Smithsonian showcasing Hindu deity Shiva

The Smithsonian, “world’s largest museum and research complex” in Washington DC, is displaying three iconic Hindu Chola bronzes till early 2017.

These reportedly include Shiva Nataraja (ca. 990), Shiva Vinadhara (ca 950) and Parvati (10th century) at Smithsonian’s Arthur M. Sackler Gallery.

Commending Smithsonian for showcasing Hindu artifacts, Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada today, said that art had a long and rich tradition in Hinduism and ancient Sanskrit literature talked about religious paintings of deities on wood or cloth.

Rajan Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, urged major art museums of the world, including Musee du Louvre and Musee d'Orsay of Paris, Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Los Angeles Getty Center, Uffizi Gallery of Florence (Italy), Art Institute of Chicago, Tate Modern of London, Prado Museum of Madrid, National Gallery of Art in Washington DC, etc., to frequently organize Hindu art focused exhibitions, thus sharing the rich Hindu art heritage with the rest of the world.

Founded in 1846, Smithsonian; consisting of 19 museums and galleries, the National Zoological Park and nine research facilities; has about 138 million objects/artifacts. In 2015, about 28 million people visited Smithsonian. David J. Skorton is the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

Hinduism, oldest and third largest religion of the world, has about one billion adherents and moksh (liberation) is its ultimate goal. There are about three million Hindus in USA.