The Religions Book

100

See also: Physical and mental discipline 112–13 ■ Devotion through puja 114–15

■ Buddhas and bodhisattvas 152–57 ■ Shaktism 328

W

hile in many faiths the

image of the divine has

been mainly masculine,

Hinduism has many goddesses,

who represent creativity, fertility,

or power. The general term for the

feminine divine force is Shakti,

which means “to be able.” Shakti

is personified in Maha Devi, the

divine mother or “great goddess.”

She represents the active power of

the divine, as well as its nurturing

force, and in the Hindu school of

Shaktism she is worshipped as the

supreme deity. The great goddess

takes on many different forms, each

expressing particular qualities.

In her aspect as consort to Shiva,

for example, Shakti may appear

as gentle, loving Parvati, but she

is also Kali and Durga—terrible

and threatening.

The coiled serpent

As well as being the creative power

of the divine, Shakti represents the

feminine element within the self.

Hindus believe that our sexual

energy and life force (kundalini)

resides like a coiled serpent or

sleeping goddess at the base of the

spine. Awareness and development

of this force through yoga can be a

form of spiritual release. Sometimes

practiced physically, more often

through meditation, these Tantric

rituals are used to enhance the

union between a person’s male

and female elements. ■

Lakshmi, goddess of good fortune,

beauty, and fertility, is the consort of

Lord Vishnu. She has four arms and

hands, with which she dispenses

material and spiritual gifts to devotees.

IN CONTEXT

KEY TEXTS

The Vedas

WHEN AND WHERE

From 1700 BCE, India

BEFORE

3000 BCE Figurines dating to

this time found in the Indus

Valley suggest the worship

of a fertility goddess.

AFTER

5th–3rd century BCE The

Puranas, ancient Hindu texts,

celebrate female power, and

the goddesses described as

consorts of the gods in the

Vedas begin to gain their

own followings.

300–700 CE Tantric rites

use images of coupled male

and female deities as a focus

for meditation, and Shaktism

becomes a fully fledged

devotional branch of Hinduism.

c.800 CE Adi Shankara

composes Saundaryalahari

(“Waves of Beauty”), a hymn to

Parvati and her sexual power.

THE DIVINE

HAS A FEMALE

ASPECT

THE POWER OF THE GREAT GODDESS