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| Home > Types Of Sculpture > Icons and Imagery > Iconography of Hindu Goddess
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| | Iconography of Hindu Goddess
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In the Western part, the idea or concept of a masculine divinity is very much familiar. Most people can find by their instinct some sympathy with any masculine deity. But, being all the knowledge of `mother goddesses` as archaeological objects or as psychological theory, sometimes Indians view the goddess with suspicion. It is rare indeed for a Westerner to be able to experience or feel the deity as `mother`, with all that it implies. In India, God is experienced as or treated as a mother and loved accordingly. Such passionate adoration of Indians for the mother goddess like Kali, Bhagawathy can be seen at the time of the festivals. With tears of ecstasy, in a frenzy of childlike excitement, all are deeply enjoying the faith on her with it her gifts are received, and even gifts are given to her. The devotee thinks in his mind about her lotus-feet & blessings. Though the goddess is mother, she is by no means appearing as soft or kind. Even her face is shown as the face of death such as of Kali goddess.
She is profoundly important. Of course, in the form of existence she has all the normal primitive aspects such as the giver of food, averter during the time of famine (Annapurna), as helper in childbirth etc. But in her major acceptance as deity she is presented as Durga, radiantly beautiful & inspirational, charming like a girl aged about sixteen. As per one of the myth, Durga is the combined form of energies of all the gods constellated into a person. She was generally shown as riding on the lion of victory & also defeated the grand alliance of evils & demons. But some treats this myth, as an another addition of the `ascendancy` tales that is mainly for awarding the goddess supremacy over each and all of the masculine deities.
And this fact itself is very much important. Because that is how the majority of Indians think of her & believe strongly. In the south, to goddess Durga animals like buffaloes are sacrificed, and even had shown in memorial sculptures that in her honour devotees sever their own necks with swords in front of her images. In some parts, for her many devotees swing about forty feet above the ground on iron hooks stuck through the muscles of their backs. In the north, to her blood sacrifice is still performed.
In the iconography of the goddess much sectarian variety is marked with distinct features. And, since she is held high & above all of the power of all the gods if combined together. It is a short step taken in the direction of conceiving her as the originating power of the gods, the true image of the creative energy of the universe. Various icons of mother Durga are employed many distinct forms of appearance, as Kali she is shown as beautiful and black, garlanded with human heads and hands, with blood-red lolling tongue and treading upon a corpse. She is the destroyer, at time, also helps as the creator. In respect of her, thousands of animals are sacrificed to Kali every year at Kalighat, the big temple in Calcutta, and to the various other shrines in the north of India. As Lakshmi, wife of Vishnu, the goddess holds a lotus, and confers wealth. As Saraswati she is the inspiration goddess for learning and of artistic skill. One of her local legends throws light on special interest, at Kamarupa (the form of love) in Assam. At this place pigeons are used as the special sacrifice. But the shrine itself is made holy by an incident reference in the legend of Shiva.
The story tells that after death of Shiva`s wife Sati, Shiva carried her corpse with him as he wandered crazy with grief across the east region of India. And said that its part were dismembered fell on earth at various places, each place sanctifying a spot which became known as the site of a shrine, Kamarupa was a place where the sexual organ of the goddess fell. And at this place formed the center of the cult.
In fact, Assam and neighboring parts of West Bengal were identified as regions that pervaded by the `left-handed`, the Tantrik worship. A worship of the feminine power, is done with their interesting and profound ritual pattern. These rituals are incorporated with subtle metaphysical intuitions, in which male and female deities, or aspects of deity, were invoked in a typical manner. Specially endowed women try to impersonate the goddess: sacramental acts of union were performed with meditative liturgies. But, at the root of the whole system was the doctrine that illustrates the real meaning of apparent creation and destruction as the function of the goddess. In reality, Durga is continuously producing the world of things from her fertile womb. She herself existed to serve a function of the most profound root and source of all, the seed, her husband Shiva. As in one of her persona of Kali, her husband lies beneath her as a corpse; so to appear as far as the visible cosmos is concerned he is inert. With nature itself, she is a reflection of the original light of godhead. This conception is originated from an attractive icon. As Shiva is also called as Prakasha (the light), the first radiance arising from him the goddess holds it on her knee. She holds a mirror for indicating her nature as Vimarsha, reflection of his light to show husband and wife, seen in the light of divinity.
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