Re: why is durga shown riding a tiger ?!!
Originally Posted by
sambya
hello everyone .
well , in northern india we come across images of devi riding on tiger . but in shastras she is shimhavahini--rider of lion . and till date i have not yet come across any shastra where she is said to ride a tiger . so this question have always remained in my mind -- ' why this deviation ' ?
there might be many regional goddesses who rides on tigers(like in some parts she has monitor lizards as her vahan !! ) , but im not concerned with them . im speaking about major deities like durga when they are shown on tigers
personally i think this has resulted from the element of confusion in hindi language . both tiger and lion are 'sher' in hindi . hence shera-wali(on lion) became tiger-wali quickly .
but im looking forward to hear what others know or think in this respect ...
The reason is that we have killed most of the lions and there is hardly any left for Devi to have a ride on !
Seriously speaking, the reason is most probably mixing up of lion and tiger somewhere. But I don't know ... not much strong in pauranic stories.
OM
"Om Namo Bhagvate Vaasudevaye"
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