Lord Shiva – Hindu Gods and Deities

Shiva literally translates to that which is not. The entire galaxy is just a tiny ant in the mighty universe. The rest of it is vast emptiness that is known as Shiva.

The description of lord Shiva is quite unique with the appearance of a yogi with a blue neck and Ganga sprouting out of his hair. He is depicted as sitting on tiger skin along with his consort Parvati and two children Subramaniya and Ganapati at his Himalayan abode mount Kailash.

Lord Shiva Iconography

There are several properties of lord shiva which represent him. The rudra is almost synonymous with lord shiva. The dumroo which he plays during the cosmic dance is of great significance. The cosmic dance of shiva in an ecstatic state is what keeps the earth spinning. His third eye is a standalone feature of shiva, which can foresee the future. This is why shiva is also referred to tryamabaka. nandi as the vahana of shiva can be seen outside all shiva temples till today.

Lord Shiva Family

In the divine family of Lord Shiva, there are only four members, namely, Lord Shiva, his consort Parvati, and the two sons, Kartikeya (Subramanya) and Ganesha (Vinayaka). Kartikeya is the god of war while Ganesha is the god of obstacles. According to Hindu mythology, before marrying Goddess Parvati, Lord Shiva had married Sati, the daughter of Daksha. Lord Shiva is often depicted immersed in deep meditation on Mount Kailash. The mount of Lord Shiva is bull Nandi.

Festivals of Lord Shiva

Maha Shivratri is a festival celebrated every year on the 13th night or the 14th day of the new moon in the Shukla Paksha of the month of Maagha or Phalguna in the Hindu calendar. Mahashivarathri is one of the greatest festivals in our country celebrated in praise of lord Shiva. Devotees of Lord Shiva observe the Shivaratri Festival by following the prescribed rituals all through the day; devotees abstain from eating food and break their fast only the next morning, after the nightlong worship. They strongly believe that ritual worship of Lord Shiva on the auspicious day of Shivaratri absolves them of past sins and they are blessed with Moksha.

Lord Shiva Mantra

This is one of the most powerful shiva mantras one can also recite the 108 names of lord shiva. Reciting mantras on auspicious days such as pradhosham and maha shiva rathri increases the benefits manifold.

“oṁ tryambakaṁ yajāmahe sugandhiṁ puṣṭi-vardhanam ǀ

urvārukam-iva bandhanān mṛtyormukṣīya māmṛtāt ǁ”

Meaning- We concentrate on our third eye which lies behind the two eyes and this gives us the power to feel you and by this we feel happy, satisfied and peace in life. We know immortality is not possible but some extension can be given to our death by your powers Lord Shiva.

Lord Shiva Incarnations

SADHOJAT
NAAMDEVA
TATPURUSH
AGHORESH
ISHAN

Apart from above incarnation, Lord Shiva has taken some other incarnation also:

1. Ardhnaarishwar Avtaar
2. Nandi Avtaar
3. Sharabh Avtaar
4. Grihpati Avtaar
5. Neel Kanth & Yaksheshwar Avtaar
6. Durvasha Avtaar
7. Mahesh Avtaar
8. Hanuman Avtaar
9. Brishabh Avtaar
10. Piplaad Avtaar
11. Vaishyanath Avtaar
12. Dwijeshwar Avtaar
13. Yatinath Avtaar
14. Krishna Darshan Avtaar
15. Awdhuteshwar Avtaar
16. Bhichhuwarya Avtaar
17. Sureshwar Avtaar
18. Bramhchoti Avtaar
19. Sunatnartak Avtaar
20. Sadhu Avtaar
21. Vibhuashwathama Avtaar
22. Kiraat Avtaar

Lord Shiva Temples

There are a number of important and extremely powerful Shiva temples across India. Of the many, the most famous are the Jyotirlingas, Panchabhoota Lingas, Panch Kedar, Padal Petra Shiva Sthalangal.

The 12 Jyotirlinga temples as mentioned in the Shiva Purana are as listed below.

ॐ Somnath, Gujarat ॐ

ॐ Mallikarjuna Swamy, Andhra Pradesh ॐ

ॐ Mahakaleshwar, Madhya Pradesh ॐ

ॐ Omkareshwar Omkareshwar Temple, Madhya Pradesh ॐ

ॐ Kedarnath, Uttarakhand ॐ

ॐ Bhimashankar, Maharashtra ॐ

ॐ Kashi Vishwanath, Uttar Pradesh ॐ

ॐ Trimbakeshwar Shiva Temple, Maharashtra ॐ

ॐ Vaidyanathdeogarh, Jharkhand ॐ

ॐ Nageshwar, Uttarakhand ॐ

ॐ Ramanathaswamy, Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu ॐ