CHAPTER 1:- INTRODUCTION OF LORD SHIVA...

Shiva

The god Shiva is one of the most important figures in the Hindu belief. His name literally means "the auspicious one", but his most common epithet is "the destroyer". He takes on many forms in Hindu scripture and is said to have 1008 names. One of the most common names for him is "Mahadeva", meaning "great god". Most commonly, he is seen as one third of the trimurti, the three holiest gods. He is one of the most complex and mysterious gods in the Hindu tradition because of his paradoxical nature.

Shiva is generally thought to have originated from Rudra, a god worshipped in the Indus Valley during the Vedic period. Rudra was a hunter and a storm god, and was very fierce in his ways. He was one of the main deities in the Vedic pantheon. Rudra's father was the Lord of Beings and his mother was Usha, the Goddess of the Dawn. When he was born, he was not given a name, so he began to cry. He begged his father for a name and was granted "Rudra", from the the word rud, meaning to weep or howl. Because of his tremendous powers as the storm god, "Rudra" is often translated as "the howler." He was sometimes called "Shiva", an adjective meaning "kind" as a euphemism. Gradually, the name Rudra became interchangeable with the name Shiva, and the modern Shiva was born.....

.....Om.....Om...to..be... continue.....