Shiva Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! === Smarta tradition === {{Main|Panchayatana puja}} [[File:Traditional Indian Print by Artist Raja Ravi Varma.jpg|thumb|Oleograph by [[Raja Ravi Varma]] depicting a Shiva-centric Panchayatana. A bearded Shiva sits in the centre with his wife Parvati and their infant son Ganesha; surrounded by (clockwise from left upper corner) Ganesha, Devi, Vishnu, and Surya. Shiva's mount is the bull Nandi below Shiva.]] In the [[Smarta tradition]] of Hinduism, Shiva is a part of its [[Panchayatana puja]].<ref name="Bühnemann2003p60">{{cite book|author=Gudrun Bühnemann|author-link=Gudrun Bühnemann|title=Mandalas and Yantras in the Hindu Traditions|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kQf2m8VaC_oC&pg=PA60|year=2003|publisher=Brill Academic|isbn=978-9004129023|page=60|access-date=6 October 2016|archive-date=16 January 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116175701/https://books.google.com/books?id=kQf2m8VaC_oC&pg=PA60#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> This practice consists of the use of icons or anicons of five deities considered equivalent,<ref name="Bühnemann2003p60" /> set in a [[quincunx]] pattern.<ref name="Harle1994p141">{{cite book|author=James C. Harle|title=The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent| url=https://archive.org/details/artarchitectureo00harl |url-access=registration|year=1994|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0300062175|pages=[https://archive.org/details/artarchitectureo00harl/page/140 140]–142, 191, 201–203}}</ref> Shiva is one of the five deities, others being Vishnu, [[Devi]] (such as [[Parvati]]), [[Surya]] and [[Ganesha]] or [[Kartikeya|Skanda]] or any personal god of devotee's preference ([[Ishta Devata]]).{{sfn|Flood|1996|p=[https://archive.org/details/introductiontohi0000floo/page/17 17]}} Philosophically, the Smarta tradition emphasizes that all idols ([[murti]]) are icons to help focus on and visualize aspects of Brahman, rather than distinct beings. The ultimate goal in this practice is to transition past the use of icons, recognize the Absolute symbolized by the icons,<ref>{{cite book|author=J. N. Farquhar|title=Outline of the Religious Literature of India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lwggjSPrjxUC |year=1984|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|isbn=978-8120820869|page=180}}</ref> on the path to realizing the [[Advaita Vedanta|nondual]] identity of one's Atman (Self) and the Brahman.<ref>{{cite book|author=Edwin F. Bryant|title=Krishna: A Sourcebook|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2n4VDAAAQBAJ |year=2007|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0199724314|pages=313–314}}</ref> Popularized by [[Adi Shankara]], many Panchayatana mandalas and temples have been uncovered that are from the [[Gupta Empire]] period, and one Panchayatana set from the village of Nand (about 24 kilometers from [[Ajmer]]) has been dated to belong to the [[Kushan Empire]] era (pre-300 CE).{{sfn|Williams|1981|pp=1–4}} The Kushan period set includes Shiva, Vishnu, Surya, Brahma and one deity whose identity is unclear.{{sfn|Williams|1981|pp=1–4}} Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page