My Two Shivas…

‘Shiva’ is a common enough name in India. It is after all the name of one of the major deities in Hinduism, one third of our Holy Trinity, ‘Shiva the Destroyer‘. Along with ‘Brahma the Creator’ and ‘Vishnu the Protector’, he tries to maintain ‘World Peace’ and limit chaos; ‘tries’ being the key word here 😉 since he so often is responsible for creating it 😛 He’s like that is Lord Shiva – he means well but is quick to grant boons not always to the worthiest people 😉 And still I think in his wisdom, in granting these boons to the undeserving, he cleverly send them down the path that will ultimately lead to their destruction, by Vishnu the Protector – a supreme strategist in my view! A little heavenly Good Cop/Bad Cop action 😉

Today is ‘MahaShivratri‘ – his festival, a sacred day when he is especially revered and worshiped by millions of Hindus for a myriad of reasons. Me – I’m not into rituals, but I like Shiva! He’s rather likable – simple, direct, quick to love and quicker to anger – rather like moi 😛 Perhaps that’s why I identify with him. Or perhaps it’s because he’s fearless and wise and tolerant – accepting into his fold all the people no other Gods want! Uh huh! In Hinduism we have Gods that aren’t that different from us humans – discriminating 😉 Or perhaps it’s because he’s a God of extremes and contradictions, more than any other. As ‘Mahadev’ – loosely translated as ‘Great God’, a God for the Gods, like Brahma & Vishnu; he is the embodiment of all that is good and wise and honourable. He is gentle, tender, trusting, all-knowing, respectful of women and compassionate. As ‘Rudra’ – he is the destroyer of evil, an avenger of wrongs, a shield for the hapless. In a righteous rage, he dances the ‘Taandav’, his terrible dance of destruction which in layman lingo means “DO NOT MESS WITH ME!! I’M SO TOTALLY PISSED OFF!! I’M GONNA OPEN MY 3^rd EYE and BURN YOU TO A CRISP!! NOW!!!” Or it could just be because he loves his ‘Somras’ – God-speak for liquor and you know I love mine! But mostly I think it’s because he’s all of the above and a family man to boot – with his loving wife Parvati (The Ying to his Yang), and his two sons Kartikeya and Ganesha (the Elephant-headed God). As a woman, I cannot help but admire his multi-tasking abilities 😉 Here is an older post I found on Mahashivatri, Om Namah Shivay, which might be of interest.

The Manifestations of Shiva

Which brings me to my very own Xiva – yes this one’s spelt with an X! Yup – I have my very own Destroyer! Lucky me 😛 It’s  quite a meaningful name actually, the full form being ‘Xivananda’ – an amalgamation of ‘Xiva’ and ‘Anand’ meaning Happiness – and I can testify to the fact that this ‘Xiva’ has indeed been the bringer of much joy to me 🙂 He is an occasional granter of wishes and has two left feet, but in other ways quite similar to his Godly namesake! He is fearless (sometimes scarily so ;)), compassionate and pretty darn smart. He’s also notoriously easy to please – a fine whisky and some fish is all it takes to put him in a good mood! And he’s a family man underneath the workaholic exterior, although I need to remind him of that ever so often. I should know – we’ve been married for 21 years 😛 You see – not so different from his Godly namesake 😉 Oh I’m no Parvati either! I lack her discipline and steadfastness and much more besides. But I think in my own way I’m a good wife to my Xiva. In the family, he’s called Girish – another name for Lord Shiva! My aunt told me once, that my great-grandmother always wanted me to marry a boy named ‘Girish’, so much so that she had decided to change his name if it turned out to be anything else 😛 Imagine that! Pretty radical – the women in my family! She passed away before I even met Hubby, but I’m beginning to think it’s no co-incidence that he’s called Girish 😉 Stranger things have happened 😛

So just two days after we’ve celebrated women, why not make ‘Mahashivaratri’, a day to celebrate the ‘Shivas’ in our lives – Gods and Men? The men who have nurtured and stood by us. Who have danced with us and shielded us from harm and destroyed dangers that stood in our way? The good men – the heroes, the men who matter and the men who count. Fathers, brothers, sons, grandfathers, friends, teachers, mentors, husbands, lovers…Men who were there when we needed them and Men who understood that we wanted them to stay especially when we were yelling at them to leave. The ‘REAL’ Men! Let’s celebrate their goodness, their righteousness, their honorable conduct and their principled souls. They’ve earned our respect and perhaps in recognizing, honoring and nurturing these qualities in them and those who will come in the future, we will be able to better our crumbling world and restore the balance in our fragile Universe. Coz Lord knows that’s what this World needs – harmony between Shiva & Parvati – a balance that will allow us to be the best we can be. Who knows – Shiva might even help us! Lend us his wisdom and infinite experience 😉

This has turned out to be quite a ramble 😛 But I just needed to get some of the stuff that clogs my brain out onto paper! Also any excuse to share more Sanjay Patel pictures 😛 Feeling much lighter now 😉 Thanks for reading – those of you who do 🙂

Hope the Weekend has been good for you!

Related articles

• Shivratri – A Divine Night to freed from all Sins!!! (fondfamily.com)
• Hindhu Festival – Maha Shivaratri (raxacollective.wordpress.com)
• Om Namah Shivay (crazygoangirl.wordpress.com)

Om Namah Shivay!

On Wednesday, Ishaan had a school holiday. It was for ‘Mahashivratri’, loosely translated as ‘The Night of the Great Lord Shiva‘. On the day, all over India, people celebrate the festival by fasting, performing ‘Pujas’ and praying for the well-being of loved ones. Like everything in Hinduism, there are several legends about Mahashivratri. Some believe it is the wedding day of Shiva & his wife Parvati; others, that this was the night he danced the ‘Tandava’ – a divine dance symbolizing creation, preservation & destruction; still others that this was the night he manifested in the form of the ‘Lingam’ (the phallic form, in which he is most commonly worshipped to this day). Whatever one chooses to believe or disbelieve, it’s a day of worship, piety and celebration all rolled into one, like most Hindu festivals!

Shiva is one of the super Gods, part of the Holy Hindu Trinity of Gods, Brahma – the Creator, Vishnu – The Protector & Shiva – the Destroyer. They’re the big guns…like the Godfather, the ones that all the thousands of little Gods go running to in times of trouble (and believe me that’s more often than you think!). They grant boons, kill villains and reward devotees much like their juniors, but they just do it better, and bigger! He’s always been my favorite. I like his no-nonsense, down-to-earth attitude and although he’s not the best looker (what with the deadly ‘Eye’ in the center of his blue forehead, the deadly Trident in his hand, the matted locks of hair that hold the mighty river Ganges, the ash-smeared blue-skinned body and the snakes he uses for jewelry!), his charisma & the divine aura that surrounds him, attracts every kind of life-force. And he welcomes them all…the good, the bad and the ugly; offering them all his love, his advice, his protection. What’s not to like?

He’s wise and simple, often granting terrible boons to his devotees that help them become monsters! And when he gets angry…the ‘Eye’ opens and burns whoever has pissed him off to a crisp! Now that’s a power I could do with some days 😉 He once burned the God of Love, Kama (Cupid’s Hindu avatar), to a crisp, in a moment of rage, because the poor dear had shot a love-arrow at him, at the request of the other Gods, when they were trying to get him hitched again after the death of his beloved first wife, Sati. However in a typical God-like display of forgiveness, he later revived Kama at the request of Kama’s wife Rati (Goddess of the Moon), and his own second wife – The Goddess Parvati (she is the Mother Goddess incarnate and also a reincarnation of his first wife Sati! Confused? Don’t be…just go with the flow :P). I identify with this guy…he’s quick to anger, quick to forgive and bears no malice, rather like me 😛

Did I mention he’s big in Goa? Well he is and my family worship him at the Mangeshi Temple. I’m not big on rituals, but I’m surrounded by them and there is no escape. There’s an interesting story that I would like to share that happened a long time ago…when I was newly married. It’s a tradition for newly married couples on Hubby’s side of the family, to worship at the Mangeshi Temple. This involves getting up at the crack of dawn, bathing, dressing in traditional garb (a 9-yard sari for women & the ‘dhotar’ for men), and entering the innermost sanctum of the Temple, where the ‘Lingam’ is located, to worship. Inside there’s a well and at the end of the ritual, the couple draws water from the well to bathe the holy ‘Lingam’! Hubby & I for one reason or another hadn’t gone through with this ritual in the first year of marriage and frankly were completely unaware that it even existed! One day, we found ourselves at his ancestral house and were about to enter to pray to the family deity, when we were stopped in our tracks by a pair of black snakes allegedly cobras but I can’t prove it), that seemed to be involved in their mating dance! They were on the front porch and were in no mood to let us pass. We tried to go around the back (Yes we were silly! Young and silly, wanting to enter a house with snakes dancing on the porch!), but they appeared again at the back door, rather miraculously, and we couldn’t enter. Finally chastised, we headed home and narrated the incident to our in-laws as nothing more than an interesting anecdote. Should have known better (but we were silly & young!). My in-laws took a rather serious view of the whole event and my father-in-law set off immediately for the Mangeshi temple to discuss with the family priest and interpret the significance, of what to them was clearly a divine sign of some sort! The priest duly informed him that we had failed to perform the ritual ‘puja’ at the temple, and this was Shiva’s way of reminding us that we had forgotten! Snakes are Shiva’s pets so to speak! And so, off we went, obediently, into the inner sanctum, duly purified and properly attired to ask forgiveness for our oversight and blessings for a happy marriage. In true God fashion – He forgave & blessed!

In traditional garb! This was taken 2 years ago.

There’s another great story that I like, about how he got his blue-skin. The Gods & their cousins the evil ‘Asuras’ (demons) were once involved in a quest for ‘Amrut’ (The nectar of immortality, Ambrosia), and were told that the last jar of the stuff was at the bottom of the ocean bed. They were also told that the only way to get it, was to churn the ocean and drain it, to reveal the hidden treasure. So off they went to the Holy Trinity and on their advice, used a giant snake tied around a mountain as the churner (don’t you just love these stories ;-)), and had a sage drink up the ocean (child’s play to a great sage that!). Still they churned, but instead of the Nectar, poison spurted up which would have killed them. Again, they asked the Holy Trinity for help and Shiva offered to drink the poison so they could get to the Nectar. And so he drank up and as he did the poison turned his neck & skin blue…and so he’s also called ‘Neelkanth’ (neel = blue, kanth = throat), in many parts of India, especially the south. He rides a bull…his faithful mount Nandi (an idol is found in every temple dedicated to Shiva), drinks ‘Somras’ (alcohol to me & you!) and is God to ghouls and humans alike! He is father to my favorite ‘Ganesha’, the Elephant God, and a great dancer! In his dancing form, he is worshipped as ‘Nataraja’, Lord of Dance.

 

He is Timeless – wisest of sages, granter of wishes, destroyer of ignorance, master of destiny, and keeper of the balance of the universe – in His name is hidden the secret of Nirvana.

He is, to me, the epitome of Cool 🙂

Shiv-Parvati!

p. s. ‘Om Namah Shivay’…this simple chant is used to invoke his name and may be loosely translated to mean ‘Holy Is Thy Name Shiva’.

p. p. s. I’m no Sanskrit nor religious scholar however, so don’t take my word for Gospel 😛 Google Him for more info 😉

The Elephant God Cometh!

By the time I got around to writing this post, he’s actually come and gone (figuratively speaking), at least from our home, but elsewhere he stays and his presence continues to hallow the atmosphere 🙂

For those who may not be aware, once a year, Hindus celebrate the birthday of Ganesha, the Elephant God (and my absolute favorite as far as God’s go!), with much pomp and devotion. Here in Goa, we call it ‘Chavath’ in Konkani (the local lingo) or ‘Ganesh Chaturthi’ in Marathi. What I love about this time and this festival, is that it is not a somber time of introspection and contemplation (although there’s nothing wrong with either), but a happy time…a time of celebration and joy, of music and crackers and of sweets in obscene amounts!! It’s also a time for family…for gatherings, catching up, setting aside petty quarrels and much enjoyment 🙂

@ Hubby's house in Priol, Goa.

The festival is a veritable feast for the senses – the many faces of the God, each revered and beautiful (here in Goa, every family has a traditional Idol design that has come down through the generations and they stick with it); the musky fragrance of burning incense mingles with the sweet fragrance of flowers; garlands in every color, bright red hibiscus (Ganesha’s favorite), deep orange and bright yellow marigolds, and blue orchids, adorn regal Idols glittering with ornaments, often of real gold and silver; the sound of music and voices raised in prayer blends with the cacophony of children playing, people laughing and bursting crackers; the place of worship is richly decorated with colorful streamers, flowers, lights, ‘rangoli’ art, and over the Idol from the ceiling hangs the ‘matoli’, a wooden frame from which hang fruits and vegetables, an offering to the Lord; from the kitchens…comes the smokiness of wood fires burning, fragrant odors and the sizzle of foods cooking, the voices of women bantering and the soft swish of their silk sarees, the metal clang of copper vessels, as the food within is vigorously stirred and made worthy for divine consumption. Each home is alive with excitement, busy with preparations and hallowed with devotion. It is an auspicious time, a happy time, a time for quiet reverence but also for noisy celebration…a time to welcome at last, ‘The Bringer of Joy, Destroyer of Woe & Remover of Obstacles’, The Elephant God, Ganesha into our hearts and homes!

@ Dad's ancestral home, Amona, Goa.

I have wonderful memories from childhood, of our family moving to our ancestral home for the duration and us children playing incessantly, gorging on sweets and lighting crackers! We enjoyed as only children can enjoy, free from all care and worry. Must confess however, am not much of a cracker person now (hate the ones that make deafening bangs that are for some reason attractive to the rest of the world), except for sparklers! This year was no different! It was special, cause this is Ishaan’s first festival and ours too in a long time in Goa. We had three homes to visit, hubby’s, Dad’s and Grandma’s. In Goa, most families (although not all), celebrate the occasion by bringing home an Idol of the God and worshiping it, usually for 1 and a 1/2 day, but some for 5 and others for 10 days. This year, all our family was celebrating for 1 and a 1/2 days which meant we had a hectic schedule trying to visit every house while seeing to our own! But that’s part of the fun of festivals, at least while they last; the aches, pains and festival-fatigue set in later 😉

@ Grandma's childhood home in Khorlim, Goa.

We had a wonderful time with Ishaan. He discovered a love for firecrackers! He’s fascinated by their colors and excited by their motion 🙂 He’s not into loud bangs yet thank goodness, although how long that will last is difficult to say. It’s a male thing 😛 He’s not into sweets either (like me) but he is definitely into Ganesha (again like me!) 🙂 He had a field day pointing out pictures of him to us in the newspapers, on hoardings and on TV 🙂 Although for the most part, he ignored the Idols he visited, he dutifully joined his tiny hands in prayer when asked and he enjoyed showering the God with puffed rice once the immersion process began! As for the actual immersion – he thought the God was off for a bath! We traveled everywhere with his cricket bat and ball, indeed it would be impossible not to. His obsession increases with every passing day!

The 'Matoli' above the Idol

This time as an added treat, the family gathered at a private estate afterward, and had a wonderful ‘Day After’ party! It was relaxing, fun and essential 🙂 For many (me included!), it was a relief to finally be able to eat chicken and fish again after a break of…only 2 days 😉 (We are all vegetarian for the duration of the festival, out of necessity I might add, not choice!) The way we fell on the Chicken Cafreal (excellent!), you’d think it was two lifetimes not days! But this is Goa, and 2 days without fish are as two lifetimes to every self-respecting Goan 😛 Indeed, my uncles (much to the dismay of my bone-tired aunts), always came home with a fresh catch, from the river where they immersed the Idol! The fish was then prepared and dinner eaten with much satisfaction usually after midnight. Nothing’s changed! I was reminded of Bali and how the locals offer fried chicken to the God! Perhaps Goans should think of offering fish, the way we all go on about having to turn veg for a day and a half 😛

All too soon, the festivities are done, for us at least, and life goes back to routine. But memories remain, of pleasant, happy times that linger, long after family has dispersed and the feasting ends. My only regret is that I couldn’t quite take all the pictures I wanted to, but it’s hard to take pictures when you are busy enjoying yourself and looking after an exuberant two-year old 🙂

Saying Goodbye

And so…looking forward to next year, another festival, more happy memories…

God Bless!