Maithili Culture

Shiva at Himavat's kingdom Coiled around Shiva’s neck is a hooded Cobra. Cobra is unique as it spreads its hood when alert. Thus, an upraised hood of cobra around Shiva’s neck symbolizes alertness of the mind. When a Cobra is in alert state, it remains still, representing spiritual stillness contrasting to restlessness of nature. If human body is symmetrically divided into two halves, left and right, the heart is in left half of the body. Heart beats is rhythmic intervals, represents rhythmic nature of the world, as the world changes in rhythmic cycles, rhythmic in form of seasons, tides, phases of moon, etc. Right half of human body is still and silent, representing stillness of spiritual reality and wisdom. Shiva holds damru (drum) in his left hand to seek attention of the monkey mind towards wisdom and spirituality, he holds trident in his right hand, through wisdom, he promises destruction of fear. Fear induced because of ever changing material world. Trident and da

Shiva descends from Kailash Culture is defined set of beliefs and practices, people who follow them are part of it, while others are excluded. Cultural practices are ways to create an order among people and establish dharma. Dharma enables humans to outgrow the beast within while being fruitful members of society. Thieves, murderers, and criminals have no place in society as their actions don’t align with that of dharma, they are discarded and excluded from all cultures and society. Shiva believes in vairagya, renunciation of society itself. He believes in controlling beast within through wisdom and enlightenment. For Shiva, culture is delusion that distracts human from outgrowing beast within. Society discriminates, while Shiva doesn’t, for him every creature is alike, no matter what beliefs they practice. Shiva doesn’t seek to defy or deny the values of cultural rules, rites and rituals, he finds them un-necessary and remains ignorant to them. As Shiva does not discrimi

Shiva arrives with guests to marry Parvati Shiva symbolizes infinite wisdom, a realm where everything is known and thus no ambiguity exists, no fear exists, and mind enters a state of self-stimulated bliss, a state of satchitananda ( sat – truth, chit – consciousness, anada – bliss ). He is the Adiyogi ( first yogi ), first to attain full enlightenment. He tried to share his journey to enlightenment with others, but found everyone around being too distracted and not ready to understand it. As his mind is self-stimulated, he doesn’t engage with the nature, instead reflects inwards and continues to remain in meditative form. Prakriti ( nature ) on the other hand is unpredictable, uncontrolled, and always evolving, taking new forms and going in cycles. Nature treats all its creations alike, everything is her favorite or none are her favorite, she doesn’t take sides. We humans, like other living forms, are result of this evolution cycle. Our default instinct is still animal insti