Wood Kamakshi of Kanchipuram Statue 48"

The Hindu goddess Parvati is a known as "the daughter of the mountain". Parvati is Shakti herself, the wife of Shiva. She is the benign aspect of the Mother Goddess Devi. Parvati is also considered as the supreme Divine Mother or Lady and all other goddesses are referred to as her incarnations or manifestations. Shaktas consider her as the ultimate Divine Shakti - the embodiment of the total energy of the universe.

The Story of Parvati

After the death of Shiva's first love Sati, Shiva isolated himself into a dark cave buried amongst the snow covered peaks of the Himalayas.  He rejected the world outside so distraught was he by the lose of his first true love.
Meanwhile the demons lead by Taraka, rose from the netherworld and drove the devas, gods, out of the heavens.  The gods sought a warrior who would help them regain the celestial realm.
"Only Shiva can father such a warrior," informed Brahma.
But Shiva, immersed in meditation, was oblivious to the problems of the gods.  As he performed tapas, meditations that produce great heat and energy, his mind was filled with great knowledge and his body became resplendent with energy.  But all this knowledge and energy, bottled within his being, was of not use to anyone.
The gods invoked the mother-goddess, who appeared before them as Kundalini, a coiled serpent.
"I will coil myself around Shiva, wean out his knowledge and energy for the good of the world and make him father a child," said Shakti.
Shakti took birth as Parvati, daughter of the Himavan, lord of the mountains, determined to draw Shiva out of his cave and make him her consort.
Everyday Parvati would visit Shiva's cave, sweep the floor, decorate it with flowers and offer him fruits hoping to win his love.
But Shiva never opened his eyes to look upon her charming face.  Exasperated, the goddess invoked Priti and Rati, goddess of love and longing, to rouse Shiva out of his mediation.
These goddesses entered Shiva desolate cave and transformed it into a pleasure garden filled with the fragrance of flowers and the buzzing of bees.
Guided by Priti and Rati, Kama, the lord of desire, raised his sugarcane bow and shot arrows dripping with desire into the heart of Shiva.
Shiva was not amused.  He opened his third eye and released the flames of fury that engulfed Kama and reduced his beautiful body to ashes.
The death of Kama alarmed the gods.  "Without the lord of desire man will not embrace woman and life will cease to be."
"I shall find another way to conquer Shiva's heart.  When Shiva becomes my consort, Kama will be reborn," said the daughter of the mountain, Parvati.
Parvati went into the forest and performed rigorous tapas, wearing nothing to protect her tender body form the harsh weather, eating nothing, not even a leaf, earning the admiration of forest ascetics who named her Aparna.
Aparna matched Shiva in her capacity to cut herself from the world and completely master her physical needs.  The power of her tapas shook Shiva out of his mediation.  He stepped out of his cave and accepted Parvati as his wife. 
Shiva married Parvati in the presence of the gods following the sacred rites and took her to the highest peak of the cosmos, Mount Kailasa, the pivot of the universe.  As the world revolved all around them the two became one and Kama was reborn.
Parvati melted Shiva's stern heart with her affection.  Together they played dice on Mount Kailas or sported on the banks of Lake Manasarovar, discovering the joys of married life.
The goddess awakened Shiva's concern for the world by questioning him on various issues.  As he spoke, he revealed the secrets of the Tantras and the Vedas that he had gathered in eons of mediation.
Inspired by her beauty, Shiva became the fountainhead of the arts, of dance and drama.  He sang and danced to the delight of the gods who were pleased to see his enchantment with the goddess.
Parvati gave Shiva's aura to the gods.  "From this will rise the warlord you seek," said the goddess.
The gods gave Shiva's aura to Svaha, consort of Agni, the fire god.  Unable to bear the heat of the god Agni for long, Svaha gave the aura to Ganga the river goddess who cooled it in her icy waters until Shiva's aura turned into a seed.
Aranyani, the goddess of the forest, embedded the divine seed in the fertile forest floor where it was transformed into a robust child with six heads and twelve arms.
Six forest nymphs called the Krittikas found this magnificent child in a lotus.  Over come by maternal affection they began nursing him.  The six headed son of Shiva, born of many mothers, came to be known as Kartikeya.
Parvati taught Kartikeya the art of war and turned him into a the celestial warlord called Skanda.
Skanda took command of the celestial armies, defeated Taraka in battle and restored the heavens to the gods.

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Wood statues are easy to take care of as they just need some annual upkeep to keep them looking as they did when they were first carved. All the wood used by Lotus Sculpure's artists is dried out for months. Moisture causes cracks in the sculpture as the wood contracts and expands in different temperatures. Our wood has little to no moisture in it assuring that the sculpture is not going to crack in its journey into different climates. Here are some simple tips to keep your statue in good condition:

• Dust the statue as needed to prevent dirt build up
• To make the statue shine use a natural wood cleaner and a cotton cloth to buff the sculpture

We prefer Old English to polish and buff our statues. The use of a wood polish like Old English will keep the wood looking fresh and keep the colors looking vibrant. For natural wood and painted wooden statues we recommend Old English for lighter woods. For darker wood statues we recommend Old English for darker woods. Lotus Sculpture cleans and polishes each wooden statue prior to shipping them to the customer.

We recommend keeping wooden statues in an indoor environment. Wood statues can go outside however, they will wear more quickly and develop an antique appearance. If you would like to put a wood statue from Lotus Sculpture outside and keep the same appearance of the sculpture we would recommend first coating the statue with a couple of layers of sealant or polyurethane. We would then recommend placing the statue in a partially covered area. The more exposure to the elements the more the statue will wear over time. Please feel free to contact us directly if you have any questions regarding your wooden statue from Lotus Sculpture, (760) 994-4455 or [email protected].

USA Shipping

This sculpture is in our Oceanside, California store and ready for immediate shipping. The shipping charge is automatically calculated by UPS for shipping within the United States. Each sculpture is usually shipped within 24 hours of the order with the exception of the weekend.
You can obtain a shipping quote for any statue by clicking the link, Calculate Shipping beneath to the Add To Cart button on every statues' page.  Besides the shipping price, the results will also display the date the statue will arrive at your home. Lotus Sculpture uses Instapak foam injection packing system or bubble wrap and recycled peanuts to ensure that all our pieces arrive undamaged. Click here to learn more about Lotus Sculptures packing.

International Shipping

This sculpture is in our Oceanside, California store and ready for immediate shipping to anywhere in the world. ​International shipping charges will be calculated automatically upon checkout. ​
You can obtain a shipping quote for any statue by clicking the link, Calculate Shipping beneath to the Add To Cart button on every statues' page.  Or you can email [email protected] or call us 760-994-4455 to receive a shipping quote. Please include the item number of the statue you are interested in purchasing as well as your country and postal code.​ Lotus Sculpture uses Instapak foam injection packing system or bubble wrap and recycled peanuts to ensure that all our pieces arrive undamaged. Click here to learn more about Lotus Sculptures packing.