About Lord Shiva
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> Lord Shiva represents the aspect of the Supreme Being
> (Brahman of the Upanishads) that continuously
> dissolves to recreate in the cyclic process of
> creation, preservation, dissolution and recreation of
> the universe. Lord Shiva is the third member of the
> Hindu Trinity, the other two being Lord Brahma and
> Lord Vishnu. Owing to His cosmic activity of
> dissolution and recreation, the words destroyer and
> destruction have been erroneously associated with Lord
> Shiva. This difficulty arises when people fail to
> grasp the true significance of His cosmic role. The
> creation sustains itself by a delicate balance between
> the opposing forces of good and evil. When this
> balance is disturbed and sustenance of life becomes
> impossible, Lord Shiva dissolves the universe for
> creation of the next cycle so that the unliberated
> souls will have another opportunity to liberate
> themselves from bondage with the physical world. Thus,
> Lord Shiva protects the souls from pain and suffering
> that would be caused by a dysfunctional universe. In
> analogous cyclic processes, winter is essential for
> spring to appear and the night is necessary for the
> morning to follow. To further illustrate, a goldsmith
> does not destroy gold when he melts old irreparable
> golden jewellery to create beautiful new ornaments.
>
> Lord Shiva is the Lord of mercy and compassion. He
> protects devotees from evil forces such as lust,
> greed, and anger. He grants boons, bestows grace and
> awakens wisdom in His devotees. The symbolism
> discussed below includes major symbols that are common
> to all pictures and images of Shiva venerated by
> Hindus. Since the tasks of Lord Shiva are numerous, He
> cannot be symbolized in one form. For this reason the
> images of Shiva vary significantly in their symbolism.
> The unclad body covered with ashes: the unclad body
> symbolizes the transcendental aspect of the Lord.
> Since most things reduce to ashes when burned, ashes
> symbolize the physical universe. The ashes on the
> unclad body of the Lord signify that Shiva is the
> source of the entire universe which emanates from Him,
> but He transcends the physical phenomena and is not
> affected by it.
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> The unclad body covered with ashes: the unclad body
> symbolizes the transcendental aspect of the Lord.
> Since most things reduce to ashes when burned, ashes
> symbolize the physical universe. The ashes on the
> unclad body of the Lord signify that Shiva is the
> source of the entire universe which emanates from Him,
> but He transcends the physical phenomena and is not
> affected by it.
>
> Matted locks: Lord Shiva is the Master of yoga. The
> three matted locks on the head of the Lord convey the
> idea that integration of the physical, mental and
> spiritual energies is the ideal of yoga.
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> Ganga: Ganga (river Ganges) is associated with Hindu
> mythology and is the most sacred river of Hindus.
> According to tradition, one who bathes in Ganga
> (revered as Mother Ganga) in accordance with
> traditional rites and ceremonies on religious
> occasions in combination with certain astrological
> events, is freed from sin and attains knowledge,
> purity and peace. Ganga, symbolically represented on
> the head of the Lord by a female (Mother Ganga) with a
> jet of water emanating from her mouth and falling on
> the ground, signifies that the Lord destroys sin,
> removes ignorance, and bestows knowledge, purity and
> peace on the devotees.
>
> The crescent moon: is shown on the side of the Lord's
> head as an ornament, and not as an integral part of
> His countenance. The waxing and waning phenomenon of
> the moon symbolizes the time cycle through which
> creation evolves from the beginning to the end. Since
> the Lord is the Eternal Reality, He is beyond time.
> Thus, the crescent moon is only one of His ornaments,
> and not an integral part of Him.
>
> Three eyes: Lord Shiva, also called Tryambaka Deva
> (literally, "three-eyed Lord"), is depicted as having
> three eyes: the sun is His right eye, the moon the
> left eye and fire the third eye. The two eyes on the
> right and left indicate His activity in the physical
> world. The third eye in the center of the forehead
> symbolizes spiritual knowledge and power, and is thus
> called the eye of wisdom or knowledge. Like fire, the
> powerful gaze of Shiva's third eye annihilates evil,
> and thus the evil-doers fear His third eye.
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> Half-open eyes: when the Lord opens His eyes, a new
> cycle of creation emerges and when He closes them, the
> universe dissolves for creation of the next cycle. The
> half-open eyes convey the idea that creation is going
> through cyclic process,
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> with no beginning and no end. Lord Shiva is the Master
> of Yoga, as He uses His yogic power to project the
> universe from Himself. The half-open eyes also
> symbolize His yogic posture.
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> Kundalas (two ear rings): two Kundalas, Alakshya
> (meaning "which cannot be shown by any sign") and
> Niranjan(meaning "which cannot be seen by mortal
> eyes") in the ears of the Lord signify that He is
> beyond ordinary perception Since the kundala in the
> left ear of the Lord is of the type used by women and
> the one in His right ear is of the type used by men,
> these Kundalas also symbolize the Shiva and Shakti
> (male and female) principle of creation
>
> Snake around the neck: sages have used snakes to
> symbolize the yogic power of Lord Shiva with which He
> dissolves and recreates the universe. Like a yogi, a
> snake hoards nothing, carries nothing, builds nothing,
> lives on air alone for a long time, and lives in
> mountains and forests. The venom of a snake,
> therefore, symbolizes the yogic power
>
> A snake (Vasuki Naga): is shown curled three times
> around the neck of the Lord and is looking towards His
> right side. The three coils of the snake symbolize the
> past, present and future - time in cycles. The Lord
> wearing the curled snake like an ornament signifies
> that creation proceeds in cycles and is time
> dependent, but the Lord Himself transcends time. The
> right side of the body symbolizes the human activities
> based upon knowledge, reason and logic. The snake
> looking towards the right side of the Lord signifies
> that the Lord's eternal laws of reason and justice
> preserve natural order in the universe.
>
> Rudraksha necklace: Rudra is another name of Shiva.
> Rudra also means "strict or uncompromising" and aksha
> means "eye." Rudraksha necklace worn by the Lord
> illustrates that He uses His cosmic laws firmly -
> without compromise - to maintain law and order in the
> universe. The necklace has 108 beads which symbolize
> the elements used in the creation of the world.
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> Varda Mudra: the Lord's right hand is shown in a boon-
> bestowing and blessing pose. As stated earlier, Lord
> Shiva annihilates evil, grants boons, bestows grace,
> destroys ignorance, and awakens wisdom in His
> devotees.
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> Trident (Trisula): a three-pronged trident shown
> adjacent to the Lord symbolizes His three fundamental
> powers (shakti) of will (iccha), action (kriya) and
> knowledge (jnana). The trident also symbolizes the
> Lord's power to destroy evil and ignorance.
>
> Damaru (drum): a small drum with two sides separated
> from each other by a thin neck-like structure
> symbolizes the two utterly dissimilar states of
> existence, unmanifest and manifest. When a damaru is
> vibrated, it produces dissimilar sounds which are
> fused together by resonance to create one sound. The
> sound thus produced symbolizes Nada, the cosmic sound
> of AUM, which can be heard during deep meditation.
> According to Hindu scriptures, Nada is the source of
> creation.
>
> Kamandalu: a water pot (Kamandalu) made from a dry
> pumpkin contains nectar and is shown on the ground
> next to Shiva. The process of making Kamandalu has
> deep spiritual significance. A ripe pumpkin is plucked
> from a plant, its fruit is removed and the shell is
> cleaned for containing the nectar. In the same way, an
> individual must break away from attachment to the
> physical world and clean his inner self of egoistic
> desires in order to experience the bliss of the Self,
> symbolized by the nectar in the Kamandalu.
>
> Nandi: the bull is associated with Shiva and is said
> to be His vehicle. The bull symbolizes both power and
> ignorance. Lord Shiva's use of the bull as a vehicle
> conveys the idea that He removes ignorance and bestows
> power of wisdom on His devotees. The bull is called
> Vrisha in Sanskrit. Vrisha also means dharma
> (righteousness). Thus a bull shown next to Shiva also
> indicates that He is the etemal companion of
> righteousness.
>
> Tiger skin: a tiger skin symbolizes potential energy.
> Lord Shiva, sitting on or wearing a tiger skin,
> illustrates the idea that He is the source of the
> creative energy that remains in potential form during
> the dissolution state of the universe. Of His own
> Divine Will, the Lord activates the potential form of
> the creative energy to project the universe in endless
> cycles.
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> Cremation ground: Shiva sitting in the cremation
> ground signifies that He is the controller of death in
> the physical world. Since birth and death are cyclic,
> controlling one implies controlling the other. Thus,
> Lord Shiva is revered as the ultimate controller of
> birth and death in the phenomenal world.
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