The same people that shot my race for wearing Bindis/Pottus are the same people who are using it as a fashion accessory right now. I don’t have a problem with you wearing it, just know where it comes from. Don’t whitewash it like you did with Holi(making it “The Color Run”) or with yoga(which many individuals don’t even know is Hindu) and many other things.
Oh Shiva, the granter of prosperity! The self-formed one!
The One who carries Ganga in his hair, the destroyer of Obstacles, the merciful One! You help me cross this world, which is like an ocean.
You are the Supreme Truth, untouched by the attributes of nature. You transcend the fleeting world of existence. You reside in the cave of truth, and You are extraordinary and endless, You are the wonderful bestower of happiness, residing in the form of the eternal linga.
You are worshiped by sages like Matanga. You are all-pervading, clothed with the universe itself. You are the eternal, immaculate God of Dance. You are the universal Supreme Being.
Carnatic song “Bho Shambho”, composed by the Hindu reformist Dayananda Saraswati (1824-1883)
During Lathmar Holi the women of Nandgaon, the hometown of Krishna, beat the men from Barsana, the legendary hometown of Radha, consort of Hindu
God Krishna, with wooden sticks in response to their teasing as they
depart the town. (AP)
Galwar Bagh - Monkey Temple Photo by david-perez
Ramgopalji Temple, Galtaji, Jaipur, India - wiki
Galtaji is an ancient Hindu pilgrimage site in the town of Khania-Balaji, about 10km away from Jaipur, in the Indian state of Rajasthan. The site consists of several temples and sacred kunds (water tanks) in which pilgrims bathe. It is believed that a Saint named Galav lived here, practiced meditation, and did penance.
The temple complex of Ramgopalji temple is colloquially known as Monkey temple, Galwar Bagh.
(via flicker: davidpc_)
"The swastika is an archetypal, universal human religious symbol. It appears on every continent and is as old as humankind. A marker of the sun’s travels, it can be seen on Pictish rock carvings, adorning ancient Greek pottery, and on ancient Norse weapons and implements. It was scratched on cave walls in France seven thousand years ago. A swastika marks the beginning of many Buddhist scriptures, and is often incised on the soles of the feet of the Buddha in statuary. In the Jain religion, it is a symbol of the seventh Jina (Saint), the Tirthankara Suparsva. To Native Americans, the swastika is a symbol of the sun, the four directions, and the four seasons. The swastika is a type of solar cross, with arms bent at right angles, suggesting a whirling or turning motion. Long before the symbol was subversively co-opted as an emblem of Hitler’s Nazi party, it was a sacred symbol to Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist religions, as well as in Norse, Basque, Baltic, and Celtic Paganism. The name Swastika is derived from the Sanskrit language, from “su,” meaning “good,” and “vasti”,” meaning “being” (together; well being). In India, it is used as a fertility and good luck charm. The right turning Indian swastika symbolizes the sun and positive energy, and is most commonly associated with the deity Ganesh, a God of prosperity and wealth. Some Indians regard an anti-clockwise swastika as an opposing, dark force- a symbol of the goddess Kali. Together, the two can be regarded as symbolically similar to the Yin Yang symbol of Taoism, or the two Pillars of Kabbalah.”