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The origin and symbol of Shiva in India
Shiva, one of the three Hindu gods, the god of destruction.
The predecessor is the god of reproduction “Beast Lord” and the god of Vedic storm Rudra in the age of the Indus civilization. It has the dual characters of reproduction and destruction, creation and destruction, showing various strange and grotesque appearances, mainly Linga. Appearance, terror sign, gentle sign, superman sign, three-face sign, dance king sign, master sign of Liga, and master of half-girls are all in disguise. Linga (male root) is the most basic symbol of Shiva.
Like many gods in mythology, because of Shiva’s omniscience and omnipotence, Shiva’s gender is not fixed , but changes at any time according to different phases.
The Status of Shiva in Hinduism
Shiva, Brahma and Vishnu are the three gods of Hinduism. The status of Shiva is that of destroyer, with the dual character of reproduction and destruction, creation and destruction.
Ten states of God in Hinduism
God as the grower, the sustainer and the melter. In this state, God exerts his three main attributes (sifat) of germination, maintenance and melting.
This “three-in-one” state corresponds to the Trinity of Vedanta: Brahma (creator), Vishnu (protector) and Shiva (Mahesh, destroyer). Synonyms for Sufism are Afridgar, Parvardigar and Fanakar.
The legend of Shiva in Hinduism
Shiva is the god of destruction in Hinduism, and his myths are contained in the two epics, the Brahma, the Upanishads, and the Puranas.
It is said that he has a great ability to subdue demons. The third eye on his forehead can spew out divine fire that destroys everything. He once burned down three demon cities and seduced his love god, so he was called the destroyer of the three demon cities.
When the gods and asuras churned the sea of milk, he swallowed the poison that could destroy the world, and his neck was burnt to blue-black, so he was called the blue neck. Hinduism believes that “destruction” has the meaning of “regeneration”, so the male genitalia representing reproductive capacity-Linga is a symbol of his creativity and is worshipped by the sexists and Shiva sects.
Shiva is the god of asceticism. He practiced asceticism in Jibasa Mountain in the Himalayas all year round. Through the most rigorous ascetic practice and the most thorough contemplation, he obtained the most profound knowledge and magical power. He is also the god of dance, creating both rigid and soft dances, and is known as the king of dance. He is the commander-in-chief of demons and monsters, and all demons and monsters are subject to him. His wife is the Goddess of Snow Mountain, and his two sons are Saiganda and Ganesha. The former is the commander-in-chief of the heavenly generals, and the latter is the head of the minor gods who serve Shiva.
The image of Shiva is depicted as three eyes and four hands, holding three forks, conch, water jug, drum, etc. in his hands; he is dressed in animal skins, covered in gray, with a crescent moon on his head as decoration, and his hair is coiled into horns. , with the symbol of the Ganges. Legend has it that when the Ganges descended to earth, it first fell on his head and flowed to the earth in seven paths, with a snake around his neck.
The mount is a big white bull. His story is scattered in various documents. His sect believers regard him as the highest god, with eight incarnations of earth, water, fire, wind, air, sun, moon, and sacrifice, and can create in addition to destruction. Buddhist texts call him the Great Freedom Heaven, who lives at the top of the realm of form and is the lord of the three thousand realms.
Shiva lives in Mount Kalashi (Mount Kalashi, the sacred mountain of Gang Rinpoche in Ali, Tibet, China), his ride is the bull Nandi, and his concubine is the snow mountain goddess Parvatī. , also known as Uma (Umā, bright, beautiful).
Shiva’s spouse originated from the mother goddess of the Indian indigenous people, and like Shiva, it has the dual character of reproduction and destruction, showing the appearance of gentleness and terror. The image of Parvati or Uma is the charming and gracious wife.
Another image of Shiva’s spouse, Durgā, is the glamorous and murderous goddess of vengeance, who once represented the gods in killing the buffalo monster Shisha. There is also an image of Kalī (Kalī, the black goddess), with a ferocious face and a love for blood sacrifices, which is purely a terrifying god of death.
Ganesh, the son of Shiva and Parvati, is the lovely Ganesha, and the other son, Skanda, is the brave and righteous great and handsome god of war.
Saiganda is the Dharma protector of Buddhism: Weituo Bodhisattva. Wei Tuo Bodhisattva: Sanskrit name Skanda, Pali name KHANDA, also known as General Wei, General Wei Tian, was originally a Brahman god of war, with six heads and twelve arms, holding a bow and arrow, riding a peacock.
The belief of worshipping Weituo was first popular in South India, and spread to North India after the fifth century. It was attracted by Mahayana Buddhism as a patron saint. Wei Tuo was born intelligent, and he left the world early, and later converted to Buddhism and became a Dharma protector.
Legend has it that the Tang Dynasty lawyer Daoxuan had a meeting with the heavenly beings, and said that there was a general Wei under the Southern Heavenly King, so he felt that he appeared to protect the law, dressed in armor, standing with his palms folded, and his treasure pestle placed on his arm. Since then, statues of Weituo Bodhisattva with the body of a celestial general have been erected in Chinese dojos.
The name “Shiva” appeared in the Hindu era, and his prototype is generally considered to be Rudra, the god of storms in the Vedic era. Shiva, also translated as “Shiva”, means kindness, symbolizing “prosperity” and “auspiciousness”, and at the same time symbolizing “destruction”.
Buddhist texts call him the Great Freedom Heaven, who lives at the top of the realm of form and is the lord of the three thousand realms. There are eight incarnations of earth, water, fire, wind, sky, sun, moon, and sacrifice, with the power of destruction and regeneration.
The image of Shiva is one face, three eyes and four arms, which can easily observe every part of the world. Compared with the other gods in rich clothes, Shiva’s dress looks out of place. His face is dignified and handsome, his complexion is very light, he has long blue-black hair that is ascetic, the top of his head is decorated with the Ganges River and the crescent moon, and a chain of skull necklaces hangs around his neck; Armed with a trident and bow, he wandered among the ghostly graves. When he showed his horror, all beings in the universe trembled. Therefore, it is called “The Lord of Ghosts”.
In addition, Shiva has a more common image – Linga. Linga is the male genitalia and symbolizes regeneration.
According to legend, Shiva did not take the matter of creating the world with Brahma in his heart at first, and went to the bottom of the sea to practice alone. As a result, when he went to sea, he found that everything in the world was properly arranged. In a fit of anger, he cut off his genitals and threw them into the world. Since then, the Indians have worshipped Linga.
Although the name of the god of destruction sounds scary, Shiva is a multi-talented god – he is the ancestor of Indian dance, so he is also known as “the god of dance”. Shiva can dance one hundred and eight kinds of dances, which are divided into two types: the soft dance for women and the vigorous dance for men. He likes to dance in joy and sorrow, either alone or with his wife.
Usually Shiva dances in a circle of fire, with his hair flying upwards, one foot stepping on a dwarf representing ignorance, and the other leg and hand are twisted in the air, and the dance is graceful and gorgeous. Its right hand holds a drum, symbolizing life; the left palm holds a flame, symbolizing destruction.
So in the hands of Shiva the two elements of creation and destruction are mastered. The dance symbolizes both the glory of Shiva and the eternal movement of the universe, which is in motion to immortalize the universe. At the end of an old age, he would also complete the destruction of the world by dancing the Tandava dance and return it to the spirit of the universe.
As the god of destruction and destruction, Shiva naturally has the strongest fighting power among the gods. He practiced yoga assiduously all year round at Jibasa Peak in the Himalayas, and obtained the most profound knowledge and magical wisdom through the most rigorous ascetic practices and the most thorough contemplation. At the same time, he also has a formidable army, and all the soldiers are composed of terrifying demons.
And his third eye on his forehead is a weapon more terrifying than a nuclear bomb. This eye is usually closed, but once it is opened, it will spew out the fire of anger that destroys the sky and destroys the earth, destroying everything it sees, even the gods are not immune. The god of love who once seduced Shiva was burned to ashes by this eye.
Shiva is also full of self-sacrifice. When the goddess of the Ganges descended from the snow-capped heaven, Shiva, in order to prevent the water from overwhelming all living beings, personally took the water with his head and let the Ganges flow through his tresses for thousands of years, and then flowed back to the human world after buffering.
In addition, Shiva’s crotch is a white bull, and the trident in his hand is a symbol of lightning, which can drive the storm; the black bow and arrows on his back can spread the plague. The wrapped cobra can quickly rush to the enemy to feed poison. With these magical weapons, Shiva fought in all directions, slaughtered countless demons, and destroyed Asura’s Sanlian City.
Shiva is the deity that best embodies the complexity and duality of the Hindu gods . He has a dual character of good and evil, and his temperament is both irritable and irritable, but also gentle and kind; he accepts “human sacrifice” as a ferocious and terrifying “Lord of Demons”, and also accepts worship as a loving and enthusiastic “Lord of All”.
He is both a symbol of wisdom and an idol of ignorance, an avenger and a protector, an ideal man with vigorous energy, and an ascetic with few desires.
Launch Biao to catch whoever and destroy whoever, and his fury will make the whole universe tremble; he is gentle and emotional, and he gives generous favors to people. If I had to describe him in one sentence, it would be: absolutely strong and absolutely cool.
In addition to the above identities, Shiva also has many functions and avatars. He rules storms and lightning, bestows medicine and health; he is the god of beasts and beasts, representing fertility; host. As the most powerful main god in Hinduism, Shiva has an unparalleled noble status that surpasses the 333 million gods in Hinduism and overlooks all beings.
Shiva’s bizarre contradictory charm, no evil evil, deviant philosophy, arrogant and withdrawn personality, and the madness of betraying everything make him an important role in many literary and artistic works. He symbolizes the mysterious and violent force of nature, and his simple willful and unfathomable character has fascinated countless believers.
The Shiva followers of Hinduism regard him as the supreme god of the universe, and he is the most widely worshipped god among the people at the bottom of India.
