SHIVA

Mahadev Shiva

The creator and the destroyer, transformer of the universe, supreme among the Devas, God of meditation, Yoga, Dance, controller of the time and actions, he is SHIVA.

As far as the hindu religion is concerned, SHIVA is the most powerful deity in Hinduism. He is also known by many other names as Mahadeva, Mahakaal, Bholenaath, Kailashnath, Umapati, Mahesh, Rudra, and many more as such. According to Hinduism, Kailash is said to be the home of SHIVA. It is mentioned in the Shiva Purana that he meditated for eternity in the yogic position for the peace of the universe, hence is also called Adiyogi- regarded as the patron god of yoga, arts, and meditation as mentioned earlier.

Varanasi, a city in Uttar Pradesh is also said to be a habitat of Shiva. In Hindi it is popular by the name “Kashi- BHOLE KI NAGRI”. It is said that the first Jyotirlinga manifested itself there, hence Kashi too has a great significance among the SHIVA followers. These are said to be the fiery pillars of light by which Lord Shiva beckoned his divine supremacy over all other Gods, broke through earth’s crust and gleamed towards heaven.

Kashi Vishwanath

Fig- Jyotirlinga; Kashi vishwanath Temple(Varanasi)

Why is Shiva worshiped in the Lingam form?

In Hinduism people worship MATTER and ENERGY. In ancient times the saint and the sages meditated for peace and the welfare of the society, lighting a lamp(deepak) before them. As we all know that the universe consists of only matter and energy, hence the saints lighted a deepak as it too consists of Matter- The base(solid), the oil(liquid), and gas- medium by which the flame burns and of course its flame is a form of energy.

The shape of a Lingam is similar to that of a Lamp. In the windy days when the saints used to burn the Lamp it was given out because of the blowing wind, hence they made a Lingam and started worshiping it as it too consisted of both the forms in which a universe is constituted- matter and energy.

You may find many facts relating to why Linga is worshiped in Hinduism, but the truth is what we provide. It is not only the religious explanation that I wrote, but also the scientific one. In the form of a LINGAM, Hindus worship the universe for prosperity and its well being.

SHIVA’S Attributes

There are many attributes related to him namely third eye, crescent moon, damru, trident, ganga, tiger skin, ashes, matted hair, blue throat, ganges, serpents, Rudraksha and many more.

Here, basically I will focus on his two most important Attributes- Trident and Damaru. In Hinduism we see that the two mentioned above are always put together. The shape of a Damru is similar to the infinity sign,which means that the universe will be created till infinity. The Damru produces dama dama dama sound, soothing and amiable. If a thing has a beginning it has an end too. The Trident or a Trishula is a symbol of destruction which balances the construction caused by the Damru in the Universe and keeps it to the state of equilibrium. It is the universal truth that if a thing is created, it will be destroyed in a day.

Shiva's Trident

Fig- Trident and Damaru

This is why a Damru and Trident are always together.

Finishing the blog here, we will be back to Shiva and discuss more about him and his creations.