Return to the womb: feminine creative imagery of arghya in a Tantric ritual

Deepak Shimkhada,Michael Reading

doi:10.1186/s40613-015-0022-4

Abstract

This paper examines the Tantric ritual of the pouring of water from an arghyapatra from cultural, philosophical, and religious perspectives. The authors argue that the range of symbolic meanings within this ritual for multiple reasons goes far beyond its purely physical representation. On the part of the sadhaka there is indeed fertile ground for creatively perceiving the key elements of the ritual, which include water taking on a variety of new and expanded meanings, and the arghyapatra device itself representing the yoni and womb of the Goddess, to which the practitioner attempts a sacred return.

Highlights

Water is an essential element of life, without which no living being may survive
Tantra proudly acknowledges that this type of yoni worship may be most germane for menstrual women, whose connection to the goddess is naturally accentuated through a likeness of sacred-somatic feminine processes
Its presence in South Asian temples and in the exquisite arghyapātra ritual device is meant in various ways to signify the Divine Feminine

Summary

Introduction

Water is an essential element of life, without which no living being may survive. The evidence for water’s probiotic nature is manifold and compelling.

Results

Conclusion