Ardhanarishvara Symbolism In Siva And Siva

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Ardhanarishvara is in essence Shiva, not Parvati. Mythology also reflects this, where Parvati becomes a part of Siva. It is likewise reflected in iconography: Shiva often has 2 supernatural arms & Parvati has just 1 arm, & his bull vahana – and not her lion vahana – typically accompanies them. Very seldom can one see the female half to the right & the male half to the left in the Ardhanarishvara image.

Symbolism

Ardhanarishvara symbolizes the inseparable male and female principles. The composite form expresses the union of opposites in the universe. The male principle stands for Purusha – the passive force & female half is Prakriti - active force of the universe; both are persistently drawn to embrace and blend with each other, though separated …show more content…

It is considered as "a model of conjugal inseparability". The impression is to place the man in the woman & the woman in the man & create perfect homogeneity. It conveys that God is both Siva & Parvati, "both male & female, both father & mother, both aloof & active, both fearsome & gentle, both destructive & constructive" & unifies all the dichotomies of this universe. The Vishnudharmottara Purana emphasizes the identity & sameness of the Purusha & Prakriti manifested in …show more content…

The male half is with anurdhvalinga and is in abhaya mudra while the female half holds a mirror & has rounded breast. This is the earliest representation of Ardhanarishvara.
There is also an early Kushan Ardhanarishvara head discovered at Rajghat which is displayed at the Mathura Museum. The right half which is male has matted hair with a skull & crescent moon and the left half has well-combed hair decorated with flowers & wears a patra-kundala. There is a common 3rd eye. Early Kushan images show simple 2-armed Ardhanarishvara form, but later texts & sculptures illustrate a more intricate iconography.

Other findings were the terracotta seal discovered in Vaishali which has half-man, half-woman features and a terracotta androgynous bust, excavated at Taxila dated to the Saka-Parthian era, which pictures a bearded man with female

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