Contents.Names The name Ardhanarishvara means 'the Lord Who is half woman.' Ardhanarishvara is also known by other names like Ardhanaranari ('the half man-woman'), Ardhanarisha ('the Lord who is half woman'), Ardhanarinateshvara ('the Who is half-woman'),Parangada, Naranari ('man-woman'), Ammiappan (a Name meaning 'Mother-Father'), and Ardhayuvatishvara (in, 'the Lord whose half is a young woman or girl'). The -era writer Pushpadanta in his refers to this form as dehardhaghatana ('Thou and She art each the half of one body')., commenting on the, calls this form Ardha-Gaurishvara ('the Lord whose half is the fair one'; the fair one – Gauri – is an attribute of ). The simply calls this form Gaurishvara ('The Lord/husband of Gauri). Origins and early images. An early head of Ardhanarishvara, discovered at Rajghat, now in theThe conception of Ardhanarishvara may have been inspired by literature's composite figure of -, the Vedic descriptions of the primordial Creator Vishvarupa or and the fire-god as 'bull who is also a cow,' the 's ('soul') in the form of the androgynous cosmic man and the androgynous myths of the. The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad says that Purusha splits himself into two parts, male and female, and the two halves copulate, producing all life – a theme concurrent in Ardhanarishvara's tales.

1. Shiva And Dionysus Pdf Writer Crossword Clue

The sows the seed of the Ardhanarishvara. It declares – the antecedent of the Puranic Shiva – the maker of all and the root of Purusha (the male principle) and (the female principle), adhering to philosophy. It hints at his androgynous nature, describing him both as male and female.The concept of Ardhanarishvara originated in and Greek cultures simultaneously; the iconography evolved in the Kushan era (30–375 CE), but was perfected in the Gupta era (320-600 CE). A mid-first century Kushan era in the has a half-male, half-female image, along with three other figures identified with,. The male half is or with an urdhvalinga and makes an gesture; the female left half holds a mirror and has a rounded breast.

This is the earliest representation of Ardhanarishvara, universally recognized. An early Kushan Ardhanarishvara head discovered at Rajghat is displayed at the. The right male half has matted hair with a skull and crescent moon; the left female half has well-combed hair decorated with flowers and wears a patra-kundala (earring). The face has a common. A terracotta seal discovered in has half-man, half-woman features.

Early Kushan images show Ardhanarishvara in a simple two-armed form, but later texts and sculptures depict a more complex iconography.Ardhanarishvara is referred to by the Greek author (c. 500 AD) while quoting (c. 154–222 AD), who learnt from an Indian embassy's visit to during the reign of (Antoninus of Emesa) (218–22 AD). A terracotta androgynous bust, excavated at and dated to the - era, pictures a bearded man with female breasts.Ardhanarishvara is interpreted as an attempt to the two principal Hindu sects, and, dedicated to Shiva and the. A similar syncretic image is, a composite form of Shiva and Vishnu, the Supreme deity of the sect.

Iconography. A rare example of a Shakta Ardhanarishvara, where the dominant right side is femaleThe iconographic 16th century work, the and texts like Amshumadbhedagama, Kamikagama, Supredagama and Karanagama – most of them of South Indian origin – describe the iconography of Ardhanarishvara. The right superior side of the body usually is the male Shiva and the left is the female Parvati; in rare depictions belonging to the Shaktism school, the feminine holds the dominant right side. The icon usually is prescribed to have four, three or two arms, but rarely is depicted with eight arms. In the case of three arms, the Parvati side has only one arm, suggesting a lesser role in the icon.Male half The male half wears a jata-mukuta (a headdress formed of piled, matted hair) on his head, adorned with a crescent moon. Sometimes the jata-mukuta is adorned with serpents and the river goddess flowing through the hair. The right ear wears a nakra-kundala, sarpa-kundala ('serpent-earring') or ordinary kundala ('earring').

Sometimes, the male eye is depicted smaller than the female one and a half-moustache is also seen. A half third eye ( trinetra) is prescribed on the male side of the forehead in the canons; a full eye may also be depicted in middle of forehead separated by both the sides or a half eye may be shown above or below Parvati's round dot. A common elliptical halo ( prabhamandala/ prabhavali) may be depicted behind the head; sometimes the shape of the halo may differ on either side.In the four-armed form, a right hand holds a (axe) and another makes an abhaya mudra (gesture of reassurance), or one of the right arms is slightly bent and rests on the head of Shiva's bull mount, while the other is held in the abhaya mudra gesture. Another configuration suggests that a right hand holds a (trident) and another makes a (gesture of blessing).

The Moses-Dionysus Connection is a 15-page ebook/PDF highlighting the commonalities between the. Iranian democracy activist and writer “I have seen your site. Letter submitted to FSSAI by Dr Vandana Shiva To Dt. Pawan Aggarwal, CEO FDA Bhawan, Near Bal Continue Reading → Posted in: GMO, News, Press Release, Science+Tech, Soil, Uncategorized. Monsanto-BAYER 'Combination' – Comments Submitted to Competition Commission of India. January 21, 2018 admin MoBay Combination Submission CCI.

Another scripture prescribes that a trishula and (rosary) are held in the two right hands. In the two-armed form, the right hand holds a (skull cup) or gestures in a varada mudra. He may also hold a skull. In the relief, the four-armed Ardhanarishvara plays a (lute), using a left and a right arm, while other male arm holds a parashu and the female one a lotus.

Ardhanarishvara statueThe Shiva half has a flat masculine chest, a straight vertical chest, broader shoulder, wider waist and muscular thigh. He wears a (sacred thread) across the chest, which is sometimes represented as a naga-yagnopavita (a snake worn as a yagnopavita) or a string of pearls or gems. The yajnopavita may also divide the torso into its male and female halves. He wears ornaments characteristic of Shiva's iconography, including serpent ornaments.In some North Indian images, the male half may be nude and also be ( urdhavlinga or urdhavreta: with an erect phallus), or with a full or half phallus and one testicle. However, such imagery is never found in South Indian images; the loins are usually covered in a garment (sometimes a ) of silk or cotton, or the skin of a tiger or deer), typically down to the knee, and held in place by a sarpa-mekhala, serpent girdle or jewellery. The right leg may be somewhat bent or straight and often rests on a lotus pedestal ( padma-pitha). The whole right half is described as smeared with ashes and as terrible and red-coloured or gold or coral in appearance; however, these features are rarely depicted.

Female half The female half has karanda-mukuta (a basket-shaped crown) on her head or well-combed knotted hair or both. The left ear wears a valika-kundala (a type of earring). A or (a round red dot) adorns her forehead, matching Shiva's third eye. The left eye is painted with black eyeliner.

While the male neck is sometimes adorned with a jewelled hooded serpent, the female neck has a blue lotus matching it.In the four-armed form, one of the left arms rests on Nandi's head, while the other is bent in pose and holds a nilotpala (blue lotus) or hangs loosely at her side. In the three-armed representation, the left hand holds a flower, a mirror or a parrot. In the case of two-armed icons, the left hand rests on Nandi's head, hangs loose or holds either a flower, a mirror or a parrot. The parrot may be also perched on Parvati's wrist. Her hand(s) is/are adorned with ornaments like a keyura (anklet) or kankana (bangles).Parvati has a well-developed, round bosom and a narrow feminine waist embellished with various haras (religious bracelets) and other ornaments, made of diamonds and other gems. She has a fuller thigh and a curvier body and hip than the male part of the icon.

The torso, hip and pelvis of the female is exaggerated to emphasize the anatomical differences between the halves. Though the male private parts may be depicted, the female genitalia are never depicted and the loins are always draped. She wears a multi-coloured or white silken garment down to her ankle and one or three girdles around her waist.

The left half wears an anklet and her foot is painted red with. The left leg may be somewhat bent or straight, resting on a lotus pedestal. In contrast to the Shiva half, the Parvati half – smeared with saffron – is described as calm and gentle, fair in colour. Very rarely, Parvati is shown with parrot-green skin, this represents how she is the daughter of the mountains but mostly she is shown as (the fair one). She may be draped in a covering her torso and legs.Postures and vahana. A seated Ardhanarishvara with both the vahanasThe posture of Ardhanarishvara may be – bent in three parts: head (leaning to the left), torso (to the right) and right leg or in the sthanamudra position (straight), sometimes standing on a lotus pedestal, whereupon it is called samapada.

Seated images of Ardhanarishvara are missing in iconographic treatises, but are still found in sculpture and painting. Though the canons often depict the Nandi bull as the common (mount) of Ardhanarishvara, some depictions have Shiva's bull vahana seated or standing near or behind his foot, while the goddess's lion vahana is near her foot. Eight-armed form The at has a dancing eight-armed Ardhanarishvara. The upper male arms hold a lute and akshamala (rosary), while the upper female ones hold a mirror and a book; the others are broken.

Another non-conventional Ardhanarishvara is found at. The sculpture is three-headed and eight-armed, holding akshamala, khadga (sword), pasha, musala, kapala (skull cup), lotus and other objects. Other textual descriptions The mentions that Ardhanarishvara is half-black and half-yellow, nude on one side and clothed on other, wearing skulls and a garland of lotuses on the male half and female half respectively. The Linga Purana gives a brief description of Ardhanarishvara as making varada and abhaya mudras and holding a trishula and a lotus. The prescribes a four-armed form, with right hands holding a rosary and trishula, while the left ones bear a mirror and a lotus. The form is called Gaurishvara in this text. Ardhanarishvara relief is from the nearThe mythology of Ardhanarishvara – which mainly originates in the Puranic canons – was developed later to explain existent images of the deity that had emerged in the Kushan era.The unnamed half-female form of Shiva is also alluded to in the epic.

In Book XIII, Upamanyu praises Shiva rhetorically asking if there is anyone else whose half-body is shared by his spouse, and adds that the universe had risen from the union of sexes, as represented by Shiva's half-female form. In some narratives, Shiva is described as dark and fair-complexioned, half yellow and half white, half woman and half man, and both woman and man. In Book XIII, Shiva preaches to Parvati that half of his body is made up of her body.In the, Parvati requests Shiva to allow her to reside with him, embracing 'limb-to-limb', and so Ardhanarishvara is formed. It also tells that when the demon wanted to seize Parvati and make her his wife, Vishnu rescued her and brought her to his abode. When the demon followed her there, Parvati revealed her Ardhanarishvara form to him.

Seeing the half-male, half-female form, the demon lost interest in her and left. Vishnu was amazed to see this form and saw himself in the female part of the form.The describes that the creator god created all male beings, the, and told them to regenerate, which they were unable to do. Confronted with the resulting decline in the pace of creation, Brahma was perplexed and contemplated on Shiva for help. To enlighten Brahma of his folly, Shiva appeared before him as Ardhanarishvara.

Brahma prayed to the female half of Shiva to give him a female to continue creation. The goddess agreed and created various female powers from her body, thereby allowing creation to progress. In other Puranas like the, and, Rudra (identified with Shiva) appears as Ardhanarishvara, emerging from Brahma's head, forehead, mouth or soul as the embodiment of Brahma's fury and frustration due to the slow pace of creation. Brahma asks Rudra to divide himself, and the latter complies by dividing into male and female. Numerous beings, including the 11 and various female, are created from both the halves. In some versions, the goddess unites with Shiva again and promises to be born as on earth to be Shiva's wife. In the Linga Purana, the Ardhanarishvara Rudra is so hot that in the process of appearing from Brahma's forehead, he burns Brahma himself.

Shiva And Dionysus Pdf Writer Crossword Clue

Ardhanarishvara Shiva then enjoys his own half – the Great Goddess – by 'the path of yoga' and creates Brahma and Vishnu from her body. In the repetitive cycle of, Ardhanarishvara is ordained to reappear at the beginning of every creation as in the past. Ardhanarishvara playing a veena surrounded by and a female attendant,The Matsya Purana describes how Brahma, pleased with a penance performed by Parvati, rewards her by blessing her with a golden complexion. This renders her more attractive to Shiva, to whom she later merges as one half of his body.temple lore narrates that once the gods and sages ( ) had gathered at Shiva's abode, they prayed their respects to Shiva and Parvati. However, the sage had vowed to worship only one deity, Shiva, and ignored Parvati while him. Agitated, Parvati cursed Bhringi to lose all his flesh and blood, reducing him to a skeleton. In this form Bhringi could not stand erect, so the compassionate ones who witnessed the scene blessed the sage with a third leg for support.

As her attempt to humiliate the sage had failed, Parvati punished herself with austerities that pleased Shiva and led him to grant her the boon of uniting with him, thereby compelling Bhringi to worship her as well as himself in the form of Ardhanarishvara. However, the sage assumed the form of a beetle and circumambulating only the male half, drilling a hole in the deity. Amazed by his devotion, Parvati reconciled with the sage and blessed him. The seventh-century Shaiva saint mentions that after marrying Parvati, Shiva incorporated her into half of his body.In the, Parvati (called Gauri here) is described as having suspected Shiva of infidelity when she saw her own reflection in the crystal-like breast of Shiva. A conjugal dispute erupted but was quickly resolved, after which Parvati wished to stay eternally with Shiva in his body. The divine couple was thereafter fused as Ardhanarishvara. Another tale from North India also talks about Parvati's jealousy.

Another woman, the river Ganga – often depicted flowing out of Shiva's locks – sat on his head, while Parvati (as Gauri) sat on his lap. To pacify Gauri, Shiva united with her as Ardhanarishvara.Only in tales associated with the cult of Shakta (in which the Goddess is considered the Supreme Being) is the Goddess venerated as the Maker of All.

In these tales, it is her body (not Shiva's) which splits into male and female halves. Symbolism.

Ardhanarishvara worshipped at.Ardhanarishvara is one of the most popular iconographic forms of Shiva. It is found in more or less all temples and shrines dedicated to Shiva all over India and South-east Asia. There is ample evidence from texts and the multiple depictions of the Ardhanarishvara in stone to suggest that a cult centred around the deity may have existed. The cult may have had occasional followers, but was never aligned to any sect. This cult focusing on the joint worship of Shiva and the Goddess may even have had a high position in Hinduism, but when and how it faded away remains a mystery. Though a popular iconographic form, temples dedicated to the deity are few. A popular one is located in, while five others are located in, all of them in the Indian state of.The Linga Purana advocates the worship of Ardhanarishvara by devotees to attain union with Shiva upon dissolution of the world and thus attain.

The Ardhanarinateshvara Stotra is a popular hymn dedicated to the deity. The saints of Tamil Nadu exault the deity in hymns. While the 8th-century Nayanar saint says that Shiva is always inseparable from the Mother Goddess, another 7th-century Nayanar saint describes how the ' is not only his consort, but she is also part of him.

The renowned Sanskrit writer (c. 4th–5th century) alludes Ardhanarishvara in invocations of his and, and says that Shiva and Shakti are as inseparable as word and meaning. The 9th-century Nayanar saint casts Parvati in the role of the supreme devotee of Shiva in his hymns.

He alludes to Ardhanarishvara several times and regards it the ultimate goal of a devotee to be united with Shiva as Parvati is in the Ardhanarishvara form. See also.: composite form of the gods Shiva and Vishnu.: a regional composite form of Shiva and Parvati.: composite form of Vishnu and LakshmiNotes.