„Pussy, Penis, Yoni - How do we talk about our private parts?
In a sex positive community, we of course sometimes talk about genitals in their various forms and the pleasure they can bring but also the insecurities some of use have. The right words are important. Some take a spiritual approach, as the authors of our A to Z article:
Y is for Yoni and Lingam, some are rathert anatomical.
How do you talk about your genitals and how to you call them?
Best
SevenSins
JOY-Team
The definition of Lingam/Linga and Yoni is misleading. Shishin translates to penis and not linga.
So, what is Linga/Lingam and Yoni?
Assuming we have this very genuine doubt, a linga is a “form or symbol”. A “shivlinga” is thus a “form or symbol”.
Of what? Shiva represents one of the three abstract functions of the universe’s abstract organizing principle, a concept created to understand our relation with the ultimate truth, the nirguna (Nirguna comes from the Sanskrit, nir, meaning “without”; guna, meaning “properties,”) brahman. Now since nirguna brahman is nirguna, how do you teach that to your students? Hence saguna (Saguna is a Sanskrit word that means “with attributes” or “with qualities.”)! Like the organizing principle, and its three functions - Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva/Shakti.
So the Shivlinga too has three parts - the base, the pedestal and the egg. The base represents creation, the pedestal, the function that supports or upholds, and the egg, the hiranyagarbha or emerging universe.
Now yoni. It has several meanings. One is womb. It also means source, origin, seat, abode, seed, water, race, grain, lair, place of birth, stock, receptacle, nest, and spring. Take your pick. Whatever makes the most sense.
If you understand that the shivlinga is traditionally made of granite, you also know that granite is mildly radioactive as they contain trace concentrations of radioactive elements like uranium, radium & thorium. These radioactive elements decay into radon, which is a radioactive gas. And prolonged exposure to radon can cause lung cancer. Water removes radon and keeps the shivalinga from overheating. Same as in a nuclear reactor. And the radioactive water needs a drain. You don’t want it slopping all over your feet.
The explosive potential energy of a nuclear bomb is precisely the nature of Shiva. That is why it needs a strong force, Shakti to keep it dormant. if you consider even the basic building block of the universe, an atom of hydrogen, it too comprises three elementary particles (or waves) held together by a strong force. If you need to brush up on your particle physics, here is an article from CERN on the standard model.
https://home.cern/science/physics/standard-model
Shivling represents our theory of Creation.
I feel like I need to remember this... If she calls it a "cock", I've earned her respect... Otherwise, I have work to do!
