Hinduism is one of the most unusual religions in the world, in which polytheism (polytheism) reaches incredible proportions. An innumerable number of gods and goddesses decorate the niches of the pantheon.

Three deities - Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva - are considered supreme.

They constitute the concept of Trimurti, i.e. a triple image uniting Brahma the creator, Vishnu the omnipotent and Shiva the destroyer.

In addition to the three Supreme Deities, Hindus worship many other gods, the most famous of which are the following:

Indra is the god of war, the king of the demigods, the ruler of one of the lower heavens - Amaravati. It is believed that he guards the Eastern side of the world.

Varuna is the all-seeing god of the Vedas, who descended from his heavenly palace to become the god of waters. At the same time, he is the guardian of the Western part of the Universe.

Yama is the guardian of the South Side, the god of death, who rules in Purgatory, where sinners are tormented until their next birth.

Kubera is the god of precious metals, stones, minerals and wealth in general, the ruler of the Northern side of the world. His place of residence is considered to be the beautiful city of Alaka, not far from Mount Kailash. Under his command are countless armies of gnomes (guhyaka) and mountain spirits (yaksha).

Ganesha (Ganapathi) is the elephant-headed god, the second son of Shiva and Parvati, the leader of the ganas (demigods, servants of Shiva). He is the Remover of Obstacles and the patron of all who study various sciences. The most beloved deity of the Hindus, most often depicted in dance. His attributes are one broken tusk, a fat belly, and sits on a rat.

Hanuman is a monkey god, son of Vayu (god of wind), friend and faithful servant of Rama. In his honor, monkeys are considered sacred.

Kama is the Indian god of love. Like his European counterpart, he is depicted as a handsome youth, armed with a bow and arrows, the only difference being that his bow is made of sugar cane, and his arrows are flowers. Apsaras (nymphs) serve in his service.

In addition, all gods and demigods had wives, who usually bore the same names as male deities, only with feminine endings - for example, Indrani.

Similar to the three Supreme Deities, the wives of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva are the Supreme among the many female deities of the Indian pantheon and are highly revered by Hindus:

Saraswati is the wife of God Brahma, the patroness of art, music and literature. She is depicted as a young, beautiful, fair-skinned woman with a veena (Indian lute) and a book in her hands, accompanied by a swan. According to legend, it was Saraswati who invented Sanskrit.

Lakshmi is the goddess of luck and prosperity, wife of God Vishnu. According to legend, she emerged from the waters of the churned Causal Ocean. She is usually depicted as a blooming, beautiful woman seated or standing on a lotus, often with a lotus in her hand. It is believed that being the wife of Vishnu, she incarnates as the consort of each of his incarnations. Thus, she is worshiped as Goddess Sita, consort of Rama (see below); Rukmini, the first queen of Krishna, and Radha, the eternal lover of God Krishna.

Parvati is the wife of God Shiva in her benevolent aspect, but in her fearsome form she is worshiped as Durga or Kali. In her hostile aspect, Parvati is depicted as a fearsome witch, multi-armed and armed with various weapons, with bared fangs, a bloody tongue and a necklace of skulls around her neck.

Vishnu

Vishnu is usually depicted as a four-armed man with dark blue skin, with a crown on his head, holding in his hands symbolic attributes: a conch shell, a sudarshana disc, a staff and a lotus; on his neck is the sacred kaustubha gemstone. Vishnu flies astride Garuda - a gigantic eagle with a half-human face. Hindus revere Vishnu as the "all-encompassing deity" in the sense that all other Gods are either emanations from him or reflect aspects of him.

According to the cosmogonic myth of Hinduism, Vishnu is the eternal ruler on the planets of the “spiritual sky” - Vaikunthas (here he is called Narayana). Sometimes the edge of the spiritual sky of brahmajyoti is covered by a spiritual cloud. This darkened part is called mahat-tattva.

Then Lord Narayana takes the form of Maha-Vishnu and lies down on the waters of the Causal Ocean. At the same time, he is in the meditation sleep of yoga nidra. The moment Maha-Vishnu exhales, countless universes emanate from his pores. They float on the surface of the Causal Ocean, like bubbles of foam. All these universes exist only during one exhalation of Maha-Vishnu.

In each of the many universes the same Maha-Vishnu again enters as Garbhodakasayi-Vishnu and lies down in the Garbha Ocean on the serpent Shesha, who is also one of the aspects of Narayana.

From the navel on the belly of Garbhodakasayi-Vishnu, a lotus stem grows, and on this lotus, Brahma, the lord of that particular Universe, is born. Brahma creates from his mind and body various forms of living beings, which provide the opportunity for Individual Souls (atma) to manifest in the material world. He also creates the Sun, the Moon, all the planets of the “material sky” and the various demigods who control these planets, i.e. actually creates his own Universe.

The life time of the Universe is considered equal to the life time of Brahma and is 100 “Brahma years”, which exactly corresponds to the duration of the exhalation of Maha-Vishnu. When Maha-Vishnu breathes in, all the myriad universes, each with its own Brahma, return to the unmanifest state and wait for Maha-Vishnu to exhale again.

The main cosmological cycle in Hinduism is considered to be kalpa - “the day of Brahma”, which consists of 14 manvantaras, or secondary cycles, each lasting 306,720 thousand years, with large intervals between them. 360 such days and nights constitute the “year of Brahma.” Every "cosmic day" Brahma creates the Universe and every "cosmic night" he absorbs it, and while he sleeps, the entire Universe resides in his body in the form of pure potency. Each manvantara contains 71 mahayugas, and each mahayuga, in turn, is divided into four yugas (epochs) - Krita (another name for Satya), Treta, Dvapara and Kali. Their duration is respectively:

• Satya Yuga - 1,728 thousand human years,
• Treta Yuga – 1,296 thousand years,
• Dvapara Yuga – 864 thousand years and
• Kali Yuga – 432 thousand years.

Each Yuga represents a further decline in a person's religiosity, morality, strength, stature, longevity and happiness compared to the previous ones. It is believed that we are currently in the Kali Yuga era, which began about 5,000 years ago.

While the entire multitude of universes are in a manifested state, the Primordial Vishnu monitors the state of affairs in each of them and periodically incarnates in one place or another in whole or in part in order to restore order. According to the most common classification, 10 avatars (incarnations) of Vishnu visited our Earth.

1. Fish (matsya). When the Earth was flooded with the waters of the global flood, Vishnu took the form of a fish, which first warned Manu (the ancestor of humanity, the son of Brahma) about the impending danger, and then, on a ship tied to the horn on her head, carried Manu, his family and the seven great ones out of the flood sages (rishis).
2. Turtle (kurma). During the flood, many divine treasures were lost, including ambrosia (amrita), with the help of which the gods preserved eternal youth. Vishnu took the form of a gigantic turtle and sank to the bottom of the cosmic ocean. The gods placed Mount Mandara on his back and wrapped the divine serpent Vasuki around the mountain. Then they pulled the kite and thus spun the mountain, churning the ocean like an ordinary Indian milkman churns butter. Amrita and many other treasures, including the goddess Lakshmi, floated to the surface of the foaming ocean.
3. Boar (varaha). The demon Hiranyaksha again plunged the Earth into the depths of the cosmic ocean. Vishnu took the form of a giant boar, killed the demon and set the Earth in place, lifting it on his tusk.
4. Lion Man (Narasimha). Another demon, Hiranyakasipu, received a gift from Brahma with the magical ability to become invulnerable. Neither beast, nor man, nor god could kill him, day or night. Taking advantage of his safety, he began to persecute gods and people and even his pious son Prahlada. Then Prahlada turned to Vishnu for help. At sunset, i.e. neither day nor night, the god suddenly appeared from a column in the demon's palace in the guise of a half-lion, half-man and killed Hiranyakasipu
5. Dwarf (vamana). A demon named Bali seized power over the world and, having performed a series of ascetic feats, achieved supernatural power and began to threaten even the gods. Vishnu appeared before him in the form of a dwarf and asked for a gift of as much land as he could measure in three steps. When the gift was promised, the god turned into a giant and took two steps with which he covered the earth, the sky and all the space between them, but generously refrained from taking the third step, leaving the underworld to the demon.
6. Parashurama ("Rama with an axe"). Vishnu took human form, being born as the son of the brahman Jamadagni. When the brahmana's father was robbed by the evil king Kartavirya, Parashurama killed him. The sons of Kartavirya, in turn, killed Jamadagni, after which the angry Parashurama exterminated all the men from the kshatriya (warrior) class 21 times in a row.
7. Rama, prince of Ayodhya, hero of the epic drama Ramayana. Vishnu incarnated in his image to save the world from the oppression of the demon Ravana. Rama is usually depicted as a dark-skinned man, often armed with a bow and arrow. He is accompanied by his loving wife Sita - the embodiment of female fidelity, his three devoted brothers - Lakshmana, Bharata and Shatrughna - and Hanuman, the king of the monkeys, a faithful friend and comrade-in-arms. Rama is revered as the embodiment of the ideal husband, general and monarch.
8. Krishna, the most significant of the incarnations of Vishnu.

Stories from the life of this deity are most often addressed in dance. Most people like to depict either his childhood pranks, such as stealing butter from Yashoda (his adoptive mother), or his love affairs with the gopis (shepherdesses), the most beloved of whom was the beautiful Radha.

A detailed biography of the god Krishna is contained in the most famous epic work - the Mahabharata.

His brief history is as follows: Krishna was born in Mathura, into the Yadavas tribe. His father was Vasudeva, his mother was Devaki, the cousin of the then reigning king Kansa. There was a prophecy that Kansa would die at the hands of Devaki's eighth son, so he set out to destroy all her children. But Krishna and his elder brother Balarama escaped the beating; they were adopted and raised by the shepherd Nanda and his wife Yashoda from Vrindavan. Kansa, having learned that the brothers had escaped the death prepared for them, made many attempts to destroy the children. But Krishna, being the incarnation of God, performed many miracles and feats: he killed demons sent by Kansa, sheltered the inhabitants of Vrindavan from the storm, raising Mount Govardhana on his little finger above their heads, etc. In his spare time performing heroic deeds, he tended cows, played the flute for the gopis, and indulged in his childhood pranks.

When he grew up and said goodbye to his idyllic shepherd life, he went to Mathura to fight his evil cousin. He killed Kansa and became the ruler of the kingdom of Mathura, but, pressed on the one hand by Kansa's father-in-law, the ruler of Magadha, and on the other by the nameless king of the Yavanas of the north-west, he left the kingdom and founded a new capital at Dwaraka in Saurashtra. Here he married Rukmini and made her the chief of his wives, of whom he had 16,108 and who bore him 180 thousand sons. In the main tale of the Mahabharata, throughout the history of the struggle of the royal families, he appears as a constant friend and adviser to the five Pandava brothers, and before the battle of Kurukshetra, which is the culmination of the epic Mahabharata, he, addressing Arjuna, one of the brothers, utters his great sermon set out in the Bhagavad Gita.

9. Buddha, the last incarnation of Vishnu in the past. According to the Gitagovinda of the great poet Jayadeva, Vishnu incarnated as Buddha out of compassion for animals to put an end to blood sacrifices.
10. Kalki is the future incarnation. Hindus believe that at the end of our dark era, Vishnu will appear in the form of a man riding a white horse, with a flaming sword in his hand. He will condemn the sinners, reward the virtuous and revive the Satya Yuga ("golden age").

The Hindu god Kama is the embodiment of love and sexual desire. It has long been considered one of the most important inhabitants of the Indian pantheon, as it was responsible for procreation. Therefore, it is not surprising that many sacred rituals and legends are associated with it, which we will talk about.

Birth of a God

God Kama is the fruit of the love of two great celestials of India. So, his father was Vishnu himself - the god who preserves order and harmony in the world. As for Kama's mother, she became Lakshmi - a heavenly princess who personifies beauty, abundance and wealth.

Given this lineage, it is not surprising that the god Kama became one of the most powerful avatars in Hindu mythology. Only a few deities, who were also descendants of the highest celestials of India, could compare with his greatness.

Essence of Kama

Kama is the god of love in Hinduism. He personifies everything connected with this feeling, and also carries the wisdom of bodily pleasures. Perhaps for a Russian person such a worldview will seem a little vulgar, but it should be understood that for Hindus sex is one of the most important components of a happy marriage. They have long believed that both partners should do everything possible to satisfy each other's bodily needs.

Therefore, it should not be surprising that mythology attributes sexual intelligence to Kama, which he used to educate his followers. Also, those who wanted to quickly acquire offspring appealed to God for help. After all, who, if not he, is able to help in this matter.

Kama - god of love, armed with a bow

Since ancient times, the god Kama has been depicted as a beautiful young man armed with a bow. For many researchers, this fact seems very strange, as it suggests its similarity to the Greek Cupid. True, today there is no evidence that one of the cultures adopted the image of the god of love from another.

In addition, there are a number of features that are unique to the Hindu celestial. Thus, the god Kama is armed with a bow consisting of sugar cane. In this case, the role of the bowstring is played by honey bees, thereby symbolizing the sweetness of love. In addition to the bow, the god Kama held a waving banner in his hand. It depicts a makara, a chimera animal with the features of a crocodile and a dolphin.

Also, according to myths, the god’s quiver always contains five arrows, the tips of which are inflorescences of various flowers. For example, the flower of the Ashoka tree generated love, and the mango awakened burning passion. In this unusual way, Hindus tried to explain that each person’s love experiences manifest themselves differently.

Mount of the god Kama

I would like to pay special attention to the mount of the god, or, as it is also called, the vakhan. For Kama, such a beast was a huge parrot, whose height was slightly smaller than the rider himself. More importantly, however, the bird was always depicted with a red beak and green plumage, for good reason.

Thus, the red beak was a symbol of bright emotions, passionate love and determination. Green feathers, on the contrary, spoke of calm, harmony and prosperity. Together, these two colors personified a happy marriage, built on genuine feelings and promising family well-being.

Family ties

According to popular belief, the god Kama was married to the goddess of love passion, Rati. It was she who accompanied her husband throughout his heavenly life. However, there are several myths that Kama's second wife was the goddess of pure love, Priti. In general, there is nothing unusual about this, since polygamy is a completely common practice for Hindus.

It is much more difficult to understand the hereditary line of this deity. Thus, he had a daughter, Trishna, who personified spiritual thirst or passion for life. In addition, some sources report that Kama had either a son or a younger brother named Krodha (the god who generates anger in the hearts of people).

Rebirth of the god Kama

The power of Kama's arrows affected both people and celestial beings. And then one day the goddess Parvati came to him, asking him to make Shiva fall in love with her. He was her strongest passion, but at the same time he did not reciprocate, since for many centuries he devoted himself entirely to yogic practices.

Without thinking twice, Kama agreed to help Parvati. He crept up to the meditating god and struck his heart with an arrow. At that same moment, Shiva fell in love with the beautiful maiden, but, enraged by Kama’s impudent behavior, he incinerated him with just one glance. Seeing what happened, Parvati was horrified, since she was the culprit of what was happening.

So she fell to her knees and began tearfully asking to resurrect the god of love. Her prayer was also joined by Rati, who came running here after hearing about the great grief. Shiva's anger quickly gave way to pity for the girls, and he restored the life of the murdered Kama.

Rituals and traditions

In old India there were many temples dedicated to the god of love. At the same time, they performed not only a spiritual, but also an educational role. Thus, inexperienced boys and girls were taught the wisdom of love here, so that they could use them in family life.

Kama's blessings were also asked for during wedding ceremonies and during the conception of a child. Because of this, many rituals and prayers appeared that could attract the attention of the deity. Some of them are still used in the everyday life of Hindus, thereby glorifying the deeds of the god Kama.

There are already many publications dedicated to one of the most famous works of scientific literature - the Kama Sutra. And there is not one about the patron god of Love itself, and the art of love - Kama (Old Indian kama - “desire”, “sensual attraction”, “love”). I'm correcting myself. 🙂

Kama is one of the most ancient Vedic gods. The Vedas tell us that he is “self-born”, emerging from the heart of Brahman, as the son of Dharma.

But already in epic literature somewhat different information is given. Here Kama is the son of the goddess of happiness and family well-being Lakshmi and one of the supreme gods - Vishnu. He has two wives (many Indian gods were polygamists) - Rati - the goddess of love passion and Priti - love. The younger brother (in other sources - son) of Kama is Krodha (“anger”). The daughter of Kama is Trishna (“thirst” - in this case we mean the thirst for existence, caused by desires).

God of love Kama.

Kama-deva is depicted as a young man sitting on a parrot (this is his vahana - a riding animal) or on a chariot. In his hands is a bow made of sugar cane with a bowstring made of bees and five arrows made of flowers. The Kama banner depicts a makara - a fantastic sea monster (something between a dolphin and a crocodile).

Kama has many epithets: Manmatha (“confusing the soul”), Manasija (“born in the soul”), Madana (“intoxicating”), Shamantaka (“destroyer of peace”), Sringarayoii (“source of pleasure”).

They also call him Ananga - “Deprived of members.” Here is a reference to the popular legend of the incineration of Kama by the god Shiva. It tells how the goddess Parvati, who was in love with Shiva, could not achieve reciprocity from him, since he performed a great yogic feat and meditated endlessly. Kama came to her aid, sneaking up and shooting a flower arrow into the heart of Shiva. Of course, he wanted the best. And he achieved his goal - Shiva fell in love with Parvati. But on the other hand, no one should be disturbed during yogic practice - neither people, nor, especially, gods. Mahadev, disturbed by Kama, incinerated him with the power of his third eye.

I know four versions of what happened next. According to the first, Kama remained incorporeal. According to the second, his body is returned to him for three spring months - spring holidays, and, in particular, Holi, are associated with this. The third, most common version says that Parvati and Rati were able to persuade Shiva to return Kama’s body. And the fourth version was found in the Soundarya Lahari (Tantric Shakta poem): “Devi’s navel is the deep lake into which Kama dived to escape when his body was on fire from the rage of Shiva, the row of hairs on Her belly is the steam rising from this” :)

Once upon a time in my youth 🙂 I wrote a hymn to Kama. I think over the past years it has not lost its relevance :)

Kamadeva and his wives

Hymn to Kama.

O Kamadeva, put into my mouth the words that will be said about Love.
For there is nothing in this Universe sweeter than Love.

For there is nothing higher in this Universe than Love.

For there is nothing in this Universe more accessible and more difficult to achieve than Love.
And the words that come to us
when we talk about Love,
are they worthy of it?

And what can you say in words,
can they convey
the heavenly nature of Love?

Can they bring us closer
to unraveling the greatest mystery of the Universe?

Can they teach us Love?

Oh, Self-born, reveal to me the secret of your song,
that song where there are no words,
for they are not needed for what can only be heard with the heart.

O Kamadeva, burned by Love itself,
Your reed bow is life itself.
From your flower arrows-desires
there is no protection and no salvation,
but whoever was not wounded by your arrow -
did he live?
for if life is a product of Love,
if life itself is Love,
then how can you live without Love and outside of Love?

(Old Indian) kāma, can be translated as “desire”, “passion”, “lust”, especially in sensual love and sexuality), in ancient Indian mythology - the god (demigod) of love and passion.
Kamadeva is one of the names and epithets for the god Krishna. Kamadeva is also known as the name of Vishnu in the Vishnu Purana and Bhagavata Purana. Kama is also the name used for the god Agni.
In his spiritual form, he is considered Krishna, according to the Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism.
Kama or Kamadeva is the prototype of the Greco-Roman deity Eros/Cupid.
Its other epithets include: Ragavrinta(“stem of passion”), Ananga (“ethereal”), Kandarpa(“exciting even God”), Manmatha(“troubler of hearts”), Manasija("one who is born of the mind"), Madana ("intoxicating"), Abhirupa ("beautiful"), Kantu ""happy"), Kalakeli ("cheerful", "dissolute" or "meaningless"), Ratanaricha (" sensualist"), Sringarayoni ("source of love"), Ratikānta ("lord Rati"), Pushpadhanva ("with a bow of flowers"), Kandarpa (kam "love" and darpa "pride, vanity"), Rāga-chana (" engulfed by lust"), etc.
Kamadeva is defined in the Vedic texts as the “self-born”, emerging from the heart of Brahman, as the son of Dharma.
In the Atharva Veda he is repeatedly invoked for help in love. Kamadeva also appears in other stories and becomes the object of certain rituals for those seeking health, physical beauty, husbands, wives and sons, etc.
The image of Kamadeva is developed in epic literature: he is the son of Lakshmi, the husband of Rati (“love passion”, “lust”) and Priti (“love”), the father of Trishna (“thirst” - the representative of insatiable desire), one of the Vishvedeva. He is also an incarnation of Pradyumna, the son of Krishna.
According to one of the myths, Kamadeva violated Shiva's asceticism, which led to the latter's marriage to Parvati. Enraged, Shiva incinerated Kamadeva, but then, bowing to Rati's pleas, he revived him. Kamadeva must continue to live, but without a body, just like the abstract force in all living beings, which constitutes the true emotional and mental state of love, not just physical lust.
In this form, Kamadeva is considered the demigod of the celestial planets, especially those that are capable of causing strong desires - Kamaloka. The abode of Kamadeva is Ketumala-varsa. Kamaloka, the realm of sensual pleasure, is considered one of the lowest in the three realms that make up the Universe. In the Brahminical zodiac, the Hindu deity of love Kamadeva corresponds to the sign
SCORPIO/Vrischika(Kamadeva is also known as the name of Vishnu in the Vishnu Purana and Bhagavata) associated with the human reproductive organs.
Kamadeva rules the auspicious 13th and 28th tithis/lunar days/days - Trayodashi, which are associated with pleasures, pleasures, making friendships, etc. The related nakshatra is Purvaphalguni. Kamadeva is associated with the 7th house of the horoscope, which is associated with desires, marriage and relationships.
Worshiping the deity Kamadeva on Trayodashi gives a good look and a desirable spouse, everything fulfills all desires, etc.
In addition, it is said that a person born in an inauspicious nakshatra Ashlesha/Aslesha is “dissolute (voluptuous) and is in the power of Kamadeva...”.
Kamadeva is worshiped on Friday.

Image: Kamadeva or Kama was depicted as a young and handsome youth with green, red, golden yellow, dark as a cloud, etc. skin, sitting on his vahana parrot (also, on the sea animal makara, chariot, etc.); in his hands is a bow made of sugar cane with a string made of honey bees and five arrows made of fragrant flowers (flowers of the Ashoka tree, white and blue lotus, jasmine and mango tree flowers), which evoke love passion and desire. Kamadeva, as beautiful as a bandhuka flower, as brilliant as 100,000 suns and cool as 100,000 moons, etc. His body is covered with ornaments made of precious stones and gold, flowers, rich robes with ornaments of yellow-gold, red, etc. colors. The Vahana Kamadeva parrot is usually depicted with a red beak and green plumage, where red is the color of love and passion, and green is the color of birth, resurrection and spring, and thus essentially the two forms symbolize the union of the masculine and feminine principles. Typically, Hindu gods in a state of love ecstasy are depicted in a bright, radiant red color. Red color is usually used in marriage, as this color is mandatory in the bride's toilet (in some parts of India, brides wear a green sari, the color of prosperity, wealth, new life, etc.). Red is considered a very auspicious color as it reflects emotions and fertility-related qualities, making it a suitable color for brides and young married women. Red color is eroticism, sexual potency and energy. In Kalachakra iconography, Kamadeva is personified as the red demon of desire. The Tibetan equivalent of Rati is Dakini Kurukulla.
Attributes Kamadeva are as follows: his companions are the cuckoo, the parrot, the buzzing bees, the season is spring, and a light breeze, etc. “Spring is his charioteer, and the southern breeze is his war chariot...” All these are symbols of the spring season when its festival known as Holi, Holika or Vasanta is celebrated. In ancient times, holidays dedicated to Kamadeva, full of erotic games and rituals, were popular. Holi is celebrated in late March or early April on the Purnima (or Pooranmashi) full moon. The spring festival of Holi was originally celebrated to pay respect to the celestial Vedic figure Kamadeva, but is now dedicated to Krishna.
On the banner of Kamadeva, a fish or makara is depicted on a red background (a dolphin or a crocodile, or a sea animal corresponding to the zodiac sign CAPRICORN, a symbol of sensual nature, the Swadhisthana chakra - the abode of lust), in whose womb Kamadeva, according to legend, lived for some time.
Kamadeva is described as the epitome of Indian male beauty: “His face is golden in color, he has a strong and firm chest, a beautiful nose, his thighs, buttocks and calves are round and muscular. He has black, curly hair and thick, expressive eyebrows. His face is like the full moon. His shaggy chest is as wide as doors... His hands, eyes, feet and fingers are red. He has a slender waist and beautiful teeth. It smells like an elephant in hunting season. His eyes are like lotus petals and he is fragrant like lotus stamens. His neck is like a shell... He will seduce anyone with his languid gaze. He winks at everyone. His breath is like a fragrant breeze. The feeling of love emanates from every pore of his body.”
Kamadeva is the embodiment of masculinity and male beauty, and Rati is the embodiment of feminine beauty and charm. Sandalwood paste, flowers, garlands, leaves of some trees, fabrics and clothes of yellow, red-yellow, vermilion, white flowers, etc. are offered to Kamadeva.
Kamadeva loves to seek victims, especially in the spring, and his favorite targets are girls, married women and ascetic hermits.
The Brahmanical tradition treats Kama rather restrainedly, asserting that “only those free from Kama ascend to heaven.” But neglecting the gifts of Kamadeva was considered a grave sin: in the Mahabharata, Arjuna, having rejected the love of Urvashi, is doomed to be a eunuch for a year. Such pleasure is considered important, but ultimately, it is an unimportant aspect of life in the Hindu tradition; over time, sensual desire must be rejected at all costs. According to Vedic texts, communication with a woman is so intense that a man forgets time, energy, possessions and even himself. “One who strives for spiritual life must give up all communication with a woman, including not thinking about her, seeing her, talking to her in a solitary place, accepting service from her and having sexual intercourse with her...”
The concept of Kama also served in Hinduism to designate sensual, emotional life and was included (along with dharma, artha - the norm of practical behavior, and subsequently moksha - deliverance from the process of reincarnation) among the main attitudes of behavior, the harmonious combination of which was considered the most important duty of the three highest varnas.
The instructions in Kama constituted a special genre (Kamashastra; one of the most significant is the Kama Sutra by Vatsyayana, around the 3rd-4th centuries AD) and for centuries played a significant role in traditional Indian didactics.

Kama is one of the most ancient Vedic gods. He is the son of the goddess of happiness and family well-being Lakshmi and one of the supreme gods - Vishnu. He has two wives: Rati - the goddess of love passion and Priti - love.
Kama-deva is depicted as a young man sitting on a parrot (this is his vahana - a riding animal) or on a chariot. In his hands is a bow made of sugar cane with a bowstring made of bees and five arrows made of flowers. The Kama banner depicts a makara - a fantastic sea monster (something between a dolphin and a crocodile).
His vahana is a parrot, which is usually depicted with a red beak and green plumage, with red being the color of love and passion, and green of birth, resurrection and spring, and thus essentially the two forms symbolizing the union of the masculine and feminine principles.

Red color is usually used in marriage, as this color is mandatory in the bride's toilet (in some parts of India, brides wear a green sari, the color of prosperity, wealth, new life, etc.). Red is considered a very auspicious color as it reflects emotions and fertility-related qualities, making it a suitable color for brides and young married women.
The wife of Kama, the god of love, Rati plays a large role in Hinduism as the goddess of love and passion. She has many names, and they all speak of her incredible beauty, which is quite natural for the goddess of sexual desire.
She is considered to be the daughter of Brahma. Rati became the reason for the suicide of the god, who desired her, but could not get her. Rati, however, also committed suicide after that. But gods are gods, so both quickly resurrected and returned to their business.

But the strangest act of Rati was that she darkened the mind of Shiva: the destroyer vowed to follow the path of an ascetic after the death of his first wife, but because of Rati he had to love again. In revenge, he killed Kama, turning his third eye to ash. Later, Rati convinced Shiva to allow her to resurrect her husband, but on the condition that Kama would remain invisible for eternity.

According to the famous myth, when Shiva incinerated Kama, Rati made prayers to Parvati, and Shiva revived her husband. Taking the form of a mortal woman, Rati raised Kama (who was born in the form of Pradyumna, the son of Krishna and Rukmini), then revealed to him the bonds that bound them, became his wife again and gave birth to his son Aniruddha. Along with Kama, Rati occupies an important place in the corresponding cult. In South India, special ceremonies are held during which Rati laments for her spouse.