Lord Shiva (Hindu Gods & Goddesses)

[Guest guest]

Hare Rama Krishna

 

Namaste Solai and others,

 

The proposal to write/familiarise ourselves about different deities is

quite appealing to me, as one who has neglected this aspect for long.

 

I am presenting a brief account of Lord Shiva, usually the last

mentioned in the Trinity (Brahma, Vishnu & Siva) and representing

'destruction'. In a true sense Siva represents destruction of

Ignorance, among other things. Destruction of our Ignorance/lack of

awareness could lead to awareness….. a new beginning.

 

Also, Lord Shiva is my Ista devata and to sit to write about Him makes

me learn more about Him.

 

Please continue to read.. Dakshina Murti is towards the end.

 

Regards

Viswanadham

 

**Hindu Gods & Goddesses - Lord Shiva**

 

The Hindu concept of God has two special features.

 

One is that the concept of God as infinite (& formless). He transcends

everything that is created and yet is present in everything that is

created.

 

The other feature is that God, depending on the needs of His devotees,

will appear in any form they like to worship, and respond through that

form. He can also incarnate Himself amongst human beings, whenever He

wishes.

 

Thus, while the ultimate God is one for Hindus, the forms in which He

is worshiped are many.

 

If someone likes hierarchical structure, the next level of Gods,

according to Hindu scriptures are the three deities Brahma, Vishnu and

Siva - the Hindu trinity. They are responsible for creation (sristi),

preservation (sthiti) and destruction (pralaya) of this universe. They

represent the gunas; Rajo, Satwa, & Tamo, respectively.

 

"If the world were a myth, there would have been no questions about

its creations and its creator. But the world being a fact of our

day-to-day experience, can not be wished away! Once we accept it as

real, the theological questions of creations and creator will have to

be faced and answered." - Swami Harshananda in his book 'Hindu Gods

and Goddesses'

 

This is what various Hindu scriptures attempted to answer. (When we

talk about Hindu scriptures, we need to understand that Hinduism does

not depend on a single Scripture. Generally, Upanishads and Bhagavad

Gita are accepted as authoritative.)

 

In addition to the trinity- Brahma, Vishnu & Shiva, their consorts-

Saraswati, Laxmi & Parvati are worshiped as Shakti.

 

The different ASPECTS of the Trinity and Shakti are worshiped in

different forms, which may be taken as a different level of

Gods/Goddesses.

 

Thus we have supreme God in infinite form at the highest level,

followed by the trinity & shakti and their aspects. There are also

vedic gods, which are usually enumerated as 33 - eight Vasus, eleven

Rudras, twelve Adityas, Indra & Prajapati.

 

With this brief introduction on Hindu Gods, let us move onto know more

about Lord Shiva.

 

LORD SHIVA:

 

Hinduism advocates the cyclic theory of creation i.e

creation…sustenance…destruction…creation. Lord Shiva is responsible

for the dissolution of the Universe. Literally, Shiva is one in which

the universe sleeps after destruction and before the next cycle of

creation. Destruction of old paves the way for creation of new and in

that sense Shiva is also responsible for creation. Shiva represents

tamo guna, the power of annihilation.

 

Lord Shiva is worshiped more in the Linga form, which means a sign or

symbol.

 

Please visit the following web site for description of Shiva and also

a detailed explanation of the symbolism attached with Shiva:

http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Park/5166/lordshiva.html#

 

**(please surf the above web site)**

 

ASPECTS OF LORD SHIVA

 

Pancanana (or five-faced one) form of Shiva- the five aspects of Lord

Shiva:

 

The five faces are; Isana, Tatpurusa, Aghora, Vamadeva and Sadyojata.

 

The face Isana turned towrds the zenith, represents the highest aspect

and is also called Sadasiva. It is the deity that grants moksha or

liberation. It represents the element ether or akasha.

 

Tatpurusa facing east, stands for the power that rules over air and

represents the forces of darkness and obstruction on the spiritual

plane. It represents the element air.

 

Aghora facing south and ruling over the element fire, stands for the

power that absorbs & renovates the universe.

 

Vamadeva facing north, ruling over element water, is responsible for

preservation

 

Sadyojata, facing west represents the power that creates. It rules

over the element earth.

 

SOME OTHER ASPECTS OF SHIVA:

 

Saumya/Anugraha Murti -

Peaceful form of Shiva, as also the form showing mercy and grace. This

is the form, which granted boon to Ravana (whom Lord Sri Rama killed).

 

Ugra, Rudra or Samhara Murtis -

All terrific aspects can be classified in this group. E.g. Kankala

Bhairava, Gajasurvadhamurti, Tripurantaka-murti, Kalari-murti,

Kamantaka-murti, Andhkasura-vadh-murti.

 

Nrtta or Tandava Murti-

Lord shiva is a great master of dance. All the 108 modes of dancing

known to the treatises on dancing have come from Him. Nataraja aspect

is the most well-known.

 

Daksina Murti-

Universal Teacher. Shiva is a great master of Yoga & spiritual

sciences and also of music, dancing and other arts. As He sat facing

South, when He taught sages in a secluded spot on the Himalayas, He is

called Daksina murti (Daksina= south).

 

Lingodbhava Murti-

There is a story of Shiva appearing as a blazing pillar of fire of

immeasurable size. It depicts Him as manifesting in the heart of the

Linga (pillar).

 

Bikshatana murti-

shows Shiva as a naked bhairava, begging his food in the skull cup.

 

Haryardha Murti-

Also called Hari-hara or Sankaranarayana, a combination of aspects of

Shiva & Vishnu.

 

The Ardhanarisvara (half man and half woman) Murti -

With Parvati as left half represents the bi-polar nature of the

created world.

 

 

This is all I could manage to collect on Lord Shiva for the moment. I

will continue my study / worship of Lord Shiva and I shall share it

with you all in times to come.

 

For related information and short stories, one may visit:

www.templenet.com, www.urday.com (as already mentioned).

 

***