One of the holy trinity, Shiva is a living god. The most sacred and
most ancient book of India, the Rig Veda evokes his presence
in its hymns. Vedic myths, ritual and even astronomy testify
to his existence from the dawn of time. But Shiva, the
destroyer, the mendicant, is indefinable: he is the great
yogi, the guardian of the absolute. His actions are the
themes of the myths in which his nature unfolds.
Legend has it that Shiva recounted to Parvati the secret of
creation in a cave in Amarnath. Unknown to them, a pair of
mating doves eavesdropped on this conversation and having
learned the secret, are reborn again and again, and have
made the cave their eternal abode. Many pilgrims report
seeing the doves-pair when they trek the arduous route to
pay obeisance before the ice-lingam (the phallic symbol of
Shiva).
Amarnath is situated 141 km (88 mi) east of Srinagar in Kashmir. There is an
ice Sihv-linga here that changes size with the seasons, and
also as the moon waxes and wanes it becomes bigger and
smaller. On the full moon day the linga is about 6 ft high.
It is located in a glacial valley at 3,888 m (12,756 ft.).
The cave is about 150 feet high and 90 feet long. Within the
cave there are four or five ice formations that resemble the
figures of different gods. The biggest figure is regarded as
Siva (Amarnath).
By its side are, fascinatingly, two more ice-lingams, that
of Parvati (on right), and of their son, Ganesha (on left).