SADASIVA

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beings. The Gita says: ‘Upadrashtanumanta cha bharta bhokta mahesvarah’.

Mahesvara conducts the work of creation according to His will and pleasure.

The Sruti says, ‘Mayam tu prakritim viddhi mayinam tu mahesvaram’. Know

Prakriti to be Maya and Mahesvara to be the wielder of Maya or Prakriti. The

Sakti of Siva works in two different ways. Mula Prakriti and Daivi Prakriti.

Mula Prakriti is Apara Prakriti from which the five elements and other visible

objects and the Antahkarana are evolved. Para Prakriti is Chaitanya Sakti which

converts the Apara Prakriti and gives name and form to it. Apara Prakriti is

Avidya and Para Prakriti is Vidya. The controller and dispenser of these two

Prakritis is Lord Siva. Siva is distinct from Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra.

Lord Siva is the Lord of innumerable crores of Brahmandas or worlds.

Isvara united with Maya gives rise to Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra out of Rajas,

Sattva and Tamo Gunas respectively, under the command of Lord Siva. Brahma,

Vishnu and Rudra are the trinities of the world. There is no difference

among the trinities, Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra. By the command of Mahesvara

these three do the creative, preservative and destructive duties of the world.

The work of all the three deities is done conjointly. They all have one view

and one definite purpose in creating, preserving and destroying the visible

universe of names and forms. He who regards the three deities as distinct and

different, Siva Purana says, is undoubtedly a devil or evil spirit. The Lord

who is beyond the three Gunas, Mahesvara, has four aspects: Brahma, Kala, Rudra

and Vishnu. Siva is the support for all the four. He is the substratum for

Sakti also. Siva is distinct from the Rudra included in the trinities. Rudra is

really one though according to the different functions He is considered to have

eleven different forms. The first face of Siva does Krida or play, the second

does penance, the third destroys or dissolves the world, the fourth protects the

people and the fifth, being knowledge, fully covers the entire universe by its

power. He is Isana the creator and promoter of all beings, from within. The

first form of Siva is the enjoyer of Prakriti as Kshetrajna Purusha. The second

is Tatpurusha resting in Sattva-guna, rooted in Bhogya-Prakriti, the

Prakriti-enjoyed. The third is Ghora rooted in the eightfold Buddhi like

Dharma, etc. The fourth is Vamadeva rooted in

Ahankara and the fifth is Sadyojata, the presiding deity of the mind. The eight

forms of Siva are Sarva, Bhava, Rudra, Ugra, Bhima, Pasupati, Isana and

Mahadeva, rooted respectively in earth, water, fire, air, ether, Kshetrajna,

sun and moon. ----Sri Swami Sivananda Sivaya

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