Iamages of Goddess

[Guest guest]

The Goddess can take an almost infinite number of

forms: some are frightening and warlike, and some are

auspicious and filled with benevolent power. In her

different forms, she goes by different names: Parvati,

Lakshmi, Shri, Kali, Durga. In all forms, she is Devi,

"the Goddess." She is also referred to as "Mother" --

amma, ma, mataji. The Goddess is often associated with

the earth and nature -- Vishnu's second wife, for

example, is Bhu, literally "Earth." Different forms of

the Goddess are worshiped according to the specific

desires or personal affiliations of the devotee.

Saraswati, the Goddess of learning, is often the focus

of devotion of students and priests, while Shitala

Devi is worshiped for protection from disease.

 

The glory of the Goddess was first extolled in text in

the Devimahatmya, a portion of the Markandeya Purana

(5th-7th centuries), but her worship was ultimately

closely linked to the development of Tantra -- a

Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist phenomenon that grew out of

both non-elite folk traditions and scholarly and

philosophical traditions. Tantra advocated complete

acceptance of the world in the quest for

enlightenment. Through certain practices, called

sadhana, the devotee transforms this world -- and, in

direct relation to it, the body -- into a means of

achieving and experiencing enlightenment. Worship of

the Goddess is particularly associated with tantra,

and is known for its inclusion of practices

(particularly blood sacrifice) that are outside

brahminical, mainstream tradition.

 

The figure of Durga, as described in detail in the

Devimahatmya, is known as "Mahishasuramardini," the

killer of Mahisha, the demon. She is commonly

portrayed riding her vehicle, the lion, and with the

demon underfoot. Kali, an intensely powerful and

ferocious form of the Goddess, is born of Durga's

forehead, according to the Devimahatmya, and is known

for killing the two demons Chanda and Munda, which

earned her the epithet "Chamunda."

 

Goddesses are also worshiped in benign and auspicious

forms -- for example, Parvati, the wife of Shiva. The

divine family, consisting of Shiva, Parvati, and one

or both of their children, Skanda and Ganesha, is a

common motif in Hindu devotional art. Parvati is

herself known for her yogic abilities: she won the

devotion of her husband, Shiva, through these

practices. In the middle of the first millennium, the

great Sanskrit poet Kalidasa recounted the tale of

their courtship and marriage in his play Kumara

Sambhava.

 

Goddesses are commonly portrayed in association with

Gods -- Shiva is associated with Parvati, Vishnu with

Lakshmi, and Krishna with Radha -- but this

association with male deities does not mean that the

Goddess holds a subordinate position. Devotees of the

Goddess assert her primacy and independent power, just

as devotees of other deities see their chosen form of

God as an overarching and complete form of the divine.

Gods who are ordinarily portrayed as male, such as

Shiva, can also be portrayed as half female,

emphasizing the importance of the feminine aspect of

the divine: associated with power (shakti), Goddesses

are essential to Gods, as well as independent actors

in their own right. Goddesses are also represented by

the yoni, a shape that evokes the female form and is

often displayed in association with the shiva linga.

>From an Asia Society essay, "The Role of the

Devotional Image in Hinduism"

(http://www.asiasocietymuseum.com/essay.asp?EssayID=9)

 

 

 

 

Sports - Coverage of the 2002 Olympic Games

http://sports.

[Guest guest]

thanks db for the two posts and the links...

 

specially the asiasociety museum..

 

i do not know how you find these articles? u r a better 'cruiser'

than i am!

 

love