GODS and GODDESSES
Shiva
- Lord of Destruction - One of the Trinities
One
of the Trinities
Siva
- The Lord of destruction with
his consort Parvathi
- Sakthi - Goddess of disintegration
Siva, the last of the Trinities
is the God of destruction & he is assisted in this by his consort Parvathi,
the Goddess of disintegration. Parvathi represents sakthi, to disintegrate
perishable matter, in the absence of which true and complete destruction
by Siva becomes impossible. This
could possibly be the meaning of the idea that Siva becomes nothing in
the absence of Sakthi. He destroys all the bad, evil qualities in
us that hinder our journey towards Him. He in fact, guides us to
destroy our unwanted qualities. Destruction of good is wanton, but
Lord Siva is destroying the waste, what has to be discarded and hence this
act becomes the purest act leading to constructive action.
Siva
is generally worshipped in the form of the phallus (linga) fixed on a pedestal.
Energy can neither be created nor destroyed & the Linga symbolises
this scientific fact. The Linga denotes the primeval energy of the Creator.
At the end of Creation all Gods find their resting place in the Linga -
Brahma being absorbed into the right, Vishnu being absorbed into the left
& Gayathri Devi being absorbed into the heart of the Linga.
Linga, the emblem of Siva is the
main form worshipped in Siva temples.
Siva in his human form is worshipped
as the Utsava murthi, taken out on processions.
Siva Lingams worshipped in temples
are mostly made of stone & consists of three parts. The lowest portion
in the shape of a square symbolises Brahma (the God of Creation). The middle
part in the shape of an octagon symbolises Vishnu (the God of Maintenance).
These two portions are embedded inside a pedestal. The cylindrical portion
projecting from the pedestal symbolises Shiva (the God of Destruction).
Siva
resides high up on snowy mountain ranges. Image of Siva in his physical
form presents him as a soothing meditative figure. His ornaments are not
gold & precious stones.
He wears a necklace made of skulls
signifying his role as destructor. He has snakes coiling all over his body
& his hair is matted and long extending over the whole sky & space.
The crescent moon adorns his crown, signifying his control on the time
cycle.(Amavasay & Pournami). He smears his body with ashes & wears
a tiger skin and elephant skin. He has a third eye on his forehead which
is the source of knowledge & wisdom. The holy Ganges is imprisoned
in his flowing locks. In his two arms he holds the Trisulam (the three
prongs representing the three gunas of sattva, tamas & rajas) in one
& Damaru in the other. His vahana is the Nandi, who is also his chief
disciple to whom Siva passed on all his immense knowledge in arts.
The above description should convey
him as an angry & destructive image, yet being the source of all knowledge
he is often in a meditative pose with half closed eyes looking out into
the universe as well as in to his inner self, signifying that his act of
destruction is in itself an act of creation for in the absence of destruction
there can be no creation.
Other names & manifestations
of Lord Siva
Nataraja
Dakshinamurthi
Lingodhbava
Haryardhamurthi
Ardhanareeswara
Bhikshatana
Ashtalakshmi temple, Besant Nagar, Chennai
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