Yesterday’s Mahavidya was the form of Kali, the fierce yet most loving form of Adi Shakti, the Cosmic Mother. It was certainly heartwarming to have quite a few of you out there who approached me with more information to share about the manifestation of Kali, drawing imagery of different Tantric worship practices and methodology that I never knew about. In all honesty, I’m humbled and thankful for the knowledge I’ve received.
Drawing parallels to the fearsome Kali being portrayed in movies, there are subtle worshiping of Kali that are rather overshadowed. Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa who saw Kali as his own mother, Mahakavi Kalidas who lived till the end of his life singing praises of Kali and Prince Vikramadityan who erected Ujjain and installed Mahakali, were all staunch Kali devotees who used Tantric worship on a much lesser degree. Kali, in their eyes, was a benevolent bestower of blessings, a maternal figure despite her terrifying appearance. (Thank you Kumara, for shedding light on this).
It’s the second day of Navaratri and we are now looking at the second Mahavidya, Tara. In all honesty, I was a tad bit confused while conducting research because then I realised that Tara is a Tantric goddess present in both Hinduism and Buddhist-Tibetan Tantrism.
In Hinduism, Tara appears to be of very similar appearance to Kali. Tara is as dark as Kali, sporting four arms. While Kali is naked, Tara is seen to be clothed with the hide of a tiger just around her waist. Kali’s loose hair relates to liberation of worldly attachments while Tara’s bounded hair at the top of her head signifies yogic discipline.
Tara holds on to a pair of scissor-like weapon, a pallival-type of flaying sword that drips blood, a lotus and a skull bowl. Like Kali, these are an iconography of Tara.
Like how the head dangling from Kali’s hand represents the laceration of human ego, Tara’s scissor weapon represents the shearing of attachments to one that can disrupt the journey towards self-consciousnsness.
A lotus, despite blooming from muddy waters, stays pure and is variedly used as a symbol of purity. The lotus held by Tara denotes her purity and benign nature despite her appearance.
Tara’s tongue lolls out in the same fashion as Kali, but she sports a round belly, unlike Kali. While Kali presses one foot on Shiva’s chest, Tara stands on Shiva with both her feet. This acutely represents the concept of co-existence – Tara is a form of Adi Shakti, the supreme power which feeds Shiva and Shiva is the dynamic Adi Yogi who supports this flow of power. Neither can exist without one another and both are of similar reality.
The imagery of Tara standing atop Shiva explains that masculine support and feminine independence go hand-in-hand. No silly squabbles about one gender establishing prowess over another, just a simple concept of a single verity.
The origin of Tara can be dated back to the time when the Devas and Asuras were churning the milk ocean for the nectar of immortality. As legend goes, there was a point during the process where Vasuki the serpent, who was used to churn the ocean against a mountain, started to feel sick and puked poison all over the ocean. Aghast, the Devas and Asuras turned to Shiva for help, who deftly scooped up the poison and drank it. Despite his wife having to strangle his throat to stop the poison from reaching his blood, blue-throated Shiva fell unconscious. The form of Tara appeared, and nursed Shiva back to life with her milk. Hence, the form of Tara exhibits motherly ministration as well.
In Buddhism-Tibetian culture, Tara adopts a more gentle and calmer demeanour. She is known as the feminine Buddha and the benefactress of compassion and wisdom, hailed as an ever-loving matriarch. Tara is Buddhism also draws similarity to Vaani, the Goddess of Knowledge for she bestows the same.
It’s quite a comprehensive breakdown for Tara on the second day of Navaratri, but as you can see, I have trouble reducing word count and my excitement of sharing – pardon me this time.
As a person who is constantly on the lookout for new reads and discoveries, I am curious to learn a lot more about the contrasting resemblance of Tara in Hinduism and Buddhism. Teach me and I’ll pay you with coffee, bagels and quality conversation.
Another day tomorrow, with the tale of another Mahavidya.
File Photo : Pinterest.
