What is the difference between rudra and shiva

Rudra literally means a tempest and is the term used by many as the other name of the entity Shiva, his most violent and furious form, to be specific.

He is one of the three celestial beings believed to have created the universe. Hindu scriptures like Vishnu Purana, Matsya Purana, and Bhagavad Gita use the word Rudra to coin the eleven forms of Shiva Ekadasha-Rudras brought to life to end the cruelty and tyranny of rakshasas on earth and heaven. Different scriptures have different origin stories of these Rudras. Here is,. Back in the days when Gods walked freely between Heaven and the earth, when deities fought for justice and light, Indra, the god of thunder , ruled the deities in a city called Amrawati Puri.

In one such battle, the rakshasas defeated Indra and his army of gods, and they forced Gods to flee from the city. He happened to be the father of Indra. The King of Gods, now dethroned, told the entire story to his father in the meeting. Kashyap was furious at the deeds of the rakshasas. Maharishi was known for his supreme knowledge and his ability to meditate. The meaning is: I bow to You Rudra , who is terrible , eminent amd extremely strong, who is the highest Lord. I bow to you, the Husband of Devi Bhavaani , who can be attained by devotion.

Hindu theology talks of three principal manifestations of the Supreme Godhead namely Brahma the creator, Vishnu the protector and Shiva the destroyer. In this context, the fierce name of Rudra seems to be highly fitting the role of Lord Shiva. The term Rudra is also associated with the term Rudra Tandava, the dance of Shiva which he performs in the cremation grounds. The iconography of Shiva shows him wearing snakes as ornaments, a garland of skulls, the ashes of the cremation grounds smeared all over the body and wandering forth in red angry eyes.

A puranic story narrates an incident associated with the term Rudra. Once Brahma asked Rudra to create some beings as he was getting bored by creating ordinary mortals.

They were together called as 11 Rudras. Being the head of these immortal beings, Shiva is addressed as Rudra. The hymns of Rg Veda have a lot of references to Shiva in the name Rudra. They all portray Shiva as the highest God, a mighty archer, the most terrible form, the fire god and so on. In all these expressions, the fiery aspect of Shiva is obvious. It is a matter for thought that the name Rudra is in sharp contrast to the name Shiva in terms of the meanings suggested by these words.

While the term Rudra embodies in it a terrible aspect by denoting the roaring storm, the term Shiva points out to the benign aspect of Shiva.

Thus, these two terms together bring the contrasting features of Shiva put in one expression. The expression Rudra is extensively used in the Vedic hymn Rudram that is dedicated to singing the praise of Lord Shiva. The summary of this hymn heralds the different aspects of Lord Shiva and praises him as the supreme one who is the one point origin of the entire universe and everything associated with creation.

Rudra is also conceived as the final destination of the entire universe in to which it merges back after dissolution. We can take that while the term Rudra points out to the role of Shiva namely destruction, the term Shiva points out to the benign nature of Shiva which is blessing the devotees with the boons that they want. Shiva is compassionate and merciful. Being the parent of the entire universe, he is endowed with the supreme role of taking care of their well-being.

Chanting the name of Rudra shall invoke the blessings of Shiva and win his grace for the devotees. Back in the days when Gods walked freely between the Heaven and the earth; when deities fought for justice and light, Indra, the god of thunder , ruled the deities in a city called Amrawati Puri.

In one such battle, the rakshasas were able to defeat Indra and his army of gods and they forced Gods to flee from the city. He happened to be the father of Indra. In the meeting, the King of Gods, now dethroned, told the entire story to his father. Kashyap was furious at the deeds of the rakshasas.

Maharishi was known for his supreme knowledge and his ability to meditate. Thus, He consoled the god and promised that he would find a solution to the problem. Maharishi set off to Kashipuri with the motive to meditate and seek an audience with the celestial entity Shiva himself. After reaching Kashipuri, he established a Shiva-Linga a cylindrical shaped shrine representing Shiva and started to meditate in its presence, by chanting his name.

After meditating for quite some time, Shiva appeared in front of him. Kashyap remembered the dire condition of the gods. He then told Shiva that the rakshasas had defeated the gods, and had taken over the city of Amrawati Puri.

He asked Shiva to be born as his son, to offer justice to the gods and take the place in the city as their protector. In ecstasy, Kashyap showed his piety to the entity, and he disappeared. Maharishi returned to his ashram and explained the entire incident to the gods. Shiva and his 12 Jyotirlingas 1. Somnath 2. Mallikarjuna 3. Mahakaleshwar 4. Omkareshwar 5. Vaidyanath 6. Bhimshankar 7. Rameshwar 8. Nageshwar 9. Vishwanath Tryambakeshwar Kedarnath Shiv has had 2 Avatars combined with Vishnu.

Shiv in Kaliyug incarnated himself as Adi Shankaracharya. We should all engage ourselves in reading the scriptures ourselves instead of looking for answers on Tv or the internet. People take advantage of our ignorance and carelessness, thus fooling us and engaging us in materialistic lifestyle.

People visit a Guru for getting good marks, or having a good sallery. People should visit a Guru for what you read but did not understand. Do not ask for anything from Bhagwan. He knows what is required and what needs to be done without you telling him. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

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