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since y'all need a bit of education on any culture that isn't your own: a thread of some of the main hindu gods and goddesses, what they represent, and what they mean to us.
let's start with Ganesh. Ganesh, or Ganapati, is the son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. he's the god of wisdom, truth, humility, and the destroyer of all obstacles towards success. he's prayed to first, before any other god, in any sort of prayer or ritual.
Lord Shiva is the destroyer of the universe. he's also worshipped as the father of the universe. he's an ascetic by large, and teaches detachment from material desires. Lord Shiva is considered one of the three main gods of our religion, along with Vishnu and Brahma.
Goddess Parvati, the wife of Lord Shiva, is nature personified. her gentle, motherly form is Parvati, while the form she takes while using her powers (almost) to their full extent is Durga. her most terrifying but powerful form is Kaali, the goddess of time, death, war, and the -
universe. In short, Parvati is one of the most powerful deities in our religion. the first picture is Parvati in her usual form, the second is Durga, and the third is Kaali (literally one of the COOLEST gods she's my favorite).
fun fact: "kaali" means black in hindi. her skin is supposed to be black, and she's described as beautiful and ethereal. her dark complexion is supposed to be a manifestation of her raw power. so yes, Hinduism did agree that dark-skinned women = queens before -
the british taught us dark is bad and indian media jumped on that bandwagon. :)
then we have Lord Vishnu, the capital-G God. he's the protector of the universe, the source of everything. his - you could say - "work" form is Vishnu, while his more laid-back, (the original) form is Krishna. on the left is Vishnu, on the right is Krishna.
lord Vishnu's wife is Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth. she's known to be 'chanchal', which would best be described as 'gracefully restless', and that's why nobody ever has wealth for very long. she's also the goddess of mercy and devotion.
we have Saraswati, the goddess of Knowledge, speech, music, and skill. she's arguably the most important god or goddess to a student, and accompanies Lord Brahma, the creator of the universe (yeah it's confusing, but Brahma emerged from the navel of Vishnu and created the -
universe, so Vishnu is still technically the source of everything). on the left is Saraswati, and on the right is Brahma.
so, yeah. these gods and goddesses are usually the ones used for decoration. I've tried to introduce them as concisely as possible. also, it's important to remember that there are many variations of this religion, so what I may have been taught is not the same as someone else.
for example, a lot of hindus in the eastern part of india are taught that Kaali is the source of everything, and the three main gods "fade in and out of her like bubbles". this, however, only goes to show how complex our religion really is, and how much of a piece of shit -
you are for treating us like we're nothing. i'm begging you now, literally begging, to stop using our culture as decoration. not only is it just wrong, it's ignorant to say things like "I think Ganesha can s*ck her d*ck". please PLEASE educate yourself on how much these things -
mean to people. please let our culture be.
this is why i wrote this thread in the first place but damn some people really don't want to be respectful lmao
why Ganapati has an elephant head: https://twitter.com/kimchimstew/status/1276511109273419782?s=20
about Kaali cause you LITERALLY DONT UNDERSTAND HOW AMAZING SHE IS LISTEN- https://twitter.com/kimchimstew/status/1276515013901996035?s=20
while we're here https://twitter.com/i_WinterMoon/status/1276517956919287808?s=20
why ganapati is worshipped first: https://twitter.com/kimchimstew/status/1276557699140874240?s=19
for context: the gayatri mantra is REALLY powerful and its used to worship durga. dancing sexily to it is fucking disgusting.
!!! if you search up Kaali, you'll see her tongue sticking out in most pictures. that's a common way to show embarrassment in our culture. she's basically embarrassed she didn't see her husband thru her rage and stepped on him lmao i find that so cute https://twitter.com/fujoshigirl2003/status/1276565005702332416?s=19
fun facts about shiva cause yall seem to like him: he's known to frequent cremation grounds. the snake on around his neck is the king of snakes, Vasuki. he once swallowed poison to save the world, and parvati held her hand at his throat to save him. he's known as the 'innocent'
god, or 'Bholenath' because he loves his devotees and is known to be blind to their faults sometimes. he's INCREDIBLY powerful tho. also he's the god of dance.
GUYS LISTEN UP THIS THO. OUR CAPITAL G GOD IS BLACK OK. DON'T LET ANYBODY TELL YOU BLACK AIN'T BEAUTIFUL GOODNGIHT https://twitter.com/_VampyrPrincess/status/1276569132876673030?s=19
guys please don't be scared of being offensive if you're just asking questions 
its completely okay to ask please don't be so scared I know I was aggressive in this thread but I don't bite
its completely okay to ask please don't be so scared I know I was aggressive in this thread but I don't bite
fun fact: parvati took the form of durga most famously when a demon named Mahishasur (evil this time) got a boon that no man could kill him. he didn't think a woman could kill him so parvati became durga and slaughtered that bitch right up 
HIGHKEY RECOMMEND. LIKE EVEN IF YOU DON'T FOLLOW THE RELIGION AND WANT TO READ IT AS FICTION. THE PLOT DEVICES? ROUNDED CHARACTERS? MOTIVES? CHEFS KISS https://twitter.com/twinkerbellchan/status/1276580278983630855?s=19
fun fact: the original term is "sanatan dharma" https://twitter.com/StanYuli/status/1276581851771973632?s=19
lads im like??? tearing up??? there's so much cultural exchange under this thread omg and so many people are excited about my religion and willing to learn im like gonna cry i love you guys
OK LET'S DISCUSS KARTIKEYA, THE FIRST SON OF SHIVA. dude is the GENERAL OF THE GODS and he rides into war ON A PEACOCK LIKE CAN YOU GET MORE BADASS? NO
dude danced on the crown of a five headed snake at 10 years old and lifted an entire mountain with his pinky finger at 7. he's a whole other league tbh https://twitter.com/chaoticlix/status/1276693150023798786?s=19
he's really decked out but he's black so this is a more accurate representation of krishna. by his side is his eternal love, radha, who's a plenary expansion of Lakshmi. they're so beautiful literally LOOK AT THEM-
so i did the same thing to help it be more relatable but she's right guys don't say that stuff skskkskks https://twitter.com/zeroclockbts/status/1276703381898190849?s=19
for anybody asking, the best place to learn more is this comic series called Amar Chitra Katha. their religion section is extensive and has pretty much everything
guys please read this!! I've tried to say that this is only what I've taught, but if it's not clear enough, please look at this!!! this is extremely important https://twitter.com/cassiansparka/status/1276748252180893696?s=19
so until @cassiansparka said something about it, I didn't realize how important it was to say I've learned these things as a maharashtrian (a person from the state of maharashtra in western India) and as a kashmiri.
the information and stories I've given in this thread are also what mainstream media shows us, so the problem lies in the fact that many varieties of Hinduism aren't given the recognition they deserve as equally important and part of our culture as "mainstream" Hinduism.
so if you're here please understand that Hinduism as a religion has countless stories and back stories that are able to coexist, and that's what's beautiful about it. this thread isnt even 1% of what you can learn from this religion, and for many many people in this country,
the stories aren't same and neither are the gods' potencies. keep that in mind!!
also this is what I mean by Indian media jumping on the bandwagon https://twitter.com/cassiansparka/status/1276755211923664897?s=19
translation-
girl: look, the girl is sitting on the throne. and look down on the side, there you can see Ganesh.
mother: oh god. oh god, that's a sin, that's a big sin, sitting up and putting God on the floor. she's not indian? that's why she doesn't know.
girl: look, the girl is sitting on the throne. and look down on the side, there you can see Ganesh.
mother: oh god. oh god, that's a sin, that's a big sin, sitting up and putting God on the floor. she's not indian? that's why she doesn't know.
damn even I learnt something new today https://twitter.com/tetulchatni/status/1276876086542864385?s=19
