Devdutt Pattanaik is quite good at explaining the symbols in more concrete ways while still retaining the esoteric meaning.
It has 7 visually engaging chapters on Ganesh, Vishnu, Lakshmi, Shiva/Shankara, Devi, Brahma.
The closest thing I can think of is that at first glance it looks like a "Dummies Guide to Hindu Symbols through Calendar Art". It uses a few illustrative calendars with text "bubbles" to identify each element of the symbolism.
Looks can be deceiving though.
The text then goes on to explain in more detail how the whole tapestry is built out of seemingly simple symbols to convey a very deep meaning.
Though the author steers clear of going in too deep (to avoid losing his audience who may not yet be ready for whole thing) the symbols he's talking about are at the heart of Tantra and much of other branches of Hinduism.
He follows the difficult path of "Being as simple as possible but no simpler" without distorting the implied meaning at the heart of the symbol. It's a bit like explaining General Relativity to a child while trying to retain scientific truth.
We take our myths in our stride in India, esp. I guess the "educated" people. Reading up on the esoteric meaning behind the symbols makes you really think how much our ancients went deep into the human nature and the depths of the Universe.
Lord Vishnu's lies on a serpent called Ananta (the Infinite) with 3 and half coils on KshirSagara ocean of milk. Super explanation of what each of the symbols stand for. After reading this visiting a temple was an eye-opening event.
I never looked at Calendar art as more than a slightly over coloured, slightly garish visualization of gods/goddeses (like our film posters). But that was before reading this book.
Links:
Devdutt Pattanaik's Blog has many interesting articles: http://devdutt.com
Book webpage : http://devdutt.com/7-secrets-from-hindu-calendar-art/
Decoding Lakshmi: http://devdutt.com/decoding-lakshmi/
Lakshmi is symbolised by the over-flowing pot. (TODO)
Garba (Dance of the Pot): http://devdutt.com/the-dance-of-the-pot/
The Song of the Crow (From Finite to Infinite) : http://devdutt.com/the-song-of-the-crow/
Chimera vs Nava-Gunjara (Unity in Diversity) : http://devdutt.com/the-flawed-gaze/
Nath-Jogis: http://devdutt.com/legends-of-the-nath-jogis/
Hamsa (goose not swan?!) : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamsa_(bird)
It has 7 visually engaging chapters on Ganesh, Vishnu, Lakshmi, Shiva/Shankara, Devi, Brahma.
The closest thing I can think of is that at first glance it looks like a "Dummies Guide to Hindu Symbols through Calendar Art". It uses a few illustrative calendars with text "bubbles" to identify each element of the symbolism.
Looks can be deceiving though.
The text then goes on to explain in more detail how the whole tapestry is built out of seemingly simple symbols to convey a very deep meaning.
Though the author steers clear of going in too deep (to avoid losing his audience who may not yet be ready for whole thing) the symbols he's talking about are at the heart of Tantra and much of other branches of Hinduism.
He follows the difficult path of "Being as simple as possible but no simpler" without distorting the implied meaning at the heart of the symbol. It's a bit like explaining General Relativity to a child while trying to retain scientific truth.
We take our myths in our stride in India, esp. I guess the "educated" people. Reading up on the esoteric meaning behind the symbols makes you really think how much our ancients went deep into the human nature and the depths of the Universe.
Lord Vishnu's lies on a serpent called Ananta (the Infinite) with 3 and half coils on KshirSagara ocean of milk. Super explanation of what each of the symbols stand for. After reading this visiting a temple was an eye-opening event.
I never looked at Calendar art as more than a slightly over coloured, slightly garish visualization of gods/goddeses (like our film posters). But that was before reading this book.
Links:
Devdutt Pattanaik's Blog has many interesting articles: http://devdutt.com
Book webpage : http://devdutt.com/7-secrets-from-hindu-calendar-art/
Decoding Lakshmi: http://devdutt.com/decoding-lakshmi/
Lakshmi is symbolised by the over-flowing pot. (TODO)
Garba (Dance of the Pot): http://devdutt.com/the-dance-of-the-pot/
The Song of the Crow (From Finite to Infinite) : http://devdutt.com/the-song-of-the-crow/
Chimera vs Nava-Gunjara (Unity in Diversity) : http://devdutt.com/the-flawed-gaze/
Nath-Jogis: http://devdutt.com/legends-of-the-nath-jogis/
Hamsa (goose not swan?!) : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamsa_(bird)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.