by C.V.Rajan

Created on: August 23, 2008

Hinduism has multiple facets, multiple schools of philosophies and multiple god forms for worship but all ultimately leading to one highest truth. Hinduism recognizes the fact that different people have different tastes, temperaments and capacity of intake in the matter of religion. Hence it offers 'different strokes for different folks'. Hindu Gods can be understood better only if the above fundamental fact is clearly assimilated.

In Hinduism, the omnipresent and the omnipotent God is only one, known as Brahman, Paramatman or Satchidananda. When this surpreme force engages in the activities of creation, protection and destruction of the universe, it is eulogized as having three different forms : Lord Brahma, the creator; Lord Vishnu, the protector and Lord Shiva the destructor. These 3 are male Gods.

SHIVA, THE DESTRUCTOR:

Everything in the universe is subject to birth/evolution, growth, decay and finally destruction and these keep repeating in cycles. The destruction too is part of divine play and the Lord Shiva is the one attributed to be behind it.
Lord Shiva is associated with the profoundest religious knowledge Gnyana. Worship of Siva as the prime deity is very widely prevalent in India.

Worshippers of Siva are known as Saivaites. Shiva is a God with the color of flame, wears a tiger skin, has a snake adoring his neck like a necklace, has smeared his body with the ash from the pyre of dead bodies, and he carries a TriSul (3 pronged weapon). The holy river Ganges flows from his head.
Shiva's abode is the Mount Kailash at Himalayas.

Shiva's divine consort is Shakti (also known as Parvati, Maya, Kali, Jagadamba and so on). She occupies the left-half body of Siva. Shiva and Shakti are like Matter and Energy. Shiva is the unfathomable, all pervading, passive representation of God while Shakti is associated with the prime ordinal power without which no activity can ever take place. Shiva and Shakthi in a way are like matter and energy. Mythologies say that Lord Shiva has given half of his body to his consort Shakti and she occupies the left half of Shiva's body. Shiva in this form is called "Ardhanariswara" - half-woman god.

The Ardhanariswara form is the figurative way of stating the fact that the formless, attribute-less and the passive aspect of God and the active, vibrant and energetic part of God are in reality one and the same.

In generic terms, when the nameless and formless infinite aspect of God gets manifest with a name and form for ease of worship to the

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