Trishula

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Shiva with trident (trishula) ( Mauritius 2008)

The trishula or trishul ( Sanskrit and Hindi त्रिशूल triśūla "three spear, trident ") is - next to the hourglass drum  - one of the most important and most obvious attributes of the Hindu god Shiva . Some Indian goddesses also wear such a trident.

Myth and History

In older Vedic texts it is mentioned that the divine architect and creator Vishvakarman made the sun chariot (pushpaka vimana) Surya , the trident (trishula) Shivas and the throwing disc ( chakra ) Vishnu from the rays of the sun. In Indian depictions the trident does not appear as an attribute of Shiva or of guardian figures on temple portals (Shiva pratiharas) until around AD 500 (compare Nachna ); this symbol is unknown in earlier Buddhist sculptures or paintings.

Around the same time or only a short time later, the trident is also found as the main weapon of the many-armed goddess Durga , who was equipped with a variety of weapons by the main Indian gods for her fight against the buffalo demon Mahishasura . Sometimes other goddesses ( Kali , Sarabha, Prathyangira) or even the demon Lavanasura wear a trishula.

origin

Coin of the Bactrian king Antimachus I (around 180 BC); the reverse shows a standing person with a trident and a palm tree

The trident, commonly used in the Mediterranean region, was an ancient hunting weapon that was suitable for both stabbing and short-range throwing, making it ideal for fishing in shallow waters. By tripling a spearhead, throwing inaccuracies caused by light refraction on the water surface or movements of the fish could be compensated to a certain extent. In ancient times the weapon was assigned to the Greek god of the sea Poseidon and consequently also to the Roman god Neptune . The retiarius used them in the Roman gladiatorial games . It is no longer possible to determine whether the trident found its way to India from there, or whether - which is likely - it was already known in Asia. As an attribute of a god or a ruler, however, it seems to have been adopted from the Mediterranean area - on the reverse of the coins of the Hellenistic - Bactrian ruler Antimachus I (ruled around 180 BC) there is clearly a standing figure with a trident and a palm of victory detect.

With the trident received from Shiva, Durga defeats the buffalo demon Mahishasura ( Ambika-Mata temple in Jagat , 10th century)

Interpretations

In historically not or only poorly documented interpretations, the trident symbolizes the three main deities of Hinduism ( Brahma , Shiva and Vishnu ), who unite in the hand of Shiva, or the three primal forces of creation, destruction and preservation associated with the gods. In addition, the tips are equated with the three powers of Shiva: Will (iccha) , knowledge / wisdom (jnana) and energy (kriya) - see in this context the concept of the trika developed in Kashmir . Shiva is also seen by some as the destroyer of three worlds - the physical world, the ancestral world and the spiritual world. In other esoteric or Ayurvedic interpretations, the trident refers to the three most important energy paths (nadis or chakras ) in the human body ( sushumna , ida and pingala) .

Votive offering

Sometimes trishulas are carried by pilgrims on their journey to a Shiva shrine and left there as votive offerings (see Pachmarhi ).

Web links

Commons : Trishula  - collection of images, videos and audio files