the image is carried about in procession in the evenings (pradōsha).
ArdhanāriThe hermaphrodite or the Ardhanāri form of Siva is perhaps to be traced to the conception of the Sākta doctrine that only when combined with Sakti is Siva capable of discharging his divine functions.
[1] The idea of representing a male ornament in the right lobe of Siva and a female ornament in his left lobe must, already, have been, due to the belief in the inseparable union of the masculine and feminine elements in the Creator. The artistic conception of a purely philosophical idea has thus resulted in an image of which the left half represents the woman (Pārvatī) and the right half, the male (Siva). The jewellery on the image is similarly distinguished in every detail; those on the left side being purely feminine ornaments and those on the right, ornaments appropriate to males. The drapery on the right side is the tiger's skin of Siva reaching only to the knee, while on the left side it is the finely embroidered muslin (
dukūla) suitable for the goddess Pārvatī, and stretching down to her ankle. Of the four hands, the two right show a hatchet and the posture of protection; the two left are richly decorated with wristlets, the upper one holding a flower and the lower one being stretched down to the waist (fig. 75). The
Kāsyapa-Silpa, however, says that the right lower hand may be placed on the head of the bull. Some images show only three hands, two on the right and one on the left. In that case the right upper hand holds the axe while the lower right rests on the head of the bull. The figure stands leaning gracefully against the back of the bull, bending its body above the waist. Of the two other illustrations given, one is from the Nāgēsvara temple at Kumbakōnam (fig. 76) and the other is from a niche on the north wall of the Tanjore temple (fig. 77). Sometimes images of Ardhanāri may have only two arms. Thus in the temple at Tiruchchengōdu (Salem district), dedicated to Ardhanãri, the image (fig. 78) has only two hands, the right one holding a staff with the lower end resting on the waist, and the left placed on the left hip. It may be noted that the hair on the head of this image is done up in the fashion peculiar to images of Krishna. An illustration coming from Dhārāsuram shows eight arms, three visible faces (with perhaps two others
- ↑ The popular story connected with the origin of this form is given below (p. 165), under Bhringlsa.
