SHIVA, AGHORNATH.

SHIVA, AGHORNATH.

That Lord Shiva became a recluse when Sati died, is well recorded in His mythology. 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).
This beautiful statue shows Shiva’s unabashed tears , it is Probably a time between Sati and parvati.
He is said to have abandoned Kailash and virtually disappeared into Oblivion. This appearance of not caring for his own self made him unrecognizable. He is even legended to have wept in Shiva temples, unrecognized, 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 continued his journey, and then, Passing Through the enchanted forest of Cedars, 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 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 Lord 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 wanted to be left alone in their privacy of actually 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 lead to 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 Shivaya!


Shail Gulhati: Shiva and Mysticism.