I believe that every myth has some profound logic to it. What we now know as religion was, in reality, a way of life in the olden days. Our ancient philosophers created the figure of God as an allegory of mankind. Every God in the Hindu religion, including the Shiva Lord, represents an aspect of human nature and the various Gods and Goddesses are the perfect forms of human beings themselves. If this was not the case, why would the Godheads house paradoxes within themselves, just like we humans do?
The Shiva Lord: The Supreme God
The various manifestations of the Shiva cult are emblematic of this fact. Shiva is the stoic ascetic as well as the loving husband, the destructive power and the creative energy, fierce and handsome, the serene yogi and the wrathful God – He is all in one.
The most popular form in which the Shiva God is worshiped is the Shivalingam, which symbolizes the male and female procreative potential, the lingam and the yoni. Life can be created only when the male and the female principle unite. This is the law of nature and the essence of what we worship.
The very figure of the Godhead is a metaphoric representation of the contradictions in mankind. Shiva’s unkempt hair is in indication of his asceticism. This contrasts with his role as the beloved of Parvati. The crescent moon indicates the changing seasons and the rejuvenation of life. This again contradicts with Shiva’s image as the destroyer.
Symbolic Characteristics of The Shiva Cult
Every feature of Shiva has a logical significance.
- The snake around the neck of the Shiva Lord symbolizes the Hindu concept of reincarnation. Their natural process of shedding skin is symbolic of the transmigration of human souls from one life to another.
- The triangular upward and downward representation of the damru also stands for creative capacity. The creation of the world begins when the lingam and the yoni meet at the mid-point of the damru.
Myths educate us on the realities of existence and the ways of being in amity with our natural surroundings. Deities in the ancient Hindu mythology, such as the Shiva Lord, encapsulates the logic of life and living. They constitute a religion not of Gods but of humanity. Religion is not about blind worship. It is about understanding the significance of God and inculcating their essence.
I have always thought that Poor Shiva got stuck with the ‘destroyer’ title just because some one wanted to use the antonym of ‘creator’ for him. The trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva thus gets completed with Vishnu taking on the role of the ‘preserver’. But then we start seeing the contradictions like above in the symbols that our friend Shiva surrounds himself with – is he symbolizing ‘destruction’ or ‘creation’?
My personal take on it – neither of the above!
I think the trinity was meant to symbolize ‘create’ ‘preserve’ and ‘change’ – the original meaning probably got lost in translation
Now when you see him as symbolizing ‘change’ the symbolic contradictions start going away….
Also when you bring it back to the human world and revisit phases of your life you would be able to see patterns which were more one than the other. I can personally see the shift from the ‘create’ some six years ago to ‘preserve’ for a long time after the beginning of my entrepreneurial journey to ‘change’ for the last six months!
Some times you see them together in yourself and some times one dominates a little more than the other…
So, you mean Energy is Trinity?
Neither created, Nor destroyed… only changing its form
Beautifully written, Debolena. The way you have brought out the opposite sides of a pole residing within the same person (or should I say God) really made me think. I have always loved Shiva because to me he is the most enigmatic, sexy individual one can ever think of – with raw passion and strong reactions to things he believes in or holds dear. After reading your post, I have also begun to look up to Him.
Fantastic post, Debolena. Refreshing inputs from Piyush.
@Romila: You’ve got me thinking about Lord Shiva in a totally different direction now:)