Writer: Pinkiewitchcraft
Subject: Depictions Of Deities
Link: Tumblr / 06.06.2024
Story References: The Guru | Phantasy Island 3
Depictions Of Deitie
I hate these modern art depictions of deities as being young and conventionally attractive and thin. I hate the constant erasure of diverse bodies and expressions. I hate them. I hate them I hate them. Let them look how they were meant to look. Stop trying to pretty-fy them to fit your modern boring-ass standards. They go by their own standards. If everyday people aren’t all walking around looking like Victoria’s Secret models, then the same should apply to deities. A deity who is described as being terrifying, for example, should actually look terrifying, and not like a pretty polished model.
RESPONSE BY XP (VIA LS666 BLOG)
Guilty as charged. I have, on occasion been persuaded to use “youth and beauty” (attractive, thin, androgynous) images. But I do agree — a deity should be depicted as she or he or they are — and there is no more fiercer deity than Kali Ma. Sometimes referred to as Maa Kali, The Dark Mother, The Mother Goddess, or just plain old “Kali” — her distinctive depictions, together with a lolling tongue, a string of skulls, and a skirt made of severed arms — all come from her origins in India. You cannot get more raw than this. Worship of Kali has roots in ancient East Indian belief systems from the first millennium B.C.E. Her name first appears in the holy Hindu text Rg Veda, 1700–1100 B.C.E. She is also described in the Devi-Mahatmya portion of the Indian historical texts Markandeya Purana, circa 300–600.
