The Divine Feminine

- Veejay Sai

NEWS AND WRITINGS in international publications about Hindu gods and temples are always amusing to read. The Western gaze provides a great deal of entertainment with its ignorant observations about our tradition and culture. Aren’t we all tired of reading about the Western tourist’s visit to the “pagodas of the elephant god” or “monkey god” and other such stale meaningless similes? Travel guides to India are full of such writings.

When the National Geographic TV channel bombarded viewers with an ad campaign for a documentary on Lord Venkateshwara of Tirupati, it went viral. The expectations were high because it was Nat Geo, after all. When the documentary was finally aired, it turned out to be a total joke. Not only was it reeking of a pedestrian colonial hangover but also filled with information culled out from Wikipedia and other such unreliable and ignorant sources. Recently, Nat Geo magazine carried a report on the Meenakshi Sundareshwar Temple in Madurai. The writer, obviously someone who hasn’t travelled enough or never visited South India, wrote a laughable report. There was a lot of anger on social media about the falling standards of a brand like Nat Geo.

In the beginning of the article, the writer says: “Dedicated to the goddess Meenakshi — the incarnation of the Hindu goddess Parvati, this temple is one of the few religious monuments in India devoted to a female deity. Known as the fish-eyed goddess because of her perfectly shaped eyes, Meenakshi represents fertility and love.” Really?! Do they even know what they are publishing? First of all, the temple is not a “religious monument”. It is a sacred space, thriving with regular worship for hundreds of years.