
The Birth of Lord shiva
The pastime of Lord shiva’s birth is described in srimad-Bhagavatam : “Although Brahma tried to curb his anger, it came out from between his eyebrows, and a child of mixed blue and red was immediately generated. “After his [shiva’s] birth, he began to cry: O destiny maker [Brahma], teacher of the universe, kindly designate my name and place. “The all-powerful Brahma, born from the lotus flower, pacified the boy with gentle words, accepting his request, and said: Do not cry. I shall certainly do as you desire. “Thereafter, Brahma said: O chief of the demigods, you shall be called by the name Rudra by all people because you have anxiously cried. “My dear boy, I have already selected the following places for your residence: the heart, the senses, the air of life, the sky, the air, the fire, the water, the earth, the sun, the moon, and austerity. "My dear Rudra, you have eleven other names: Manyu, Manu, Mahinasa, Mahan, shiva, Ṛtadhvaja, Ugrareta, Bhava, Kala, Vamadeva, and Dhṛtavrata. O Rudra, you also have eleven wives, called the Rudraṇis, and they are as follows: Dhi, Dhṛti, Rasala, Uma, Niyut, Sarpi, Ila, Ambika, Iravati, Svadha, and Dikṣa.” shiva and Parvati, as his wife is also known, have their abode in shiva-loka, between the material and spiritual worlds . This description is of how shiva appeared in the material world.
Shiva ( meaning "The Auspicious One"), also known as Parameshwara (the Supreme God), Mahadeva, Mahesh ("Great God") or Bholenath ("Simple Lord"), is a popular Hindu deity and considered as the Supreme God within Shaivism, one of the three most influential denominations in Hinduism. Shiva is regarded as one of the primary forms of God, such as one of the five primary forms of God in the Smarta tradition, and "the Destroyer" or "the Transformer" among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. Shiva is also regarded as the patron god of yoga and arts.
Shiva
with Parvati. Shiva is depicted three-eyed, the Ganges flowing
through his matted hair, wearing ornaments of serpents and a skull
bracelet, and covered in ashes, and seated on a tiger skin.
- Shiva's
form: Shiva
has a Trident in the right lower arm, with a crescent moon on his
head. He is said to be fair like camphor or like an ice clad
mountain. He has fire and Damaru and Mala or a kind of weapon. He
wears five serpents as ornaments. He wears a garland of skulls. He
is pressing with his feet the demon Muyalaka, a dwarf holding a
cobra. He faces south. Panchakshara itself is his body. (The
trident, like almost all other forms in Hinduism, can be understood
as the symbolism of the unity of three worlds that a human faces -
his inside world, his immediate world, and the broader overall
world. At the base of the trident, all three forks unite.)
- Third
eye: (Trilochana)
Shiva is often depicted with a third eye, with which he burned
Desire (Kama)
to ashes, called "Tryambakam" (Sanskrit: त्र्यम्बकम्
)(Tamil :நெற்றிக்கண்),
which occurs in many scriptural sources. In classical Sanskrit, the
word ambaka
denotes "an eye", and in the Mahabharata,
Shiva is depicted as three-eyed, so this name is sometimes
translated as "having three eyes". However, in Vedic
Sanskrit, the word amba
or
ambika
means
"mother", and this early meaning of the word is the basis
for the translation "three mothers". These three
mother-goddesses who are collectively called the Ambikas.
Other
related translations have been based on the idea that the name
actually refers to the oblations given to Rudra, which according to
some traditions were shared with the goddess Ambika.
It has been mentioned that when Shiva loses his temper badly, his
third eye opens which can destroy most of the things to ashes.
- Crescent
moon: (The
epithets "Chandrasekhara/Chandramouli")- Shiva bears on
his head the crescent moon. The epithet Candrasekhara
(Sanskrit:
चन्द्रशेखर
"Having
the moon as his crest" - candra
= "moon"; sekhara
=
"crest, crown") refers to this feature. The placement of
the moon on his head as a standard iconographic feature dates to the
period when Rudra rose to prominence and became the major deity
Rudra-Shiva. The origin of this linkage may be due to the
identification of the moon with Soma, and there is a hymn in the Rig
Veda where Soma and Rudra are jointly implored, and in later
literature, Soma and Rudra came to be identified with one another,
as were Soma and the moon. The crescent moon is shown on the side of
the Lord's head as an ornament. 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. The wearing of the crescent moon in his head
indicates that He has controlled the mind perfectly.
- Ashes:
(The
epithet "Bhasmaanga Raaga") - Shiva smears his body with
ashes (bhasma). Ashes represent the final reality that a human being
will face - the end of all material existence. Some forms of Shiva,
such as Bhairava, are associated with a very old Indian tradition of
cremation-ground asceticism that was practiced by some groups who
were outside the fold of brahmanic orthodoxy. These practices
associated with cremation grounds are also mentioned in the Pali
canon of Theravada Buddhism. One epithet for Shiva is "inhabitant
of the cremation ground" (Sanskrit: smasanavasin,
also spelled Shmashanavasin),
referring to this connection. It is interesting to see the peaceful
acceptance of cremation ground temples of Batuk
Bhairava,
a form of Lord Shiva, by the general populace. At Ujjain, near the
Kaal
Bhairava
temple lies such a cremation ground temple of Batuk
Bhairava,
with its legendary disciple Baba Dabral known throughout Central
India (as he is blessed, people say, with the ability to literally
read out incidents of the future in one's life just by holding one's
palm).
- Matted
hair: (The
epithet "Jataajoota Dhari/Kapardina") - Shiva's
distinctive hair style is noted in the epithets Jaṭin,
"the one with matted hair", and Kapardin, "endowed
with matted hair" or "wearing his hair wound in a braid in
a shell-like (kaparda) fashion". A kaparda is a cowrie shell,
or a braid of hair in the form of a shell, or, more generally, hair
that is shaggy or curly. His hair is said to be like molten gold in
color or being yellowish-white.
- Blue
throat: The
epithet Nilakantha
(Sanskrit
नीलकण्ठ;
nila
=
"blue", kantha
=
"throat"). (Tamil: [நீலகண்டன்];NeelaKandan)
(Kannada: [ನೀಲಕಂಠ];NeelaKantha)
since Shiva drank the Halahala poison churned up from the Samudra
Manthan to eliminate its destructive capacity. Shocked by his act,
Goddess Parvati strangled his neck and hence managed to stop it in
his neck itself and prevent it from spreading all over the universe
supposed to be in Shiva's stomach. However the poison was so potent
that it changed the color of his neck to blue.
Shiva
bearing the descent of the Ganges River as Parvati and Bhagiratha and
the bull Nandi look, folio from a Hindi manuscript by the Narayan,
Sacred
Ganges: (The
epithet "Gangadhara") Bearer of Ganga. Ganges river flows
from the matted hair of Shiva. The Gaṅga
(Ganges),
one of the major rivers of the country, is said to have made her
abode in Shiva's hair. The flow of the Ganges also represents the
nectar of immortality.
- Tiger
skin: (The
epithet "Krittivasana").He is often shown seated upon a
tiger skin an honour reserved for the most accomplished of Hindu
ascetics, the Brahmarishis. Tiger represents lust. His sitting on
the tiger’s skin indicates that He has conquered lust.
- Serpents:
(The
epithet "Nagendra Haara"). Shiva is often shown garlanded
with a snake.His wearing of serpents on the neck denotes wisdom and
eternity.
- Deer:
His
holding deer on one hand indicates that He has removed the
Chanchalata of the mind (i.e., attained maturity and firmness in
thought process). A deer jumps from one place to another swiftly,
similar to the mind moving from one thought to another.
- Trident:
(Sanskrit:
Trishula):
Shiva's particular weapon is the trident. His Trisul that is held in
His right hand represents the three Gunas— Sattva, Rajas and
Tamas. That is the emblem of sovereignty. He rules the world through
these three Gunas. The Damaru in His left hand represents the Sabda
Brahman. It represents OM from which all languages are formed. It is
He who formed the Sanskrit language out of the Damaru sound.
- Drum:
A
small drum shaped like an hourglass is known as a damaru
(Sanskrit: ḍamaru).
This is one of the attributes of Shiva in his famous dancing
representation known as Nataraja. A specific hand gesture (mudra)
called ḍamaru-hasta
(Sanskrit
for "ḍamaru-hand")
is used to hold the drum. This drum is particularly used as an
emblem by members of the Kapalika
sect.
- Axe:
(Sanskrit:
Parashu):The
parashu is the weapon of Lord Shiva who gave it to Parashurama,
sixth Avatar of Vishnu, whose name means "Rama with the axe"
and also taught him its mastery.
- Nandi:
(The epithet "Nandi Vaahana").Nandi,
also known as Nandin, is the name of the bull that serves as Shiva's
mount (Sanskrit: vahana).
Shiva's association with cattle is reflected in his name Pasupati,
or Pashupati (Sanskrit: पशुपति),
translated by Sharma as "lord of cattle" and by Kramrisch
as "lord of animals", who notes that it is particularly
used as an epithet of Rudra. Rishabha or the bull represents Dharma
Devata. Lord Siva rides on the bull. Bull is his vehicle. This
denotes that Lord Siva is the protector of Dharma, is an embodiment
of Dharma or righteousness.
- Ganga:
The Gangas
(Devanagari: गण)
are attendants of Shiva and live in Kailash. They are often referred
to as the bhutaGangas, or ghostly hosts, on account of their nature.
Generally benign, except when their lord is transgressed against,
they are often invoked to intercede with the lord on behalf of the
devotee. Ganesha was chosen as their leader by Shiva, hence
Ganesha's title Ganga-isa
or
Ganga-pati,
"lord of the Gangas".
- Mount
Kailasa:
Mount Kailash in the Himalayas is his traditional abode. In Hindu
mythology, Mount Kailasa
is
conceived as resembling a Linga,
representing the center of the universe.
- Varanasi:
Varanasi (Benares) is considered to be the city specially loved by
Shiva, and is one of the holiest places of pilgrimage in India. It
is referred to, in religious contexts, as Kashi
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