the-french-artist/wikipedia_20220301.simple_sentence_embeddings huggingface dataset:
Shiva 
 For example, in the Jain caves at Ellora, extensive carvings show dancing Indra next to the images of Tirthankaras in a manner similar to Shiva Nataraja.
Shiva 
 The similarities in the dance iconography suggests that there may be a link between ancient Indra and Shiva.
Shiva 
 Rudra's evolution from a minor Vedic deity to a supreme being is first evidenced in the Shvetashvatara Upanishad (400–200 BC), according to Gavin Flood.
Shiva 
 Prior to it, the Upanishadic literature is monistic, and the Shvetashvatara text presents the earliest seeds of theistic devotion to Rudra-Shiva.
Shiva 
 Here Rudra-Shiva is identified as the creator of the cosmos and liberator of souls from the birth-rebirth cycle.
Shiva 
 The period of 200 BC to 100 AD also marks the beginning of the Shaiva tradition focused on the worship of Shiva as evidenced in other literature of this period.
Shiva 
 Shaiva devotees and ascetics are mentioned in Patanjali's Mahābhāṣya (2nd-century BC) and in the Mahabharata.
Shiva 
 Other scholars such as Robert Hume and Doris Srinivasan state that the Shvetashvatara Upanishad presents pluralism, pantheism, or henotheism, rather than being a text just on Shiva theism.
Shiva 
 The Shaiva Upanishads are a group of 14 minor Upanishads of Hinduism variously dated from the last centuries of the 1st millennium BCE through the 17th century.
Shiva 
 These extol Shiva as the metaphysical unchanging reality Brahman and the Atman (soul, self), and include sections about rites and symbolisms related to Shiva.
Shiva 
 A few texts such as Atharvashiras Upanishad mention Rudra, and assert all gods are Rudra, everyone and everything is Rudra, and Rudra is the principle found in all things, their highest goal, the innermost essence of all reality that is visible or invisible.
Shiva 
 The Kaivalya Upanishad similarly, states Paul Deussen – a German Indologist and professor of Philosophy, describes the self-realized man as who "feels himself only as the one divine essence that lives in all", who feels identity of his and everyone's consciousness with Shiva (highest Atman), who has found this highest Atman within, in the depths of his heart.
Shiva 
 The Shaiva Puranas, particularly the Shiva Purana and the Linga Purana, present the various aspects of Shiva, mythologies, cosmology and pilgrimage (Tirtha) associated with him.
Shiva 
 The Shiva-related Tantra literature, composed between the 8th and 11th centuries, are regarded in devotional dualistic Shaivism as Sruti.
Shiva 
 Dualistic Shaiva Agamas which consider soul within each living being and Shiva as two separate realities (dualism, dvaita), are the foundational texts for Shaiva Siddhanta.
Shiva 
 Other Shaiva Agamas teach that these are one reality (monism, advaita), and that Shiva is the soul, the perfection and truth within each living being.
Shiva 
 In Shiva related sub-traditions, there are ten dualistic Agama texts, eighteen qualified monism-cum-dualism Agama texts and sixty-four monism Agama texts.
Shiva 
 Shiva-related literature developed extensively across India in the 1st millennium CE and through the 13th century, particularly in Kashmir and Tamil Shaiva traditions.
Shiva 
 The monist Shiva literature posit absolute oneness, that is Shiva is within every man and woman, Shiva is within every living being, Shiva is present everywhere in the world including all non-living being, and there is no spiritual difference between life, matter, man and Shiva.
Shiva 
 The various dualistic and monist Shiva-related ideas were welcomed in medieval southeast Asia, inspiring numerous Shiva-related temples, artwork and texts in Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia, with syncretic integration of local pre-existing theologies.
Shiva 
 The figure of Shiva as we know him today may be an amalgamation of various older deities into a single figure.
Shiva 
 How the persona of Shiva converged as a composite deity is not understood, a challenge to trace and has attracted much speculation.
Shiva 
 According to Vijay Nath, for example:Vishnu and Siva [...] began to absorb countless local cults and deities within their folds.
Shiva 
 The latter were either taken to represent the multiple facets of the same god or else were supposed to denote different forms and appellations by which the god came to be known and worshipped. [...]
Shiva 
 Siva became identified with countless local cults by the sheer suffixing of Isa or Isvara to the name of the local deity, e.g., Bhutesvara, Hatakesvara, Chandesvara.
Shiva 
 "An example of assimilation took place in Maharashtra, where a regional deity named Khandoba is a patron deity of farming and herding castes.
Shiva 
 Khandoba has been assimilated as a form of Shiva himself, in which case he is worshipped in the form of a lingam.
Shiva 
 Lingodbhava is a Shaiva sectarian icon where Shiva is depicted rising from the Lingam (an infinite fiery pillar) that narrates how Shiva is the foremost of the Trimurti; Brahma and Vishnu are depicted bowing to Lingodbhava Shiva in the centre.
Shiva 
 Shaivism is one of the four major sects of Hinduism, the others being Vaishnavism, Shaktism and the Smarta Tradition.
Shiva 
 Shaivas believe that Shiva is All and in all, the creator, preserver, destroyer, revealer and concealer of all that is.
Shiva 
 He is not only the creator in Shaivism, but he is also the creation that results from him, he is everything and everywhere.
Shiva 
 The Shaivism theology is broadly grouped into two: the popular theology influenced by Shiva-Rudra in the Vedas, Epics and the Puranas; and the esoteric theology influenced by the Shiva and Shakti-related Tantra texts.
Shiva 
 The Vedic-Brahmanic Shiva theology includes both monist (Advaita) and devotional traditions (Dvaita) such as Tamil Shaiva Siddhanta and Lingayatism with temples featuring items such as linga, Shiva-Parvati iconography, bull Nandi within the premises, relief artwork showing mythologies and aspects of Shiva.
Shiva 
 The Tantric Shiva tradition ignored the mythologies and Puranas related to Shiva, and depending on the sub-school developed a variety of practices.
Shiva 
 For example, historical records suggest the tantric Kapalikas (literally, the 'skull-men') co-existed with and shared many Vajrayana Buddhist rituals, engaged in esoteric practices that revered Shiva and Shakti wearing skulls, begged with empty skulls, used meat, alcohol, and sexuality as a part of ritual.
Shiva 
 In contrast, the esoteric tradition within Kashmir Shaivism has featured the Krama and Trika sub-traditions.
Shiva 
 The Trika sub-tradition developed a theology of triads involving Shiva, combined it with an ascetic lifestyle focusing on personal Shiva in the pursuit of monistic self liberation.
Shiva 
 Like Shaiva literature that presents Shiva as supreme, the Vaishnava literature presents Vishnu as supreme.
Shiva 
 However, both traditions are pluralistic and revere both Shiva and Vishnu (along with Devi), their texts do not show exclusivism, and Vaishnava texts such as the Bhagavata Purana while praising Krishna as the Ultimate Reality, also present Shiva and Shakti as a personalized form an equivalent to the same Ultimate Reality.
Shiva 
 The Skanda Purana, for example, states:Vishnu is no one but Shiva, and he who is called Shiva is but identical with Vishnu.
Shiva 
 — Mythologies of both traditions include legends about who is superior, about Shiva paying homage to Vishnu, and Vishnu paying homage to Shiva.
Shiva 
 However, in texts and artwork of either tradition, the mutual salutes are symbolism for complementarity.
Shiva 
 The Mahabharata declares the unchanging Ultimate Reality (Brahman) to be identical to Shiva and to Vishnu, that Vishnu is the highest manifestation of Shiva, and Shiva is the highest manifestation of Vishnu.
Shiva 
 The goddess-oriented Shakti tradition of Hinduism is based on the premise that the Supreme Principle and the Ultimate Reality called Brahman is female (Devi), but it treats the male as her equal and complementary partner.
Shiva 
 The earliest evidence of the tradition of reverence for the feminine with Rudra-Shiva context, is found in the Hindu scripture Rigveda, in a hymn called the Devi Sukta:3.
Shiva 
 Me have the gods distributed in many places—so that I have many stations and cause many things to enter (me).
Shiva 
 — The Devi Upanishad in its explanation of the theology of Shaktism, mentions and praises Shiva such as in its verse 19.
Shiva 
 Shiva, along with Vishnu, is a revered god in the Devi Mahatmya, a text of Shaktism considered by the tradition to be as important as the Bhagavad Gita.
Shiva 
 The Ardhanarisvara concept co-mingles god Shiva and goddess Shakti by presenting an icon that is half-man and half woman, a representation and theme of union found in many Hindu texts and temples.
Shiva 
 A bearded Shiva sits in the centre with his wife Parvati and their infant son Ganesha; surrounded by (clockwise from left upper corner) Ganesha, Devi, Vishnu, and Surya.
Shiva 
 This practice consists of the use of icons or anicons of five deities considered equivalent, set in a quincunx pattern.
Shiva 
 Shiva is one of the five deities, others being Vishnu, Devi (such as Parvati), Surya and Ganesha or Skanda or any personal god of devotee's preference (Ishta Devata).
Shiva 
 Philosophically, the Smarta tradition emphasizes that all idols (murti) are icons to help focus on and visualize aspects of Brahman, rather than distinct beings.
Shiva 
 The ultimate goal in this practice is to transition past the use of icons, recognize the Absolute symbolized by the icons, on the path to realizing the nondual identity of one's Atman (soul, self) and the Brahman.
Shiva 
 Popularized by Adi Shankara, many Panchayatana mandalas and temples have been uncovered that are from the Gupta Empire period, and one Panchayatana set from the village of Nand (about 24 kilometers from Ajmer) has been dated to belong to the Kushan Empire era (pre-300 CE).
Shiva 
 The Kushan period set includes Shiva, Vishnu, Surya, Brahma and one deity whose identity is unclear.
Shiva 
 Adiyogi Shiva statue, recognized by the Guinness World Records as the "Largest Bust Sculpture” in the world; the statue is for inspiring and promoting yoga, and is named Adiyogi, which means "the first yogi", because Shiva is known as the originator of yoga.
Shiva 
 As Shiva Dakshinamurthi, states Stella Kramrisch, he is the supreme guru who "teaches in silence the oneness of one's innermost self (atman) with the ultimate reality (brahman)."
Shiva 
 The theory and practice of Yoga, in different styles, has been a part of all major traditions of Hinduism, and Shiva has been the patron or spokesperson in numerous Hindu Yoga texts.
Shiva 
 These ideas are estimated to be from or after the late centuries of the 1st millennium CE, and have survived as Yoga texts such as the Isvara Gita (literally, 'Shiva's song'), which Andrew Nicholson – a professor of Hinduism and Indian Intellectual History – states have had "a profound and lasting influence on the development of Hinduism".
Shiva 
 Other famed Shiva-related texts influenced Hatha Yoga, integrated monistic (Advaita Vedanta) ideas with Yoga philosophy and inspired the theoretical development of Indian classical dance.
Shiva 
 These include the Shiva Sutras, the Shiva Samhita, and those by the scholars of Kashmir Shaivism such as the 10th-century scholar Abhinavagupta.
Shiva 
 Abhinavagupta writes in his notes on the relevance of ideas related to Shiva and Yoga, by stating that "people, occupied as they are with their own affairs, normally do nothing for others", and Shiva and Yoga spirituality helps one look beyond, understand interconnectedness, and thus benefit both the individual and the world towards a more blissful state of existence.
Shiva 
 An art depiction of the Trimurti, with Shiva depicted on the right, at the Hoysaleswara temple in Halebidu.
Shiva 
 The Trimurti is a concept in Hinduism in which the cosmic functions of creation, maintenance, and destruction are personified by the forms of Brahma the creator, Vishnu the maintainer or preserver and Shiva the destroyer or transformer.
Shiva 
 However, the ancient and medieval texts of Hinduism feature many triads of gods and goddesses, some of which do not include Shiva.
Shiva 
 Shiva is depicted three-eyed, the Ganges flowing through his matted hair, wearing ornaments of serpents and a skull garland, covered in ashes, and seated on a tiger skin
Shiva 
 Third eye: Shiva is often depicted with a third eye, with which he burned Desire (Kāma) to ashes, called "Tryambakam" (Sanskrit: त्र्यम्बकम् ), which occurs in many scriptural sources.
Shiva 
 In classical Sanskrit, the word ambaka denotes "an eye", and in the Mahabharata, Shiva is depicted as three-eyed, so this name is sometimes translated as "having three eyes".
Shiva 
 However, in Vedic Sanskrit, the word 'ambā' or 'ambikā' means "mother", and this early meaning of the word is the basis for the translation "three mothers".
Shiva 
 Other related translations have been based on the idea that the name actually refers to the oblations given to Rudra, which according to some traditions were shared with the goddess Ambikā.
Shiva 
 The epithet Candraśekhara (Sanskrit: चन्द्रशेखर "Having the moon as his crest" – 'candra' = "moon"; 'śekhara' = "crest, crown") refers to this feature.
Shiva 
 The placement of the moon on his head as a standard iconographic feature dates to the period when Rudra rose to prominence and became the major deity Rudra-Shiva.
Shiva 
 The origin of this linkage may be due to the identification of the moon with Soma, and there is a hymn in the Rig Veda where Soma and Rudra are jointly implored, and in later literature, Soma and Rudra came to be identified with one another, as were Soma and the moon.
Shiva 
 The ashes represent a reminder that all of material existence is impermanent, comes to an end becoming ash, and the pursuit of eternal soul and spiritual liberation is important.
Shiva 
 Matted hair: Shiva's distinctive hair style is noted in the epithets Jaṭin, "the one with matted hair", and Kapardin, "endowed with matted hair" or "wearing his hair wound in a braid in a shell-like (kaparda) fashion".
Shiva 
 A kaparda is a cowrie shell, or a braid of hair in the form of a shell, or, more generally, hair that is shaggy or curly.
Shiva 
 Since Shiva drank the Halahala poison churned up from the Samudra Manthan to eliminate its destructive capacity.
Shiva 
 Shocked by his act, Parvati squeezed his neck and stopped it in his neck to prevent it from spreading all over the universe, supposed to be in Shiva's stomach.
Shiva 
 Meditating yogi: his iconography often shows him in a Yoga pose, meditating, sometimes on a symbolic Himalayan Mount Kailasha as the Lord of Yoga.
Shiva 
 The 'Gaṅgā' (Ganga), one of the major rivers of the country, is said to have made her abode in Shiva's hair.
Shiva 
 As a symbol, the Trishul represents Shiva's three aspects of "creator, preserver and destroyer", or alternatively it represents the equilibrium of three Gunas of "sattva, rajas and tamas".
Shiva 
 A specific hand gesture (mudra) called 'ḍamaru-hasta' (Sanskrit for "ḍamaru-hand") is used to hold the drum.
Shiva 
 Rosary beads: he is garlanded with or carries a string of rosary beads in his right hand, typically made of Rudraksha.
Shiva 
 Nandī: Nandī, also known as "Nandin", is the name of the bull that serves as Shiva's mount (Sanskrit: 'vāhana').
Shiva 
 Shiva's association with cattle is reflected in his name Paśupati, or Pashupati (Sanskrit: पशुपति), translated by Sharma as "lord of cattle" and by Kramrisch as "lord of animals", who notes that it is particularly used as an epithet of Rudra.
Shiva 
 In Hindu mythology, Mount Kailāsa is conceived as resembling a Linga, representing the center of the universe.
Shiva 
 Generally benign, except when their lord is transgressed against, they are often invoked to intercede with the lord on behalf of the devotee.
Shiva 
 His son Ganesha was chosen as their leader by Shiva, hence Ganesha's title 'gaṇa-īśa' or 'gaṇa-pati', "lord of the gaṇas".
Shiva 
 Varanasi: Varanasi (Benares) is considered to be the city specially loved by Shiva, and is one of the holiest places of pilgrimage in India.
Shiva 
 According to Gavin Flood, "Shiva is a god of ambiguity and paradox," whose attributes include opposing themes.
Shiva 
 The ambivalent nature of this deity is apparent in some of his names and the stories told about him.
Shiva 
 Left: Bhairava icon of the fierce form of Shiva, from 17th/18th century Nepal; Right: Shiva as a meditating yogi in Rishikesh.
Shiva 
 In Yajurveda, two contrary sets of attributes for both malignant or terrifying (Sanskrit: 'rudra') and benign or auspicious (Sanskrit: 'śiva') forms can be found, leading Chakravarti to conclude that "all the basic elements which created the complex Rudra-Śiva sect of later ages are to be found here".
Shiva 
 In the Mahabharata, Shiva is depicted as "the standard of invincibility, might, and terror", as well as a figure of honor, delight, and brilliance.
Shiva 
 According to traditional etymologies, the Sanskrit name Rudra is derived from the root rud-, which means "to cry, howl".
Shiva 
 Stella Kramrisch notes a different etymology connected with the adjectival form raudra, which means "wild, of rudra nature", and translates the name Rudra as "the wild one" or "the fierce god".
Shiva 
 Hara is an important name that occurs three times in the Anushasanaparvan version of the Shiva sahasranama, where it is translated in different ways each time it occurs, following a commentorial tradition of not repeating an interpretation.
Shiva 
 Sharma translates the three as "one who captivates", "one who consolidates", and "one who destroys".
Shiva 
 Another of Shiva's fearsome forms is as Kāla "time" and Mahākāla "great time", which ultimately destroys all things.
Shiva 
 The name Kāla appears in the Shiva Sahasranama, where it is translated by Ram Karan Sharma as "(the Supreme Lord of) Time".
Shiva 
 This name was adopted by the great Vedanta philosopher Adi Shankara (c. 788–820), who is also known as Shankaracharya.
Shiva 
 The name Śambhu (Sanskrit: शम्भु swam-on its own; bhu-burn/shine) "self-shining/ shining on its own", also reflects this benign aspect.
Shiva 
 Shiva is depicted as both an ascetic yogi and as a householder (grihasta), roles which have been traditionally mutually exclusive in Hindu society.
Shiva 
 His epithet Mahāyogi ("the great Yogi: 'Mahā' = "great", Yogi = "one who practices Yoga") refers to his association with yoga.
Shiva 
 While Vedic religion was conceived mainly in terms of sacrifice, it was during the Epic period that the concepts of tapas, yoga, and asceticism became more important, and the depiction of Shiva as an ascetic sitting in philosophical isolation reflects these later concepts.
Shiva 
 His epithet Umāpati ("The husband of Umā") refers to this idea, and Sharma notes that two other variants of this name that mean the same thing, Umākānta and Umādhava, also appear in the sahasranama.
Shiva 
 She is identified with Devi, the Divine Mother; Shakti (divine energy) as well as goddesses like Tripura Sundari, Durga, Kali, Kamakshi and Minakshi.
Shiva 
 His son Ganesha is worshipped throughout India and Nepal as the Remover of Obstacles, Lord of Beginnings and Lord of Obstacles.
Shiva 
 Kartikeya is worshipped in South India (especially in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka) by the names Subrahmanya, Subrahmanyan, Shanmughan, Swaminathan and Murugan, and in Northern India by the names Skanda, Kumara, or Karttikeya.
Shiva 
 As one story goes, Shiva is enticed by the beauty and charm of Mohini, Vishnu's female avatar, and procreates with her.
Shiva 
 As a result of this union, Shasta – identified with regional deities Ayyappan and Aiyanar – is born.
Shiva 
 In outskirts of Ernakulam in Kerala, a deity named Vishnumaya is stated to be offspring of Shiva and invoked in local exorcism rites, but this deity is not traceable in Hindu pantheon and is possibly a local tradition with "vaguely Chinese" style rituals, states Saletore.
Shiva 
 According to Doniger, two regional stories depict demons Andhaka and Jalandhara as the children of Shiva who war with him, and are later destroyed by Shiva.
Shiva 
 In addition to the specific iconographic form known as Nataraja, various other types of dancing forms (Sanskrit: 'nṛtyamūrti') are found in all parts of India, with many well-defined varieties in Tamil Nadu in particular.
Shiva 
 The two most common forms of the dance are the Tandava, which later came to denote the powerful and masculine dance as Kala-Mahakala associated with the destruction of the world.
Shiva 
 When it requires the world or universe to be destroyed, Shiva does it by the Tandava, and Lasya, which is graceful and delicate and expresses emotions on a gentle level and is considered the feminine dance attributed to the goddess Parvati.
Shiva 
 Dakshinamurthy (Dakṣiṇāmūrti) literally describes a form ('mūrti') of Shiva facing south ('dakṣiṇa').
Shiva 
 This form represents Shiva in his aspect as a teacher of yoga, music, and wisdom and giving exposition on the shastras.
Shiva 
 Elements of this motif can include Shiva seated upon a deer-throne and surrounded by sages who are receiving his instruction.
Shiva 
 An iconographic representation of Shiva called Ardhanarishvara ('Ardhanārīśvara') shows him with one half of the body as male and the other half as female.
Shiva 
 According to Ellen Goldberg, the traditional Sanskrit name for this form is best translated as "the lord who is half woman", not as "half-man, half-woman".
Shiva 
 Shiva is often depicted as an archer in the act of destroying the triple fortresses, Tripura, of the Asuras.
Shiva 
 One common form is the shape of a vertical rounded column in the centre of a lipped, disk-shaped object, the yoni, symbolism for the goddess Shakti.
Shiva 
 In Shiva temples, the linga is typically present in its sanctum sanctorum and is the focus of votary offerings such as milk, water, flower petals, fruit, fresh leaves, and rice.
Shiva 
 According to Monier Williams and Yudit Greenberg, linga literally means 'mark, sign or emblem', and also refers to a "mark or sign from which the existence of something else can be reliably inferred".
Shiva 
 Some scholars, such as Wendy Doniger, view linga merely as an erotic phallic symbol, although this interpretation is criticized by others, including Swami Vivekananda, Sivananda Saraswati, and S. N. Balagangadhara.
Shiva 
 According to Moriz Winternitz, the linga in the Shiva tradition is "only a symbol of the productive and creative principle of nature as embodied in Shiva", and it has no historical trace in any obscene phallic cult.
Shiva 
 The worship of the lingam originated from the famous hymn in the Atharva-Veda Samhitâ sung in praise of the Yupa-Stambha, the sacrificial post.
Shiva 
 In that hymn, a description is found of the beginningless and endless Stambha or Skambha, and it is shown that the said Skambha is put in place of the eternal Brahman.
Shiva 
 Just as the Yajna (sacrificial) fire, its smoke, ashes, and flames, the Soma plant, and the ox that used to carry on its back the wood for the Vedic sacrifice gave place to the conceptions of the brightness of Shiva's body, his tawny matted hair, his blue throat, and the riding on the bull of the Shiva, the Yupa-Skambha gave place in time to the Shiva-Linga.
Shiva 
 In the text Linga Purana, the same hymn is expanded in the shape of stories, meant to establish the glory of the great Stambha and the superiority of Shiva as Mahadeva.
Shiva 
 The oldest known archaeological linga as an icon of Shiva is the Gudimallam lingam from 3rd-century BCE.
Shiva 
 In Shaivism pilgrimage tradition, twelve major temples of Shiva are called Jyotirlinga, which means "linga of light", and these are located across India.
Shiva 
 These are represented as the five faces of Shiva and are associated in various texts with the five elements, the five senses, the five organs of perception, and the five organs of action.
Shiva 
 Doctrinal differences and, possibly, errors in transmission, have resulted in some differences between texts in details of how these five forms are linked with various attributes.