SHIVA, MAHADEVA-HE WHO CONSUMES EVEN POISON FOR THE WELFARE OF ALL

 

One story from Shiva's life never fails to amaze me. It was at the time of the Samudra manthan- An attempt to churn the Ocean and literally milk its waters for great celestial gifts, to be topped by attaining Amrita, a nectar of the gods which guaranteed immortality.This was one time in cosmic history when the timeless rivals devatas and danavas teamed up to undertake the task jointly; the desire of every being to live on endlessly, got them together.

But just before the Amrita was to surface, there was a tremendous oozing out of Halahal Visha, a deadly poison. Quite like the modern oil spills that we get to see today caused by big commercial ships, endangering the lives of the Ocean creatures. And therefore, in accordance with the laws of the sea, this deadly spill had to be cleared first.

Now this was a huge problem, the devatas and danavas shuddered at the thought of death when they had actually come for immortality! No one wanted to consume their portion.

Shiva stepped forward and drank up the Visha.
All of it.

This is how much He cared for all beings. It is a different story that the devatas decamped with all the Amrita, cheating the danavas out of their share- leading to a cosmic conflict that persists till today. Perhaps Shakti (Mother Nature ) is nearer now to resolve this in Her own way, but regardless of what happens, the pure intent of Shiva should remain etched in the soul of both teams, don't you think ?
Aum Namah Shivaye.

~ Shail Gulhati is a Shaivite author based in Jammu, India.
He has written the following books:
SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller.
The Yogi and the snake
Shiva Poetry
NAAM ROOP- A Tribute to the Divine
And Life Said.

THE MOST BELOVED KING

 

THE MOST BELOVED KING

Those who surrounded Him were more like merry men rather than subjects. They were more like ‘brothers in arms,’ a happy bunch of gypsy people who were rumored to be fierce like brigands and impetuous as hobgoblins.” Suta’s eyes gleamed as if he saw the whole scene of Shiva’s forests being played out right in front of him.

~ SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller.

SHIVA WORSHIPS THE SHIVALINGA

 

This depiction of Shiva worshipping the Shivalinga , is a favourite Shaivic imagery. It full of spiritual meaning.

Why does Shivji sit behind His own Shivalinga in prayer?

Because, in the simplest words: He is committed to His own creation. He, is His own first votary.

If you compare this to a modern day analogy, where during an election, the contender for  'Head of state'  also goes to caste his vote, we note that he is up early, one of the first to caste his own ballot selection! But this comparison, i give only to make you understand that a good leader believes in what he stands for, he signs up for the teachings and vision he himself gives us.

The difference is that in Divinity, there is no election, no selection,and no contest. But a seeker must respect the Divine ideal he seeks, and this can only happen if the Divine itself upholds its foundations! So too, Shivji respects what His own Shaivism stands for, He is the first adherent, the first to vouch for the Shiva way,
and we understand that He is His own first votary. He believes in His own manifesto, and stands by His principles.He leads by example and from the front.

But of course, the analogy ends here, you cannot be " Voted" God !

And although i truly loved reading them, I do not personally subscribe to some stories theorising that Shiva was a man , raised to the level of God by his feats and followers. Rather, my work is based on the understanding that Shiva was always God, but endearingly Human, lovable like a good man in our midst!

And this understanding is based on the notings of the ancient Rishis; They said a surprising thing in the Vedanta and Upanishads:
You cannot Become God, You are always that!

What did they mean by this?

Their teaching was expanded for us by the Rishis of Kashmir in their Shaiv Darshan.They explained that sometimes, God makes Himself forget that He is God, just before he descends to earth. This paves the way for play- Lila.

So once God ( Shiva) comes to earth as another jiva, he undergoes the same world and stages as everyone else, the same joys and sorrows, and finally he begins to question if there is a creator to all this. God looks for God! The Nath Sampradaya states:

Shiva seems to play the lila of losing Himself, then looking for Himself , and finally finding Himself out. According to them, God finds His own true nature when He is in deep Dhyana, Samadhi ; and it is that great realisation which the great Adi shankara termed as Chidanand roopam shivoham. It is also called Satchitananda or Satyam Shivam Sundaram.

We note also, that ultimately we are all seekers of the same truth and helped by Gurus and saints who have journeyed before us.

When He comes on the same journey, In this lovely Lila, God is also helped by His own Rishis as Gurus.

The teacher becomes the taught! This is not difficult to understand, rather, this is the real beauty of God's Lila and love. That is why you have examples of Ramji being taught by Rishi Vashisht, Krishnji being taught by Guru Sandeepan: So that they may remain centered in their Godhood.

Incidentally, the term Yoga, means " To conjoin with the Divine" and Shivji is also called Yogeshwar, the God of the Yogis, which title further simplifies the point that Shivji is always centered in His Supreme God consciousness.Always meditating for the welfare of the Universe. And we note how beautifully the Shivalinga is meant to represent the whole manifest world.

Aum Shiv Shakti Namah.
~ Shail gulhati author of the books :

SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller. The Yogi and the snake Shiva Poetry
NAAM ROOP- A Tribute to the Divine
And Life Said.

SHIVA, AGHORNATH.

 

This extraordinary statue shows Shiva in a completely different poise from the one's His bhaktas are used to. Shiva is absolutely distraught and broken, He is shedding tears unabashedly.How could this ever happen?

And the only logical answer is that it was probably a time between Sati and Parvati.
That Lord Shiva became a recluse when Sati died, is well recorded in His legend. It is said that He held onto Sati’s body for the longest time, in the greatest Moha, till Vishnu cut it up with his Sudershan Chakra into 51 pieces that fell on different parts of the earth, resulting in the great Shaktipeeths ( Places of Shakti worship).
When Sati died, Shiva is said to have abandoned Kailash and virtually disappear into hiding and oblivion. This appearance of not caring for his own self made Him unrecognizable.He is even legended to have wept in Shiva temples at the images of Shiva and Sati's love; Unrecognized,He kept on visiting their own places of worship in remembrance.

Shiva lost all interest in the world- His own world without Sati was finished. It is at times like this, when everything you loved is suddenly gone, that you come to your deepest questionings about life. Shiva, who was the mightiest God, the creator of the entire Universe, was stunned at the loss of Sati, His beloved, and this must have been the greatest introspection for Him. It is very possible that Aghora practices were done by Him during this time, and thus the appearance.

A complete withdrawal from the Universe of the outside, and the deep dive into the Inner Being, propelled by a great sadness. Surprisingly it is the word Ghor which means ‘terrible’ and the word Aghor, means a negation of terrible. So Aghora means that, which can finish the terrible (situation or state of being) . Shiva possibly learnt the maximum about His own spiritual power and Self during the Aghora meditations and practices. He probably came to all the answers as to why He could not avoid Sati's death even though He was Himself the greatest God. He probably excelled in His own dhyana, learnt much more than was ever deemed possible for even the God's to contemplate..and then, He continued his journey, and passing through the enchanted forest of Cedar Trees, called Daruvana, He settled in an unknown part of the Himalayas and meditated for ages before Sati manifested herself again as Parvati.

Once He was back to His Ganas and followers in his own habitat, again, it is very likely that Shiva, who was a great Guru, taught his greatest and latest techniques, learned at this time, to a select few which made the Aghora sect. The most spiritually powerful, but also most terrifying Ganas of Kailash. Therefore, Aghoras were the foremost shamans to whom absolutely nothing mattered other than proximity to their chief, Shiva, at all times.

Over time, perhaps due to their appearance, the word Aghor got identified only with terrible things, people who could not fathom the deep inner practice that led to an unkempt outward presence, actually started thinking of the Aghors as Ogres. And this perhaps suited the original, and indeed spiritually superb Ganas of Shiva, who actually wanted to be left alone in their privacy of meditating and diving deep into their own Self.

It is only because with the passage of time, we tend to copy outward ritual and forget the inner meaning, perhaps the newer Aghoris , as also their critics may have begun to think that unconventional habits are the right practice of Aghoris. And this has lead to all the fear and suspicion about Aghorism. But this surely cannot be the original abandoning spirit that Shiva Himself underwent, it is only the outer shell. The real fruit of meditation , is always on the inside, which is the original intent of Shiva, The Adi Guru.
Aum Namah Shivaye.
From Shail Gulhati, Author of the books:

SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller.
The Yogi and the snake
Shiva Poetry
NAAM ROOP- A Tribute to the Divine
And Life Said.

SHIV GANAS AND ASURAS...

 

SHIV GANAS AND ASURAS...

Shiva had this generous habit: He gifted His attendants, the powers to be almost Shiva themselves. Gorakh Nath, Balak Nath and Shamshan Nath were just a few of the people, who, if they wanted, could conjure all three worlds from their magic bags.

These chosen ones were the ganas. And that was the difference, which never allowed them to become like Asuras: The training from Shiva about one’s own divinity.

~ SHIVA, The Ultimate Time Traveller.

WHO HITCHED A RIDE

 

WHO HITCHED A RIDE

Ah ,the effervescent delight of Knowing God,

as the constant companion who hitched a ride,

in your own soul, just by the side!

~ From the book' And life said' by Shail Gulhati

THE RIDER OF A TIMELESS TIME.

 

THE RIDER OF A TIMELESS TIME.

He is the Rider

of a timeless time.

the knower He is ,

of the uknown sign

The dancer of the Universe

at the start of it all

He is the poet and writer of the whole

His single poem is the making of the world.

He is the keeper of our breath

in this whirlwind space we call life.

He is Shiva the lord, Mahadev.

the ONE we love

The great God, Shiv,

"What is below?: He says, "What indeed Above?"

"You are all my own" , whispers softly

the down to earth ruler of the sky

Aum Namah Shivaye!

~ From 'Shiva poetry' by Shail Gulhati: Shiva and Mysticism.