Maha Shivaratri-on27-2-06

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LORD SHIVA THE GREATEST VAISHNAVA

In this article we pose certain commonly asked question about lord Shiva,

with answers from the teachings of Srila Prabhupada

 

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN KRISHNA AND SHIVA?

 

Learned scholars in transcendental subjects have carefully analyzed the

summum bonum Kåñëa to have sixty-four principal attributes. All the expansions

or categories of the Lord possess only some percentages of these attributes.

But Çré Kåñëa is the possessor of the attributes cent percent. And His personal

expansions such as svayam-prakäça, tad-ekätmä up to the categories of the

avatäras who are all viñëu-tattva, possess up to ninety-three percent of these

transcendental attributes. Lord Çiva, who is neither avatära nor äveça nor in

between them, possesses almost eighty-four percent of the attributes.(sb

1.3.28)

 

 

kñéraà yathä dadhi vikära-viçeña-yogät

saïjäyate na tu tataù påthag asti hetoù

yaù çambhutäm api tathä samupaiti käryäd

govindam ädi-puruñaà tam ahaà bhajämi

“‘Milk changes into yogurt when mixed with a yogurt culture, but actually it

is constitutionally nothing but milk. Similarly, Govinda, the Supreme

Personality of Godhead, assumes the form of Lord Çiva [Çambhu] for the special

purpose of material transactions. I offer my obeisances at His lotus feet.’

(The real nature of Çambhu, the presiding deity of Maheça-dhäma, is

described.) Çambhu is not a second Godhead other than Kåñëa. Those, who

entertain such discriminating sentiment, commit a great offense against the

Supreme Lord. The supremacy of Çambhu is subservient to that of Govinda; hence

they are not really different from each other. The nondistinction is

established by the fact that just as milk treated with acid turns into curd so

Godhead becomes a subservient when He Himself attains a distinct personality by

the addition of a particular element of adulteration. This personality has no

independent initiative. The said adulterating principle is constituted of a

combination of the stupefying quality of the deluding energy, the quality of

nonplenitude of the marginal potency and a slight degree of the

ecstatic-cum-cognitive principle of the plenary spiritual potency. This

specifically adulterated reflection of the principle of the subjective portion

of the Divinity is

Sadäçiva, in the form of the effulgent masculine-symbol-god Çambhu from whom

Rudradeva is manifested. In the work of mundane creation as the material cause,

in the work of preservation by the destruction of sundry asuras and in the work

of destruction to conduct the whole operation, Govinda manifests Himself as

guëa-avatära in the form of Çambhu who is the separated portion of Govinda

imbued with the principle of His subjective plenary portion. The personality of

the destructive principle in the form of time has been identified with that of

Çambhu by scriptural evidences that have been adduced in the commentary. The

purport of the Bhägavata çlokas, viz., vaiñëavänäà yathä çambhuù, etc., is that

Çambhu, in pursuance of the will of Govinda, works in union with his consort

Durgädevé by his own time energy. He teaches pious duties (dharma) as

stepping-stones to the attainment of spiritual service in the various

tantra-çästras, etc., suitable for jévas in different grades of the

conditional existence. In obedience to the will of Govinda, Çambhu maintains

and fosters the religion of pure devotion by preaching the cult of illusionism

(Mäyäväda) and the speculative ägama-çästras. The fifty attributes of

individual souls are manifest in a far vaster measure in Çambhu and five

additional attributes not attainable by jévas are also partly found in him. So

Çambhu cannot be called a jéva. He is the lord of jéva but yet partakes of the

nature of a separated portion of Govinda. (brahma samhita 5.45)

 

CAN ONE GET THE SAME RESULT BY WORSHIPPING SHIVA AOR KRISHNA?

 

There is a Mission that regularly propounds that worship of any demigod will

lead one to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, or the supreme goal. But

worship of demigods is thoroughly discouraged herein because even the greatest

demigods like Brahmä and Çiva represent only part of the opulence of the

Supreme Lord. He is the origin of everyone born, and no one is greater than

Him. He is asamaurdhva, which means that no one is superior to Him and that no

one is equal to Him. In the Padma Puräëa it is said that one who considers the

Supreme Lord Kåñëa in the same category with demigods—be they even Brahmä or

Çiva—becomes at once an atheist.(BG 10.42)

There are many foolish persons who say that one can chant Hare Kåñëa or chant

the name of Kälé or Durgä or Çiva because they are all the same. If one thinks

that the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the names and

activities of the demigods are on the same level, or if one accepts the holy

name of Viñëu to be a material sound vibration, that is also an offense. (SB

3.15.25)

 

IN WHAT WAY DO DEVOTEES OF LORD KRISHNA OFFER RESPECTR TO LORD SHIVA?

 

It is said, vaiñëavänäà yathä çambhuù: Lord Çiva is the best of all devotees.

Therefore all devotees of Lord Kåñëa are also devotees of Lord Çiva. In

Våndävana there is Lord Çiva's temple called Gopéçvara. The gopés used to

worship not only Lord Çiva but Kätyäyané, or Durgä, as well, but their aim was

to attain the favor of Lord Kåñëa. A devotee of Lord Kåñëa does not disrespect

Lord Çiva, but worships Lord Çiva as the most exalted devotee of Lord Kåñëa.

Consequently whenever a devotee worships Lord Çiva, he prays to Lord Çiva to

achieve the favor of Kåñëa, and he does not request material profit. In

Bhagavad-gétä (7.20) it is said that generally people worship demigods for some

material profit. Kämais tais tair håta jïänäù. Driven by material lust, they

worship demigods, but a devotee never does so, for he is never driven by

material lust. That is the difference between a devotee's respect for Lord Çiva

and an asura's respect for him. The asura worships Lord Çiva, takes some

benediction from him, misuses the benediction and ultimately is killed by the

Supreme Personality of Godhead, who awards him liberation.

Because Lord Çiva is a great devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead,

he loves all the devotees of the Supreme Lord. Lord Çiva told the Pracetäs that

because they were devotees of the Lord, he loved them very much. Lord Çiva was

not kind and merciful only to the Pracetäs; anyone who is a devotee of the

Supreme Personality of Godhead is very dear to Lord Çiva. Not only are the

devotees dear to Lord Çiva, but he respects them as much as he respects the

Supreme Personality of Godhead. Similarly, devotees of the Supreme Lord also

worship Lord Çiva as the most dear devotee of Lord Kåñëa. They do not worship

him as a separate Personality of Godhead. It is stated in the list of

näma-aparädhas that it is an offense to think that the chanting of the name of

Hari and the chanting of Hara, or Çiva, are the same. The devotees must always

know that Lord Viñëu is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and that Lord Çiva

is His devotee. A devotee should be offered respect on the level of the

Supreme Personality of Godhead, and sometimes even more respect. Indeed, Lord

Räma, the Personality of Godhead Himself, sometimes worshiped Lord Çiva. If a

devotee is worshiped by the Lord, why should a devotee not be worshiped by

other devotees on the same level with the Lord? This is the conclusion. From

this verse it appears that Lord Çiva blesses the asuras simply for the sake of

formality. Actually he loves one who is devoted to the Supreme Personality of

Godhead. (purport SB 4.24.30)

 

SHOULD DEVOTEES OF KRISNA DISCOURAGE OTHERS FROM WORSHIPPING LORD SHIVA?

 

Devotee: Çréla Prabhupäda, in Winnipeg there is one very pious east Indian

man who for many years has been worshiping somewhat, worshiping Lord Çiva. And

his wife is also a very quite chaste woman and sincere follower—and so were her

parents—of Lord Çiva. And he is reading your Bhagavad-gétä. He visits our

temple. And I have given him the first volume of Canto Four which discusses

Lord Çiva a great deal. And he has read in one of your purports that Kåñëa is

more pleased when you worship His devotee than when you worship Him directly.

And Lord Çiva is a very great devotee of Kåñëa. So he has now interpreted that

to mean that if he worships Lord Çiva so nicely, then actually he is pleasing

Kåñëa more. So he is experiencing some difficulty because of this and I'm not

quite sure how to instruct him that actually...

Prabhupäda: Difficulty?

Brahmänanda: That... Our Godbrother has difficulty in replying to this

interpretation that Kåñëa says, "You can please Me by worshiping My devotee,"

and Lord Çiva is the devotee of Kåñëa. So therefore this man says, "Then I

shall worship Lord Çiva. In that way I shall please Kåñëa."

Prabhupäda: But if he accepts Lord Çiva is devotee of Kåñëa, then by

worshiping Lord Çiva he will be benefited. If he thinks Lord Çiva is

independent, then he will not be benefited.

Devotee (3): I've got him to accept that Lord Çiva is devotee of Kåñëa, but

there's no practical instruction in his worldly activities coming.

Prabhupäda: No, vaiñëavänäm yathä çambhuù: "Amongst the Vaiñëavas, Çaàbhu,

Lord Çiva, is the greatest Vaiñëava." So we worship Lord Çiva as Vaiñëava. We

gives respect to Vaiñëavas. So why not Lord Çiva? Lord Çiva is a big Vaiñëava.

But generally, the devotees of Lord Çiva, they take Lord Çiva is independent

God. That is offensive. If you know that Lord Çiva is also a devotee, you can

give more respect to Lord Çiva. Kåñëa will be pleased.

Devotee (3): Çréla Prabhupäda, he does not chant Hare Kåñëa, he chants oà

çiväya namaù.

Prabhupäda: That's all right.

Devotee (3): It's all right?

Prabhupäda: He will gradually become devotee. When God, Lord Çiva, will be

pleased upon him, he will advise to worship.

Devotee (3): He is already trying to tell him to follow in your footsteps

surely, so just before I left he said he will try once again to chant sixteen

rounds of japa, Hare Kåñëa. He has tried already. He has a taste for...

Prabhupäda: If he simply understands that Lord Çiva is a Vaiñëava and if he

worships Lord Çiva, then he will get the benefit. (ROOM CONVERSTATION, CHICAGO,

9TH JULY 1975)

 

WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BEWTEEN LORD SHIVA AND GHOSTS?

 

Lord Çiva, the king of the ghosts, sitting on the back of his bull carrier,

travels at this time, accompanied by ghosts who follow him for their welfare.

PURPORT

Lord Çiva, or Rudra, is the king of the ghosts. Ghostly characters worship

Lord Çiva to be gradually guided toward a path of self-realization. Mäyävädé

philosophers are mostly worshipers of Lord Çiva, and Çrépäda Çaìkaräcärya is

considered to be the incarnation of Lord Çiva for preaching godlessness to the

Mäyävädé philosophers. Ghosts are bereft of a physical body because of their

grievously sinful acts, such as suicide. The last resort of the ghostly

characters in human society is to take shelter of suicide, either material or

spiritual. Material suicide causes loss of the physical body, and spiritual

suicide causes loss of the individual identity. Mäyävädé philosophers desire to

lose their individuality and merge into the impersonal spiritual brahmajyoti

existence. Lord Çiva, being very kind to the ghosts, sees that although they

are condemned, they get physical bodies. He places them into the wombs of women

who indulge in sexual intercourse regardless of the restrictions on

time and circumstance

(SB 3.14.24)

 

WHY DO SO MANY LADIES WORSHIP LORD SHIVA?

 

Lord Çiva is the husband of Saté, one of the sisters of Diti. Diti invoked

the pleasure of her sister Saté so that Saté would request her husband to

excuse her. Besides that, Lord Çiva is the worshipable lord of all women. He is

naturally very kind towards women, on whom even the uncivilized hunters also

show their mercy. Since Lord Çiva is himself associated with women, he knows

very well their defective nature, and he might not take very seriously Diti's

unavoidable offense, which occurred due to her faulty nature. Every virgin girl

is supposed to be a devotee of Lord Çiva. Diti remembered her childhood worship

of Lord Çiva and begged his mercy.

(SB 3.14.36)

Today in Hindu society, unmarried girls are still taught to worship Lord Çiva

with the idea that they may get husbands like him. Lord Çiva is the ideal

husband, not in the sense of riches or sense gratification, but because he is

the greatest of all devotees. Vaiñëavänäà yathä çambhuù: Çambhu, or Lord Çiva,

is the ideal Vaiñëava. He constantly meditates upon Lord Räma and chants Hare

Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma, Hare Hare. Lord Çiva has a Vaiñëava sampradäya,

which is called the Viñëu Svämé-sampradäya. Unmarried girls worship Lord Çiva

so that they can expect a husband who is as good a Vaiñëava as he. The girls

are not taught to select a husband who is very rich or very opulent for

material sense gratification; rather, if a girl is fortunate enough to get a

husband as good as Lord Çiva in devotional service, then her life becomes

perfect. The wife is dependent on the husband, and if the husband is a

Vaiñëava, then naturally she shares the devotional service of the husband

because

she renders him service. (S.B. 3.23.1)

 

WHY DOES SHIVA HAVE SNAKES ALL OVER HIS BODY?

 

In order to get release from the false ego, one has to worship Saìkarñaëa.

Saìkarñaëa is also worshiped through Lord Çiva; the snakes which cover the body

of Lord Çiva are representations of Saìkarñaëa, and Lord Çiva is always

absorbed in meditation upon Saìkarñaëa. (S.B. 3.26.21)

 

DO VAISNAVAS TAKE THE PRASADAM OF LORD SHIVA?

 

It is said that among all the devotees of the Personality of Godhead, Lord

Çiva is the greatest. Thus the remnants of foodstuff left by him are accepted

by other devotees as mahä-prasäda, or great spiritual foodstuff. The remnants

of foodstuff offered to Lord Kåñëa are called prasäda, but when the same

prasäda is eaten by a great devotee like Lord Çiva, it is called mahä-prasäda.

Lord Çiva is so great that he does not care for the material prosperity for

which every one of us is so eager. Pärvaté, who is the powerful material nature

personified, is under his full control as his wife, yet he does not use her

even to build a residential house. He prefers to remain without shelter, and

his great wife also agrees to live with him humbly. People in general worship

goddess Durgä, the wife of Lord Çiva, for material prosperity, but Lord Çiva

engages her in his service without material desire. He simply advises his great

wife that of all kinds of worship, the worship of Viñëu is the

highest, and greater than that is the worship of a great devotee or anything

in relation with Viñëu. (S.B. 3.14.26)

 

WHAT IS THE POSITION OF LORD SHIVA?

 

In the Vämana Puräëa it is said that the same Viñëu expands Himself as Brahmä

and Çiva to direct the different qualities. ( cc ADI 5.104)

Maheçvara, or Lord Çiva, is not an ordinary living being, nor is he equal to

Lord Viñëu. Effectively comparing Lord Viñëu and Lord Çiva, the Brahma-saàhitä

says that Viñëu is like milk, whereas Çiva is like yogurt. Yogurt is nothing

like milk, but nevertheless it is milk also. (CC ADI 1.105)

 

IT IS SAID THAT LORD SHIVA IS NON-DIFFERENT FROM KRISHNA. WHAT DOES THAT

MEAN?

Çréla Jéva Gosvämé, in his Bhakti-sandarbha (213), has clearly explained that

a pure devotee’s observation of the spiritual master and Lord Çiva as being one

with the Personality of Godhead exists in terms of their being very dear to the

Lord, not identical with Him in all respects. (CC ADI 1.46)

 

WHO ARE THE EXPANSIONS OF LORD SHIVA?

 

Rudra, who is an expansion of Sadäçiva and who appears in unlimited

universes, is also a guëävatära [qualitative incarnation] and is the ornament

of all the demigods in the endless universes.

PURPORT

There are eleven expansions of Rudra, or Lord Çiva. They are as follows:

Ajaikapät, Ahibradhna, Virüpäkña, Raivata, Hara, Bahurüpa, Devaçreñöha

Tryambaka, Sävitra, Jayanta, Pinäki and Aparäjita. Besides these expansions

there are eight forms of Rudra called earth, water, fire, air, sky, the sun,

the moon and soma-yäjé. Generally all these Rudras have five faces, three eyes

and ten arms. Sometimes it is found that Rudra is compared to Brahmä and

considered a living entity. But when Rudra is explained to be a partial

expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he is compared to Çeña. Lord

Çiva is therefore simultaneously an expansion of Lord Viñëu and, in his

capacity for annihilating the creation, one of the living entities. As an

expansion of Lord Viñëu he is called Hara, and he is transcendental to the

material qualities, but when he is in touch with tamo-guëa he appears

contaminated by the material modes of nature. This is explained in

Çrémad-Bhägavatam and the

Brahma-saàhitä. In Çrémad-Bhägavatam, Tenth Canto, it is stated that Lord

Rudra is always associated with the material nature when she is in the neutral,

unmanifested stage, but when the modes of material nature are agitated he

associates with material nature from a distance. In the Brahma-saàhitä the

relationship between Viñëu and Lord Çiva is compared to that between milk and

yogurt. Milk is converted into yogurt by certain additives, but although milk

and yogurt have the same ingredients, they have different functions. Similarly,

Lord Çiva is an expansion of Lord Viñëu, yet because of his taking part in the

annihilation of the cosmic manifestation, he is considered to be changed, like

milk converted into yogurt. In the Puräëas it is found that Çiva appears

sometimes from the heads of Brahmä and sometimes from the head of Viñëu. The

annihilator, Rudra, is born from Saìkarñaëa and the ultimate fire to burn the

whole creation. In the Väyu Puräëa there is a description of Sadäçiva in

one of the Vaikuëöha planets. That Sadäçiva is a direct expansion of Lord

Kåñëa’s form for pastimes. It is said that Sadäçiva (Lord Çambhu) is an

expansion from the Sadäçiva in the Vaikuëöha planets (Lord Viñëu) and that his

consort, Mahämäyä, is an expansion of Ramä-devé, or Lakñmé. Mahämäyä is the

origin or birthplace of material nature. (CC ADI 6.79)

 

IS LORD SHIVA WORSHIPPED THROUGH THE TAKING OF INTOXICANTS?

 

We should always consider the position of the éçvaras, or those who can

actually control the movements of the sun and moon, as superior. Without such

power, one cannot imitate the éçvaras, who are superpowerful. Lord Çiva drank

poison to the extent of swallowing an ocean, but if any common man tries to

drink even a fragment of such poison, he will be killed. There are many pseudo

devotees of Lord Çiva who want to indulge in smoking gaïjä (marijuana) and

similar intoxicating drugs, forgetting that by so imitating the acts of Lord

Çiva they are calling death very near. Similarly, there are some pseudo

devotees of Lord Kåñëa who prefer to imitate the Lord in His räsa-lélä, or

dance of love, forgetting their inability to lift Govardhana Hill. It is best,

therefore, that one not try to imitate the powerful, but simply follow their

instructions; nor should one try to occupy their posts without qualification.

There are so many "incarnations" of God without the power of the Supreme

Godhead.

 

WHAT IS THE NAURE OF THE WORSHIPPERS OF DIFFERENT GODS?

 

When the mode of goodness is mixed with the mode of passion, one worships the

sun-god, Vivasvän. When the mode of goodness is mixed with the mode of

ignorance, one worships Gaëapati, or Gaëeça. When the mode of passion is mixed

with the mode of ignorance, one worships Durgä, or Kälé, the external potency.

When one is simply in the mode of ignorance, one becomes a devotee of Lord Çiva

because Lord Çiva is the predominating deity of the mode of ignorance within

this material world. However, when one is completely free from the influence of

all the modes of material nature, one becomes a pure Vaiñëava on the devotional

platform. (CC MADHYA 24.330)

 

WHY DID LORD RAMACHANDRA WORSHIP SHIVA?

He (LORD KRISHNA AND LORD RAMA) likes to worship His devotee. Sometimes the

father takes the child on his shoulder. Does it mean the child is more

important than the father? They say the Välméki Rämäyaëa, there is no such

incidence as Rämacandra worships Çiva. It is later on, interpretation. But even

if He does so, what is the wrong here? (conversation 23 dec 1975 mumbai)

 

 

 

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