40 Enlightening Facts About Shiva, the Hindu God

20. Shiva’s Dances Destroy and Recreate the Universe

The Tandav is a cosmic dance of death that destroys the universe, which Shiva performs at the end of each age. Originally Rudra performed a tandav, which was violent, but Shiva’s is depicted as rigorous and joyful. Parvati responds with a dance known as the laysa. After the present universe is destroyed, Shiva recreates it. In addition to cosmic destruction, the tandav also represents the cyclical nature of birth, death, and rebirth.

19. Parvati is an Incarnation of Shiva’s Lost Wife, Sati

According to Hindu legend, Shiva was married to Sati, also an avatar of Devi, against the wishes of her father. One day her father held a prayer ceremony, to which he invited all of the gods except for Shiva. Out of anger at her father’s rejection of her husband, Sati jumped onto the fire burning at the ceremony. Shiva was overwhelmed with grief until she was reincarnated as Parvati.

18. The Hindu Practice of Sati Derives From Sati’s Legend

Sati is a practice in which a widowed woman is expected to cast herself onto the funeral pyre of her deceased husband, thereby dying alongside him. She symbolically dies of grief, just like Sati in the legend. The practice probably derives from the story of Sati, Shiva’s previous wife. It is now outlawed, but there are still accounts of sati happening, particularly in more remote villages.

17. The Ganges River Flowers Through Shiva’s Hair

The Mahabharata and Ramayana tell of a sage whose deep meditation is disturbed by the 60,000 sons of King Sagara. In his anger, he reduces all of them to ash with his fiery gaze and banishes them to the netherworld. One of the descendants of these sons is anxious to bring them back, so he calls on the goddess Ganga to come to earth and restore them. Because the fall from her home on the Milky Way would shatter the planet, she broke her fall in the tangled knots of Shiva’s matted hair.

16. Worship of Shiva is Known as Shaivism

The majority of Hindus see Brahma as the supreme god, Vishnu as a lesser god, and Shiva as third in the triumvirate. However, some devotees of Shiva, known as Shaivists, see him as the supreme god. Aside from Shaivism being in itself an example of the diversity within Hinduism, there exist Shaivism numerous different sects and beliefs.

15. Shaivism Has Merged With Buddhism in Some Places

On the Indonesian island of Java, before the arrival of Islam, people viewed Buddhism and Shaivism as distinct but very close religions. By the Medieval era, devotees regarded Buddha and Shiva as the same god, along with Vishnu. Today on Bali, a predominantly Hindu island in Indonesia, the faithful believe that Shiva is the younger brother of Buddha. In pre-Islamic Iran, the Zoroastrian wind god had an appearance that strongly resembled that of Shiva.

14. Some Devotees View Him as a Guru

In Hindu thought, a guru is more than a gifted teacher; he or she is someone who is a master of wisdom who dispels darkness and can point people towards the light. Many Indonesian Hindus refer to Shiva as “Batara Guru,” meaning “noble guru.” As another example of how the Shiva figure is an amalgamation of other deities, Batara Guru has special characteristics in addition to those that he has in India.

13. Shiva is Also Found in Shinto Belief

Shintoism, along with Buddhism, is one of the major religions of Japan; in fact, many Japanese people are both Buddhist and Shinto, either simultaneously or at different parts of their lives. One of the Shinto gods is known as Okuninushi, who rules the unseen world of magic and spirits. The Buddhist version of Shiva merged with Okuninushi to create the god Daikokuten, the god of wealth and the household.

12. He Lives on Mount Kailasa

Mount Kailasa, also known as Mount Kailash, is in the Tibetan region of the Himalayas. Hindus believe that it is the home of the gods, similar to Mount Olympus in Greek mythology. The Karnali River, which flows into the Ganges, originates on Mount Kailasa. On top of the mountain, Shiva and Parvati reside in a state of perpetual meditation.

11. Shiva’s Sacred Number is Five

Hindus believe that Shiva’s body is composed of five different mantras, the most important of which has five syllables. These mantras each form one of Shiva’s five faces and are associated with the five perceptual organs, the five senses, and the five action organs. Additionally, some Hindu theologians view him as one aspect of the fivefold nature of Brahma.

10. His Festival Occurs Every Month

Every lunar month, from the 13th night into the 14th day, is a festival dedicated to Shiva known as Shivaratri. “Shivaratri” literally means “night of Shiva,” and the festival falls on the darkest night of the lunar calendar to honor the destruction and recreation that Shiva brings. The faithful commemorate the night by chanting mantras, visiting temples, and performing rituals known as pujas.

9. His Most Important Festival Occurs in Winter

Maha Shivaratri, which occurs in February or March (depending on the lunar calendar), celebrates the marriage of Shiva and Parvati. “Maha Shivaratri” means “the great night of Shiva.” Rather than engaging in hedonistic celebrations, faithful devotees stay awake the entire night praying, trying to purify themselves, and meditating. The goal is to overcome darkness and find inner light through Shiva.

8. A Statue of Shiva is at CERN

CERN, located in Geneva, is home to the most expensive science project in history, the Large Hadron Collider. In 2004, the Indian government gifted the institution with a Nataraja statue of Shiva dancing the Tandava dance in a ring of fire. The figure is seen as symbolic of the union between modern physics, ancient mythology, and religious art, all of which converge at CERN.

7. Shiva is Often Worshiped Alongside Shakti

Shakti is a goddess who represents the cosmic energy that moves through the entire universe. Hindus often view her as the “Great Divine Mother” and see her as the personification of feminine energy. Shakti sects worship her as the supreme being, while others view her as the divine energy that flows through Shiva and as Parvati herself. Some see Parvati as one of Shakti’s avatars.

6. Shiva is Sometimes Depicted With Many Arms

Shiva is frequently shown with only two arms, but he is sometimes depicted as having four, sometimes even more. The four limbs are believed to represent each of the cardinal directions: north, south, east, and west. Further, each of his upper two hands holds something symbolic. The upper right hand holds an hourglass drum to represent the beating rhythm of the cosmos, and the upper left hand hold fire.

5. Shiva Has Both Male and Female Features

Images of Shiva usually show him to have an androgynous, if not feminine, appearance, yet he is a male god. Sometimes, he is actually pictured as being split down the middle, one half being the male god Shiva, the other half being his wife, Parvati. While earlier beliefs about Shiva saw him as a rough-and-tumble he-man, Hindus now see him as neither male nor female. In fact, many Hindu gods are androgynous and neither classified as male nor female.

4. One of His Sons is Ganesha

The elephant-headed Ganesha is the Hindu god of success and destroyer of evil. As his father, Shiva, is the destroyer and creator, Ganesha is the god of beginnings and is often revered at ceremonies that commemorate something new. Though not generally considered as necessary as Shiva, Ganesha is one of the most widely worshiped gods of the entire Hindu pantheon. He probably emerged around the second century CE, a few hundred years after Shiva came to be viewed as a god.

3. Another of His Sons is Kartikeya

Like his brother Ganesha, Kartikeya is a destroyer of evil. He is also the god of war and victory. Surprisingly, Kartikeya appears in Hindu thought during the Vedic period, much earlier than Shiva even became a distinct figure. He rides on a peacock or rooster and carries a slew of weapons that he uses to conquer his enemies. He figures prominently throughout South Asia, particularly in Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Indonesia, and even as far as South Africa and Mauritius.

2. Shiva’s Daughter is Ashoka Sundari

Ashoka Sundari is less significant in Hinduism than Shiva, Parvati, Ganesha, or Kartikeya. According to Hindu legend, Parvati asked Shiva to take her to the most beautiful garden in the world. A tree in the garden could fulfill any wish; since both of her sons were grown, and she was now lonely, she asked for a daughter. The tree fulfilled her wish, and she gave birth to Ashoka Sundari. Her story is told in the Padma Purana.

1. People All Around the World Worship Him

Although Shiva is inextricably linked to Hinduism, people worship him far outside of India’s borders. Faithful devotees to Shiva can be found in large communities in Sri Lanka, throughout South Asia and into Indonesia, in Japan, and as far-flung as South Africa – even Guyana in South America. With mass immigration in the modern age, large Shaivistic communities are cropping up in countries like the United States and the United Kingdom. The qualities associated with him will probably continue to evolve as people across more considerable distances pay homage to him.

Where did we find this stuff? Here are our sources:

The Art of Living – Who is Shiva

Hindu Website – Ten Reasons Why You Should Worship Shiva

India Economic Times – Is Shiva The Corporate Destroyer Or Kalki?

Times Now News – Know why Lord Shiva is worshiped on Mondays

Daily Opinion – Why Śiva is the most mysterious of all Hindu gods

Syracuse University – The Ramayana: A Telling Of the Ancient Indian Epic

Dolls of India – Sita – The Silent Pillar of Strength in Ramayana

Daily Opinion – When Did Events Of Ramayana And Mahabharata Actually Occur?

Dolls of India – Kali the Goddess: Gentle Mother, Fierce Warrior

Times Now News – What Is Tandava And What Is Its Significance?

The Economic Times – Shiva and Sati: The Tale

Japan Wonder Travel Blog – An Overview of Shintoism and Buddhism in Japan – Differences and History

Verdict Feed – 10 Interesting facts about Lord Kartikeya – Lord Murugan

Verdict Feed – Ashok Sundari – Daughter of Shiva and Parvati