The 64 Maheshwara Murthams
The holy forms shown by the Formless Supreme Lord siva are the mAheshwara mUrtham.
These are listed as 25 mAheshwara mUratams. It is also a custom to list these forms as 64. These 64 mUrtams of Lord siva are listed here.
Shiva, like some other Hindu deities, is said to have several incarnations, known as Avatars. Although Puranic scriptures contain occasional references to avatars of Shiva, the idea is not universally accepted in Saivism
- Virabhadra who was born when Shiva grabbed a lock of his matted hair and dashed it to the ground. Virabhadra then destroyed Daksha's yajna (fire sacrifice) and severed his head as per Shiva's instructions.[165]
- Bhairava, Bhairava (Sanskrit: भैरव, "Terrible" or "Frightful",[1]), sometimes known as Bhairo or Bhairon or Bhairadya or Bheruji (In Rajasthan), is the fierce manifestation of Shiva associated with annihilation.[2] He is one of the most important deities of Rajasthan and Nepal, sacred to Hindus and Buddhists alike.When depicted as Kala Bhairava, Bhairava is shown carrying the decapitated head of Brahma.
- Veer Teja, He was born on magha shukla 14 samvat 1130 Veer Teja was a great saint. A large number of temples of Veer Teja have been built in entire Rajasthan.
- Sharabha, Shaiva scriptures narrate that god Shiva assumed the Avatar (incarnation) of Sharabha to tame Narasimha - the fierce man-lion avatar of Vishnu worshipped by Vaishnava sect - into a normal pleasant form representing harmony. This form is popularly known as Sarabeshwara ("Lord Sarabha") or Sharabeshwaramurti. In Buddhism, Sharabha appears in Jataka Tales as a previous birth of the Buddha.
- Adi Shankara, the 8th-century philosopher of non-dualist Vedanta"Advaita Vedanta", was named "Shankara" after Lord Shiva and is considered by some to have been an incarnation of Shiva.
- In the Hanuman Chalisa, Hanuman is identified as the eleventh avatar of Shiva.
64 Forms of Lord Shiva
shivali.ngam
lingodbhavar mukhali.ngam sadAshivam mahAsadAshivam umAmaheshwarar sukhAsanamUrti umeshamUrti somAska.ndhamUrti cha.ndrashekaramUrti vR^iShArUDhamUrti vR^IShA.ndikamUrti bhujaNGgalaLitamUrti bhujaNGgatrAsamUrti sa.ndhiyanR^ittamUrti sadAnR^ittamUrti chaNDatANDavamUrti gaNGgAdharamUrti gaNGgAvisarjanamUrti tripurAntakamUrti kalyANasu.ndaramUrti ardanArIshwaramUrti gajAsurasaMhAramUrti jvarAbhagnamUrti shArdhUlaharamUrti pAshupatamUrti gaNGgALamUrti keshavArthamUrti bhixATanamUrti simhagnamUrti chaNdeshwarAnugrahamUrti vyAkhyAnadaxiNAmUrti | yogadaxiNAmUrti
viNAdharadaxiNAmUrti kAlA.ntakamUrti kAmAri (kAmadahanamUrti) vaguLeshwaramUrti bhairavamUrti ApatuddAraNamUrti vaDukamUrti xetrapAlamUrti vIrabhadramUrti agorAstramUrti daxayaGYaharamUrti kirAtamUrti gurumUrti ashvArUDhamUrti gajA.ndikamUrti jalandharavatamUrti ekapAdatrimUrti tripAdatrimUrti ekapAdamUrti gaurivarapradamUrti chakradAnaswarUpamUrti gaurilIlAsamanvitamUrti viShAbhaharaNamUrti garuDA.ndikamUrti braHmasirachetakamUrti kUrmasaMhAramUrti matsyAri varAhAri prArthanAmUrti raktabhixApradAnamUrti siShyabhAvamUrti |
