Pradosha Vrat – The Fortnightly Evening Observance For Lord Shiva

Pradosha Vrat tonight … so here's a pretty aesthetic shot of the Shiva Temple at Kedarnath Pradosh Vrat [literally 'Evening Observance' - 'Vrata', from the same root as our English 'Word', communicates the sense of a 'Vow', giving somebody your Word] is hailed as an ideal time to approach the Lord in supplication. This is, … Continue reading Pradosha Vrat – The Fortnightly Evening Observance For Lord Shiva

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

Ganesha, Peacocks, & Shivling – Glorious Modern Hindu Art

Lord Ganesha , Lord of Obstacles ( Vinayaka ) and Remover of Obstacles ( Vighnahara ) , depicted in front of a ShivLing (an aniconic - other than the crescent Moon sliver - representation of His Father) , and peacocks - a bird with which He has association.Art by Lisha N Tॐ गणानां त्वा गणपतिं … Continue reading Ganesha, Peacocks, & Shivling – Glorious Modern Hindu Art

Arktos, Ursa, Rksa SaptaRsi – The Seven Bear-Seers Amidst The Stars And The Foundational Act Of Piety Of The Maidens Of Milk And Fate

Encoded within the Stars - and more specifically, the Constellations, the manner in which we project out up, upon them - is a wealth of archaic mythic meaning. We have earlier looked at some of these manifestations as applies Orion and the Pleiades (Krittikas) - now we shall turn our attentions briefly to an intricately … Continue reading Arktos, Ursa, Rksa SaptaRsi – The Seven Bear-Seers Amidst The Stars And The Foundational Act Of Piety Of The Maidens Of Milk And Fate

The Golden Radiancy Of Somnath Jyotirlinga [Incredible Indo-European Holy Sites Series Part V]

Apt for a Monday - the ShivLing at Somnath , one of the Twelve (although by some counts thirteen) Jyotirlingam ['Starlight Lingam'] sites; 'Somnath' meaning 'Lord of the Soma' - a prominent Shaivite epithet, theonym, and role. Which it would be interesting to connect to Odin's role in the bringing of the Mead of Poetry. … Continue reading The Golden Radiancy Of Somnath Jyotirlinga [Incredible Indo-European Holy Sites Series Part V]

A Brief Comparanda On Ymir And Purusha – A Demon Dismembered versus the Sky Father As Cosmos Himself

As we have frequently noted, there are some stubborn-to-shift shibboleths within our field that, despite all available evidence to the contrary, persist well beyond reason. One of these concerns the ongoing conflationism between Purusha of the Vedic cosmology & cosmogony - and the Ymir of the Germanic accounting. Now on the surface of things, there … Continue reading A Brief Comparanda On Ymir And Purusha – A Demon Dismembered versus the Sky Father As Cosmos Himself

Reincarnation Amidst The Ruins – The Still-Living Shaivite Saliency At Prambanan, An Eastern Bastion Of The Hindu Faith [Incredible Indo-European Holy Sites Series Part IV]

It is Wednesday - Woden's Day … and therefore, a suitably impressive Shaivite Temple ! Now, this is from Prambanan in Indonesia - a place we today think of as the world's largest Muslim-majority country. And yet, 1200 years ago when this impressive site was being constructed, it was quite different; the polity in question … Continue reading Reincarnation Amidst The Ruins – The Still-Living Shaivite Saliency At Prambanan, An Eastern Bastion Of The Hindu Faith [Incredible Indo-European Holy Sites Series Part IV]

Against Spurious “Pre-Indo-European-Ization” Of Indo-European Elements

This happens remarkably frequently - both in terms of the linguistics, but also in terms of the mythology and theology. There's quite a number of spaces wherein some academic or other commentator with a personal theory (or, worse, an agenda) has latched on to something and gone "well this seems like it shouldn't be Indo-European … Continue reading Against Spurious “Pre-Indo-European-Ization” Of Indo-European Elements

Do Hindus Have A Monopoly On Dharma – Or Is It A Broader Indo-European Notion ?

If you asked many Hindus to identify a cornerstone concept to our faith, I have no doubt that they would cite one word: "Dharma". Fantastically complex in its applications both theoretical and tangible/practical, there is no getting around its saliency - not just for the Hindusphere, but also for those other religions which have their … Continue reading Do Hindus Have A Monopoly On Dharma – Or Is It A Broader Indo-European Notion ?