| Ardhanari | |
|---|---|
 Ardhanarishvara (half male-half female God) The sculpture's left is male and the right is female, depicting Shiva and his consort Shakti/Parvati. Elephanta caves, Mumbai, India. |
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| Devanagari | अर्धनारी |
| Affiliation | A combined form of Shiva and Parvati (Shakti) |
In Hinduism, Ardhanari (Devanāgarī अर्धनारी, IAST Ardhanārī) or Ardhanarishvara (अर्धनारीश्वर, Ardhanārīśvara), is an androgynous deity composed of Shiva and his consort Shakti, representing the synthesis of masculine and feminine energies. The Ardhanari form also illustrates how the female principle of God, Shakti, is inseparable from the male principle of God, Shiva. Ardhanari in iconography is depicted as half-male and half-female, split down the middle. The best sculptural depictions of Shiva as Ardhanari are to be seen in the sensuous Chola dynasty bronzes and the sculptures at Ellora and Elephanta.
Iconography
Variations in the name of this Deity:
- Ardhnarishwara
- Ardhanarishwara
- Ardhnariswara
- Ardhanariswara
- Ardhnari
- Ardhanarishvara
- Ardhanaarinateshwara
- Mohiniraaj
- Aldernalisuvara, mostly applied by Japanese, sometimes abbreviated to Alder.
See also
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ardhanari |
External links
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