Shri Parvati

[Guest guest]

Namaskar.

 

Hope everyone had a blessed Shivaratri..

 

Due to some recent experiences I have had and much spiritual work I

have done with 2 mukhi and Gauri Shankar rudraksha, I did some

research which I thouught would be appropriate to share with the

Group..In honor of the Shakti of Shiva.

 

Om Hrim Shrim Klim Namah Shivaya

Kanti

 

 

PARVATI: THE LOVE GODDESS

Parvati's name, which means "she who dwells in the mountains" or "she

who is of the mountain, identify her with mountainous regions. She

was the daughter of Himavat (Lord of the mountains) and his queen

Mena.

 

For the most part Shiva and Parvati's married and family life is

portrayed as harmonious, blissful and calm. In iconography the two

are typically shown sitting in happy, intimate embrace. There were

also many moments of philosophical discourse between the two. While

Shiva taught Parvati the doctrine of Vedanta, Parvati responded by

teaching him the doctrines of Sankhya, for if Shiva was the perfect

teacher, Parvati too, as a yogini was no less. Parvati was constantly

by Shiva's side, encouraging, assisting and, participating in every

activity of his.

 

Parvati's greatest pleasure was to serve Shiva and cater to his every

need. Nothing was more important to her than being useful to her

lord, tending to his every comfort and ensuring that he would not

lapse into his solitary, self-denying ascetic ways. In these

activities she combined the roles of a caring wife and an

affectionate mother.

 

Throughout Hindu mythology it is well known that one of Shiva's

principal functions is the destruction of cosmos. In fact, Shiva has

about him a wild, unpredictable, destructive aspect that is often

mentioned. As the great cosmic dancer, he periodically performs the

tandava, an especially violent dance. Wielding a broken battle-ax, he

dances so wildly that the cosmos is destroyed completely. In

descriptions of this dance, Shiva's whirling arms and flying locks

are said to crash into the heavenly bodies, knocking them off course

or destroying them utterly. The mountains shake and the oceans heave

as the world is destroyed by his violent dancing. Parvati, in

contrast, is portrayed as a patient builder, one who follows Shiva

about, trying to soften the violent effects of her husband. She is a

great force for preservation and reconstruction in the world and as

such offsets the violence of Shiva.

 

The idea that the great male gods all possess an inherent power

through which they undertake creative activity is assumed in Hindu

philosophical thought. When this power, or Shakti, is personified, it

is always in the form of a goddess. Parvati, quite naturally, assumes

the identity of Shiva's Shakti. She is the force underlying and

impelling creation. In this active, creative role she is identified

with prakriti (nature), whereas Shiva is identified with purusha

(pure spirit). As prakriti, Parvati represents the inherent tendency

of nature to express itself in concrete forms and individual beings.

In this task, however, it is understood that Parvati must be set in

motion by Shiva himself. She is not seen as antagonistic to him. Her

role as his Shakti is always interpreted as positive. Through

Parvati, Shiva (the Absolute) is able to express himself in the

creation. Without her he would remain inert, aloof, inactive. It is

only in association with her that Shiva is able to realize or

manifest his full potential. Parvati as Shakti not only complements

Shiva, she completes him.

 

A variety of images and metaphors are used to express this harmonious

interdependence. Shiva is said to be the male principle throughout

creation, Parvati the female principle; Shiva is the sky, Parvati the

earth; Shiva is subject, Parvati object; Shiva is the ocean, Parvati

the seashore; Shiva is the sun, Parvati its light; Parvati is all

tastes and smells, Shiva the enjoyer of all tastes and smells;

Parvati is the embodiment of all individual souls, Shiva the soul

itself; Parvati assumes every form that is worthy to be thought of,

Shiva thinks of all such forms; Shiva is day, Parvati is night;

Parvati is creation, Shiva the creator; Parvati is speech, Shiva

meaning; and so on. In short, the two are actually one-different

aspects of ultimate reality-and as such are complementary, and not

antagonistic

 

The meaning of Ardhanareshwara form of Shiva is similar. The image

shows a half-male, half-female figure. The right side is Shiva and is

adorned with his ornaments; the left side is Parvati and adorned with

her ornaments.

 

Without its female half, or female nature, the godhead as Shiva is

incomplete and is unable to proceed with creation. To an even greater

extent than the Shiva-shakti idea, the androgynous image of Shiva and

Parvati emphasizes that the two deities are absolutely necessary to

each other, and only in union can they satisfy each other and fulfill

themselves. In this form the godhead transcends sexual particularity.

God is both male and female, both father and mother, both aloof and

active, both fearsome and gentle, both destructive and constructive,

and so on.

 

.. In the form of the yoni in particular, Parvati fulfills and

completes Shiva's creative tendencies. As the great yogi who

accumulates immense sexual potency, he is symbolized by the linga.

This great potency is creatively released in sexual or marital

contact with Parvati. The ubiquitous image of the linga in the yoni

symbolizes the creative release in the ultimate erotic act of power

stored through asceticism. The erotic act is thus enhanced, made more

potent, fecund, and creative, by the stored up power of Shiva's

asceticism.

 

Though most arts give Parvati a religious aura, including a certain

poetic truth, there is also an expression of both the romantic and

motherly love of Parvati. Possessing a measured grace and refinement

about them, these representations have a certain earthy charm and

spontaneity. In her this form, Parvati is not only more endearing and

accessible, but also belongs to the shrine or the walls of the home.

These are not mere icons or visual poetry, but mythic beings reduced

to everyday reality. This real Parvati is the one that the common man

can relate to, worship and celebrate, in his or her own personal way.

- Source:

Parvati the Love Goddess: Tales of Marriage and Devotion in Art and

Mythology Exotic

http://www.exoticindiaart.com/article/parvati