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Siva is the last deity of the Trinity. He is
responsible for the dissolution of the universe. He is the
embodiment of Tamas, the centrifugal inertia, the tendency
towards dispersion and annihilation. Literally, Siva is one in
whom the Universe 'sleeps' after destruction and before the next
cycle of creation. All that is born, must die. All that is
produced, must disintegrate and be destroyed. This is an
inviolable law. The principle that brings about this
disintegration, the power behind this destruction, is Siva.
Siva is much more than that. Disintegration of the universe ends
in the ultimate thinning out, into a boundless void. This
boundless void, the substratum of all existence, from which
springs out again and again this apparently limitless universe,
is Siva. So, though Siva is described as responsible for
destruction, he is equally responsible for creation and
existence. In this sense, Brahma and Visnu are also Siva. It is
perhaps this identity that is revealed by some of the stories in
the Puranas. If one story makes Siva speak from the womb of the
infinite pillar of fire to Brahma and Visnu that they are his
own aspects, other stories make Siva as being born from the
brows of an angry Visnu or from Brahma who was intensely
desiring to beget a son.
Though Siva is often called Rudra, especially in his terrific
aspect, whether the two are identical or not has been a subject
of discussion and even controversy. Many scholars are inclined
to think that the Rudra of the Vedas and the Siva of the Puranas
and Agamas are two different deities fused into one at a later
date as cultural integration of the two races accepting them
progressed. According to these scholars Siva the pacific deity
is a non-Aryan god, 'more ancient' than the Vedic Rudra. Though
the' Aryan conquerors' despised and derided the Saivas and their
Siva (apparently because of some of their mysterious rituals and
practices) as the two races had to live together, rapprochement
and consequent cultural reconciliation became inevitable.
Whatever may be the truth of these statements they are
irrelevant to our study here, since we are more interested in
discovering the significance of the symbology concerned, to
enrich our lives.
Siva is worshipped both in the anthropomorphic aspect and as the
Linga, the latter being the rule whereas the former is an
exception. The most common of his pictures and images shows him
a, a very handsome youth, white as camphor. His limbs besmeared
with ashes are strong and smooth. He has three eyes-the third
eye being on the forehead between the eyebrows-and four arms,
two of the arms holding the Trisula (trident) and Damaru (drum)
while the other two are in the Abhaya (protection giving) and
Varada (boon-giving) Mudras (poses). He has a crown of long
matted hair from which flows the river Ganga. He also wears the
crescent moon as a diadem. A tiger-skin and an elephant-skin
adorn his body as his garments. There are serpents all over his
body forming the necklace, the girdle, the YajnopavIta (sacred
thread) as also arm-bracelets. There is also a garland of skulls
round his blue neck.
Man, being what he is, cannot help super-imposing his own states
on his gods too! Therefore it is but natural for him to conceive
of Siva as a man with family. ParvatI is his consort. Ganesa and
Kumara (also known as Skanda or Subrahmanya) are his sons. Then
there is the large retinue forming a veritable zoo as it were!
Nandi his vehicle bull, Bhrngi the Rsi with three legs and three
arms, the mouse of Ganesa, the peacock of Kumara as also a host
of ghosts, goblins and imps constantly capering round him-form
his large retinue.
Though he has his headquarters in the icy mountains, the
Himalayas, he is fond of roaming the earth, especially the
burial grounds and cremation sites. All this is in perfect
consonance with his nature as the Lord of destruction and
dissolution.
Before embarking upon the explanation of all this, which is
obviously symbolical, it is better to summarise first the
various stories about Siva recounted in our mythological
literature.
(1) Once Parvati, in a playful mood, closed his two eyes, and
lo! the entire world was plunged in darkness. To save the worlds
from this predicament, Siva willed a third eye in between his
eyebrows, sending forth light, fire and heat. Later on, he
opened this third eye-normally kept closed out of infinite mercy
for humanity- to burn up Kamadeva, the lord of lust.
(2) When the celestial river Ganga, which was descending from
the heaven to this earth, fell ferociously on Siva's head out of
pride, he just got her locked up there! Only after much prayer
and supplication by Bhaglratha (who was responsible for bringing
the celestial river down
to this earth) and due apologies by Ganga, did he allow her to
stream out.
(3) When the Ksirasamudra, the ocean of milk, was being churned,
one of the objects to rise was the cool crescent moon. Siva
seized it and made it his diadem. When the deadly poison
Halahala also rose and started destroying the worlds with its
leaping tongues of fire, Siva gathered it on to his palm and
drank it, thus saving the worlds. ParvatI, getting alarmed about
the safety of her spouse, pressed his throat so that the poison
could not go down into the stomach! It thus remained in his
throat, lending its blue colour permanently to it.
(4) Being angered by Siva whose extraordinary beauty had
attracted their wives, the Rsis of Darukavana tried to kill him
through sorcerous rituals. Out of the sacrificial fire rose a
tiger, a deer and a red-hot iron. Siva killed the tiger and wore
its skin, caught hold of the deer with his left hand (which has
remained there ever since) and made the iron one of this
weapons.
(5) Other stories relate to his destroying the sacrifice of
Daksa, his cutting off, of one of the five heads of Brahma for
having spoken disrespectfully, his destroying the three cities
built by the demon Tripurasura, his killing the elephant demon
Gajasura and wearing his hide, his having granted to Arjuna as a
boon the weapon Pasupatastra, his having become Ardhanarlsvara
to dispel the ignorance of his devotee Bhrngi, his apearing as a
pillar of fire to teach a lesson to Brahma and Visnu, his
vanquishing Yama, the god of death, to save his votary
Markandeya, and so on.
An attempt can now be made to unravel this mysterious symbology
of the Siva-picture. Siva is snow-white in colour, which matches
wonderfully with that of his abode, the Himalayas. White stands
for light that dispels darkness, knowledge that dispels
ignorance. He is the very personification of cosmic
consciousness. It may appear strange that Siva who represents
Tamas (the force of darkness and destruction) is pictured as
white, whereas Visnu who represents Sattva (the force of light
and enlightenment) is pictured as dark! There is nothing strange
in this since the opposing Gunas are inseparable. Hence Siva is
white outside and dark inside whereas Visnu is the reverse of
it.
The three eyes of Siva represent the sun, the moon and the fire,
the three sources of light, life and heat. The third eye can
also indicate the eye of knowledge and wisdom and hence his
omniscience.
If the sun and the moon form his two eyes as it were, then the
whole sky including the powerful wind blowing in it, forms his
hair. That is why he is called Vyomakesa (one who has the sky or
space as his hair).
Tiger is a ferocious animal that mercilessly devours its hapless
victims. Desire, which consumes human beings, without ever being
satiated, can be compared to a tiger. That Siva has killed the
tiger and wears its skin as his apparel shows his complete
mastery over desire.
The elephant being a powerful animal, wearing its skin implies
that Siva has completely subjugated all animal impulses.
The garland of skulls (Mundamala) that he wears and the ashes of
the funeral pyre with which he has besmeared his body indicate
that he is the lord of destruction. The garland of skulls also
represents the revolution of ages and successive appearance and
disappearance of the human races.
Siva is the lord of Yoga and Yogis. He is often shown as sitting
in deep meditation immersed in the enjoyment of the bliss of his
own self. The water of the river Ganga represents this. Or it
can represent Jiiana, knowledge. Since Ganga is highly adored as
a great purifying agent, it goes without saying that he whom it
adorns, is the very personification of purifying or redeeming
power.
The crescent moon stands for time, since measurement of time as
days or months depends upon the waxing and waning of the moon.
By wearing it as a diadem, Siva is showing us that even the
all-powerful time is only an ornament for him!
And then, the snakes. The venomous cobras which symbolise death
for us adorn his frame in all possible manner embellishing it
further. He alone, to whom symbol of death is a decoration, can
gulp down the deadly poison Halahala to save the worlds. All
this points to one thing: he is Mrryunjaya, the conqueror of
death! Coiled serpents may also represent cycles of time in the
macrocosm and the basic energy-akin to sexual energy-of living
beings in the microcosm. So, Siva is the master of time and
energy.
Ichnographically Siva may have two, three, four, eight, ten or
even thirty-two hands. Some of the various objects shown in
these hands are: Trisula (trident), Cakra (discus), Parasu
(battleaxe), pamaru (drum), Aksamala (rosary), Mrga (deer), pasa
(noose), Danda (staff), Pinaka or Ajagava (bow), Khatvailga
(magic wand) Pasupata (spear), Padma (lotus), Kapala
(skull-cup), Darpana, (mirror), Khadga (sword) and so on. It is
rather difficult to find a meaning for everyone of these items.
However an attempt will be made to explain some of them.
The Trisula (trident) being an important weapon of offence and
defence, indicates that Siva is the supreme ruler.
Philosophically it can stand for the three Gunas or the three
processes of creation, preservation and dissolution. Hence Siva
the wielder of the trident is the master of the Gunas and from
him proceed the cosmic processes.
It is said that while dancing the Tandavanrtya Siva sounded his
Damaru (small drum) fourteen times, thereby producing sounds
like a-i-un, r-Ir-k and so on, which are now known as the
Mahesvarasutras, the fourteen basic formulae containing all the
alphabets arranged in the most ingenious manner, facilitating
innumerable grammatical processes. Hence the pamaru represents
the alphabets, grammar (the science of language) or language
itself. In other words it stands for all words-spoken or written
or otherwise expressed-and hence for the entire gamut of all
arts and sciences, sacred and secular. It also represents sound
as such, the logos, from which entire creation has proceeded. By
holding it in his hand, Siva is demonstrating the fact that the
entire creation, including its various arts and sciences, has
proceeded out of his will, his play.
If the Aksamala (rosary) shows that he is the master of
spiritual sciences, the Khatvanga ( magic wand with a skull
fixed at one end) shows that he is an adept in occult sciences
too. The Kapala (skull-cup) with which he drinks blood, is
another symbol that points to his all-destroying power. The
Darpana (mirror) indicates that the entire creation is just a
reflection of his cosmic form.
The icon of Siva is never worshipped as the Mulamurti (original,
installed in the sanctum sanctorum), but only as an Utsavamurti
(the icon used during festivals for taking out in a procession).
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