Culture July 2007
The Fierce Gods
by Laura Plumb
Have you ever looked at an image of Shiva in his destructive aspect, or Kali with blood dripping from her mouth or Durga astride a fierce tiger with a weapon in each of her eight hands and wonderedhow can this be a "god?"
Certainly by certain western understandings of God as compassionate, benevolent and forgiving, the deities of India do not seem to qualify. In fact, so misunderstood have these gods and goddesses been that for hundreds of years western scholars interpreted them as "primitive"an unsophisticated expression of an early people.
And yet today, images of Shiva, Kali and Durga are more and more prevalent in the West, showing up on clothing, posters, candles, and home decorations. There must be something westerners are connecting to.
What do these particular gods and goddesses offer and how can we be helped by them?
While often referred to as "gods and goddesses," Shiva, Kali, Durga and the extraordinary array of deities that come to us from India are called "devas" in their home country. This Sanskrit word is the root of the English word "divine." Devas, in fact, are similar to angels. They are aspects of a transcendent Supreme Being that come to help us.
Most of us don't think we need anybody's help to manage our lives. We only resort to asking for help when we are desperate. Some of the most beloved devas look menacing precisely because it is not until we really feel lost, afraid, or helpless that we call out for some "greater power" for help. It is when we release the ego's need for independence and realize our interdependence that the devas arrive to offer protection, strength and courage. And so the ferocity we see becomes the comfort we seek.
The devas also help us to enter into Pure Awareness beyond the mind's distortions and projections of reality. If we feel anxiety, they help us to relax and know that we are safely protected by divine love. When we feel physically, emotionally, or professionally stagnant, a deva can come and shake us up a bit. If we feel needy, lonely, or overly attached, a deva will remind us that we are already whole and complete and that everything we seek is within.
When we call on the assistance of the deva, their help will come in the way that best serves us. If we are attached to our ego, our emotions, our thoughts, or another person or object, a deva's benevolence may come in ways that seem wrathful or destructive. This of course challenges our habit of "interpreting" events rather than just experiencing them.
Shakespeare wrote in Hamlet, "There is neither good nor bad but thinking makes it so." The devas help us release our need to interpret experiences or aspects of ourselves. They help us move from the ever-active thinking mind to a purer experience of being.
The multiplicity of the deities has led some to accuse Hinduism, even Yoga, of pantheism. But these deities come from a tradition that ultimately believes in one Supreme reality, a transcendent divine being that is beyond form, name and gender, something alive in the Mystery.
Embracing a deva aligns us with cosmic forces that help us move more directly to our very essence, unfettered by the limitations of conditioning or false beliefs and to merge our individual awareness into "the ocean of infinite being."
Beyond that, the devas remind us that aspects of divine being exist in every moment and in all of life everywhere. Devas as pure peace, pure potentiality, and pure awareness expressing itself. We honor the deities and receive the benefit of their grace best when we remember always that life is sacred, that divinity is in all living beings, and when we act in ways that express that truth.
How to Approach a Deva
The key to working with divine beings is devotion. Devotion to a deva can benefit a person in specific ways. There is a deva who can help each of us in differing circumstances and the fierce gods represent the most direct and powerful way back to Supreme Being.
Shiva - Shiva (pictured on page 20) is a representation of the forces of destruction. She is often found in nature and the gap between the breath, especially after the exhale. She is the divine guidance that helps us release all that is excessive, illusory, toxic, or limiting. She helps us create balance and stability when we find ourselves in transition or turbulance. With her help, we can bring ourselves into the state of pure potentiality, the still-point from which all true action and creativity arises.
Kali - Kali (lower left) represents the element of air, the breath and purification. Her dance of death, with one foot on her husband Shiva's heart, may appear terrifying. In reality, however, she is disentangling the ego and our individual identification to reveal the underlying Pure Consciousness that is in all.
Durga - Durga (upper left), riding on her royal tiger with her eight arms and eight weapons, is the warrior. She is the unlimited power we have when we are aligned with Dharma, or our truth and purpose. When we feel afraid, need to express ourselves, or need more energy to fulfill our functions, we can visualize Durga at the solar plexus, ready to destroy all doubts and open the way for our truest expression of Self.
Laura Plumb teaches Ayurveda and Yoga and a regular series on healing with the devas. She and her husband Bhava are co-founders of Deep Yoga, a registered Yoga Alliance School. Laura and Bhava lead workshops as well as see private clients. For more information, please visit www.deepyoga.com, www.lauraplumb.com, or email laura@san.rr.com.