shiva card interepretation 21 to 33

 shiva card 21

'This picture speaks a thousand words', and truly this beautiful picture from the net shows so many things in one go.

Parvati is fixing Shiva's crown with love, He has left Himself completely in Her hands to do whatever She feels best. This, is unconditional love being answered by unconditional trust. If this is the way God can give Himself to His beloved's care, it is a sure pointer to the bhaktas too : How to 'surrender' yourself to God.

Also, as we all know that Shiva usually doesn't wear a crown,

so this must be an occasion of public importance.

Therefore, it matters to Parvati how she want the Shiva's 'appearance' when He is to address someone in his capacity of a ruler, A King.

However Shiva may dress or leave His hair down when He is relaxing in His forests and mountains,with His Ganas, when it comes to Kingship, tv of His informal interactions and endearingly human ways.

Aum Namah Shivaye.

 

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SHAKTI MA

A fabulous portrayal of Shakti Ashtabhuja ( with eight arms ) as Ma Kaali, the dark one.

And what is the symbolic meaning of darkness? It is not evil or danger or scare, but rather , "The unknown".

We do not know the Mother Shakti well enough, Her mysteries are like a dark sky which can cover the moon and stars even though they exist. Similarly Her own Maya covers her own mysteries and power, this is what Kaali's colour means to me.

While we all know that the sword and Trisula in her right hands are weapons of subduing demons or demonic qualities in men, The Shankh ( conch ) sounds the pulse of the living creation, and her palm contains the holy symbol ॐ

But it is what she holds in her left limbs that is of great interest to the rishis of Kashmir shaivism.

The upper bowl denotes that she nourishes the whole world, she fills our bowls with food.The next is a prayer wheel instrument.The lower two hands hold an hour glass and a rope.The hour glass is a time device from which the sand is slipping away, and so too the life cycle is ending in one hemisphere and collecting in another. It is the Mother who can flip this hour glass and begin life all over again, even if it is ended.

The rope is perhaps the most important attribute. This is called "Pasa" the binder. And the rishis say that there are three identities: Pati, pasu and pasa. They add that all jivas

( humans) come from Shiva, but are no better than a pasu

( animal ) bound by an ignorance of their own connection to Shiva.It is only the Divine mother Shakti, who can loosen this binding rope of ignorance freeing us to go back to our Shiva origin, once again. And that is actually the purpose of our human existence:

To be united with Shiva.

Aum, Namah Shivaye. Ja Ma Kaali.

 

 shiva card 23 

GUISE OR DISGUISE

“ Gurudeva, is it possible to meet Shiva?” asked Shaunaka excitedly.

“Of course it is! But you never know when. Shiva chooses His own time to surprise. But if you want to meet Him, you must always be ready, anyone who wants to see Him must always be alert.”

“Why is that, Gurudeva?”

“Hahaha! Because Shiva, amongst other things, likes disguises. And His best guise is humility. With all that He is, His utter humility can make you not recognise Him, even if He came face to face.”

“So is it true that He wears a snake around His neck? He is called Bhujgendrahaaram, isn’t He?”

“Yes,” said the old Sage. “He is known to wear a snake around His neck, but like I told you, He is the master of guises. And to discard one of your own attributes, is an excellent way to go unnoticed.He may come to you in a form you do not expect and therefore you may not know it is Him! Think about it.” Replied rishi Suta.

 

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THE FLIGHT OF THE ALONE TO THE ALONE

There is something soul stirring about the awesome depictions of Shiva seated alone atop His mountain in samadhi.

Have you heard a spiritual expression' The flight of the alone to the alone'.?

This is indicative of the ecstasy that one gets when in a deep self repose, in dhyana, meditation.

He is the timeless meditator, timelessly in flight.

Is He alone? This is the important spiritual question.

What about the ganas, the denizens of his forests, Nandi and Narada and all his other friends? and of course Devi Parvati.

They do exist. And they are as real as Shiva. But when Shiva is in deep dhyana, He realises that all beings, all creation has come from the same source consciousness.

Therefore, 'Alone' here means 'ONE'

and we call that Shiva Tattva.

In His flight Shiva realises that all He loves is enfolded in His own bosom for ever, and ever.

 

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YOGA IS NOT ABOUT THE BODY, YOGA IS ABOUT DISCOVERING YOUR SOUL

“So do you get all these deep wisdoms in your Yoga abhyasa? I’ve been seeing you do all sorts of postures; Asanas as you call them.”Asked Sati one day.

“Yoga asana is only a seat for the great flight to the self. meditation can be as synergized, as natural as my rides on Nandi. Or as tumultuous, with the energy of an untamed beast of the natural order. All of Nature’s things are like that. You need to be completely at oneness with them before you even start to mount the ride. Else you will just be overturned, which too is an important part in the process of learning, Sati,” replied Shiva.

“It’s simple,” He continued, “Yoga is not about your body. Yoga is about discovering your soul.”

 

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A beautiful painting of Shiva and Parvati viewing the world they have created. Parvati seems to be gazing directly onto the land below, directly at the living beings who may be dwelling there. Shiva, on the other hand, is looking at the horizon, as if He is thinking of the future.This is the nature of parents, a mother looks to her children's needs of the moment, every moment. A father looks ahead, trying to plan a future for them.

In a way, both are looking into their own world, Parvati a provider, and Shiva a visionary. But we must note that this is not accomplished by any one of them alone: And as they show a perfect repose and sync with each other, we realise that such indeed is the play of light and energy, of thought and action, poetry and art, of Shiva and Shakti. Such is the nature of the Divine jugabandi, where Shakti like a cosmic artist , paints out on the canvas of the world, whatever Shiva sings out in His poetic vision.

 

 

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MIND YOUR STEP, MAKE YOUR OWN CONNECT.

This whole Universe is a dance of Shiva and Shakti.

They are the creators of the world, and then they dance a motion , a rhythm for it. This dance is what we see and feel as events, both good and bad, light and dark. We feel it as emotion, both happy and sad, we feel it as the very pulse of life itself, the heart beat of the movement of all things.

But why would Shivji and Ma Parvati ever design a dance that has negative and painful movements and emotions?

The answer is that God wants only joy, Ananda, He has not at all envisioned a negativity or sadness in His world; But He does give us a free will for a long time. He allows us to find our own movement with our own acts in the dance of the Universe.

Today, we have collectively achieved a lot as mankind. We can fly in the air as birds in our jet planes, we can swim across the seas in our ships, and also we are easily the most powerful and secure beings out of all animals on land with our houses and constructions.

But we have caused a massive imbalance in the Eco- system or the provision that Ma Parvati made for all beings as a mother: We have taken away the share of other animals and also other weaker human beings who are not in a position of power and money.

We have therefore spoiled the rhythm of the great dance.This is because while we think that collectively we have gained a lot in the outside world, with our knowledge and technology, we have individually not been able to investigate deep into our own Divinity.

The connection of each person with God is an individual one and it therefore requires an individual effort.

The communication with God is not like a cell phone company or service provider which will ensure towers for everyone, but the old fashioned love and devotion , Dhyana and Chintan by each one for God in his heart- this is the way it has been and will always be- we all have to make our own effort for our beloved Shivji, we all have to join the dance with a loving heart and good intent. In this great cosmic dance , we all have to mind our step and make our own connect. And then Shivji and Ma will grace us with their blessings.

 

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TEACHERS DAY: Tribute to Adi Guru Shiva!!!

Lord shiva has many names, many epithets, each of which sheds some light on His great Attributes.

So He is Yogeshwar-King of yogis, Aushadhi eshwar-King of prescriptions and herbs, Asutosa-easily pleased, Neelkantha- the blue throated one, Bhujgendrahaaram-one who wears snakes, Chandrasekhar- one who wears the moon, Shailendra-King of mountains and so on.

As Shiva Dakshinmurty, He is the primordial teacher , Adi Guru.

This is a fascinating aspect of Him. And one that is very important: The Primal God Himself teaches what He is, what Divinity is and how to go about our own Self Re discovery.

The Great school of spirituality, Kashmir shaivism says "Sam Karoti, iti Samkara" He who shows you Shiva, is, verily Shiva Himself. Although this adage is for the Inner Shiva, i feel it fits so well on Shiva Dakshinmurty.

Dakshinmurty itself means One who sat facing south and taught spirituality without charging a fee.

In this very beautiful picture of Shivji teaching in the mountains , the message remains the same: Shiva is the giver of Atma Gyan.He is the primordial teacher even from the forest dwellings. It may interest you to know that one of the major Upanishads is called Brihadaranayaka, meaning teachings of the old forest!

Now, Parvati is actually Durga, Devi, the shakti of Shiva Himself, and therefore , like Him, she is already the master of Atma Gyan. Why then does she appear as a student and ask spiritual questions?

It is because as Jagad mata, the universal mother , she wants all her children to know the essence of spirituality from Shiva Himself, and therefore this play of questions and answers, student and teacher from the Divine Parents. The tradition is called Agama Nigama sastra and many beautiful revelations are recorded in the tantras specifically the Vijnanbhairava.

 

shiva card 29

VIGHNA HARTA GANESH

( The remover of obstacles)

You have all,no doubt , heard the famous story of how Ma Parvati made Ganeshji out of her own Self.

She did this literally by lovingly collecting 'dross' from her own body and modelling it into a child, and then blowing life into it with the celestial magic that only she as Mother Nature possessed!

The simple meaning of this beautiful story is, that all comes from Shakti Ma herself, but the more important import is this: having come from God, we are forever a part of God,like a child who their parent loves always..

As Swami Vivekananda would exhort from the Upanishads

" Arise ye children of immortal bliss"

We are children of immortal bliss, and many of our Rishis and Buddhas and Prophets have repeatedly told us this. But we need to have a direct realisation,through meditations and Dhyana, tapas and prayer, through bhakti or karma, through yoga or the kundalini tantra.

And, like any of life's journeys, when we seek to travel to a destination, is when we encounter obstacles on our way. Some of these obstacles become impossible to cross unless we are helped by a kind power.

Ganeshji, when he grew up from the beautiful origin as storied above, became , indeed Vighna Harta: The remover of obstacles, both in the material and spiritual journeys; So that all the children may realise their link with God and Mother Nature,Shiva and Parvati .

 

shiva card 30

 

PATI PARAMESHWAR

Dear friends,

Devi Parvati plays out an extraordinarily humble and beautiful role as the wife of Lord Shiva: Alongside Her Oceanic love for Him, She worships Shiva as a God.This is the perfect example of " Pati Parameshwar" The husband is an image of God Himself.

But we must never forget that this is despite the fact that She Herself is the Great Goddess Durga, to whom the entire Universe of Sadhus, rishis, munis, avatars ,devatas, and even gods bow and salute.Yet She leads by example and inspires all women to be supremely devoted to their husbands.

But what about the men?

Is it just a duty of the wife to consider her husband as an image of God?Do not the men have a role to play out as the husband?

Absolutely.

If the man is to be treated as an image of Shiva, he must be like Shiva would be! Kind, protective, caring, nurturing and loving to his wife,under all circumstances and in all situations.

In this way of the Universe, nothing is a one way street: All things are reciprocal and complementary to each other, this is the very law of Purusa Prakriti, the very love of Shiva and Shakti.We must all know this fully well, and any man who considers himself a Shiva follower must always be extremely chivalrous to all ladies and a " One woman man" to his own wife.

May Shiva and Devi bless all.

 

 

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AUM PURNAMADAH PURNAMIDAM

we all know the story of how Shiva volunteered to receive Ganga on His head when she had to descend to earth from the heavens for the upliftment of humanity, both living, and the dead. But, she was so full of Divinity that the very earth she was coming to purify would not have been able to take the impact of the torrential 'weight' of her Gyana or satvikta! Shiva stepped forward to make His own matlocks a landing pad for her, Shiva's Yogic hair already contained the ultimate Gyana,infinite Divinity within, and could receive an infinite amount more.

This reminds us of the Purna prayer from the teachings of the ancient hindu rishis, in the Isha Upanishad, which is the first Upanishad.

ॐ पूर्णमदः पूर्णमिदं पूर्णात्पूर्णमुदच्यते ।

पूर्णस्य पूर्णमादाय पूर्णमेवावशिष्यते ॥

Om Puurnnam-Adah Puurnnam-Idam Puurnnaat-Puurnnam-Udacyate |Puurnnasya Puurnnam-Aadaaya Puurnnam-Eva-Avashissyate ||

Meaning:

Fullness 'that' (Outer World)

Fullness 'this' (Inner World)

From Purna is manifested Purna (From the Fullness of Divine Consciousness within, the outside world is manifested),

Even after manifesting a whole Purna from itself, Purna still remains the same.

Shaivites believe that Shiva is the Adi Purnam, the Original Fullness, therefore no amount of giving or receiving Gyana will affect His own Fullness in any way. And this makes it easier to understand why Shiva has a nature of taking every cosmic event upon His own head, be it the Samundra manthan or then, the reception of Ganga.

 

 

shiva card 32 

THE GREATEST WELCOME TO GOD, ON EARTH!

The moment Parvati put the Jaimala around Her Lord Shiva, it was the greatest welcome to God on earth!

Perhaps the most auspicious moment in cosmic history.

The coming together of the transcendent and the manifest, being and becoming, Yin and Yang,earth and sky,stillness and flight: Shaktiman, and His Shakti, in an eternal embrace that always IS. When She puts a garland of Jaimala On Him, it is indeed a cosmic Divine Moment. A moment that creates eternity.

To worship or know one without the other is the greatest impossibility! How can there be Shiva without Shakti, how can there be Shakti without Shaktiman?

In fact the great shaivites know that without Parvati, Shivji will never manifest Himself. And the great Shaktas know that without Shivji, Jagdamba will never be interested in becoming the Jag janani. They are not two, but one, so too in the ultimate culmination a Shakta and a Shaiva love the same One eternal pair.

On the other hand, The moment that Shiva put a Jaimala around Parvati was more than just a marriage, It was a fulfillment of creation, the creator and the created, of love and bonding, of togetherness, of Godhead and lila...encapsulating the most divine moment in the history of all time.

The wise understand it as a culminating point of the very birth of Prithvilok in particular and the entire Universe in general.

Aum Namah Shivaye!

shiva card  33

SHIVA, AGHORNATH.

“That Shiva became a recluse when Sati died, is well recorded in His legend. It is said that He held on to Sati’s body for the longest time, in the greatest moha, till Vishnu cut it up with His Sudarshana chakra into fifty one pieces that fell on different parts of the earth, resulting in the great Shaktipeethas - places of Shakti worship,” said Suta.

“Yes, Gurudeva, it was the saddest period of Shiva’s life.” replied shaunaka.

“In this time between Sati and Parvati, He is said to have abandoned Kailash and virtually disappeared into oblivion, Shiva lost all interest in the world; His own world without Sati was finished.”

“Yes, Gurudeva.”

“It is at times like this, when everything you loved is suddenly gone, that you come to your deepest questionings about life.”said Suta, closing up to Shaunaka’s ear. “ 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…”

“Aghora, Gurudeva?”

“Yes,there was a complete withdrawal from the universe of the outside, and the deepest dive into the inner being, propelled by a great sadness.”

“Ah, Gurudeva!”

“Yes, and it seems that Shiva possibly learnt the maximum about His own spiritual power and Self during the Aghora meditations and practices, when he was bereaving Sati’s loss.”

“Oh! Gurudeva”

“ He wandered from place to place, looking for their memories together, He pilgrimaged to all the Shaktipeethas. Having explored the length and breadth of the plains, He continued His journey towards the mountains. Passing through the enchanted forest of cedars, called Daruvana, He finally settled in an unknown part of the Himalayas and meditated for ages before Sati manifested Herself again as Parvati…”