Trimurti - (Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu & Lord Shiva)

Trimurti - the three apparently contradictory aspects of existence: "creation,
conservation and dissolution, which are "one and the same thing as to the
origin, the significance and the term." ***
According to French art historian, Rene Grousset (1885-1952) who speaks of the
Trimurti statue at Elephanta Caves:
"Universal art has succeeded in few materialization of the Divine as powerful
and also as balanced. He believed that it is "the greatest representation of
the pantheistic god created by the hands of man." He concludes with poetic
enthusiasm: "Never have the overflowing sap of life, the pride of force
superior to everything, the secret intoxication of the inner god of things been
so serenely expressed."
(source: The India I Love - By Marie-Simone Renou p. 88-93).
In the words of Rene Grousset, " The three countenances of the one being are
here harmonized without a trace of effort. There are few material
representations of the divine principle at once as powerful and as well
balanced as this in the art of the whole world. Nay, more, here we have
undoubtedly the grandest representation of the pantheistic God ever made by the
hand of man...Indeed, never have the exuberant vigor of life, the tumult of
universal joy expressing itself in ordered harmony, the pride of a power
superior to any other, and the secret exaltation of the divinity immanent in
all things found such serenely expressed."
(source: The Civilization of the East – India - by Rene Grousset p.245-6).
The Hindu Trinity also called Trimurti (meaning three forms), is the
representation of the three manifestations of the Supreme Reality, as Brahma,
Vishnu and Shiva. Brahma symbolizes creation, Vishnu preservation and renewal,
and Shiva dissolution or destruction necessary for recreation. It must be
understood that the members of the Hindu Trinity are not three different and
independent gods, but three aspects of one Supreme Reality called Bramh by the
seers of the Upanishads.
1. Lord Brahma - the first member of the trinity though much less important than
the other two, namely Vishnu and Mahesha, is manifested as the active creator of
this universe. The name Brahma is not found in the Vedas and the Brahmanas,
where the active creator is merely known as Golden-embryo (Hirayna-garbha) or
the Lord of Progeny (Praja-pati). The Mahabharata considers him as born from
the embryo which took shape in Vishnu's mind when he began to think of
creation.
After the destruction of one universe Vishnu falls asleep, floating on the
causal waters. When another universe is to be created, Brahma appears on a
lotus, which springs from the navel of Vishnu. Hence Brahma is also called
Navel-born (Nabhi-ja) or the Lotus-born (Kinja-ja). When Brahma creates the
world it remains in existence for one of his days, which means 2,160,000,000
years in terms of Hindu calendar.
When Brahma goes to sleep after the end of his day, the world and all that is
therein is consumed by fire. When he awakes he again restores the whole
creation. This goes on till the hundred years of Brahma's life is completed.
When this period ends he himself loses his existence, and he all gods and
sages, and the whole universe are dissolved into their constituent elements.
Today though Brahma's name is invoked in many religious services, his image is
worshipped in only a few temples. Brahma seems to have been thrown into shade
probably because in Hindu mind he has ceased to function actively after
creation of the world, though he will exert himself again while creating a new
universe when this present one will meet its end. Understandably, the legends
about this god are not so numerous or rich as those centered round the other
two of the trinity.
Brahma has four arms and he holds a lotus flower, his sceptre, his bow parivita,
a string of beads, a bowl containing the holy water and the Vedas. He has four
heads and is therefore called Chaturanana or Chaturmukha. His vehicle is the
swan or goose, the symbol of knowledge. He is therefore said to be riding on
the swan (hansa-vahana). He is the source of all knowledge and his consort,
Saraswati, is the goddess of knowledge.
2. Lord Vishnu is the central and major deity of the trinity. He is the
preserver and for all practical purposes he is deemed to be omnipotent,
omnipresent and omniscient. The name Vishnu comes from the root vish, which
means to spread in all directions, "to pervade." Hence, Vishnu is the Pervader.

Lord Vishnu symbolizes the aspect of the Supreme Reality (Bramh of the
Upanishads) that preserves and sustains the things and beings in the world. He
is symbolized by a human body with four arms. He is portrayed as carrying a
conch (shankha), a mace (gada), and discus (chakra). He is blue body and wears
yellow clothes. The worship of Lord Vishnu is very popular among Hindus,
especially among the followers of the Vaishanava tradition (Vaishnavism). He is
the second member of the Hindu Trimurti (trinity). He is also known by other
names , such as Vasudeva, Hari, Kesava, Purusottama and Narayana.
It is said that Vishnu is the god of Time, Space and Life. It is also said that
he is the god of Joy and that his footsteps are impregnated with infinite
sweetness and felicity."
The worshippers of Vishnu, known as Vaishnavas, recognize in him the Supreme
Being, out of whom emerge Brahma, the active creator, Vishnu himself the
preserver, and Shiva or Rudra, the destructor. Vishnu's preserving, restoring
and protecting powers have been manifest on earth in a variety of forms, called
Avataras, in which one or more portions of his divine attributes were embodied
in the shapes of a human being or an animal or a human-animal combined forms.
He is bleu-skinned and in all images and relief he is seen in rich ornaments
and regal garments. His wife is Lakshmi or Sri, the goddess of wealth and
fortune. His place of abode is Vaikuntha (heaven) and his vehicle is Garuda, a
giant-sized eagle .
Vishnu is the infinite ocean from which the world emerges. The blue body of the
Lord signifies that He has infinite (as the universe) attributes. The Lord is
shown standing or lying down on a thousand-headed snake (named Shesha or Ananta
Nag - timeless or ageless snake). The snake stands with its hoods open over the
head of the Lord.
The following ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu are described in Hindu mythology
and are popular. These incarnations reveal the help rendered by God during
various stages of human evolution. The first two incarnations are in the animal
form, the third one is half-human and half-animal, and the fourth and the
subsequent ones are all in human form. These incarnations relate to human
evolution, from aquatic life to human life, and are consistent with modern
theory of evolution. 1. Matsya (fish) - saves Sage Manu from floods and
recovers the Vedas from demons. The only (ancient) temple for
Matsya Vishnu's incarnation at the time of the "great flood" is only found at
Shankhodhara in Bet Dwaraka. 2. Kurma (tortoise) - sustains the earth on his
back. 3. Varaha (boar) - brings the earth back from the bottom of the ocean
where it was dragged down by a demon, known as Hiranyaksha; Varaha kills the
demon. 4. Narasimha (man-lion) - kills the demon King Hiranyakashipu, who was
planning to kill his own son, a devotee of Lord Vishnu. 5. Vamana (dwarf) -
the first human incarnation of the Lord, kills the demon King Mahabhali, who
had deprived the gods of their possessions. 6. Parasurama (the warrior with an
axe) - saves Brahmins from the tyranny of the arrogant Khastriya. 7. Rama -
kills Ravana, the demon king of Lanka. 8. Sri Krishna - the most popular
incarnation; Krishna's contributions throughout his life include the teachings
of the Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna. 9. Buddha - Hindus consider Buddha as an
incarnation of Lord Vishnu and accept his teachings, but do not directly
worship him. 10.Kalkin - (a man on a white horse) - this incarnation is yet to
come and will mark the end of all evil in the world.
(For more on Vishnu avatars refer to The Hindu Mind - By Bansi Pandit p. 167 and
A Survey of Hinduism - by Klaus K Klostermaier p. 146 and 241and Hinduism - By
Linda Johnsen p. 184-193).
3. Lord Shiva - The Grace and the Terror of God
Lord Shiva represents the complete cyclic process of generation, destruction,
and regeneration. The all embracing nature of Lord Shiva is reflected in his
1008 names. Lord Shiva represents the aspect of the Supreme Reality (Bramh of
the Upanishads) which continuously recreates, in the cyclic process of
creation, preservation, dissolution and recreation. He annihilates evil, grants
boons, bestows grace, destroys ignorance, and awakens wisdom in His devotees. He
is also called Rudra. In Yajur-Veda, Rudra is also called "Mahadeva."
One of the three great gods of Hinduism, Siva is a living god. The most sacred
and most ancient book of India, the Rg Veda, evokes his presence in its hymns;
Vedic myths, rituals, and even astronomy itself testify to his existence from
the dawn of time. From the dawn of creation, the Great Yogi, the sum of all
opposites, has been the guardian of the absolute. He is the totality of
existence - male and female, light and dark, creation and destruction.
Shiva is shown in various ways. Shiva another well-known name is Yogiraja, i.e.
the Lord of Yoga.
He is seated on a skin of a tiger, a number of cobras all around his neck, his
long matted hair into a mop atop of his head, the crescent that he wears on the
mop of his hair, the sacred river Ganga falling from his head and flowing by his
side who was brought down from heavens by Bhagiratha, the trident (trishula),
the symbol of his power, the sacred bull (Nandi), and the mendicant's bowl.
Besides, these symbols another very important physical characteristic of Shiva
is his vertical third eye. In Mahabharata, the great Hindu epic, the legend of
how Shiva got the third eye is given this way. One day his beautiful consort
Parvati (daughter of the King of Himalayas), stealthily went behind Shiva and
playfully placed her hands over his eyes. Suddenly darkness engulfed the whole
world and all
beings trembled in great fear as the lord of the universe had closed his eyes.
Suddenly a massive tongue of flame leapt from the forehead of Shiva; a third
eye appeared there and this gave light to the world. Another popular image of
Shiva has no human form but is represented by Linga - The Linga of Light
The myth is one of the most popular of the entire Puranic corpus and is told
many times in various settings. It recounts the first appearance of Shiva linga
which pierced the three worlds as a brilliant shaft of light and was witnessed
by Brahma and Vishnu long ago.
The Vedas, however, testify one by one that neither Brahma nor Vishnu, but Shiva
is supreme. As the two stand in disbelief, a huge column of fire splits the
earth between them and blazes up through the sky to pierce the highest heavens.
Astounded, Brahma and Vishnu decide to determine the source and extent of this
brilliant pillar of light. Vishnu becomes a boar and burrows deep into the
netherworlds. Brahma mounts his goose and flies as far up as the heavens reach.
But even after thousands of years they cannot find the bottom or the top of the
shaft of light. When they have returned to their starting place, Shiva emerges
from the light in his “partial” bodily form.
The linga of light is thus the image of the supremacy of Shiva. It is as what
Mircea Eliade has called the axis mundi or the pillar at the center of the
world, originating deep in the netherworlds, cracking the surface of the earth,
and splitting the roof of the sky. In this linga Shiva is not one god among
others, but the unfathomable One. This light is the mysterium tremendum which
finally cannot be described or comprehended by any or all faces and attributes.

The linga of light was the first linga. After that, Shiva vowed that this
unfathomable linga would become small so that people might have it as an emblem
for their worship. Wherever, the linga is, there is a tirtha, because the linga
by nature is a “crossing place” where the worlds are knit together by the shaft
of Shiva. Other deities have murits, images, but only Shiva has the
world-spanning form of a linga.”
The word linga means an emblem, symbol or a mark and the worship of this shaft
alarmed and horrified many early Western visitors to India. In Varanasi, at the
famed Kedarnath temple there is a Sivalingam in the main sanctum, which is a low
flat rock with speckled light granite on one side, a line of white granite going
across the rock and on the other side dark speckled granite. The Puranic story
is that this lingam represents a plate of rice and lentils. The linga is
certainly a bisexual symbol but not a phallic symbol alone. The shaft of the
linga of Shiva is set in a circular base, called a "seat." It is the seat of
that divine energy (shaki) personified as Shiva's
female half and often called by the proper name Shakti.
Many ancient civilizations recognized the wonder of this concept- including the
Chinese, who represent it somewhat more abstractly in the symbol of Yin and
Yang. Thus it depicts the generative symbol or the fountain-source of light,
this Linga represents the Lord of the Universe. The phallus aspect has been
overdone by western scholars though Linga actually means a 'sign', 'mark' or
'symbol.
(source: Banaras: City of Light - By Diana L. Eck p 107-109).
The Sanskrit-English Dictionary edited by P. K. Gode and C. G. Karve is widely
regarded as an authoritative work and it gives a wide range of meanings for
lingam:"The primary meaning given is: “A mark, sign, token, an emblem, a badge,
symbol, distinguishing mark, characteristic.”
EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">Shiva-lingam is a sign by which Shiva is
symbolized. Note that besides the popular Shiva-lingam of the column or round
egg-shaped sign, the Natraja is also the lingam of the dancing Shiva,
symbolizing the universe’s creation, sustenance and dissolution. The trishul
(“weapon” that pierces the veil of ignorance) is his lingam in the context of
yoga, as he is also considered the supreme yogi. The Maitrayaniya-Upanishad
mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">(6.10) applies the term
lingam to the entire “creation extending from the first principle (mahat)to the
particulars (vishesha). It contrasts this with the linga that is “without
foundation”, i.e. the unthinkable Reality itself.In the Mahabharata (12.195.15)
the linga is the vehicle, or body, of the transmigrating psyche. The term linga
can also denote the phallus or, by extension, the cosmic principle of
creativity.
mso-bidi-font-size: 9.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Times New Roman;
mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language:
AR-SA">(source: The Meaning of Lingam - By Rajeev Malhotra).
God, to us is not the creator who lives apart from the Universe but has
manifested Himself as the Universe and pervades everything within. Thus, He is
the indweller in all beings, material and energy. He has no form but at the
same time, all forms are His. Linga Purana states, 'The foremost Linga which is
devoid of smell, color, taste, hearing, touch, etc, is spoken of as prakriti
(nature).
Linga means a "mark" in Sanskrit. It is a symbol that points to an inference.
When one sees a big flood in a river, one infers that there had been heavy rain
earlier. When one sees smoke, one infers that there is fire. This vast Universe
of countless forms is a Linga of the omnipotent Lord. When a Hindu looks at the
Linga, his mind is at once elevated and he thinks of the Lord, especially Lord
Siva. A Hindu knows that Lord Siva is formless. Lord Siva has no form of his
own; and yet, all forms are His forms. Lord Siva pervades all forms. Every form
is the form or Linga of Lord Siva. The Linga is only the outward symbol of the
formless being, Lord Siva— Lord Siva incarnate, who is the indivisible,
all-pervading, eternal, auspicious, ever-pure, immortal essence of this vast
universe, who is the undying soul seated in the chambers of one's heart, who is
one's Indweller, innermost Self or Atman and who is identical with the Supreme
Brahman.
(source: Sivalinga, the Formless Form - Hinduismtoday.com 2001).
Another image of Ardhanarishwara, represents Lord Shiva as the union of
substance and energy, the life principle and Shakti. Shiva, as Destroyer, needs
plenty of power and energy. This is what Parvati, or Durga or Shakti as she is
called, provides. It is only the Hindu tradition, which provides, even at the
conceptual level, this picture of the male and female principles working
together, hand in hand, as equal partners in the universe.
mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language:
AR-SA"> This concept is carried further to its logical climax in the form of
Ardhanarishwara, formed by the fusion of Shiva and Shakti in one body, each
occupying one half of the body, denoting that one is incomplete without the
other.
Shivaratri, i.e. Shiva's Night is the famous festival in honor of Lord Shiva. It
is held on the 14th night of the dark half moon in the month of Magha (Jan-Feb).


Marriage of Shiva and Parvati
The most celebrated Shiva motif is that of the Nataraja, the Lord of the Dance.
The Cosmos is His theatre, there are many different steps in His repertory, He
Himself is actor and audience. This is the pose in which Shiva Nataraja has
been immortalized in countless beautiful sculptures, especially in South India,
each detail of this image is invested with meaning. This image symbolizes the
divine activities of God. " Creation arises from the drum, (sound) protection
proceeds from the hand of hope, from fire proceeds destruction, from the foot
that is planted upon muyalahan (dwarf) proceeds the destruction of evil, the
foot held aloft gives deliverance." His serene smile shows his uninvolved
transcendence, the three eyes are interpreted as sun, moon, and fire, or as the
three powers of Shiva: will, knowledge, and action. The garland of skulls around
his neck identifies him as time, and the death of all beings. Chidambaram is
where Shiva is said to dance his cosmic drama.
"Grandest of all such representations symbolizing a synthesis of science, art
and religion is the image of Nataraja as the Cosmic Dancer. The central idea of
the dance is creation, preservation, destruction, giving rest and release.
Rene Grousset’s (1885-1952) French art historian, gives a fine interpretation of the image:
“Whether he be surrounded or not by the flaming aureole of the Tiruvasi
(Pabhamandala) – the circle of the world which he both fills and oversteps –
the King of the Dance is all rhythm and exaltation. The tambourine which he
sounds with one of his right hands draws all creatures into this rhythmic
motion and they dance in his company. The conventionalized locks of flying hair
and the blown scarfs tell of the speed of this universal movement, which
crystallizes matter and reduces it to powder in turn. One of his left hands
holds the fire which animates and devours the worlds in this cosmic whirl. One
of the God’s feet is crushing a Titan, for “this dance is danced upon the
bodies of the dead”, yet one of the right hands is making a gesture of
reassurance (abhayamudra), so true it is that, seen from the cosmic point of
view…the very cruelty of this universal determinism is kindly, as
the generative principle of the future. And, indeed, on more than one of our
bronzes the King of the Dance wears a broad smile. He smiles at death and at
life, at pain and at joy, alike, or rather,..his smile is death and life, both
joy and pain…From this lofty point of view, in fact, all things fall into their
place, finding their explanation and logical compulsion. Here art is the
faithful interpreter of a philosophical concept. The plastic beauty of the
rhythm is no more than the expression of an ideal rhythm. The very multiplicity
of arms, puzzling as it may seem at first sight, is subject in turn to an inward
law, each pair remaining a model of elegance in itself, so that the whole being
of the Nataraja thrills with a magnificent harmony in his terrible joy. And as
though to stress the point that the dance of the divine actor is indeed a
sport, (lila) – the sport of life and death, the sport of creation and
destruction, at once infinite and
purposeless – the first of the left hands hangs limply from the arm in the
careless gesture of the gajahasta (hand as the elephant’s trunk). And lastly,
as we look at the back view of the statue, are not the steadiness of these
shoulders which uphold world, and the majesty of this Jove-like torso, as it
were a symbol of the stability and immutability of substance, while the
gyration of the legs in its dizzy speed would seem to symbolize the vortex of
phenomena.”
(source: The Civilization of the East – India - by Rene Grousset p. 252 - 53).
"Be it in the Vedas, the Upanishads or the Puranas, the Lord Shiva is always
referred to with great reverence as well as under different names. The
conception of Shiva is not simply that of a godhead whose powers have become
concentrated in a single figure dominating a certain period of Indian history.
Shiva is identified with the Eternal and All powerful; he is the Primal Soul
and the great Soul from which unaccounted other souls have sprung. Shiva is
beauty, Shiva is all, he is everywhere. There is no life, no motion and no
rhythm without Siva, for he is the Cosmos itself."
(source: La Danse Hindoue - by Usha Chatterji Translated from the English By
Manah Garreau-Dombasle).
Nataraja, the King of the Dance: The clearest image of cosmic activity of God
which any art or religion can boast of. This conception itself is a synthesis
of science, religion and art.
***
An entire cosmology, theology and way of salvation are embodied in this single
form. To really see the meanings of Nataraja is to see into the inner workings
of our own existence. Though all sacred art in India is deeply symbolic, the
one figure of Nataraja can lay the workings of our life before us.
(source: Travel through Sacred India - By Roger Housden p. 110).
The Form of Nataraja, the Cosmic Dancer, "a symbol of superhuman lyricism by
which....medieval India has expressed its heroic adhesion...to Joy, Pain and
Universal Force."
To summarize the whole interpretation of Shiva's dance: The Essential
Significance of Siva's Dance is threefold: First, it is the image of his
Rhythmic Play as the Source of all Movement within the Cosmos, which is
Represented by the arch; Secondly, the Purpose of his Dance is to Release the
Countless souls of men from the Snare of Illusion; Thirdly, the Place of Dance,
Chidambaran, the Center of the Universe, is within the Heart.
The cosmic activity is the central motif of the dance.
Ananda K Coomaraswamy (1877-1947) the late curator of Indian art at the Boston
Museum of Fine Arts, was unexcelled in his knowledge of the art of the Orient,
and unmatched in his understanding of Indian culture, language, religion and
philosophy. Praising this grand achievement of art, he writes:
"This conception itself is a synthesis of science, religion and art. In the
night of Brahma, Nature is inert, and cannot dance till Shiva wills it. He
rises from His rapture, and dancing sends through inert matter pushing waves of
awakening sound, and lo! matter also dances appearing as a glory round about
Him. This is poetry; but nonetheless, science. Whatever the origins of Siva's
dance, it became in time the clearest image of the activity of God which any
art or religion can boast of.
“How amazing the range of thought and sympathy of those rishi-artists who
conceived such a type as this, affording an image of reality, a key to the
complex tissue of life, a theory of nature, note merely satisfactory to a
single clique or race, not acceptable to the thinkers of a country only, but
Universal in its appeal to the philosopher, the lover and the artist of all
ages and all countries…”
“Every part of such an image as this is directly expressive not of any
superstition or dogma, but of evident facts. No artist of today, however great,
could more exactly or more wisely create an image of that Energy which science
must postulate behind all phenomena. “It is not strange that the figure of
Nataraja has commanded the adoration of so many generations past; familiar with
all skepticisms, expert in tracing all beliefs to primitive superstitions,
explorers of the infinitely great and infinitely small, we are worshippers of
Nataraja still.”
(source: The Dance of Shiva - By Dr. Ananda K Coomaraswamy p. 57-66).
The late astrophysicist, Carl Sagan (1934-1996) in his book, Cosmos, asserts
that the Dance of Nataraja (Tandava) signifies the cycle of evolution and
destruction of the cosmic universe (Big Bang Theory). "It is the clearest image
of the activity of God which any art or religion can boast of." Modern physics
has shown that the rhythm of creation and destruction is not only manifest in
the turn of the seasons and in the birth and death of all living creatures, but
also the very essence of inorganic matter. For modern physicists, then, Shiva's
dance is the dance of subatomic matter. Hundreds of years ago, Indian artist
created visual
images of dancing Shivas in a beautiful series of bronzes. Today, physicist have
used the most advanced technology to portray the pattern of the cosmic dance.
Thus, the metaphor of the cosmic dance unifies, ancient religious art and
modern physics.
He further says: " The most elegant and sublime of these is a representation of
the creation of the universe at the beginning of each cosmic cycle, a motif
known as the cosmic dance of Lord Shiva. The god, called in this manifestation
Nataraja, the Dance King. In the upper right hand is a drum whose sound is the
sound of creation. In the upper left hand is a tongue of flame, a reminder that
the universe, now newly created, with billions of years from now will be utterly
destroyed." (source: Cosmos - By Carl Sagan p. 213-214).
Fritjof Capra (1939 - ) Austrian-born famous theoretical high-energy physicist and ecologist wrote:
"Modern physics has thus revealed that every subatomic particle not only
performs an energy dance, but also is an energy dance; a pulsating process of
creation and destruction. The dance of Shiva is the dancing universe, the
ceaseless flow of energy going through an infinite variety of patterns that
melt into one another’’.For the modern physicists, then Shiva’s dance is the
dance of
subatomic matter. As in Hindu mythology, it is a continual dance of creation and
destruction involving the whole cosmos; the basis of all existence and of all
natural phenomenon. Hundreds of years ago, Indian artists created visual images
of dancing Shivas in a beautiful series of bronzes. In our times, physicists
have used the most advanced technology to portray the patterns of the cosmic
dance."
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