SIVA/SHIVA
(Auspicious)
MAHADEV (Great Deva/Angel)
YOGIRAJ (King of Yoga)
~Within the oldest of the major religions, Sanatan Dharma/Hinduism, we find the age-old worship to the personal aspects of Spiritual-Reality in the form of the present day Siva. The word "Siva" means auspicious, an apt name for the "awesomeness" of Spiritual-Reality. Archaeologists have unearthed ancient images of Siva (known as Prajapati "The Herdsman" or the "Deity of all creatures/creation") sitting in meditation in the classic Hatha Yoga asana Padmasana or Lotus posture.
He is fire and the sun, and the moon
And the stars. He is the air and the sea,
And the Creator, Prajapati.
He is this boy, he is that girl, he is
This man, he is that woman, and he is
This old man, too, totering on his staff.
His face is everywhere.
(Shvetashvatara Unanishad iv 2,3)
~ In the search for Enlightenment, many have found great inspiration from not only the symbolism of this great MahaDeva but also from a personal contact with this Maha (Great) Deva. As Yogiraj (the King of Yoga), Siva's seated form graphically pictures the ultimate purpose for each one of us–to sit, meditate and realize the Divine within.
To be continued....