Lord Shiva by Bansi Pandit

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Lord Shiva by Bansi Pandit

 

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.

 

As stated earlier, 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

jewelry 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.

 

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.

 

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.

 

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, 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.

 

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.

 

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.

 

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.

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.

 

By Bansi Pandit