These are all different persons, each endowed with the specific power that can fulfill one of your wishes, and you approach them one by one according to the circumstances. When you have obtained what you wanted, you may be somehow grateful but generally the relationship remains superficial. Materialistic people project the same scenario on the religious level.
According to Hindu Philosophy the understanding of demigod is used to refer to deities who were once human and later became devas (Gods) would be somebody like the Pandavas; the sons of Kunti conceived with divine personalities such as Surya, Yama, Vayu, Indra and the Asvini kumaras. There are two notable demigods in Vedic Scriptures; Nandi (the divine vehicle of Shiva), and Garuda (the divine steed of Vishnu) in vedic traditions.
Krishna himself, in the Mahabharata, presents the Siva sahasra nama stotra, to which Bhishma follows with the Vishnu sahasra nama stotra (which also contains many names such as Shiva; twice and Sambhu, Isana, Rudra, Mahadeva and others); Krishna also instructs Arjuna to recite the hymn to Durga before the battle of Kurukshetra, following the example of Ramachandra who worshiped Durga before the battle against Ravana.
Brihad Aranyaka Upanishad (1.4.10) states that one who worships the Devas by considering them different (from the Supreme, or Reality at large), does not have the (proper) knowledge and is like an unconscious to the Devas. There are two levels of meaning here; one applies to the non-difference between Devas, and between the Devas and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and the other applies to the non-difference between the Devas and the worshiper.
In Bhagavad gita (7.20) Krishna clearly warns that we should not make the mistake of considering the Devas as anya, other or different from Krishna, from the Unified Transcendental Reality. This vision is confirmed by all the traditional scriptures and the great acharyas of all lineages.
Bhagavata Purana clearly describes the Devas as limbs or arms of supreme power: bahavo loka-palanam (1.11.26), indrayo bahava ahur usrah (2.1.29). God has unlimited forms, unlimited names, unlimited qualities, activities, and variety of approaches to attract the minds of so many different people.
Who have not realized the meaning of the tattva (especially its darshana called acintya bhedabheda); So for a materialistically minded person there is not much difference, one who wants good health should worship Surya (the Sun), one who wants to acquire knowledge should worship Sarasvati, one who wants to get wealth should worship Lakshmi, one who wants to progress without obstacles should worship Ganesha, and so on.
Bhagavata Purana (10.40.9-10) states; Everyone actually worships you, Lord, because you are the sum total of all devas, even if devotees meditate on the other forms separately from you. Just like the rivers are born from the mountains where the rainwater is collected, and then end up into the ocean, all paths ultimately attain you.
The concept of the “preferred form of God” that one likes to meditate on and worship is called ista devata (one’s desired form of God). One can choose the ista devata s/he prefers, and even change his/ her choice in the course of time, when the progress in devotional service or a change of circumstances inspire him/ her to focus in a different aspect of Godhead.
Some people choose their ista devata according to the suggestions of astrologers, or to please their parents and family, or to gain acceptance into a community; however, the best reason is because of the development of his/ her own personal devotional sentiments.
The important thing is that we always remember that God is one, and that by worshiping or meditating on one form of God rather than another, we are not offending or betraying the other forms of God. All the forms of the Mother Goddess are aspects of the same Shakti, and similarly all the forms of the Lord are expansions and emanations of expansions of Isvara: we should not make the mistake of applying material limitations to the Godhead.
All the various forms of the Godhead are limbs of his/ her transcendental body, and there is no real difference among them. In the Vedic system, the genuine scriptures present a variety of Personalities of Godhead, sometimes focusing on one, sometimes on more, and even each Personality is shown in different avataras or forms in which s/he descends into this world for a divine mission.
The original text of Padma Purana (Brahma Kanda, 25.15-18) says "sivasya sri-visnor ya iha guna-namadi-sakalam, dhiya bhinnam pasyet na khalu hari-namahita-karah" Especially in ancient holy places we find the worship of Hari-Hara (the composite form of Vishnu and Shiva) as Madhava.
In Bhagavata Purana (10.88.38-39) Krishna addresses Shiva as visva-isa (Lord of the Universe) and jagat guru (the guru of all), and says, “If someone commits offenses against you, s/he will never get any good fortune”.
Again Srimad Bhagavatam (4.4.14) says, yad dvy-aksharam nama gireritam nrinam sakrit prasangad agham asu hanti tat, pavitra-kirtim tam alanghya-sasanam, “If someone pronounces the name of Shiva, composed by two syllables, all impurities and faults will disappear from his heart immediately. Shiva’s fame is spotless, and nobody should dare to disobey him.”
To contemplate, in one’s meditation, any difference/ separation between the holy names, qualities etc, of Shiva and Vishnu: this certainly destroys the benefits of chanting the names of the demigods such as Shiva, Brahma etc are on the same level of the name of Vishnu, or that the demigods are equal to Vishnu.
Brihad Bhagavatamrita (1.2.86) very clearly confirms this meaning by stating: krsnac chivasya bhedeksa maha-dosa-kari mata, ago bhagavata svasmin ksamyate na sive krtam, “One who sees some difference between Krishna and Shiva is committing a great offense. Krishna may excuse someone who commits aparadha to his own lotus feet, but will never excuse one who commits aparadha at the lotus feet of Shiva”.
Skanda Purana teaches, “One should worship Lord Krishna, the cause of all causes, and then worship the best of the devatas, Lord Shiva. Then one should worship all the other devatas with great faith and devotion.” And again, sivasya hridayam vishnur, vishnos ca hridayam siva, “Shiva is the heart of Vishnu, and Vishnu is the heart of Shiva.”
In the Kurma purana (12.20) Vasistha (the guru of Ramachandra)answers the questions of the sons of Kartavirya Arjuna saying, “the best thing for human beings is to understand that Shiva is non-different from Visnu, therefore Shiva and Vishnu must be worshiped simultaneously”.
The Narada Purana (63.121, 65.58) says: diksaya guru-murti-sthah sarvanugrahah sivah, “In the process of diksha, Shiva, the universal guru, manifests in the form of the diksha guru to bless the disciple” and om namas te natha bhagavan sivaya guru-rupine, “I offer my homage to Bhagavan Shiva, who manifests in the form of the guru”. On a side note, this would explain why some so-called devotees who enjoy offending “the demigod Shiva” have so much troubles with finding a genuine guru.
Those who consider themselves as followers of Gaudiya Vaishnavism, should do well to make an extra effort to better understand Shiva’s actual position in early age especially in regard to the process of initiation and to the relationship between guru and disciple.
Krishnadasa Kaviraja, in his Sri Vraja dhama mahimamrita, glorifies Shiva as Gopisvara still today, genuine pilgrims humbly offer their obeisances to Gopisvara Mahadeva in his temple before starting their Vrindavana parikrama. It would also be wise, for the prakrita sahajya fans of Vrindavana Krishna, to remember that Shiva is the kshetrapala (guardian) in Vrindavana (as in all the other holy places) and specifically watches the rasa mandala area, so that unqualified people will not be able to enter it.
The same applies to the Mother Goddess (त्रिगुणमयी प्रकृति). Brahma samhita states that the form and mantra of Krishna is protected by the presiding Deity Yogamaya Durga (which is also confirmed in Gita; yoga maya samavritah).
Kindly give the shelter of your lotus feet to the wretched conditioned souls who suffer in this material world. You are the controlling power of the entire material universe and you appear in every yuga to uphold the principles of religion. Even Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva are unable to fully describe your unlimited powers, what to speak of ordinary people.
You are faith, compassion, modesty, and the personification of pure devotion to Lord Vishnu, Krishna, so all branches of knowledge are your manifestations. The Vedas describe you as the original energy, and you appear to be within this material nature consisting of the three gunas but you are actually their cause, and you are always situated in a transcendental position.
You are the eternal, unchanging, supreme energy, the shelter and resting place of all living entities, the universal Mother who sustains everyone, matchless and unrivalled. You are the life sustaining water, and by remembering you one can easily cut the bonds of material illusion. You appear also as Mother Lakshmi, the eternal consort of Shri Narayana, in the homes of the dharmic people, but to the sinful offender you manifest as the all-devouring death.
You are the creator of the universe and those who ignore you, not offering you worship, are punished by the threefold miseries. To the devotees you inspire pure faith, and therefore we pray you to please give us shelter in the shade of your lotus feet. Your appearance in the material world is to deliver the conditioned souls, and by remembering you one attains all perfection. Your illusory potency keeps the entire creation enthralled, so if you do not protect me, who will?
Self Consciousness and Realisation
Authored by Anadi Sahoo
