Śhūbh Rāma Navamī! Today is a holiday celebrating this popular Hindu deity, hero of the Ramayana epic. The good folks at Living Sanskrit are re-launching a classic interactive course. Learn about Śrī Rāma and connect to this sacred day through study of philosophy, language, iconography, Ayurvedic wisdom, mantra, pūjā, and dance.
This course includes lecture that I (Ekabhumi) gave on the symbolism of the bow and arrow. The bow and arrows are held by many deities in Hinduism and Buddhism, as a symbolic representation of their enlightened activity in the world.
Although each lineage will interpret these symbols slightly differently in context, there are basic themes that remain common throughout Asia, often related to perception.
As a practitioner rather than a scholar, I emphasize how the symbolism relates to the devotee’s likely experience of that deity, and the fruit of doing practices to invoke them. Enroll now!