I. “Since Shiva is only the silent, immobile witness, whereas she is the power herself, the devotees of Shakti and Devi have concluded that it might be best to direct one’s attention and prayers exclusively to the Goddess. Not the distant Father, but she, the Mother of All, protects her children and fulfills their wishes. Periodically, Christians have followed a similar mode of thought, turning foremost to Mary the Virgin, who bore God and who is the Mother of the universe.

Indian monism demands that there be only one ultimate reality. Therefore, Shiva and the Goddess are not really two, but one: he is the center of being and she is the energy radiating from it. They cannot be separated, yet her (illusive) forms and expressions are without number. Consequently, the universe is filled with more gods and ‘realities’ than there are grains of sand on the seashore.”

Wolf-Dieter, Ph.D. Storl, “Shiva: The Wild God of Power and Ecstasy,” Kindle edition

II. “True power arises from an inner feminine source—from Shakti. This is true whether the power appears in the cosmos (as in the big bang and the thrust of evolution) or in a human being—as our powers of thought, feeling, and action. In the West, we are used to associating power with masculinity and thinking of the feminine as purely passive, nurturing, and receptive. Tantra tells us that it’s the other way around. From a Tantric perspective, the inner masculine—Shiva—is the source of consciousness, awareness. But in order to act, to stir, he must take energy from the inner feminine. In ordinary life, this is exactly what many men do when they project their creative energy outward into a muse, a nurturing wife or assistant, who then pours her energy into him.

In turn, the feminine is grounded and focused by the masculine quality of awareness. Awareness allows the feminine to see herself and gives both containment and direction to her energy. Whether cosmically or individually, every genuinely creative project emerges out of a marriage of consciousness and power. For full creative empowerment, these masculine and feminine polarities need to come together. We need the stability of linear focus—the masculine quality—to merge with the feminine quality of energy, with its invitation to inspiration, Eros, and aliveness.”

Sally Kempton, “Awakening Shakti: The Transformative Power of the Goddesses of Yoga,” Kindle edition

By Agostino Arrivabene, via http://agostinoarrivabene.tumblr.com/