Lingam
Aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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A lingam (Sanskrit: लिङ्ग IAST: liṅga, lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism.[1] The word lingam is found in the Upanishads and epic literature, where it means a "mark, sign, emblem, characteristic,"[2] the "evidence, proof, symptom" of God and God's power.[2][3][4][5][6][1][2]
The lingam of the Shaivism tradition is a short cylindrical pillar-like symbol of Shiva, made of stone, metal, gem, wood, clay or precious stones.[7][1] It is often represented within a disc-shaped platform,[1][8] the yoni – its feminine counterpart,[9][10] consisting of a flat element, horizontal compared to the vertical lingam, and designed to allow liquid offerings to drain away for collection.[11]
The lingam is an emblem of generative and destructive power. While rooted in representations of the male sexual organ, [12] the lingam is regarded as the "outward symbol" of the "formless Reality", the symbolization of merging of the 'primordial matter' (Prakṛti) with the 'pure consciousness' (Purusha) in transcendental context.[13] The lingam-yoni iconography symbolizes the merging of microcosmos and macrocosmos,[10] the divine eternal process of creation and regeneration, and the union of the feminine and the masculine that recreates all of existence.[11][14]
The lingam is typically the primary murti or devotional image in Hindu temples dedicated to Shiva, also found in smaller shrines, or as self-manifested natural objects.[15][16]