Yoni
Aniconic representation of the Hindu goddess Shakti, consort of Shiva / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Yoni (Sanskrit: योनि, IAST: yoni), sometimes called pindika, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu goddess Shakti.[3][4] It is usually shown with linga – its masculine counterpart.[3][5] Together, they symbolize the merging of microcosmos and macrocosmos,[5] the divine eternal process of creation and regeneration, and the union of the feminine and the masculine that recreates all of existence.[4][2] The yoni is conceptualized as nature's gateway of all births, particularly in the esoteric Kaula and Tantra practices, as well as the Shaktism and Shaivism traditions of Hinduism.[6]
Yoni is a Sanskrit word that has been interpreted to literally mean the "womb",[2][7] the "source",[8] and the female organs of generation.[9][10] It also connotes the female sexual organs such as "vagina",[4] "vulva",[11][12] and "uterus",[13][14] or alternatively to "origin, abode, or source" of anything in other contexts.[1][4] For example, the Vedanta text Brahma Sutras metaphorically refers to the metaphysical concept Brahman as the "yoni of the universe".[15] The yoni with linga iconography is found in Shiva temples and archaeological sites of the Indian subcontinent and southeast Asia,[16][17][18] as well in sculptures such as the Lajja Gauri.[19]