Monstrous
Monstrous Books => The Monstrous Library => Topic started by: Loki on December 09, 2010, 05:24:34 PM
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The Phallus: Sacred Symbol of Male Creative Power Book Description
Beginning with an overview of the symbolism of creative forces in general, The Phallus first examines the representation of male fertility in such forms as the menhirs or standing stones of prehistoric Europe; the Mahalinga and Svayambhu of India; and the ancient Greek Omphalos. The second part of the book surveys the presence of ithyphallic gods in archaic shamanistic religions (the Lord of the Animals), the Greek pantheon (Hermes, Priapus), and the Hindu deities (Ardhanarishvara, the androgyne). Danielou also explores the role of Shaivist and Dionysian initiatory rites in bringing men into communion with the creative forces of life. Illustrated throughout with photographs and line drawings of European and Indian art, The Phallus celebrates the expression of the masculine in the religious traditions of East and West. Phallic imagery, in one form or another, may be found in the artistic traditions of virtually every world culture since prehistoric times. Alain Danielou here unveils the religious impulse underlying art that at first glance seems to have no purpose beyond the erotic.
Alain Danielou has contributed to The Phallus: Sacred Symbol of Male Creative Power as an author. Alain Danielou (1907-1994) spent more than 15 years in the traditional society of India, using only the Sanskrit and Hindi languages and studying music and philosophy with eminent scholars. He was duly initiated into esoteric Shaivism, which gave him unusual access to texts transmitted through the oral tradition alone. He is the author of more than 30 books on the religion, history, and arts of India and the Mediterranean.
http://www.infibeam.com/Books/info/Alain-Danielou/The-Phallus-Sacred-Symbol-of-Male-Creative/0892815566.html (http://www.infibeam.com/Books/info/Alain-Danielou/The-Phallus-Sacred-Symbol-of-Male-Creative/0892815566.html)
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Book Description
From earliest times, humanity has found visual expression for the cosmic forces of creation, birth, and passion in artistic representations of human genitalia. Fertility cults centered on phallic worship are well documented, but older and even more pervasive are Goddess images of the vulva-known in the East since ancient times as the yoni. Yoni symbolism is a part of spiritual traditions in every part of the globe-from naturally occuring rock formations revered by North American Native peoples to the shakta-pithas of Hindu temples, and from early Celtic sheela-na-gig carvings to the Japanese kagura ritual.
"The Yoni" traces this primal motif in Australian Aboriginal folk tales, in alchemy, in Tantric practices, and in contemporary art by painters such as Georgia O'Keefe and Judy Chicago.
Dozens of illustrations, many in color, reproduce the variety of carvings, drawings, and other portrayals of this universal symbol of feminine creativity.
Rufus C Camphausen has contributed to The Yoni: Sacred Symbol of Female Creative Power as an author. Born in Germany, Rufus C. Camphausen is a writer and illustrator now living in the Netherlands. He is the author of Return of the Tribal, The Encyclopedia of Erotic Wisdom and The Yoni as well as numerous articles and essays on religious history, mythology, and sacred sexuality.
http://www.infibeam.com/Books/info/Rufus-C-Camphausen/The-Yoni-Sacred-Symbol-of-Female-Creative/0892815620.html (http://www.infibeam.com/Books/info/Rufus-C-Camphausen/The-Yoni-Sacred-Symbol-of-Female-Creative/0892815620.html)