Shiva, God of Destruction

 

Shiva, God of Destruction

 

Agudengba took his donkey Mahu to the river to drink water. He unexpectedly encountered a donkey pack team taking a rest by the river.

The old donkey who led the team began to let his followers unload the goods from the donkey's back, while he walked to Agudengba who was passing by and said hello.

Old Donkey: "Ah, Mr. Agudemba, do you still remember me? We met in the snowy meadow."

Agudemba smiled: "Remember, remember. Is your old gray donkey still there?"

The old donkey said: "Wow, originally I planned to send the old gray donkey to the market for sale after the transportation was over, because he was too old. That was also the last work of our donkey team. Unexpectedly, There was a storm on the way, and the group of donkeys transporting goods was dispersed by the storm. Only the old gray donkey quietly guarded me, using his body to resist the wind and snow for me. The old gray donkey is my great benefactor. "

The old donkey said to Agudengba: "The old gray donkey not only saved me from the storm, but also used his call to call back the lost donkeys in the donkey team."

Donkey Mahu went to visit the old gray donkey who was weak to reminisce about old times. The donkeys were all drinking water by the river.

The old donkey said to Agudumba: "Do you know the story of Shiva? I was out of danger that time, and I had to thank Lord Shiva for his kindness."

The old donkey said that when I came to India from the snowy land, I was stunned by the legends here. In the minds of Indians, Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva are the three main gods in the Hindu "Trinity". In the Shiva tradition, Shiva is the supreme god who creates, protects and transforms the universe. Because Shiva has dual personalities of reproduction and destruction, creation and destruction, he is also rarely the god of destruction. Hinduism believes that "destruction" has the meaning of "regeneration", so the linga that expresses reproductive ability is a symbol of his creativity, and the linga is the male root. He is usually worshiped in the symbolic form of a Linga. In the goddess-oriented Sakta tradition, the Supreme Goddess is energy and creative force and is considered the equal and complementary partner of Shiva.

Shiva was born from the skin of the forehead of Brahma, the creator god of India. According to legend, Shiva was a god created by Brahma after gathering the wrath of all the gods.

The old donkey said to Agudemba: Indians describe Shiva as a fair-skinned man with five faces and four arms. Under his messy hair, there is a third eye in the center of his forehead, also known as the Wisdom Eye, which is a powerful weapon. Normally, this eye appears in a closed state. Once this eye is opened, the world will return to its prehistoric state. This eye can shoot fire and burn everything. It can also be said to be the Eye of Destruction. At the end of the cosmic period, all gods, humans and animals will be destroyed by his gaze.

When the gods and asuras were churning the ocean of milk, Shiva swallowed poison that could destroy the world, and his neck was burned black, so he was also known as the green neck. In addition to his blue throat, Shiva's blue appearance is the blue color produced by the burning of blue flames exposed to high temperatures.

Once, Shiva transformed into a dervish and went to the forest. The wives of the immortals there were all moved with emotion when they saw his handsome appearance. The immortals were very angry when they found out. They dug a big pit and then used magic to lure a tiger out of the pit. Shiva subdued it and peeled off the tiger skin to wear as clothes. The immortals sent poisonous snakes and antelopes to attack Shiva. Shiva wrapped the snake around his neck as a collar and held the antelope tightly in his hands. The immortals made another red-hot iron block and threw it at him, but he caught it again. Shiva's shawl was obtained from a domineering Asura. At the request of gods and immortals, he slayed this monster and peeled off his elephant skin to use as a shawl. From then on, Shiva spent most of his time covered in dust, animal skins, and scattered.

Shiva wears animal skins and is smeared with ashes. He sits on a tiger skin and holds an antelope in his hand. He is always accompanied by a large white bull named Nandi.

The long hair on Shiva's head is braided into a high crown, and the hair is coiled into a horn shape. It is decorated with a crescent moon and a symbol of the flowing Ganges River. It is said that the Ganges surrounds Brahma's city on Mount Meru in the Himalayas and rushes down from the mountains. In order to catch the violent torrent, Shiva stood under the river and let the river flow through his tied hair, and then divided into seven strands. These seven strands of river water slowly flowed into the world and became the seven rivers in India. holy river. His neck is decorated with Vasuki, the cobra king. Also jewelry or skulls.

During the time when the gods were churning the sea of milk, he swallowed poison in order to save living beings and turned himself into a green neck. At the same time, he also made a significant contribution to the world.

The old donkey said to Agudengba: There are various legends about the origin of Shiva's weapons.

To show his power, Shiva holds a trident, axe, or antelope horn. The trident called "Binaka" is a symbol of lightning, marking Shiva as the god of storms and lightning; he also holds a sword and a bow called "Ajagawa" and a stick with a skull on the bottom. His other weapons are three snakes that wrap around his body and rush towards his enemies at great speed.

When Shiva is angry, he will hurt people, animals and plants with thunderbolts. Shiva likes to prepare his own black bow and arrows and hunt and wander in the mountains and forests. His bow is a terrible weapon that condenses disease and death into the weapon. According to legend, anyone who is hit by the arrows shot by this bow will be either sick or dead. He can control the beasts in the mountains and forests at will, so Shiva also has another title: Beast Master.

Agudemba said to the old donkey-talking man: Since Shiva is so violent and cruel, why does he show mercy to you?

The old donkey said: Although Shiva is armed with weapons such as bows and arrows, he has dual personalities of good and evil. He can use thousands of herbs to treat diseases of humans and animals. As the owner of the animals, when he saw the donkeys being attacked by the wind and snow, he couldn't bear it. , and stopped his violence. Maybe that's not pity for me, but at least it means that he is hiding from the donkeys.

The old donkey sang a hymn to Shiva:

 

Shiva, our great God,

You like to live in the wilderness,

You dwell in caves and on mountain tops,

That's where your meditation comes from.

 

You often visit cremation sites,

The piles of bones that have not yet been melted away,

You punish jackals for gathering and snatching food,

You destroy life-seeking ghosts and demons.

 

You are naked and covered with dirt,

You are the contemplative ascetic god,

You have great power to conquer demons,

You are the God we worship with all our faith.