Something I found kinda nice - Ait. Br. III 34, from a suite of Roudran undertaking (hence why the cautionary note about what to do "should this verse appear to be too dangerous") - referencing / explicating how to utilize RV I 43 6 - notes that there's a pair of terms, 'Naraḥ' & 'Nāryaḥ', … Continue reading On An Oft-Misinterpreted Term Of Power Affixed To ‘Man’
Saundarya Lahari
On The Equinox War-Rites Of The Indo-Europeans
The 19th of March, per the Roman calendar, marks a prominent observance to Minerva - so named 'Quinquatria' due to its occurring on the fifth day ('Quinque') following the Ides of March. And, as should perhaps come as a surprise to no-one by this point, we happened to notice some rather significant points of Indo-European … Continue reading On The Equinox War-Rites Of The Indo-Europeans
The Divine Empress And The Fire God – Beautiful Newari Art And The Durga Suktam
Very, very cool ! On the left, is Maheshvari (Devi) - on the right, Agni. Now, it might at first seem a little curious - we are used to thinking of Agni as a 'two-faced' figure in the iconography. Yet in a way … These depictions are, quite literally, two sides of the same artwork. … Continue reading The Divine Empress And The Fire God – Beautiful Newari Art And The Durga Suktam
On The True Meaning Of Kali Standing Above Shiva – The ‘Dark’ Devi Uber Alles
This style of Kali depiction is probably one of the most familiar forms of Hindu deific representation to many of us here in the West. It's remarkably prevalent - and along with it comes a curiously insistent similarly 'pop-culture' perspective as to what's represented there within. To paraphrase the sort of thing I'm referring to … Continue reading On The True Meaning Of Kali Standing Above Shiva – The ‘Dark’ Devi Uber Alles
The Vitality of the Universe Entire – On MahaGauri, SiddhiDhatri, and Demeter
The Eighth Night of #NavRatri is dedicated to MahaGauri - The Great Beauty, The 'Great White One' ; The Ninth Night of NavRatri, to Siddhidhatri - the Bestower of Boons, The Giver of Empowerment. Both because I am rather late in my finishing of this piece - but also due to a certain underlying thematic unity ... … Continue reading The Vitality of the Universe Entire – On MahaGauri, SiddhiDhatri, and Demeter
On Goddess, The Gender of the Moon, And Insistent Paradigmatic Error-ism
There's one point which seems to keep coming up when the fact of an Indo-European male Moon deific is raised.Namely, the notion that this is an impossibility - or, at the very least, a glaring incongruity - because we know with our modern scientific perspective that the Moon 'receives' the light from the Sun. There … Continue reading On Goddess, The Gender of the Moon, And Insistent Paradigmatic Error-ism
In Honour Of The BanaLingam Upon The Occasion Of Its Arrival – The Living Altar Of Narmada That Is Shakti & Shiva Rightfully Conjoined
We have attained the BanaLinga ! Yet what is this mighty stone, inset within a shining Yoni of Silver ? The easiest way to explicate it is to start with the very basic and work our way up from there. At its core, a ShivLing is an 'aniconic' embodiment of the Lord Shiva. It may also … Continue reading In Honour Of The BanaLingam Upon The Occasion Of Its Arrival – The Living Altar Of Narmada That Is Shakti & Shiva Rightfully Conjoined
Masik Durgashtami – Victory On The Eighth
Today is Masik Durgashtami - a monthly (Masik) High Holy Day to the Goddess Durga, celebrated on the 8th (Ashtami). The observance itself entails a fast during the day (with such self-imposed conditions upon one's behavior known as a 'Vrat' - a 'Vow', and from the same PIE etymological root as modern English 'Word' (as … Continue reading Masik Durgashtami – Victory On The Eighth
arya-akasha 