Shiva and Shakti (Mythology and Art)

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Shiva, the Lord of Samadhi and his eternal consort, his one-without-second, Shakti, are inseparable; each is only half without the other. Together they compliment each other. Their apparent separations and subsequent unions are the source of illuminating stories and myths, the philosophy enlightening as well making superb classical literary reading.

Shiva Shakti offers a unique collection of stories, myths, religious concepts and spiritual insights illuminated by a vast assortment of paintings and sculptures. The philosophy of god-goddess, the omnipotent, all-powerful Shiva and his power-potency, Shakti, is presented in an easily readable and visually aesthetic format.

This volume illustrates how these myths and concepts are interwoven through the art and very culture of India. The author has meticulously collected these works from sources far and wide, from private collections and institutions, some of which have never before appeared in books. These and the text as well are freely referenced. This volume is a must for inquisitive readers and collectors as well.

Ganga Somany, the daughter of the Late Brajmohan Birla and wife of the Late Onkarmal Somany, is a graduate from Loreto College, Calcutta.

From an early age she showed a keen interest in writing and painting. She has written three books which have been well received by adults and children alike. World Religions is written in a very simple language and describes the holy creeds, culture and festivals of ten major religions.

Another popular book, Hinduism, is profusely illustrated, is free from scholarly pretensions, and is eminently readable. It appeals to all those who look for an introduction to Hinduism. The Rainbow Treasury of Enchanted Tales deals with the honesty, truth, valour and generosity which inspire and unite mankind.

She has held several large solo exhibitions of her oil paintings executed in classical style, in both her own unique presentation as well as copies of the European Old Masters, who have greatly inspired her. Ganga's paintings will be permanently exhibited in Birla Science Museum in Jaipur and it will be known as the Ganga Somany Art Gallery.

In association with Ramkrishna Sarada Mission, she has established a charitable school, medical clinic and adult vocational training for women in Amtola, Calcutta.

Shiva Shakti fulfils a long-time dream of encompassing various art forms with mythology in a creative format.

Mark Twain, who visited India in the last decade of the 19th century, described India as ""the land of dreams and romance"" and as ""the cradle of the human race, birthplace of human speech, mother of history, grandmother of legend, great-grandmother of tradition, the land that all men desire to see, and having seen once, by even a glimpse, would not give that glimpse for the shows of all the rest of the globe combined."" Shiva and Shakti uniquely represent the essence of that primordial tradition, the myth and legend of antiquity through trackless centuries, and the dreams and romance of India's rainbow civilization. The mystique of Shiva and Shakti and their pre eminence in the Indian pantheon is a characteristic and charismatic hallmark of Mark Twain's evocative imagery.

Shiva and Shakti symbolise the heart throb of the tradition, the legend, the myth and the metaphor of India. In her remarkable book, Shiva and Shakti, Ganga Somany annotates, interprets and illustrates the beautiful essence of that tradition, the pre-historic origin and evolution of that complex legend, the profound message of that myth and the many-splendoured meaning of that metaphor.

Shiva is an integral aspect of the functionally intertwined Hindu Trinity which creates, preserves, destroys, transforms, recreates and renews. The author shows how the Vedic hymns refer to Shiva as Rudra, the dreaded destroyer wandering with a thunderbolt in hand and as a bestower of a thousand balms that heal.

Shiva and Shakti are uniquely represented by the creative composite male-female symbolism of Ardhanarishvara, a concept which signifies that Shiva and Shakti together constitute an indivisible consortium and one is incomplete without the other Kalidas, the poet laureate of Indian classical literary tradition and an ardent worshipper of Shiva and Shakti describes them as an inseparable union of vok and arth, word and meaning. Perhaps we may liken Shiva to sound and Shakti to Shiva's resonance. In another perspective, Shiva is time in eternity and Shakti is energy in the cosmic space. Shiva is the quintessential recluse but Shakti makes him a householder Shiva and Shakti are also the proud parents of Kartikeya and Ganesha who hold unparalleled relevance in the daily ritual of Hindus.

Indian literature, philosophy, religious ritual, sculpture and iconography are replete with Shiva Shakti episodes in the epic of Indian heritage. The author takes us to most of the well known manifestations of Shiva and Shakti. She tells us the fascinating story of their life. Through numerous mythological events extant in Indian mythology she also contextualises every event and episode textually and through well chosen exemplars in sculpture and painting. Nataraja Shiva's dance of bliss, triumph, divine anger, omnipotence, immanence, eternity and omniscience and his dance as an auspicious symbol of life and its rejuvenation are beautifully portrayed and explained by the author.

The chapters relating to Parvati, Durga, Kali, Mahavidyas, Matrikas, Meenakshi, Kamakshi, Ganga and on Ganesha and Kartikeya are of special significance and bring to the readers a wealth of detail. The message is that Shakti is the life force of Shiva and that Shiva's Tandava and Shakti's Lasya make the perfect combination.

In this remarkable book, Ganga Somany has encapsulated the Shiva-Shakti legend, myth and philosophical symbolism in her elegant and lucid text matched with a rich and rare repertoire of reproductions of a wide range of sculptural representations of Shiva and Shakti as well as paintings, particularly Pahari and Rajasthani miniature paintings, all of them brought together from sources within India and abroad. She has given her readers an eminently readable and visually enchanting book on an enduring and ever inspiring theme. I am delighted to welcome this wonderful book to the library of Indian heritage and to felicitate its author whose heartwarming dedication to Shiva-Shakti deserves a special accolade.

The mythology of Shiva and Shakti is vast and complicated. It is difficult to describe it and explain it in short. In this book, I will give a broad outline of the important myths and stories which will be later elaborated. The sculptures and paintings will help to make the events and narratives become visually and imaginatively even more meaningful.

The seers of India imagined a single Divinity with triple manifestation. Brahma the creator, Vishnu the preserver and Shiva the destroyer. They are the Trinity.

Shiva, the destroyer, has a divine pedigree that goes back to pre-Vedic, pre-Aryan times. The earliest evidence of the probable origin of Lord Shiva comes from the excavation of two ancient sites of the Indian civilization, Mohenjodaro and Harappa which flourished between 2000-3000 years B.C.

A large number of terracotta figurines and seals are the most ancient representations we possess of the religious beliefs of the area. Among the seals is a likeness of a figure seated in a cross-legged position, reminding one of a Hindu yogi. In other figurines he is depicted having three faces, and surrounded by animals. The animals generally include the elephant, the bull and the unicorn.

It is assumed that he is perhaps the forerunner of the Hindu deity Shiva, lord of the three worlds, and protector of animals, Pashupatinath. Shiva was most likely an original inhabitant of India who was absorbed in the Vedic and post-Vedic world views.

Also discovered were statues of a female figure, frequently seen with crops emerging from her womb. She was later worshipped as the Mother of the earth, the goddess Padma-Lakshmi, (patroness of fertility, riches and prosperity) or simply Devi, the goddess. The goddess and her god together represent the cosmic female and male, whose eternal embrace procreates the universe and its creatures keeping the cycle of life in operation.

The representations of their union are not in the human forms of male and female, but in simple symbols, cone shaped or phallic erect stones denoting the male, and circular stones, with hollow center, representing the female. Emphasizing the creative power of nature, these later became associated with the generative power of Shiva and Shakti.

The original Rudra (later called Shiva) is celebrated with multiplicity of nomenclature. Bhairava, the wrathful, Shiva the auspicious one. The mythology of Shiva is full of paradox and illusion. He is a mixture of opposites, the creator and the destroyer. In his divinity he expresses the good and evil, joy and sorrow, birth and destruction all running their cosmic course.

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