?

Ganesh Statue

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Lord Ganesha is considered to be the remover of all obstacles and is Lord of Beginnings and Lord of Obstacles.HE is considered as the god of intellect and wisdom.HE is the older son of Lord Shiva and Parvati. Legend says it was Parvati who created Ganesh
A unique combination of his elephant-like head and a quick moving tiny mouse vehicle represents tremendous wisdom, intelligence, and presence of mind. the importance of Ganesha, to any hindu is unspeakable. For this reason you will find Ganesha statues and idols, in almost every, home, office, hotel, shops, everywhere.Tiny figurines of Ganesha are used as Pendants, rings and in decorative diya's. But, the most famous are the Ganesha Statues in wood, especially, which are considered pure.

Number Of Gods In India

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Elephant God India

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Elephant God

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Goddess India

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Gods From India

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God In India

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India God

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Gods In India

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Gods India

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Gods And Goddesses Of India

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India Gods

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India Gods :

Akhurath, Alampata, Amit, Anantachidrupamayam, Avaneesh, Avighna, Balaganapati, Bhalchandra, Bheema, Bhupati, Bhuvanpati, Buddhinath, Buddhipriya, Buddhividhata, Chaturbhuj, Devadeva, Devantakanashakarin, Devavrata, Devendrashika, Dharmik, Dhoomravarna, Durja, Dvaimatura, Ekaakshara, Ekadanta, Ekadrishta, Eshanputra, Gadadhara, Gajakarna, Gajanana, Gajananeti, Gajavakra, Gajavaktra, Ganadhakshya, Ganadhyakshina, Ganapati, Gaurisuta, Gunina, Haridra, Heramba, Kapila, Kaveesha, Kriti, Kripalu, Krishapingaksha, Kshamkaram, Kshipra, Lambakarna, Lambodara,Mahabala, Mahaganapati, Maheshwaram, Mangalamurti, Manomay, Mrityuanjaya, Mundakarama, Muktidaya, Musikvahana, Nadapratithishta, Namasthetu, Nandana, Nideeshwaram, Omkara, Pitambara, Pramoda, Prathameshwara, Purush, Rakta, Rudrapriya, Sarvadevatman, Sarvasiddhanta, Sarvatman, Hambhavi, Shashivarnam, Shoorpakarna, Shuban, Shubhagunakanan, Shweta, Siddhidhata, Siddhipriya, Skandapurvaja, Sumukha, Sureshwaram, Swaroop, Tarun, Uddanda, Umaputra, Vakratunda, Varaganapati, Varaprada, Varadavinayaka, Veeraganapati, Vidyavaridhi, Vighnahara, Vignaharta, Vighnaraja, Vighnarajendra, Vighnavinashanaya, Vigneshwara, Vikat, Vinayaka, Vishwamukha, Vishwaraja, Yagnakaya, Yashaskaram, Yashvasin, Yogadhipa and Siddhivinayaka.

Ganesha

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The word means different things to different people. Is it simply an emotion or feeling? Do we only feel joy when life seems to be going good, when our circumstances are favorable? Or is there something more? I'd like to explore what the Word of God says about this topic.

Psalm 16:11 says "Thou will show me the path of life, in Thy presence is fullness of joy, at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore."

Psalm 43:4 says "Then will I go to the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy...."

Nehemiah 8:10 says ...."the joy of the Lord is my strength".

What these scriptures say is that God Himself is the source of our joy. And that joy gives us strength. Have you ever noticed when you're feeling blue, that you tend to feel weak and tired too

In closing one more view of God, Luke 15:4-7 says, "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he lost one of them, would not leave the 99 in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost. I (Jesus) say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repents, more than over the 99 which need no repentance."

Jesus cares so much He seeks out to find the ones who are lost, and it gives Him great joy when He finds that one. Even all of heaven throws a party! If you don't know this loving, kind and joyful Jesus of Nazareth, I'd encourage you to simply ask Him into your heart. Receive everything He so wants to give you. Eternal life, joy, and the peace of knowing you're right with God. Just a simple prayer to Him anywhere of what

Gods Of India

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Gods Of India Even in dire times of weakness, you can take your concerns to the Lord in prayer. 1 Peter 5:7 says to: “Cast all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you.” This verse, though a short one, speaks in volumes. It really is as simple as confiding your worries and cares in Him through prayer. Psalms 55:22 reiterates: “Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall.” Praying, and therefore having one-on-one time with God, is a major first step in getting out of the depressing hold that the devil has on you. Gods Of India Making time to read your Bible will also help, as there are verses for virtually every issue that you may or could be suffering through. The devil can be counted on to try and pull you into a state of despair while testing your faith at the same time. However, do not give up: Isaiah 40:31 states that “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; and they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

I know it sometimes feels hard to overcome the negativity threatening to pull you down. Satan does not want you to be happy, especially in the name of the Lord, and he will try to take everything from you that he can. If you’re alone, it can become impossible to hold fast against this (and in fact, he seems to count on this in his sheer wickedness), but your Bible (and ultimately the Lord) are prepared for these trials, as well. In Deuteronomy 31:6, we are advised to “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.” God‘s position is that of a Heavenly (rather than earthly) father: He looks after us, and protects us in our day to day lives while also knowing what is to become of us. It is through His word that he seeks to pull us out of deep hopelessness and give us peace. In times of seeming doubt or hopelessness, insight can be pulled from Matthew 11:28-30: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." God has a plan for all who are willing, and is a loving Father who wants the best for us so we can join him eternally in Heaven.

Indian God Durga

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represents the power of the Supreme Being that preserves moral order and righteousness in the creation. The Sanskrit word Durga means a fort or a place that is protected and thus difficult to reach. Durga, also called Divine Mother, protects mankind from evil and misery by destroying evil forces such as selfishness, jealousy, prejudice, hatred, anger, and ego.
The worship of Goddess Durga is very popular among Hindus. She is also called by many other names, such as Parvati, Ambika, and Kali In the form of Parvati, She is known as the divine spouse of Lord Shiva and is the mother of Her two sons, Ganesha and Karttikeya, and daughter Jyoti. There are many temples dedicated to Durga's worship in India.
In Her images, Goddess Durga is shown in a female form, wearing red clothes. She has eighteen arms, carrying many objects in Her hands. The red color symbolizes action and the red clothes signify that She is always busy destroying evil and protecting mankind from pain and suffering caused by evil forces. Following is the symbolism associated with Goddess Durga

A tiger symbolizes unlimited power. Durga riding a tiger indicates that She possesses unlimited power and uses it to protect virtue and destroy evil. The eighteen arms of Durga signify that She possesses combined power of the nine incarnations of Lord Vishnu that have appeared on the earth at different times in the past. The tenth incarnation, the Kalkin (a man on a white horse), is still to come. Thus, Goddess Durga represents a united front of all Divine forces against the negative forces of evil and wickedness.
The sound that emanates from a conch is the sound of the sacred syllable AUM, which is said to be the sound of creation. A conch in one of the Goddess's hands signifies the ultimate victory of virtue over evil and righteousness over unrighteousness.
Other weapons in the hands of Durga such as a mace, sword, disc, arrow, and trident convey the idea that one weapon cannot destroy all different kinds of enemies. Different weapons must be used to fight enemies depending upon the circumstances. For example, selfishness must be destroyed by detachment, jealousy by desirelessness, prejudice by self-knowledge, and ego by discrimination.

Indian God Kali

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Kali comes from the Sanskrit root word Kal which means time. There is nothing that escapes the all-consuming march of time. In Tibetan Buddhism Her counterpart is male with the name Kala. Mother Kali is the most misunderstood of the Hindu goddesses. The Encyclopedia Britannica is grossly mistaken in the following quote, "Major Hindu goddess whose iconography, cult, and mythology commonly associate her with death, sexuality, violence, and, paradoxically in some of her later historical appearances, motherly love."

It is partly correct to say Kali is a goddess of death but She brings the death of the ego as the illusory self-centered view of reality. Nowhere in the Hindu stories is She seen killing anything but demons nor is She associated specifically with the process of human dying like the Hindu god Yama (who really is the god of death). It is true that both Kali and Shiva are said to inhabit cremation grounds and devotees often go to these places to meditate. This is not to worship death but rather it is to overcome the I-am-the-body idea by reinforcing the awareness that the body is a temporary condition. Shiva and Kali are said to inhabit these places because it is our attachment to the body that gives rise to the ego. Shiva and Kali grant liberation by removing the illusion of the ego. Thus we are the eternal I AM and not the body. This is underscored by the scene of the cremation grounds.

Of all the forms of Devi, She is the most compassionate because She provides moksha or liberation to Her children. She is the counterpart of Shiva the destroyer. They are the destroyers of unreality. The ego sees Mother Kali and trembles with fear because the ego sees in Her its own eventual demise. A person who is attached to his or her ego will not be receptive to Mother Kali and she will appear in a fearsome form. A mature soul who engages in spiritual practice to remove the illusion of the ego sees Mother Kali as very sweet, affectionate, and overflowing with incomprehensible love for Her children.

Ma Kali wears a garland of skulls and a skirt of dismembered arms because the ego arises out of identification with the body. In truth we are beings of spirit and not flesh. So liberation can only proceed when our attachment to the body ends. Thus the garland and skirt are trophies worn by Her to symbolize having liberated Her children from attachment to the limited body. She holds a sword and a freshly severed head dripping blood. As the story goes, this represents a great battle in which she destroyed the demon Raktabija. Her black skin represents the womb of the quantum unmanifest from which all of creation arises and into which all of creation will eventually dissolve. She is depicted as standing on Shiva who lays beneath Her with white skin (in contrast to Her black or sometimes dark blue skin). He has a blissful detached look. Shiva represents pure formless awareness sat-chit-ananda (being-consciousness-bliss) while She represents "form" eternally supported by the substratum of pure awareness.

By not understanding the story behind Mother Kali it is easy to misinterpret Her iconography. In the same way one could say that Christianity is a religion of death, destruction and cannibalism in which the practitioners drink the blood of Jesus and eat his flesh. Of course, we know this is not the proper understanding of the communion ritual.

Attaching the idea of sexuality to Mother Kali has no basis in Her at all. There is nothing that associates Her with sexuality in the Hindu stories. In fact it is just the opposite. She is one of the few Goddesses who is celibate practicing austerity and renunciation!

Indian God Lakshmi

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Draped in a red saree, bedecked with gold ornaments, seated on a lotus, pot in hand, flanked by white elephants, the image of Lakshmi adorns most Hindu homes and business establishments.

Lakshmi, also called Laxmi, is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, luxury, beauty, fertility, and auspiciousness. She holds the promise of material fulfillment and contentment. She is described as restless, whimsical yet maternal, with her arms raised to bless and to grant her blessings.

Shri is the sacred name of Lakshmi. Shri is written atop most documents and spoken before addressing a god, teacher holy man or any revered individual. The word evokes grace, affluence abundance, auspiciousness and authority. When the word is spoken or written an aura of holiness is established. Whatever follows is imbued with divine blessing. Just as the word “Om” is associated with the mystical side of life, Shri is associated with the material side of existence.

Lakshmi represents the beautiful and bountiful aspect of nature. As Bhoodevi, the earth-goddess, she nurtures life; as Shreedevi, the goddess of fortune, she bestows power, pleasure and prosperity on those who deserve her grace. To realize her, one must respect the laws of life and appreciate the wonders of existence.

In the beginning, there was water everywhere. There was nothing to eat and nowhere to live. Prajapati, the divine patriarch, father of the gods and demons saw the plight of his children and invoked Devi.

The goddess whispered into his ear, “The earth lies trapped under the water. Raise it up.”

Prajapati took the form of a mighty boar called Emusha, plunged into the sea and found the earth-goddess Bhoodevi on the ocean floor. Placing her on his snout, he gently raised her to the surface.

Prajapati then turned into Akupara, a giant turtle and offered Bhoodevi a seat on his back.

Indian God Brahma

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Brahma is considered the creator of the universe. Before the cosmos existed, Brahma was all alone, self contained and self-content. Eventually, he felt inadequate and longed for company. Brahma split himself and created the goddess Shatarupa. Her many forms captivated Brahma, and he desired to posses her.

But that was not to be. Like all material things, Shatarupa would turn into something else every time Brahma got to her. She turned into a cow, a mare, a goose and a doe. Lord Brahma kept pursuing her, taking the form of the corresponding male - a bull, a horse, a gander, a buck. Thus all creatures of the cosmos, from the smallest insect to the largest mammal, came into being.

The Hindu God Brahma sprouted five heads, so that he could watch Shatarupa at all times. To restrain Brahma's lust, Shivawrenched off one of Brahma's five heads. This helped Brahma come to his senses, and he took Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge, as his consort. With her help, he regained control of his mind.

For creating the universe, Brahma became known as the lord of progeny. But he is not worshipped because he is responsible for distracting the mind away from the soul and towards the cravings of the flesh. However, you will see shrines dedicated to Brahma on the grounds of buildings. A very famous shrine is on the grounds of the Erawan Hotel in Bangkok, and people to make offerings to Brahma there, such as hiring musicians and dancers to perform for him.

Brahma the Trouble Maker

From time to time in religious texts, Lord Brahma appears to aid the side of chaos. In the Mahabharata, for example, Brahma provides a magic arrow to the enemies of Arjuna. It then seems that the Hindu Gods spend a significant amount of time helping to defeat those who have benefited from Brahma's misdeeds, as opposed to fighting the God Brahma himself. On the other hand, usually when Brahma helps an adversary, the heroes learn an important lesson, or make a realization that they wouldn't have if Lord Brahma had not meddled in the first place.

Brahma Not The Creator of The Universe After All?

One interesting aspect of different creation stories is that sometimes Vishnu or Shiva are given credit for creating the world. It is believed that they dreamed up the creation of the universe, with Brahma doing all the heavy lifting in the dream, as if he were just following the blueprints laid out by the other two gods.

Brahma's Pose and Hand Gestures

Unlike most Hindu Gods Brahma is not depicted with weapons. Instead, he is shown holding prayer beads, a water vase, and a book, symbolizing the Vedas (the original Hindu religious texts). It is said that Brahmas four mouths constantly recite the four Vedas. Brahma's fourth hand is sometimes shown holding a lotus blossom, and sometimes shown holding a staff.

Krishna Shiva

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We are very beginning from the birthplace of lord Krishna. Mathura is the birthplace of lord Krishna. The city of Mathura is located in the western part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, in the northern region of India. It is situated on the bank of the river Yamuna. Mathura is 150 km south of Delhi and 50 km northwest of Agra.

Mathura is also knows as Brij Bhoomi - The land where Shri Krishna was born and spent his youth. It is an important pilgrim place of the Hindus and one of the seven sacred cities in India. The main pilgrim center in Mathura is the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi temple. Krishna is the Supreme Person. Lord Krishna appeared over five thousand years ago in Mathura, India to Devaki and Vasudeva in the jail cell of the tyrant Kansa. The place of His birth is known as Sri Krishna Janmasthana.

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One of the many complexities about the God Shiva is his role as a head of household. According to different sources, he has several wives, with the major Hindu Goddess Parvati being one of them, and the lesser Hindu Goddess Ganga being another. While the majority of stories detailing the Shiva's romantic side deal primarily with his relationship with Parvati, he is also respected for his willingness to throw himself at the feet of another consort, the Goddess Kali in order to stop her blood thirsty rampage of destruction. As for his offspring, One of his sons, Ganesh, is the elephant headed god of success who is recognized and worshipped nearly universally throughout Hindu India. Another son, Skanda, is worshipped primarily in Southern India.

Rama Indian God

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Lord Rama
Lord Rama is known as the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Rama, the perfect avatar of the Supreme Protector Vishnu, has always been popular among the Hindu deities. Rama is the symbol of courtesy and virtue, a man of values and morals. Ramachandra is Maryada Purushottama, which means the perfect man. Lord Rama is considered to have taken birth on the earth to destroy the evil forces of the age.

Lord Rama, in the words of Swami Vivekananda, is "the embodiment of truth, of morality, the ideal son, the ideal husband, and above all, the ideal king". Rama is widely accepted to be an actual historical figure - a "tribal hero of ancient India" - whose deeds form the great Hindu epic of Ramayana or The Romance of Rama, written by the ancient Sanskrit poet Valmiki. According to the Hindus belief, Rama lived in the Treta Yug. Although historians are of the conviction that Rama was not particularly deified until the 11th century AD. Tulsidas' wonderful version of the Sanskrit epic "Ramayana" into "Ramcharitmanas" greatly enhanced the popularity of Rama as a Hindu god and gave rise to various devotional groups.

Virtues of Rama
Shri Rama was a paragon of virtues. Rama was not only kind and affectionate but generous and considerate of feelings for all around him. Lord Rama had a marvelous physique and captivating manners. Shri Ram had a magnanimous personality. He was extremely noble, generous, chivalrous and fearless. He was very simple and absolutely free from flamboyance.

Lord Rama is considered as a son unequalled in the world, and resembled Dasaratha in each and every aspect of good qualities. He never spoke a lie throughout his life. He always offered respect to the scholars and the elders, people loved him and he adored the people. His body was transcendental and outstanding. He was eloquent, attractive and adjustable to circumstances. He knew the heart of each and every human being on the earth (being omniscient). He had all the conceivable qualities of a king's son and was dear to the people as their own hearts.

Lord Rama was endowed with incredible transcendental qualities. The earth personified adored him, who was possessor of such virtues, who was indomitable, who was brave, and who was the unequalled Lord of all. To put succinctly, Sri Rama's life was a life of holy compliance, of stainless purity, of matchless simplicity, praiseworthy contentment, commendable self-sacrifice and remarkable renunciation.

Krishna Indian God

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As a youth, the cowherd Krishna became renown as a lover, the sound of his flute prompting gopis (wives and daughters of the cowherds) to leave their homes to dance ecstatically with him in the forests.The child Krishna was adored for his mischievous pranks; he also performed many miracles and slew demons. His favorite among the daughters of the cow herders was the beautiful Radha. Krishna's youthful dalliances with the gopis are interpreted as symbolic of the loving interplay between God and the human soul.Krishna affirms life in his pranks, music and lovemaking
e rich variety of legends associated withKrishna's life led to an abundance of representation in painting and sculpture. The divine lover (the most common representation) is shown playing the flute, surrounded by adoring gopis.

Arjuna sat dejected, filled with pity, his sad eyes blurred by tears. Krishna gave him counsel.

Lord Krishna

Why this cowardice in time of crisis, Arjuna? The coward is ignoble, shameful, foreign to the ways of heaven.

Don't yield to impotence! It is unnatural in you! Banish this petty weakness from your heart. Rise to the fight, Arjuna!

Arjuna

Krishna, how can I fight against Bhishma and Drona with arrows when they deserve my worship? It is better in this world to beg for scraps of food than to eat meals smeared with the blood of elders I killed at the height of their power while their goals were still desires.

Krishna and the Serpent Kaliya

Lord Krishna came to know that a very large and poisonous serpent had made its home in a lagoon on the Yamuna river. Because the serpent was so poisonous, not only all the fish died, but even the trees and grass surrounding the lake were dying. When birds flew over the area, they immediately dropped dead and fell into the lake, due to the highly poisonous vapors emanating from the water.

In that time, there were many frightful demons, who had all kinds of mystic powers. Lord Krishna had specifically appeared to rid the world of all these disturbing elements. The Lord came to this place with His cowherd boyfriends and decided to confront the king of the snakes. He climbed the large Kadamba tree and from there, jumped into the poisonous waters of the Yamuna.

Lord Krishna then began splashing about and making very loud noises just to disturb the Kaliya serpent. Sure enough, the Kaliya snake came up to the surface to see who was attacking his home. This huge black serpent Kaliya (Kaliya means black) possessed over one hundred hoods, each bedecked with a precious gem. When he breathed, fire emanated from his nostrils. He suddenly seized Krishna in his powerful coils, and bound the Lord as tightly as possible. But unfortunately this serpent did not realize that within its coils was the Supreme Personality of Godhead, playing as a child and enjoying His earthly pastimes in the transcendental land of Vrindavana. Without warning, Krishna, the Supreme Mystic, started to expand His body, and Kaliya, who began to feel the incredible pressure, was forced to release the Lord from his deadly coils. Krishna then jumped on to the hoods of the great serpent and started to dance, stamping His foot down on the heads of the snake demon, Kaliya.

This stamping of Krishna, felt to Kaliya serpent like Indra's thunderbolt striking a mountain. The Lord jumped from one hood to another, and Kaliyafelt helpless and bewildered; in anger he spat fire from his many mouths but the Lord was so dexterous that His dancing movements caused the-snake to become dizzy. After so many kicks from the Lord, Kaliya started to first vomit blood, and then refuse, before becoming almost unconscious. At that time, the many wives of the Kaliya serpent appeared and begged the Lord with folded hands to spare their husband. Krishnadecided to banish Kaliya to the great ocean never to return again. Thereafter, the giant snake along with his wives, departed forever, and the transcendental Lord re-joined His cowherd boyfriends on the bank of the Yamuna, to continue their wonderful pastimes in the land of Vrindavana.

Indian God Vishnu

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According to Hindu mythology, Vishnu is a member of a cosmic triad, the three gods who have the responsibility for creating, maintaining and destroying the universe. The destroyer we have already discovered in the figure of Shiva. The cosmic creator is Brahma. The god who sustains the cosmos between the times of creation and destruction is Vishnu.

Vishnu and Shiva are each at the center of a vast religious following among Hindus. The religion of Vishnu is known as Vaishnavism, and it is the most popular Hindu religion. Brahma, on the other hand, does not have a significant following. Do not confuse Brahma, the personal creator god, with Brahman, the Upanishadic term for the absolute reality that is beyond conception.
Vishnu was a deva in the Vedic period, but he was not specially prominent. The Vedas referred to him as the younger brother of Indra, and called him the three-stepper. Other sources relate the story of how Vishnu acquired this epithet. Bali, a demon king, invited the gods to a great sacrifice in their honor. Bali offered to fulfill any wish of each of his divine guests.

Vishnu, who appeared only as a dwarf, asked only be given as much land as he could take with three steps. Bali reluctantly agreed. Vishnu suddenly grew to immense proportions. His first step covered the earth. The second step reached the sun. According to the story, there was no space left for a third step. Bali then lowered his head in acknowledgement of Vishnu’s superiority.

In iconography, Vishnu is identified by the symbolic attributes he carries in each hand. In one hand he has a conch shell or Shankha, which represents his power to create and maintain the universe. In another, a sharp-spinning discus-like weapon, signifying the purified spiritualized mind. In a third he has a mace or Gada, which symbolizes Vishnu's divine power. In the fourth he holds a lotus flower or Padma, which represents represents spiritual liberation and divine perfection.

Vishnu’s Avataras

Vishnu’s most salient feature is his avataras or incarnations. The word avatara literally means to descend into. According to Vaishnava mythology, the god descends to earth and assumes an earthly manifestation at critical junctures in the world’s history. Tradition maintains that Vishnu has done this nine times in this era, and would do so again before the end.

Vishnu’s previous avataras include a boar, who carried the earth out of the primordial waters; a fish, that rescued the first human named Manu in the Hindu flood story; a turtle, a dwarf and a man-lion. He also appeared as the Buddha in his 9th incarnation. Thus the Buddha, the sage and teacher of Buddhism, has become incorporated into the Hindu pantheon.

Finally, in his tenth avatara Vishnu will return at the end of the age as Kalki, a horse-riding apocalyptic judge.

From the standpoint of religious practice, Vishnus’s most important avataras have been Krishna and Rama. Both figures are widely revered among Hindus. As Rama, Vishnu appeared on earth as a royal figure who defeats his wife’s abductor in the great epic the Ramayana. Rama is regarded as a great example of moral conduct and his marriage to Sita is appalled as the Hindu ideal.

Ganesh Indian God

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Ganesh is the Hindu God of knowledge and the remover of obstacles or God of elimination of troubles. He is also called Ganapati (leader of people), Buddhividhata ( god of knowledge ), or Vighnahara (god to remove obstacles). In fact Lord Ganesh has at least 108 names. He is one the most important Gods in the Hindu religion so that all sacrifices and religious ceremonies, all serious compositions in writing, and all worldly affairs of importance are begun with an invocation to Lord Ganesh.

Ganesh is usually depicted as an elephant head figure with a large pot belly. He has four hands with one hand always extended to bless people. Like most other Hindu gods, he has a ‘vehicle’, in his case a rat: this rat is usually shown at the foot of the god, but sometimes Ganesh is astride the rat. This unique combination of his elephant-like head and a quick moving rat vehicle represents tremendous wisdom, intellegence, and presence of mind.

There are a number of stories about how Ganesh came to acquire an elephant head. Here is the most popular:

Parvati was rather disappointed that none of the guards she appointed out of Lord Shiva's army failed to stop him from barging into her private chambers. She decided to have someone who would be entirely her own and place no one above her. Hence, she created Lord Ganesh from dough that she used for her bath and breathed life into him. Having created the figure, Parvati told him to ensure that nobody, but nobody entered her rooms while she bathed.

Lord Shiva soon came in and was stopped by Lord Ganesh. This enraged Lord Shiva and he beheaded the boy. This enraged Parvati to such an extent that she asked Goddess Durga & Goddess Kali to destroy everything and everyone. To appease her, Lord Shiva beheaded an elephant and attached the head to Lord Ganesh's slain torso. Lord Brahma brought the boy back to life and they took him to Parvati.

Parvati still had a few conditions to be fulfilled by the Gods for her son before she agreed to cease the havoc created by the Shaktis. She asked that he should be invincible, the giver of victory and God of wisdom. The person who worships him should gain success and property. She also wanted that nobody should be permitted to heaven before pleasing him and it should be compulsory to first invoke him before any other deity. These were all granted to Lord Ganesh, by the triumvirate of Gods, Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva.

Lord Shiva appointed Lord Ganesh as the leader of his gana (public) and called him Ganapati, literally meaning, leader of people. Ganapati represents all the qualities that a leader should have. A leader should listen to everybody, therefore the large ears. He should have nose to scent out the smallest problem, which a large trunk does with sensitivity. A large forehead is an indicator of a brilliant mind. It is important for the leader not to let out all that he knows or all that he has been told, that is why Lord Ganapati has large stomach.

Shiva

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Lord Shiva represents the aspect of the Supreme Being (Brahman of the Upanishads) that continuously dissolves to recreate in the cyclic process of creation, preservation, dissolution and recreation of the universe. As stated earlier, Lord Shiva is the third member of the Hindu Trinity, the other two being Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu.
Owing to His cosmic activity of dissolution and recreation, the words destroyer and destruction have been erroneously associated with Lord Shiva. This difficulty arises when people fail to grasp the true significance of His cosmic role. The creation sustains itself by a delicate balance between the opposing forces of good and evil. When this balance is disturbed and sustenance of life becomes impossible, Lord Shiva dissolves the universe for creation of the next cycle so that the unliberated souls will have another opportunity to liberate themselves from bondage with the physical world. Thus, Lord Shiva protects the souls from pain and suffering that would be caused by a dysfunctional universe. In analogous cyclic processes, winter is essential for spring to appear and the night is necessary for the morning to follow. To further illustrate, a goldsmith does not destroy gold when he melts old irreparable golden jewelry to create beautiful new ornaments.
Lord Shiva is the Lord of mercy and compassion. He protects devotees from evil forces such as lust, greed, and anger. He grants boons, bestows grace and awakens wisdom in His devotees. The symbolism discussed below includes major symbols that are common to all pictures and images of Shiva venerated by Hindus. Since the tasks of Lord Shiva are numerous, He cannot be symbolized in one form. For this reason the images of Shiva vary significantly in their symbolism.

The unclad body covered with ashes: the unclad body symbolizes the transcendental aspect of the Lord. Since most things reduce to ashes when burned, ashes symbolize the physical universe. The ashes on the unclad body of the Lord signify that Shiva is the source of the entire universe which emanates from Him, but He transcends the physical phenomena and is not affected by it.
Matted locks: Lord Shiva is the Master of yoga. The three matted locks on the head of the Lord convey the idea that integration of the physical, mental and spiritual energies is the ideal of yoga.
Ganga: Ganga (river Ganges) is associated with Hindu mythology and is the most sacred river of Hindus. According to tradition, one who bathes in Ganga (revered as Mother Ganga) in accordance with traditional rites and ceremonies on religious occasions in combination with certain astrological events, is freed from sin and attains knowledge, purity and peace. Ganga, symbolically represented on the head of the Lord by a female (Mother Ganga) with a jet of water emanating from her mouth and falling on the ground, signifies that the Lord destroys sin, removes ignorance, and bestows knowledge, purity and peace on the devotees.
The crescent moon: is shown on the side of the Lord's head as an ornament, and not as an integral part of His countenance. The waxing and waning phenomenon of the moon symbolizes the time cycle through which creation evolves from the beginning to the end. Since the Lord is the Eternal Reality, He is beyond time. Thus, the crescent moon is only one of His ornaments, and not an integral part of Him.
Three eyes: Lord Shiva, also called Tryambaka Deva (literally, "three-eyed Lord"), is depicted as having three eyes: the sun is His right eye, the moon the left eye and fire the third eye. The two eyes on the right and left indicate His activity in the physical world. The third eye in the center of the forehead symbolizes spiritual knowledge and power, and is thus called the eye of wisdom or knowledge. Like fire, the powerful gaze of Shiva's third eye annihilates evil, and thus the evil-doers fear His third eye.
Half-open eyes: when the Lord opens His eyes, a new cycle of creation emerges and when He closes them, the universe dissolves for creation of the next cycle. The half-open eyes convey the idea that creation is going through cyclic process, with no beginning and no end. Lord Shiva is the Master of Yoga, as He uses His yogic power to project the universe from Himself. The half-open eyes also symbolize His yogic posture.

Kundalas (two ear rings): two Kundalas, Alakshya (meaning "which cannot be shown by any sign") and Niranjan (meaning "which cannot be seen by mortal eyes") in the ears of the Lord signify that He is beyond ordinary perception. Since the kundala in the left ear of the Lord is of the type used by women and the one in His right ear is of the type used by men, these Kundalas also symbolize the Shiva and Shakti (male and female) principle of creation.
Snake around the neck: sages have used snakes to symbolize the yogic power of Lord Shiva with which He dissolves and recreates the universe. Like a yogi, a snake hoards nothing, carries nothing, builds nothing, lives on air alone for a long time, and lives in mountains and forests. The venom of a snake, therefore, symbolizes the yogic power.
A snake (Vasuki Naga): is shown curled three times around the neck of the Lord and is looking towards His right side. The three coils of the snake symbolize the past, present and future - time in cycles. The Lord wearing the curled snake like an ornament signifies that creation proceeds in cycles and is time dependent, but the Lord Himself transcends time. The right side of the body symbolizes the human activities based upon knowledge, reason and logic. The snake looking towards the right side of the Lord signifies that the Lord's eternal laws of reason and justice preserve natural order in the universe.
Rudraksha necklace: Rudra is another name of Shiva. Rudra also means "strict or uncompromising" and aksha means "eye." Rudraksha necklace worn by the Lord illustrates that He uses His cosmic laws firmly - without compromise - to maintain law and order in the universe. The necklace has 108 beads which symbolize the elements used in the creation of the world.
Varda Mudra: the Lord's right hand is shown in a boon- bestowing and blessing pose. As stated earlier, Lord Shiva annihilates evil, grants boons, bestows grace, destroys ignorance, and awakens wisdom in His devotees.
Trident (Trisula): a three-pronged trident shown adjacent to the Lord symbolizes His three fundamental powers (shakti) of will (iccha), action (kriya) and knowledge (jnana). The trident also symbolizes the Lord's power to destroy evil and ignorance.
Damaru (drum): a small drum with two sides separated from each other by a thin neck-like structure symbolizes the two utterly dissimilar states of existence, unmanifest and manifest. When a damaru is vibrated, it produces dissimilar sounds which are fused together by resonance to create one sound. The sound thus produced symbolizes Nada, the cosmic sound of AUM, which can be heard during deep meditation. According to Hindu scriptures, Nada is the source of creation.
Kamandalu: a water pot (Kamandalu) made from a dry pumpkin contains nectar and is shown on the ground next to Shiva. The process of making Kamandalu has deep spiritual significance. A ripe pumpkin is plucked from a plant, its fruit is removed and the shell is cleaned for containing the nectar. In the same way, an individual must break away from attachment to the physical world and clean his inner self of egoistic desires in order to experience the bliss of the Self, symbolized by the nectar in the Kamandalu.
Nandi: the bull is associated with Shiva and is said to be His vehicle. The bull symbolizes both power and ignorance. Lord Shiva's use of the bull as a vehicle conveys the idea that He removes ignorance and bestows power of wisdom on His devotees. The bull is called Vrisha in Sanskrit. Vrisha also means dharma (righteousness). Thus a bull shown next to Shiva also indicates that He is the etemal companion of righteousness.
Tiger skin: a tiger skin symbolizes potential energy. Lord Shiva, sitting on or wearing a tiger skin, illustrates the idea that He is the source of the creative energy that remains in potential form during the dissolution state of the universe. Of His own Divine Will, the Lord activates the potential form of the creative energy to project the universe in endless cycles.
Cremation ground: Shiva sitting in the cremation ground signifies that He is the controller of death in the physical world. Since birth and death are cyclic, controlling one implies controlling the other. Thus, Lord Shiva is revered as the ultimate controller of birth and death in the phenomenal world.

Indian God Names

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Bhuvaneswari

The concept of Goddess Bhuvaneswari as the supreme goddess emerged in historical religious literature as a term to define the powerful and influential nature of female deities in India. Throughout history, goddesses have been portrayed as the mother of the universe, through whose powers the universe is created and destroyed. The gradual changes in belief through time shape the concept of Bhuvaneswari and express how the different Goddesses, though very different in personality, all carry the power of the universe on their shoulders.She is almighty.

Sri Lakshmi

Lakshmi, also called Sri or Sri Lakshmi is an important goddess of Hindus. Lakshmi is the epitome of everything good and prosperous in the world. She as the power behind Lord Vishnu, aids in the preservation of the world. Lakshmi like Vishnu has many incarnation the most important ones being: Sita and Radha.

Parvati

In Sanskrit language, Parvati means a daughter of the mountains, the Himalayas. Goddess Parvati is the wife of Shiva, one of the three main gods of the Hindus. If she is shown seated by the side of Shiva, she has two arms. If she comes alone, she has four arms. She rides on a tiger or a lion.

Saraswati

Saraswati is the goddess of speech and learning. Vedas tells about her. Her image shows that she has four arms. In her hands, she holds a book, a rosary, a pot of water, and a lute.

In ancient time there was also a river nahiimed Saraswati River. The river dried up long ago. This river is also considered a goddess.

Sita is one of the most popular goddesses of Hindus. Hindus of north India especially worship her. She is an avatar of Lakshmi. She was married to Rama, an avatar ofVishnu. Hindu scriptures say that Vishnu and Laxmi are husband and wife.

Radha

The word Radha means riches and success. Her name comes with the name of Krishna, another avatar of Vishnu. Some Hindu scriptures describe her as a form or avatar of goddess Lakshmi.

Durga

Durga is one of the most powerful goddesses of Hindus. Hindu scriptures say that Durga came to kill the asuras, that is, the demons. Male gods had failed to control asuras and she was created. She had the powers of all the male gods combined.

Kali

Kali is one of the main goddesses of Hindus. She is a very powerful goddess. Sometimes she is also called Chandi. Durga and Kali together killed many asuras (demons) who used to disturb human beings.

Kali is a form of Durga that sprang from her head during Durga's battle with the demon Raktabeeja (who represents the power of thoughts, the power which constantly and unceasingly reproduce in the mind) whose blood when touch to the earth generated another Raktabeeja. To end this battle between Raktabeeja and Durga, Kali consumed every drop of blood until Raktabeeja Bled out. Kali is the highest form of the Supreme. Kali's name has two meanings; the first meaning is "dark" which means she represents the Void(brahman. The second meaning is "Time" which is the Destroyer of Everything.

India Life

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Every region in India has its own characteristics and traditions, like the palm-leaf houses in the south are nothing similar to the stone houses of the Himalayas or the houseboats of Kashmir. Every state has its own identity which is respected by people all around India and also the world. Family life is equally varied in Indian states. India is a country with many states in which people from different cultures, religions, castes, etc. live. The language, clothings, customs, and traditions of people are influenced by the respective regions they reside in.

Most of the families in India are extended families, wherein every member has his/her own role, often influenced by age and gender. Children are cherished and considered as gifts from God. Children can look forward to continual family support throughout their lives, unlike in other countries. However, they are expected to respect their elders and parents, their wishes and family ties. The family structure in India is typical, wherein there are many wedding customs, which have to be strongly followed by people. Religion, caste, traditional practices, and regional differences influence family structures. Indians are more emotionally attached to the members of their family. Husbands and wives are not allowed to openly display their affection for one another.

Buddhism India

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Buddhism is the fourth largest religion of the world and has its origin in India. Siddhartha Gautama, a warrior prince who lived from 566 to 480 B.C founded Buddhism. Gautama was tired and weary of his luxurious life. He renounced his princely life to seek the truth about life. He spent many years of hard penance under a Bodhi tree in search of liberation from material values of life. After many years of penance he achieved an epiphany and came to be known as "Buddha". Buddha means the "Enlightened One". After the enlightenment, he traveled around India imparting the wise knowledge he had achieved. Gradually, his teachings spread to the South Asian countries. Today, Buddhism is a popular religion practiced by many around the globe.

Hinduism India

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It was the Greek and the Persian travelers to the Indus Valley in the 16th century who coined the term "Hinduism". It is a fact that nobody knows anything about the central authority or founder of Hinduism. Historians believe, over the centuries, Hinduism had adopted many spiritual traditions and practices, which are seen even today in the homes of many Hindus. It is not easy to generalize the beliefs of Hinduism because the practices vary widely among the believers of this religion.

Historians believe Hinduism was the religion followed by the people of the Indus Valley Civilization. This civilization existed between 3200 BC and 1600 BC, on the banks of the River Indus. However, many of the events and the incidents that had taken place between 1500 BC and 1400 BC have not been documented. Hence there is an ongoing debate about the exact date of the beginning of the Hinduism.

However, the historians believe Vedic scriptures were introduced sometime in 1000 BC. The Vedic scriptures are known as the "Vedas"; and Rig Veda was the first Hindu scripture. The Vedas are the basic foundation of Hindu philosophy. There are four Vedas - Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda. Each of these Vedas were written in the form of hymns in Sanskrit language and served four different purposes. You would also find a scripture on medicines known as Ayurveda.

Upanishads are religious texts within the Vedas and they deal with the metaphysical nature of the universe and human soul. The essence of Hinduism as a religion unfolds through the great epics "Ramayana" and "Mahabharata", and also other religious scriptures such as "Manu Smriti", "Vedanta" and "Srutis".

Judaism India

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Christianity World Map

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Jain Religion India

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Jainism is one of the oldest religions of world. It believes in a universe without beginning, without end and without creator. Rishabhdev, the first Tirthankar, is mentioned in Rig Veda, the oldest scripture of Hinduism believed to be at least 5000 years old. The last of the 24 Tirthankars of this cycle of time was Lord Mahavira. Jainism became prominent religion in India at the time of Mahavira , who was born in about 599 B.C. in the town of Vyshali , (in the present day Bihar ) in a royal family

Around 80 A. D. the Jainism was divided into two sects. The Svetambara or "white clad" and The Digambara or "sky clad". The Svetambara are more liberal in their interpretation of Mahavirals teaching regarding nudity and allow their monks to wear a white garment. Women are also allowed in their religion and monasteries accepting the possibility that they may find salvation. The Digambara are more traditionalists. They adhere to the old ideals that require their monks to go about naked. The Digambara sect believes that women have no chance of achieving salvation until they are reborn as men.

Ahimsa (Non-violence) is the basic philosophy of Jainism. Anekantvad (Non-absolutism) Syadvad (Relativity of truth) and Karma theory form the basis of Jain philosophy. The scriptures of Jainism are Agana (precepts) or Siddhantas- (treatises). Jain code of conduct includes: Ahimsa (non violence), Satya (truthfulness), Asteya (non-stealing), Aparigraha (non-possessiveness), and Brahmacharya (chastity). These are very similar to the Buddhist code of conduct.

Jains believe that animals and plants, as well as human beings, contain living souls. Each of these souls, whatever species it may be in, is considered of equal value and should be treated with respect and compassion.

Jainism does not believe in God as the creator of universe. The objective of Jainism is to make every effort for Moksha or Liberation from unending cycles of birth, death and re-birth and become a 'Jina'. For Jains the Jina is God. Every human being and every living being has the potential to become Jina or God. Jainism never became a dominant religion in India but always had a peaceful co-existence with Hinduism and Buddhism.

Christian Religion India

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The population is overwhelmingly Hindu and Muslim, therefore there is no official celebration of Christmas. Since there are many communities that celebrate Christmas, this being a diversified state, its interesting to see how a wide variety of people come together to join in the festivities. And yet 25th December is the one day that is largely celebrated by Indians and everyone across the world, as Christmas Day! The Christians in India, are also divided into various sects, and depending on where they reside, there is an interesting mix of function and goodies that tag along with the Christmas Season. The Christians in India observe Christmas as a religious holiday when families will go to church and then gather for a Christmas dinner. Christmas decorations are found inside the home, but there are no lights decorating the yards.

There seems to be a large congregation of people, dressed impeccably, leaving the Church after the mid-night mass. The interesting thing is that they maintain their sense of style even in the wee hours of the morning. Like any other Christian community, they all have the mutual sharing of Gifts and love. What follows is an interesting gathering of people, who visit their relatives and what even intriguing if you'd ever visit the streets in Goa, an essentially Christian dominated place in India, is the sheer mix of colors that's splashed into the air. There are cookies of all kinds and mouth watering cakes, mostly plum and lots of wine.

Religion Ancient India

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A few days ago, I re-published (in: ‘The Inexorable Radiation of Waaqeffannaa, the Oromo Religion’ - http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/60798) an excellent paper written by one of Oromia’s foremost intellectuals, Mr. Getachew Chamadaa Nadhabaasaa, a theological analysis of Waaqeffannaa, the historical Oromo religion (under the title Waaqeffannaa - Testimony of an Indigenous Religion of the African Past and Present).

As I intended to extensively comment on that text that serves as a founding text for a new phase of Waaqeffannaa, as written religion, I encrusted numbers in the text. Two parts of the commentary have already been published (‘Ancient Egyptian and Kushitic Religions and Waaqeffannaa Oromo Religion’ / http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/61419 and Waaqeffannaa Oromo Religion and the Unavoidable Death of Fake ‘Ethiopia’ / http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/63090). I will continue in the present article. My present comments relate to the numerated points in Mr. Nadhabaasaa’s text (as above).

Commentary

33. The author is probably acquainted with Islamic extremist literature on Islam, and all modern currents of Islamic theology derived from Wahhabism and Ibn Taimiya. In this, he is as wrong as all the Western Evangelicals and others who depict Islam through the words and the analyses of the deformers of Islam, namely the sheikhs who promise to stick to the tradition and, in doing so, they idealize the form and they deplete the contents. This view of the after death life was not shared by the great Islamic philosophers of the Golden Era of Islam, who were much closer to the theoretical approach of the Ancient Egyptians. The ‘reward’ concept reflects typically polytheistic and idolatrous approaches, and in this regard Ibn Hanbal and Ibn Taimiya did the greatest harm to Islam; if one goes through pages of Mohyieldin Ibn al Arabi and Ibn Hazm, one realizes that there was a ‘function’ concept (in contrast with the ‘reward’ concept) among Islamic philosophers.

34. This is very wrong; it does not make honour to an Oromo theologian to misinterpret terms of another religion. Behind this expression is hidden a misinterpretation of the name of ‘Islam’; it does not mean ‘slavery’ but ‘submission’. It makes a vast difference! In fact, there is no great disparity between Waaqeffannaa and Islam in this regard; what is considered as righteous and peaceful path for the Man to follow in life in Waaqeffannaa is called Islam (submission to God) within the context of Islam. Different names for the same concept. In fact, both religions demand of their followers to engage in the path of personal peace and integrity; slavery is totally impermissible in Islam. Malpractices of rulers rejected by the majority of Muslims in their times cannot be opportunistically used by a theologian of another religion because the act in itself reveals dishonesty. There is a vast difference between asserting that one religion has been the object of malpractice and using unrepresentative moments and denounced practices and persons to portentously denigrate the religion in question.

Religion India Map

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Different Religions India

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India, the world’s second most populous country and the largest democracy has a few other identifying points too. It is predominantly Hindu. Predominantly means there are a number of other religions practiced in the country and but for politicians, have existed side by side for centuries. Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Zorastrianism, Bah’ism, some of the significant minorities, have had roots in the country for centuries now. India has always been a breeding ground for spirituality, right from the (alleged) world’s oldest city, Kashi, or Varanasi, where Lord Shiva seems to come for a visit once in a while.

Hinduism differs from Christianity and other Western religions in that it does not have a single founder, a specific theological system, a single system of morality, or a central religious organization. It is actually made up of thousands of different religious groups and sects that have evolved in India over the last 5000 years ore more. Hinduism is generally regarded as the world's oldest organized religion.

Hinduism has grown to become the world's third largest religion, after Christianity and Islam. It claims about 762 million followers - 13% of the world's population. It is the dominant religion in India, Nepal, and among some the Tamils in Sri Lanka. According to the "Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches," there were about 1.1 million Hindus in the U.S. while the "American Religious Identification Survey" estimate about 766,000 Hindus in 2001. Statistics Canada estimates that there are about 157,015 Hindus in Canada.

But what is this religion? Supposed to be the world’s oldest practiced faith, Hinduism is actually not a religion at all. It does not have a single God concept and it has no rules laid down. Religions that recognize the existence of multiple deities have traditionally been among the world's most religiously tolerant. Hinduism remains arguably one of the most tolerant of such religions. One does not have to take frequent visits to the temple in order to be a part of the community (indeed there is no community to speak of), and unlike Christianity, the priest is not the shepherd of his flock. The Hindu priest is merely the go between, connecting a man to his faith, blind or otherwise. He merely chants the required mantras (Sanskrit connotations to the forces of Nature that are ultimately what Gods are in Hinduism). They do not guide the Hindus to the path of righteousness, that job is left to swamis and Gurus. The priests merely collect money and disperse blessings on behalf of God. But we are going too fast.

Hindus worship a whole pantheon of Gods, their Kingdom of heaven is not where goodness resides, it is where an entire city of Gods reside, and they are ruled by Indra, a cunning, politically oriented king. Of course, his being the king does not make him superior to the Celestial Trinity, the Creator, The Keeper and the Destroyer, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Again, very opportunistic trends are observed here. The Creator, elderly Brahma with a flowing beard, three heads and Saraswati, the Goddess of learning as his consort, is not worshipped very much. He just IS. The Keeper, Vishnu, the dark skinned handsome God, with the celestial discus rotating on his little finger, reclining on the plush lotus bed with his consort Lakshmi , the Goddess of Wealth by his side, is the most incarnated God. He has steadily been making appearances on earth in the form of incarnations - principled warrior kings like Rama or political economists like Krishna. He is supposed to have taken nine incarnations in the existing era system, one for each Yuga(era). The last incarnation was Buddha, by far the most intellectual and gentle of all the incarnations, and he chose to start his own religion, Buddhism, today followed by a vast number of Asians (indeed, some pockets of Hollywood too). His consort, Lakshmi, is the most widely worshipped deity in terms of the populist votes, after all, she is identified as wealth. Accordingly, the daughter or the daughter-in-law of the house is referred to as Lakshmi, to invite wealth and prosperity.

Religion Taj Mahal

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Here we are supposed to discuss an art form that comes from a rich culture, which has been the inspiration for many. It is a form of art that follows certain rules and regulations that were imposed by the religion. No art has ever been beautiful when restricted but Islamic Art proves to be an exception. According to the Islamic faith, art could not depict living beings and therefore Islamic Art seldom has any human or animal depictions but has arabesque, calligraphy, ceramics and floral designs. For Muslims depiction of living forms through art is audacity and challenge towards God who created humans with the help of his creative powers and it is only in his power to create such perfect shapes. No human should ever endeavor to imitate God’s work. Art and religion are intertwined and art reflects the strong belief of people in their religious teaching and its implementation in daily life.

Islamic art does not only refer to art that has been created in Islamic countries but also the lands that they ruled and influenced the art of that land, for example India which reflects a very healthy combination of Indian and Islamic Art. Islamic art has a very unique characteristic wherein the art is beyond temporality as a result of which people from and past and present both relate to it which adds to its popularity in every century.

Religion India

2011-07-16T06:23:00.000-07:00

What is religion? It is the belief that we have in a faith which leads us to worship gods or is a set of rituals and observations that explain the reason for the existence of the universe. It involves devotional rituals and observances that followers need to live by and prescribes a moral code that should conduct the affairs of the believer. As long as there have been human beings, there has been some sort of religion. Voltaire once reflected on this when said, "If there were no God, it would have been necessary to invent him. There are different creation stories for different religions, but it is difficult to say with certainty which is the oldest religion as there are no written records that support claims.

All world religions claim to be the oldest religions of the world, as all religions have a creation story of how the world began. Technically animism should be considered as the oldest among the different types of religions but since it is a primitive religion which has been replaced by more formal religions, it is hardly practiced anymore. Animism is the belief that every natural object and the universe has a soul and this soul is to be worshiped. Animal worship is also a faith that has survived for many years now. In fact in 2006, a carved statue of a python was excavated in Botswana that has been dated to be at least 70,000 years old. Another unorganized form of religion that has been around for several centuries is Paganism which is the belief in worship of Mother Earth and reverence of forms of Earth.

Gold India

2011-07-16T06:16:00.000-07:00

Love India

2011-07-16T06:06:00.000-07:00

The other day, I was talking to some friends about the movie, Rang de Basanti, and as I was talking about it, I realized that it was path-breaking movie in terms of the subject matter, and the way in which the subject matter was dealt with. I remembered this one dialogue from the movie, which had stayed with me, much after the movie had ended: "Koi bhi desh perfect nahin hota... Use perfect banana padta hai", meaning, no country is perfect, it has to be made perfect. The dialogue echoes of the famous words of John F. Kennedy: "Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country." It set me thinking...

Do you remember The Indian Pledge, the one which we used to recite in school, too young to understand its significance? Let me jog your memory.

"India is my country, and all Indians are my brothers and sisters.
I love my country, and I am proud of its rich and varied heritage.
I shall always strive to be worthy of it.
I shall give my parents, teachers and all elders, respect,
And treat everyone with courtesy.
To my country and my people, I pledge my devotion.
In their well being and prosperity alone, lies my happiness."

I didn't even remember the pledge completely. As bad as it may sound, I had to Google it! I didn't even remember the last time I had thought about it! But, as I read it today, my heart is filled with a strange sense of heaviness. Have we stood by our oath or have we buried it along with a host of other things we prefer to forget? Has it become just another inconvenient truth for us? What happened to us? We have forgotten how much our freedom fighters have struggled to give us our freedom, which we not only take for granted, but abuse, today. When did we become what we have become - selfish, self-centered, self-serving, uncaring... How did we get here? When our forefathers handed our country over to us, they must have had such hopes and dreams for our country, for us. They had given us the most precious gift of all - our freedom. Freedom to spread our wings, to grow, to prosper... And what did we do? We curtailed our own freedom, we set boundaries, we divided ourselves into regions, we segregated ourselves with our castes, creeds, and religions. "With freedom comes great responsibility" said Jawaharlal Nehru in his historical Independence speech. Here are some excerpts from that speech.

Christianity India

2011-07-16T05:58:00.001-07:00

In South India, little clay lamps are lit in homes. Their wicks are twisted so the flame lasts longer, and these tiny lamps decorate the walls and houses of the clean, green countryside as well as urban centers.
Kerala does it with more religious fervor, the most favorite tourist destination for foreigners to the country, this coastal state, popularly known as God’s own country, is believed to be the cradle of Christian civilization in the country, ever since a number of centuries ago, when St Thomas made it his land of missionary zeal. There are a number of old, wealthy, Christian communities there, and Christmas in Kerala is serious business, more faith than mere celebrations.

Even though the Christmas lunch menu is roast duck, sometimes pork and mince pies, there is a decided presence of stew and appams (pancakes made of a batter of rice flour and coconut milk, to be enjoyed with mutton stew, a very typical South Indian delicacy) too, the spirit of Christmas is present like nowhere else. There is avial, in other south Indian states, murukku (a fried pretzel made of lentil and rice flour), and athirasam gracing the table alongside the Christmas pudding. Sweets like rose cookies, doughnuts and diamond cuts are usually home made like cookies in the western countries.

Tropical plants, children in gaily colored dresses, devout believers attending the midnight or morning Mass, drums and hymns accompany the December 25th celebrations. Santa Clauses in all shapes and sizes but duly attired in their large red dresses and snow white beards give out sweets to children from street corners, shops and even schools. For days in advance, Christmas Carols are sung in Christian households, and a large star is hung up in the front of the house. Gifts are exchanged, tips are given around, and many a Hindu couple ends up spending more on Christmas gifts to each other than they would for a Hindu festival. This is the spirit of Christmas in India.

Bible India

2011-07-16T03:21:00.000-07:00

Who frames our concepts about dating? Most of the dating concepts that have been formed in our minds is by what we see in the movies, talk shows, soaps, etc. However, it's up to us to choose to be squeezed into the world's mold. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will." So how can we apply this verse to dating? It's very simple, do we allow the world, the media, the people around us, etc. to tell us by what standards we are to live or do we allow the Holy Bible to guide us?

The Bible is the 'Word of God' which has all the information we need during our life time. Are we willing to allow God to guide us in this area of dating? Though the Bible does not specifically list down a set of Christian dating rules, there are various guidelines given for us that will help us in this area.

Jesus Christ India

2011-07-15T23:04:00.000-07:00

Each area has a distinctly different way of celebrating Christmas. In far North Eastern Mizoram, Christmas is a community event, a time for community feasting, called Lengkhawn Zai, (with roots in pre Christian era). Their Christmas carols are low, soft songs, more signifying spiritual joy than festivity. Goa is one favorite destination for Christmas celebrations, in fact a very large number of people from the country as well as abroad make a beeline to this little coastal state to celebrate their Christmas holidays in style.

Generally the Christians who live in the plains decorate mango or banana trees at Christmas time, some even use mango leaves to decorate their homes, like during Hindu festivals. During the Christmas service, most churches are decorated with pointsepias and candles. In fact, one of the first things that one notices about an Indian Christmas is the presence of point sepia leaves instead of holly (holly does not grow in 80% of the country).

In South India, little clay lamps are lit in homes. Their wicks are twisted so the flame lasts longer, and these tiny lamps decorate the walls and houses of the clean, green countryside as well as urban centers.
Kerala does it with more religious fervor, the most favorite tourist destination for foreigners to the country, this coastal state, popularly known as God’s own country, is believed to be the cradle of Christian civilization in the country, ever since a number of centuries ago, when St Thomas made it his land of missionary zeal. There are a number of old, wealthy, Christian communities there, and Christmas in Kerala is serious business, more faith than mere celebrations.

Even though the Christmas lunch menu is roast duck, sometimes pork and mince pies, there is a decided presence of stew and appams (pancakes made of a batter of rice flour and coconut milk, to be enjoyed with mutton stew, a very typical South Indian delicacy) too, the spirit of Christmas is present like nowhere else. There is avial, in other south Indian states, murukku (a fried pretzel made of lentil and rice flour), and athirasam gracing the table alongside the Christmas pudding. Sweets like rose cookies, doughnuts and diamond cuts are usually home made like cookies in the western countries.

Tropical plants, children in gaily colored dresses, devout believers attending the midnight or morning Mass, drums and hymns accompany the December 25th celebrations. Santa Clauses in all shapes and sizes but duly attired in their large red dresses and snow white beards give out sweets to children from street corners, shops and even schools. For days in advance, Christmas Carols are sung in Christian households, and a large star is hung up in the front of the house. Gifts are exchanged, tips are given around, and many a Hindu couple ends up spending more on Christmas gifts to each other than they would for a Hindu festival. This is the spirit of Christmas in India.

Prayer India

2011-07-15T22:58:00.000-07:00

Hinduism is the world's third largest religion with over one billion adherents. Out of these billion followers, about 905 million live in India.
Hinduism is often referred to as Sanātana Dharma by its practitioners. The term refers to a Sanskrit phrase, which means ‘the eternal law’.
Hinduism's vast body of scriptures is divided into Śruti (which means "revealed") and Smriti (which means "remembered"). These Hindu scriptures discuss theology, philosophy and mythology, and provide information on the practice of the Hindu dharma.
The fundamentals of Ayurveda can be found in Hindu scriptures called the Vedas, which are considered as the ancient Indian books of wisdom.
The Hindu scriptures refer to celestial entities or the deities as Devas (gods) and Devis (goddesses). Read more about Hindu gods.
Most Hindus believe that the spirit or soul which is referred to the true "self" of every person and called as the ātman, is eternal.
Karma is a concept in Hinduism which explains causality by means of a concept in which beneficial effects are derived from good deeds of the past and harmful effects are a consequence of the immoral or harmful deeds in the past, thus creating a cycle of actions and reactions throughout a person's reincarnated lives.
Classical Hindu thought accepts four important objectives of human life, known as the puruṣārthas, which include dharma (righteousness), artha (livelihood, wealth), kāma (sensual pleasure) and moksha (liberation, freedom).
There are four methods of yogas for Hindus, which have been laid down by sages as means to reach the goal. These methods or paths are Bhakti Yoga (the path of love and devotion), Karma Yoga (the path of right action), Rāja Yoga (the path of meditation) and Jnana Yoga (the path of wisdom).
Hindu practices generally involve seeking awareness of God and seeking blessings from Devas and are meant to help one think of divinity in everyday life. Hindus engage in worship of the Gods, which is referred to as puja.
The popular Hindu epics Mahabharata and Ramayana serve as both religious scriptures and a rich source of guiding principles of philosophy and morality.
Hinduism has a system of symbolism and iconography, which is used to represent the sacred in art, architecture, literature and worship. Some of the popular symbols and icons in Hinduism are the syllable Om and the swastika
Hindus advocate the practice of ahimsa (non-violence) and respect for all life.

Jesus India

2011-07-15T22:50:00.000-07:00

Even though Christians form a minority community in India, this does not dampen the Christmas and New Year celebrations across the length and breadth of the country. Christmas is celebrated by believers and non-believers alike, complete with scenes of Nativity, Christmas puddings and even Christmas trees (even though fir trees grow only in the northern hilly tracts of the country).

Legend has it that Christmas was originally celebrated by Romans as a Pagan festival, dedicated to the Sun God, and symbolizing the victory of light over darkness. It was much later that December 25th came to be celebrated as the birthday of Jesus Christ (in fact only around 345 AD). One may safely say that despite the fact that Christmas is widely regarded as a Christian festival; the basic spirit it imbibes is that of family traditions, celebrations, greetings and gifts. After three hundred years of colonization, Christianity and English are an inseparable part of the Indian culture. Besides, Indians are a people who just need a reason to celebrate and Christmas seems to be as good a reason as any other. So a large number of Indians decorate their homes with the glowing star and little Christmas trees…even if the climate disagrees with the white Christmas concept. Trees are celebrated with tinsel stars, cotton snow flakes, lights, candy and cakes. Carols singing and sending cards are a must for every educated Indian, in fact, cards are not sent for Indian festivals as much as for Christmas and New Year (a Roman concept).

Parties and dancing is an integral part of the festivities, and all Indians, at least all urban Indians participate in them wholeheartedly. Classy hotels, smaller clubs and restaurants, groups of friends, schools, colleges and almost all social organizations have parties, eat, drink, dance and celebrate. There is no dearth of good spirit even if it is not just a good Christian spirit!!! Gifts are exchanged, according to the depth of the pockets and Santa Claus brings gifts to a lot of good Indian children, just as he does around the Christian world!!

Indian God Photos

2011-06-21T02:02:00.000-07:00

Indian God Wallpaper

2011-06-21T01:56:00.000-07:00

God Of India Pictures

2011-06-21T01:48:00.000-07:00

Photos of Indian Gods

2009-10-03T14:17:00.000-07:00

Sai baba of Shirdi

Lord Krishna & Radha

Lord Tirupati Balaji

Lord Rama with Wife Sita

Lord Shiva

Lord Ganesha

Lord Hanuman

Lord Vitthala With Wife Rukmai

Goddess Durga

Lord Jesus Christ

Bhagwan Mahavir

2009-10-03T14:04:00.000-07:00

Lord Brahma

2009-10-03T13:58:00.000-07:00

The story of Brahma is one of the most puzzling aspects of Indian religious evolution, for a god who had bid fair for supreme status, and seemed poised to achieve it, suddenly fell in the regard of men and has almost no worshippers today. He has not suffered oblivion like the other Vedic gods who were his contemporaries. He has just shrunk into insignificance, the god who was once great and is now living off past glories. Brahma is the god who used to be. His place in the myths of India is pan-Indian, he is a constant presence in all of them but almost always he is merely the opening act for the cosmic crisis that will follow. It is for other gods to perform heroics and save the universe; other gods bring meaning and value to the lives of the faithful, not Brahma. Not any more at least.

This was not always the case. Brahma is perhaps unique in all the gods of India for never losing his primary function as the God of Creation. Every other god has evolved, changed, been assigned a different cosmic role but Brahma in all his various aspects has always been a God of Creation. This is an unchanged belief system for at least five thousand years in India now; India has never looked to any other god to bring forth creation. Other gods and goddesses may be nominally superior to him, but their part in Genesis stops once they produce Brahma. The real business of ordering and structuring the universe is always and forever Brahma's. I believe this to be a unique myth structure in the entire world. No other Godly-function myth has endured so strongly with almost no change at all thus.

In the Veda he is known as Prajapati, the All-Father, which is what Odin was called in Norse mythology too. He comes to our notice when he begins to people the universe with life forms engendered by an act of cosmic incest he is committing with his daughter. They take many animal and organic shapes and all the offspring take on the shape of the moment of copulation. Which is how a barren universe fills up with vegetable and animal life. This myth is not shocking by the standards of ancient cultures, many of which had as a Primal Cause an act of incest. However the other Vedic deities are not entirely comfortable with this action, but they are powerless to punish the All-Father. It is then that Brahma is overcome by the foe that will pursue him throughout the ages and will finally vanquish him - Rudra-Shiva, the dark outsider god, peculiar, outside the ambit of Vedic ritual, fearfully respected because grimly powerful. Rudra shoots his irresistible arrow at the Prajapati and wounds him into weakness, a punishment that reduces his stature. In this primary myth is already encapsulated Brahma's fall from grace into an object of derision and the replacement of his values by the wilder and freer norms of Shiva.

By the time the Upanishads and the Brahmanas were being written, Prajapati was having trouble controlling his offspring who did not want any part of his mission to create, and instead chose to remain immersed in meditation. These were the Dakshas as well as the divine sage Narada, mind-born son of Brahma. In a fit of frustration Brahma curses Narada to fall and undergo the travails of human existence, for refusing to get married and raise a new race of humans. But Narada is a god too, as well as a great rishi, and he retaliates by cursing Brahma to lose his worshipers for this entire Cycle of Creation. It is only in the next Yuga that Brahma will again be worshiped. In this myth is given the first explanation for the loss of Brahma's status, a matter that has lurked as an unacknowledged trauma in the Indian Psyche, for there are many stories which seek to explain away this totally unthinkable fact. He was the God of Creation, the All-Father and if he could fall, then what certainty was there in the universe. The second noteworthy aspect of this myth is the first acknowledgement in Indian thought that celibacy is superior to the expression of sexuality. With retrospective effect this notion served to tinge the original act of incest that Prajapati committed in even darker hues.

There was a time when Brahma seemed to have climbed out of this downward spiral. This was the time between the 3rd century to the 10th century. He was even part of the Buddhist pantheon at the time, as great as Indra, and the god who persuaded the Enlightened One to risk teaching what the Buddha regarded as a difficult doctrine that might confuse people. There were many temples built to him and I am reasonably certain there were some lost Puranas too. But once his decline was certain there was no incentive to preserve the texts and they died out. The Brahma Purana that survives today is named after him but it does not in any sense indicate his supremacy as a god. The only halfhearted exceptions are the Padma Purana and the Markandeya Purana. It was at this time that a key template in the perception of Brahma was created. This is the standard Brahma myth after stories of creation. There is a bellicose demon who performs great austerities and gains many boons from Brahma. Puffed up with this divine strength he assaults all creation and ascends to a temporary position of supreme dominance. The gods are cast out of heaven and hell is let loose on earth. At this stage one of the other gods - Shiva, Vishnu, the Great Goddess or any of their many variants take a hand and after some gory adventuring they destroy the demon. So typical had this become that Ravana, Hinduism's Uber-villain, is actually the grandson of Brahma and always in good standing with him.
In the Pauranic period, Brahma, as befits a God of Creation, was granted Saraswati the goddess of learning as his wife. (See our section in Saraswati He is supposed to perform his manifold tasks of creation while sitting on a lotus that grows out of Vishnu's navel. This is a great degradation from his formal status as one of the Great Trinity, but Hinduism being an instinctual faith rather than an intellectual one, nobody seems to have realized what has happened. The conflict with the Shiva cult remained and Shiva is constantly visiting punishment upon the creator. Once he cuts off the fifth head of Brahma for his disrespectful and lustful behavior. In another version he acts just in time to prevent Brahma from acquiring supreme status. At one time Brahma did become the Supreme God. His fifth head began to glow with a luster that proved unbearably scorching for all the Worlds of Gods and men because it was shining with the light of understanding of the Vedas that it had heard from the other four heads of Brahma. Shiva therefore, to save the universe as well as to check such presumption, cut off this glowing head. .) Brahma survived as an object of some respect by being aligned to Vishnu, albeit with a distinctively inferior status.Shiva is supposed to have pronounced the final curse that caused Brahma to fall forever from worship, an indication of the total triumph of the Shiva faction over the votaries of Brahma.

The story is that Vishnu and Brahma were debating which if them was superior when Shiva manifested himself as a great pillar of fire with no end in either heaven or the nether world. Vishnu took the form of a boar and burrowed down for countless ages to seek the source of this strange fiery pillar. He failed to do so and recognized that Shiva was not only the pillar, he was superior to him. He gave up the quest therefore. Brahma however, flew up as a swan and came back many aeons later with the report that he had seen the summit. An angry Shiva curses him for claiming credit for achievements not his own. He is cursed with perpetual old age and the total desertion of all worshippers. That explains why Brahma is always depicted nowadays as a senile old man who is so decrepit you wonder if he is not going to expire instantaneously. But as our illustrations show that was not always the case with Indian art.

The furious Shiva is popularly supposed to have relented and allowed Brahma one spot on all the earth where he has a temple dedicated solely to his worship. This is the famous Pushkar temple situated in the middle of a lake and an unusually serene spot. However the common perception of there being only one temple to Brahma is untrue. There are at least four major temples to him still in use today. They are Pushkar in Ajmer, Rajasthan; Dudhai in the state of Madhya Pradesh; Khed Brahma at Idar, also in Madhya Pradesh and Kodakkal in the Malabar region of Kerala-Karnataka. Remember you heard it here first! I would not be in the least surprised if more temples came to light tucked away in remote and obscure spots. Brahma worshippers are not desirous of the limelight. In vindication of this hunch just recently, July 2004, I came to know of a fifth Brahma temple in the state of Andhra Pradesh. This temple is part of a group of predominantly Shiva shrines at Kaleshwaram, 130 kilometers from Karimnagar, and is in the middle of nowhere in particular, so that explains its anonymity. I am certain more temples exist to Brahma and will be discovered in due time.

Brahma is depicted as a four or five-faced man with four hands. He is the epitome of Vedic learning and hence has the Vedas in one hand, prayer beads in another, the sacred water pot in the third hand and a ladle for the Vedic fire sacrifice in the fourth hand. In some versions he is depicted with a bow. This would be consistent with mythology as the supreme weapon is a missile called the Brahmastra, and it is a much sought after boon of Brahma. His vehicle is the swan, like that of Saraswati, and his complexion is supposed to be red. The Male Trinity too are a Red, Black and White (primary colors of spirituality) trio like the goddesses are. A day of Brahma is a span of creation and lasts for 2,160,000,000 human years! Creation is in abeyance during the night of Brahma, which lasts for the same length of time and then the Cycle is repeated. Brahma lives for a hundred years thus, and then he too dies and all creation is finally dissolved. Only Shiva, Vishnu or the Goddess, depending upon your cult affiliation are eternal and bring about the next Cycle of Creation. His various epithets represent his ancient creative role. Amongst them are Sanat, the Ancient One, Adi-kavi, the first poet and Srashtri, the creator.

Lord Hanuman

2009-10-03T13:55:00.000-07:00

Hanuman is undoubtedly one of the most popular gods of Hindu India, where all you need to open a shrine to him is a little hump of red or saffron rock with vaguely simian features carved onto it. There are gazillions of such shrines all over the land and they multiply in geometric proportion every day. The simian features are the most obviously striking aspect of Hanuman and people have been too quick off the mark to describe him as a Monkey-god. Hanuman is not a monkey but a Vaanara, a special class of semi-magical, semi humanoid beings with sorcerous powers but having developed a civilization and culture which were, if truth be told, at a higher state of social advancement than the human societies of the time. The Vaanaras are usually larger than humans, with simian features and tails but they are not monkeys. Monkeys represent Hanuman, and are accorded far more tolerance than their nuisance value warrants, but they are not worshipped or considered divine.

In any case Hanuman is as much above the average human as the human is to the monkey. He is one vast compendium of virtues, with nary a flaw or fault in him. He does not have the usual Vaanara weakness of jumping to conclusions, as he is the epitome of the wise counselor, preaching moderation and temperance in all things. Hanuman is perhaps the most intelligent and knowledgeable being in Indian mythology. His intelligence and wisdom are part of his divine status and he must be the only god in existence who is a favorite amongst the eggheads as well as amongst the jocks, for Hanuman is also the exemplar, the veritable pinnacle of strength, both physical and spiritual. He is a great musician and singer, a formidable scholar of the scriptures and the ultimate diplomat - entrusted with all missions that require charm and panache. His powers of askesis and spiritual discipline are unmatched and his speech so melodious and impactful that even Rama, God Himself, announced that his speech revealed a perfect being. He is also immortal and destined to be the next Manu or proto-Adam in the next Cycle of Creation. Hanuman, as can be seen from all this is not the ape of popular misrepresentation.

His birth took place in unusual conditions. His mother was an apsara (see our glossary) named Punjikasthala, who fell foul of the powers of heaven and was punished by being reborn as a Vaanara female named Anajana. The God of the Wind, Vayu, observed her walking on a hill and rather like Jupiter enveloping Io, he swiftly impregnated her. Gods will not be denied in such matters, but he was essentially a decent god and made it up to her by explaining to her husband that she was not to be blamed and showering the child with magical powers, chief of which were the ability to fly and titanic strength. The boy was called Anjaneya after his mother and his Vaanara father was Kesari, one of the more unusually evolved beings judging by his classy behavior to this unexpected child. The little child soon became a formidable force in the universe. Once he felt hungry, and with the imperious will of all babies, he decided to reach out for the biggest fruit in his vision. That unfortunately happened to be the Sun, who was led a harrowing chase by this swiftly flying baby. Indra, King of the Gods, hurled his weapon at him and smashed his jaw, earning him his famous name, Hanuman, 'The Broken-Jawed'. Vayu went on strike and the worlds began to choke to death because the air had become stale and stultified. The panicky gods covered Hanuman with a torrent of blessings, amongst which was invulnerability to all weapons, (hence his famous name Bajrangbali, or to be precise Vajra anga Bali - thunderbolt-body-hero!) and an ability to be always the best at whatever he took a turn to.

Naturally a little boy with so much power would become a hellion. Hanuman became the terror of all who passed by his impish gaze, until one day he made the mistake of trying pranks on the Sapta Rishis, or great sages. Realizing that the boy was a menace they decreed that he would lose knowledge of his strength and superhuman abilities until they were needed for the world - and until he had learnt some wisdom! Hanuman calmed down and he rapidly became a favorite at the court of the Vaanara Kingdom of Kishkinda, where his father was a courtier. He very soon established himself as the right hand man of Sugriva, the king's brother, and it was his advice to flee that saved that unfortunate prince when his brother, King Vali, attempted to kill him. Hanuman displayed his famous loyalty in preferring the miseries of exile with his master instead of the rewards of defection, for nobody would have been foolish enough to turn him away. While grimly waiting for a turn in fortunes, the Vaanara exiles saw Rama and Laxmana wander into their turf searching for the kidnapped Sita. It was the upturn of fortune for all of them.

Hanuman goes to determine if the visitors are friends or assassins but the shining virtues of Rama soon clear away any doubts. From that moment onwards, it is Rama who has the heart of Hanuman. So great is his devotion that he is referred to as the junior servant of Hari, (Vishnu) the senior servant being Garuda, the mount of Vishnu. Rama helps Sugriva in removing his brother from the throne and the Vaanara armies set out in search of the kidnapped Sita. In this endeavor, Hanuman is clearly the best hope of success for he has been everywhere and knows all lands. Rama entrusts him with his signet ring so that Sita would have no doubts about his credentials. In the Valmiki Ramayana, Hanuman becomes the real hero of the epic from that point onwards. Rama becomes a leader and is active only when there is a deed to be performed that is impossible for anybody else.

At the seashore beyond which lies Lanka, where they learn Sita is captive, the Vaanara remind Hanuman of his long suppressed strength and abilities. He grows to colossal size and his body blazes like the sun while he emits roars that cause all living things to flee. Valmiki rises to a frenzy of inspiration as he describes that awesome transformation and then Hanuman makes the most famous leap in Indian myth, a spectacular jump across the water into the demon city of Lanka. He has finally come into the full stature of his Hero destiny. Typical of the mythic structure is his first encounter with the supernatural. A giant female water dragon looms in front of him with colossal maw open and a request that he please enter! Hanuman, always courteous to women, but never a fool, instantly diminishes his size, flies though the open mouth and tells the abashed water dragon that he has kept his word. She blesses him with success for having dealt out defeat in such a gentlemanly manner. Another female dragon tries to kill him outright by her power of being able to clutch onto shadows and drag the owners of the shadow to their deaths. Hanuman is not amused and he loses his temper, rending the monster into many tiny pieces.
In this context it is worth noting that Hanuman is eternally celibate and his many encounters with threatening female energy are triumphs for him precisely because he does not get beguiled like most men would. His lack of a sexual predatory gaze has made him one of the heralds of the goddess Kali, who has very low tolerance for males around her. His huge reservoir of creative spiritual energy as a result of this unbroken celibacy has made him a Tantrik icon too; they practice sexuality too well not to understand the immensity of his achievement. There has always been a sneaking regret in the Indian mind however, conditioned as it is towards progeny, that Hanuman has no children. Some versions of the story, written much later actually have a peculiar episode connected with his flight. A beauty of the nether world had risen to the surface of the sea to witness the spectacular flight of the Vaanara. The hot sun had caused him to perspire and driblets of sweat were dropping into the water. Realizing that an eternal celibate's secretions are potent at all times she swallows it and becomes pregnant! Thus she gets the stature of being the mother of Hanuman's child, a boy he meets up with only many years later in a minor series of adventures when he descends to the underworld. The tale and tradition are not really authentic, but it is revealing as to mindsets.

Landing in Lanka, he encounters the female (again!) guardian spirit of the city and answers her threats and rudeness with one backhanded blow that sends her sprawling. This was theoretically impossible and she realizes that the destiny of the Demon city was on the down turn and abandons them. Hanuman meets up with Sita and offers comfort that she will soon be rescued. He could have taken her back himself but she wanted her husband to do it. He then proceeds to destroy the royal gardens of Ravana and single-handedly kills thousands of demons before he lets himself be captured. Ravana is impressed and infuriated with this amazing being. He asks Hanuman if Rama's glory can compare to his and Hanuman makes his famous reply that Ravana is indeed a full moon as compared to the new moon of Rama. The full moon depletes while the new moon grows in stature so the compliment was an elegant putdown. Ravana wishes to punish him and orders his tail to be set on fire. That is one of the greatest blunders ever made as Hanuman is invulnerable to fire and he reciprocates by burning down the whole golden city. This action has become proverbial for the comeuppance of pride and belief in riches.

Hanuman flies back, and soon returns with Rama and the Vaanara army. He performs many deeds of valor and slaughters many demon heroes. One of his more endearing tricks was to inflate his body and then perch Rama on his shoulder so that the great archer got a dominant position to let his shafts fly. When Indrajit, son of Ravana, uses magical weapons to render Rama and Laxmana unconscious, he flies to the Himalayas in search of the Sanjeevani, the universal panacea for all ills and wounds. Unable to identify the specific plant, the great hero uproots the mountain itself and flies back with it, an action that is much beloved of Indian art to this day as a theme for depiction. He has a run-in before that with Kalanemi, uncle of Ravana, who disguises himself as a hermit and advises Hanuman to wash in a nearby lake before he touches the magical plant. He is attacked by a crocodile that has just made the biggest mistake of its life. The slain crocodile turns out to be an apsara, the female tempter motif again, who is thus released from a curse. Warned by her against Kalanemi, he hurls the demon back to Lanka before setting off himself. On the way he is reputed to have established three Shiva-lingams in Kerala, which grew to be the famous temples of Ettumanoor, Kaddathirithi and Vaikom. They are all exactly eleven Indian miles from each other in a dead straight line with Kaddathirithi in the middle, supposedly planted by Hanuman with his mouth, as both his hands were full and the auspicious time for the establishment of the icons was swiftly passing by. We also get to understand that his wingspan was a good 22 miles!

The rest of the Ramayana has Hanuman take on the familiar role of Rama's man for all seasons. He has become an ideal now, the wise epitome of strength, and in most cases he is too well known for there to be any trouble, he merely has to turn up for it to be defused. In one famous instance he rashly promises assistance to a king who has insulted Rama's guru and finds himself opposing his master in battle. Incredibly Rama loses as he uses weapons and Hanuman merely repels all attacks with the divine name - which is "Rama!" His great love for Rama has resulted in a tradition, which states that wherever the Ramayana is read, Hanuman is the invisible participant. His being immortal sees him pop up in ages and times that are not his own, the most famous being his encounter with his half brother Bhima in the Mahabharatha, also a son of Vayu and another epitome of strength. Hanuman was distressed to observe that Bhima, usually the most humble of men was developing a swollen head and demonstrated, rather humiliatingly, that the concepts of strength Bhima held were feeble by his standards.

In India today Hanuman is greatly popular but he is never regarded as the Supreme God. One tradition states that he is actually an emanation of Shiva, being his Eleventh Rudra. As already mentioned he is a Tantrik favorite too. In the popular imagination he is best known as Sankat Mochan, the destroyer of danger and trouble and he is much called upon to save the faithful from ghosts and spells and other things that go bump in the night. He is also the patron of wrestlers, traditionally regarded as the opposite of intellectuals. Such effortless blending of opposites is not least amongst the powers of Hanuman.

Lord Shiva

2009-10-03T13:51:00.000-07:00

His name means The Auspicious One. He is Pure Consciousness, Chidanandaroopa - the form of joy that pure consciousness takes. He is the oldest god known to mankind, and more interestingly is perhaps the oldest living god, tracing a genealogy of worship that is easily five thousand years old. Naturally, therefore, he is described as the God with no lineage. Like Yahweh, who may be his only contemporary, his name was not to be taken in vain. In fact his name was not to be uttered at all. He is the howler, Rudra, when he first appears to us in the Rig Veda. He is Raudra Brahman, the wild God of the Hymns. He is also Nataraja, the elegant King of the Dance, and in fact of all the fine arts. He is the Lord of yoga, the culmination of the universe, the cause of its dissolution - yet always transcending such petty events.

To attempt an overview of Shiva in one essay is an act of extreme idiocy. I shall therefore seek to communicate some of the flavors that are associated with Shiva, trusting that time will be vouchsafed us to explore him in detail as we grow as a web-site. Shiva has been around for so long that entire encyclopedias on him are necessary to get just a bird's eye view. This god is perhaps the single most important influence on the arts and culture of the Indian subcontinent. In a very real sense, you find Shiva all over the country, he is in fact the country, so closely interwoven are the myths of his actions with the culture and geography of the land. So strong is Shiva's hold on the imagination that all local area gods which seek to gain in prestige, or are sought to be subverted to the main body of the Hindu religion, end up being described as various manifestations of Shiva. If the god lives on a hill, a forest or a cave then there is no way he escapes being but one more aspect of Mahadeva - the great god who loves to linger in hills, forests and caves. This is what has happened to Khandoba in Maharashtra, Skanda in Tamil Nadu and Ayyapan in Kerala to give the three most common examples. In fact another manner of accommodating these local religions was to decree the gods to be sons of Shiva.

The Rig Vedic Shiva was known as Rudra. He was a grim mysterious god, living on the fringes of Vedic society, a god who was so much of an outsider that he was not even entitled to a share in the fire sacrifices. Yet the Vedic pantheon was clearly in awe of this self sufficient Hunter-God. The hymns praise him in all-too-visible anxiety that his strange powers may be aroused, and his name as mentioned was never to be invoked. "We live in dread, and pray that you pass us by", quavers the Rig Vedic verse. Yet it immediately goes on to add that He is the Awakener, who when touched by pleas, grants a thousand kinds of balm that heal.

In a sense Rudra was too much a part of the Life-Force, too acutely felt to be just a god. Rudra punishes Prajapati for the first primordial act of incest and in a sense he is the defender of Dharma ever since. He is also a slayer of a brahmana, Prajapati, in the service of a higher morality, a fact that has caused much anguish to medieval commentators who were busy trying to show brahmanas were gods on earth as well as in heaven. Rudra-Shiva is thus always about living an authentic life, with utter disdain for convention.

This Vedic manifestation of Shiva was thought to be the earliest known(1500 B.C.) before he became the great God of later Hinduism. Then came the discovery of a few seals from the Harrapan civilization (2750 B.C.) and the picture changed completely. The seals show a figure who is so manifestly Shiva that it had to be acknowledged as such, even though it smashed the nice theory that was emerging of invading Aryans destroying the cities of the Indus valley. It is known as the proto-Shiva seal. However, for those who can read the signs and can decode the evidence, this figure is far more important.

He is surrounded by animals, which directly links him up with the Rudra-Pashupatinatha of the Vedas. The tiger, the elephant, and the bull depicted here, all play prominent parts in the Shiva mythology. Even more importantly he is shown in a typical yogic posture, which would indicate the knowledge of the ancient art.

This posture is the Udharva Linga posture (and not the ithyphallic posture as is so easily assumed) and it indicates the triumph over the sexual impulse.. The balls of the feet press into the sacral region behind and beneath the testicles as is shown. The lingam is erect and it presses into the navel, signifying the complete conquest of the sexual energy. He is now Udharva Retas, "he whose semen flows upwards". In the yogic system when you do not dissipate semen through ejaculation, it transforms itself into a food for the brain called ojas, vital energy, and is the source of the creative force that alone can provide you with the fuel to break through into enlightenment. This posture is commonly practiced even today and the udharva linga experience is not uncommon for many spiritual practitioners. Even the founder of Kriya yoga has left an account of precisely this linga entering the navel and the subsequent freedom from all thoughts and desire of lust.

Inevitably, Shiva the Conqueror of Lust and Desire is also known as the erotic ascetic! The Tantrik tradition uses the Shiva Energy very heavily and many of the texts of Tantra are lectures that Shiva gives to his spouse who may be Kali or Parvati, but actually is a representative of all the Divine Feminine energy in the world.

Shiva's sexuality inevitably brings us to the Shiva lingam, the supposedly sacred phallus. Contrary to popular perception, the Shiva lingam has a world of meaning attached to it and it is not just the obvious one of phallic symbolism. Most lingams are representations of Shiva who is never worshipped in the form of an image. Popular mythology holds that he was cursed so by an enraged rishi. The lingam is an abstract stand-in for the Howler who must never be named. The entire process is an elaborate avoidance of naming the dread name by substituting something else, which is also a creative and generative force.

Under Tantrik influence, the lingam placed in a yoni base - which means exactly what it sounds like - became a frank avowal of the ultimate origin of new life, it was fertility symbolism at its best. Educated Hindus tend to be over-apologetic about this aspect, though the average Hindu lives in a curious innocence about the nature of the Lingam. This was typically expressed in Gandhi's naïve confession that he had to read foreign authors before he realized that there might be anything sexual about the lingam.

According to Swami Vivekananda, not just the lingam but also the entire external image of Shiva is an elaborate symbolical construct. In his view, Shiva is a personification of the entire Vedic fire sacrifice. Thus the ash with which his body is smeared is the ash of the sacrifice. (Ash is also what's left when everything is destroyed and it does not decay. So too with god, what is left when everything is gone. Shiva covers himself with ash because he is the only life form in the Universe who is aware of this truth at every moment.) The white complexion of Shiva is indicative of the smoke of the sacrifice. The animals He is associated with indicate the animals tied to the sacrificial posts and so on. The Shiva linga, in Vivekananda's view is actually a feebly recalled Yupa Stambha, the Cosmic Pillar that is the center and support of the Universe, The Axis Mundi, in fact. This yupa stambha is always represented in all fire sacrifices and it is permanently installed in temples in the form of the linga.

If prayers could not be offered to images of Shiva, then the temples could be covered with depictions of scenes from his ancient life. So great was the Shiva factor in Indian art forms that it almost obscures the other gods. The temples and their sculptures run riot. Khajuraho, Ellora, Elephanta, Rameshwaram, the Chola temples, the Bhuvaneshwar and Madhya Pradesh temples, and the great dancing Shiva temple at Chidambaram, it's a universe drunk on the creative energy, fertile and fecund with originality and beauty that is not as well regarded as it should be, merely because there is too much of it. If there were only one such temple in India the world would have gone mad with appreciation. As such, you can actually overdose on beauty, the Beauty that is the transcendent state of the Truth that is Shiva, expressed in the famous formulation Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram.

The mythologies surrounding Shiva are immense. It must be remembered that the Shiva story has been going on for five thousand years now and they only too obviously reflect the concerns of people at the time they were being composed. Shiva Himself is a composite god today, involving many local area gods and little tradition mythologies into his all-embracing grasp. Shiva is more or less what you want Him to be, as in Him all contradictions casually coexist. The notion of Shiva as exclusively a Wild Man of the forests and mountains, traveling with a band of ghosts and ghouls as their leader, Bhoothnath, is a recent phase of his worship. For while He was always capable of peculiar behavior, Shiva used to live outside of society not because He had rejected it but because He had transcended it. Shiva is repeatedly described as the Supreme Master of all the Arts, and that indicates a highly socialized being, the Nagarika of ancient India, not a rustic.

To those who did not understand this aspect of the lord, to those who still had on their defensive shell of sophistication and cynicism, Shiva was Bholenath, the Simpleton God. Yet, traditionally India has regarded Shiva not as any of these roles but as Vishwanatha - the Lord of the Universe. That is why in all the old temples you find him represented as a king, decked out in lordly robes with crowns and jewels. This homeless-wanderer recent incarnation of Shiva was perhaps a reflection of a culture that had lost its moorings and was reeling under alien domination.

Yet even at this much reduced level, Shiva seems to appeal the most powerfully, of all the gods of India, to the collective unconscious. Since most Goddess worshipers also acknowledge Him as the divine spouse of the Goddess, Shiva may easily have the most devotes in sheer number alone. He is laughed at as an old man by devotees with the affection that comes only with comfort. Yet in some corner of the old limbic brain he lurks, Rudra-Shiva, the old god of India, the source of the songs of the Rig Veda.

Of all who are born You are the greatest
Of all the powers, you are the most compelling
Lustre itself becomes pale and outshone by you
O Rudra!
Protect us from the hordes of sins that assault us
Stand between us and them
Repel them with the thunderbolt of your arm
O Rudra! Lead us to the other bank
Let us cross with ease.

Indian Goddesses / Durga

2009-10-03T13:48:00.000-07:00

Durga literally means the Remote and Inaccessible Goddess. As with all things Hindu, there is more than a shade of irony in such a description of a goddess who is probably the most popular and most worshipped form of the Mother ever in human history. She is no milksop goddess however. This is the Ultimate Warrior Goddess, "great and terrible as an army with banners." She is usually depicted with multiple arms, wielding a rather dazzling selection of arms from the ancient world and mounted upon a very fearsome lion. Sometimes this animal becomes a tiger, and she is called Amba then. The number of arms and weapons she carries varies too. There are six armed forms, eight armed forms, ten armed forms and twenty armed forms.

These are variations upon a single theme depending upon the artistic and cultural proclivities of the painter or sculptor.

Durga is not formidable; she is stupendous - in the old sense of the word, being a co-mingling of 'tremendous' as well as 'stupefying'.

Her basic function in the popular mythology is to beat up the Cosmic bad guys, especially when the other gods have failed. She is therefore, a weapon of last resort and final appeal, an instinctive feminine answer to the problems of the world, when masculine logic fails.

Vedic India had no demon-slayers in their goddesses, though Saraswati is once described as a great warrior. In fact the traditional Hindu framework had no place for the Great Mother religions. Durga is an amalgamation of many local area fertility goddesses as well as Indian's most significant religious import. For the Indian mind had no such concept to be frank, battle queen goddesses riding animal mounts were just not the part of the zeitgeist. Once this concept had entered the country however - about 2000 years ago, it was quickly assimilated into the collective unconscious and filled up a gap in the emotional life of the people that the too-masculine nature of Godhead could not.

Durga is almost certainly Ishtar, of Mesopotamia, now the Middle East ,worshipped by the Sumerians, Assyrians Babylonians, and even Romans and Egyptians on the sly. She has been around since 2000 BC at least, when an already old tale was set down as the epic, The Descent of Ishtar. This worthy was a very independent and headstrong goddess who roamed the wilds of forest and deserts at will and had many lovers, constantly seeking battle and generally being given a very respectful and extremely wide berth by everybody. Ishtar and Isis were the two opposite polarities of the ancient mother cults, but Isis never came to India, though the Mahadevi is a good enough substitute. Ishtar however, proved the words of the song, "Good girls go to heaven, but bad girls go everywhere," and she became the most popular goddess of the ancient world even if not quite as intellectually respected as Isis.The common man however preferred this wild energy that was no respecter of pretensions and pomposity and cared not a fig for show and class division - Ishtar's lovers being an extremely eclectic assortment of professions and social classes.

India embraced this wilderness haunting, battle loving, multiple armed, lion riding goddess with great enthusiasm, but they could not countenance the promiscuity, and quietly dropped those parts out. Durga was the result of this strange deity being introduced, an Ishtar that has got her act cleaned up and is also, "chaste as the icicle on the temple of Diana."

Durga is, of course, very similar in most ways to the Mahadevi (which we have covered already) and the fundamental myths are the same. She is Mahishasuramardhani, - the slayer of the demon Mahisha, just as the Mahadevi is, but she is not the abstract supreme power that the Mahadevi became. Durga is not transcendent of the divine social order; she stands outside of it, which is the fundamental difference between her and the Mahadevi. Durga is a-social, preferring to haunt mountains and forests and deserts, surrounded by wild beats and wilder attendants, a sort of feminine Shiva. This kind of behavior is extremely offbeat in the Hindu social context, and as such, like all rebels she has become a symbol of freedom for all those who are resigned to their narrow grinds and call it their duty. Durga does what is good and duty is for lesser beings.
Naturally there was great embarrassment about such an independent feminine energy running around (one of Mahisha's arguments, poor fellow, was that a woman should not be left unprotected like this, it was not decent) and spreading subversive thoughts amongst her devotees, and the mythologizers got busy and married her off to Shiva. Then they wrote many stories which show her to be the manifestation of Parvati, Shiva's wife. Durga is Parvati's divine wrath which has taken physical shape. Even as they were making up the myth, they could not avoid her essentially independent nature. In parts of the country she is supposed to be the mother of a divine family with Skanda, Ganesha, Laxmi and Sarasvati being her children. This is an amazing example of popular feeling as to what is right and proper, triumphing over the texts itself. None of these deities are in any way connected to Durga actually, from the evidence of the texts, be they mythology or scripture. However, a goddess could not be childless so she had better have the best children possible.

The old Durga, even with her Ishtar lineage, seems to have been a fertility goddess, closely connected with the harvests and wild vegetation. There are religious ceremonies even today practiced, which ask her to hasten the growth of crops and the sprouting of the seeds. She was obviously accepted first by the tribal and semi nomadic peoples. Hence her depicted love for forests, she is known as Vanapriya, she who loves forests. She also receives blood offerings, in the typical renewal and nourishment ritual so well known to all ancient cultures. That, however, has become a problem today, as the faith has become very uncomfortable with such beliefs. It does not help that the great battle queen inflames herself for combat by drinking wine till her eyes are red, and sometimes when that is not enough, she quaffs blood as being the more intoxicating beverage. Ancient India was used to both sexes being very sociable drinkers indeed, as all the old texts and epics show again and again. It is only nowadays that this kind of behavior seems inexplicable. Durga actually has a very long hymn addressed to her where she is termed as mamasam ishta, raktha priya - she who likes meat and loves blood!

This is as far removed from the Mahadevi as is humanly possible. The Mahadevi is Durga, with all her wildness removed. However, it is not to be supposed that Durga is a chaotic, undisciplined force of nature. She is so terrifying precisely because she is always in control; there is something cool and deliberate about her that freezes the blood. Even her attahasam, the cosmic bellow of laughter that shakes the earth, seems to be derisive mockery of the pretensions of evil, rather than the outburst of rage it would have been in Kali's case. In fact there is something singularly chilling, a Himalayan coldness, in the descriptions of the manner she wipes the floor with demons. Wave after wave of asuras and rakshasas are annihilated by her and then she waits with this menacing calm for the next lot to rush up on her and meet their doom. Kali would have been chasing them round the four corners of the earth as soon as she had killed a few. The battle fury is always ready to break out in her, but she never loses control, it never becomes the blood lust that motivates Kali's dance of destruction. It is impossible for Durga to get carried away, and it is this superhuman control of hers that has rendered her 'The Inaccessible'.

In some myths Durga is the skin of Parvati, which slips off and fights the demons Shumbha and Nishumbha, a pair of brothers who did not know the old saying about united they stand and divided, by desiring the same woman, they fall. Sometimes she is supposed to create helpers to fight for her, Kali being the most famous. As Kali is an old tantrik deity, the assimilative trend here is only too visible. In other versions she is supposed to have created the Saptamatrikas, the Seven Mothers, who are originally Yaksha gods! However it is worth noting that Durga never needs male help, like Ishtar. She is independent of all direct male influence, and she fights only male demons. In the myth of her origin, what is most interesting and crucial is not that she is presented as the Shakti, the power behind the male god, but that she takes their powers upon herself so that she can save the universe.

This subsuming and in a sense takeover of the formal powers of all creation is what has led the famous hymn to Durga to extol her as the composite of all the elements. Ya Devi sarva bhuteshu, Shakti rupena samsthitha, "Oh Devi who is the amalgam of all the elements, whose form is that of strength." This indicates her essential independence of all that is, as she is made of the very stuff of the universe.

However, amongst her powers and attributes are listed not just positive ones like wisdom, and peace but also she whose form is hunger, sleep and thirst. Durga therefore is only too familiar with the Shadow of the Universe. Durga is thus an impossible reconciliation of opposites, the aspect of divinity that will always remain out of reach of the comprehension of man. She is the divine life force that may not be understood but only accepted.