Hindu sacred writings like Vishnu Purana, Matsya Purana, and Bhagavad Gita utilize the word Rudra to coin the eleven types of Shiva (Ekadasha-Rudras) born to end the savagery and oppression of rakshasas on the planet and paradise. Various sacred texts have different histories of these Rudra Avatars of Lord Shiva.
In the Svetasvatara Upanishad is a phrase
"Eko hi rudro na dvitiya tasthur" meaning Rudra is truly one and there is no place for a second. Mahadev - Shiv, both infinitely kind and terrifyingly destructive , created 11 immortal beings: Kapali, Pingala, Bhima, Virupaksa, Vilohita, Ajesha, Shasana, Shasta, Shambhu, Chanda, and Dhruva, which came to be known as the mighty 11 Rudras.
It is said that this concept subsequently became the basis for advaita school of thought. This Upanishad describes Rudra as the very Brahman and the Highest Reality and declaration of Truth. Thus the Purusha That controls Maya which is but Prakriti of the Samkhya as identified in the Upanishad is without doubt, Lord Siva. Svetasvatara Upanishad reflects the maturity and spirit of Saivism during vedic times.
Svetasvatara Upanishad 3.2: Siva rules (isata) these worlds with His enormous powers (isanibhi). He stands apart from all creatures (pratyan janan) and He is the protector of all the worlds (visvabhuvana gopa). At the end of creation He withdraws these worlds.
Svetasvatara Upanishad 3.4: He is the source and origin of all gods, the ruler of them and as Iswara gives birth to Hiranyagarbha, the golden germ.
Svetasvatara Upanishad 3.8: White in color (aditya varnam), beyond darkness and ignorance (tamasa parastat), He alone can take us beyond the cycle of births and deaths. There is no other path that can help us.
Svetasvatara Upanishad 3.9: There is nothing else that is higher or smaller than Him. He alone pervades the whole universe.
Svetasvatara Upanishad 3.11: "Sa bhagavan tasmat sarva-gatas sivah." He is the Lord and He, Siva, is therefore found everywhere. This is when Lord Shiva releases the destructive energies to dismantle all of the creation by performing a cosmic dance known as Shiva Tandav.
This form of Shiva as a cosmic dancer is known as Nataraja. Some of his avatars are related to protecting his devotees from the devils and proud Gods as well. While there are 19 different avatars of Shiva, however, ‘Nataraja’ is not an avatar but Lord Shiva himself as the divine dancer.
Nataraja is Shiva during the apocalypse dances called the cosmic dance of Shiva “tandav” symbolizing the interplay of dynamic and static divine energy flow, which contains five principles of eternal energy- creation, preservation, destruction, illusion, and emancipation. However, five avatars of all his incarnations are hideously important as well as assumed to be the most valuable and effective for his devotees. The most important five incarnations are: Tatpurush, Namadeva, Aghoresh, Sadhojat and Ishan.
Tatpurush; is the most popular third incarnation of the Lord Shiva which was manifested in the 21st Kalpa of the planet known as Peetavasa. It was appeared by the prayer of the Lord Brahma.
Naamdeva; During the 20th Kalpa known as the Rakta, Lord Brahma got his complexion changed to a red. Another entity was appeared from him of the red complexion, which was name by him as a Namadeva. It is considered as the Naamdeva was also the incarnation of Lord Shiva.
Aghoresh; In the Shiva Kalpa (after the Peetavasa Kalp), an entity of black color complexion was appeared by the Lord Brahma when he was in deep meditation state. Lord Brahma named that entity as Aghor Shiva and considered as another form of Lord Shiva.
Sadhojat; During the 19th Kalpa known as Shweta Lohit, there appeared an entity by the Lord Brahma while he was meditating, which was named by him as Sadhojat. It is considered that this form of the Lord Shiva was the first incarnation. Four disciples of the Sadhojat were appeared by his own body named Nandan, Vishwanandan, Sunand and Upanandan.
Ishan; In the Vishwaroop Kalpa, Ishan form of the Lord Shiva and Saraswati were manifested. Four divine entities like Mundi, Shikhandi, Caste and Ardhamundi were manifested from the Ishan Shiva. Lord Brahma was blessed by all of them for the creation facility.
As science states ‘energy can neither be created nor destroyed, the destruction initiated by Shiva with his cosmic dance is a medium for recreation and the cycle never ends. His cosmic dance in an aureole of fire, causing wild thunderstorms all around the world, and not only the earth is affected, but also the Sun, the Moon, and the stellar bodies with his matted hair, marks of ash on forehead, the damaru, and trident. He lifts his left leg balancing the right above a demon of ignorance. This cosmic dance of Shiva is best described in the popular Shiva Tandav Stotram composed by Ravana.
There are eight idols of the Lord Shiva which includes Ugra, Sharva, Bhava, Rudra, Bheema, Pashupati, Ishan and Mahadeva. Ten fastidious incarnations of the God Shiva known as Dash Avatar and 10 incarnations of the Mata Sakti known as the Dash Mahavidya. Describing concerning to the 10 incarnations and their corresponding power (Shakti), the first incarnation of Lord Shiva was the Mahakal and Shakti was Mahakali. Second incarnation of both of them was Tar and Tara. Third incarnation of both of them was Bhuvaneshwar and Bhuvaneshwari. Fourth incarnation was Shodash and Shodashi or Shri. Fifth incarnation was Bhairav and Bhairavi. The sixth incarnation was Chhinamastak and Chhinamasta. Seventh incarnation was Dhoomvan and Dhoomvati. The eighth incarnation was Baglamukh and Baglamukhi. The ninth incarnation was Matang and Matangi. Tenth incarnation was Kamal and Kamala.
Lord Shiva took birth on the earth as the eleven Rudras from the Kashyap wife’s (Surabhi) womb. These forms of the eleven Rudras are associated with the battles with demons in the past in order to save the people and Gods. Following are the name of eleven Rudras:
1) Kapali 2) Pingal 3) Bheem 4) Virupaksha 5) Vilohit 6) Shastra 7) Ajapaad 8) Ahirbudhnya 9) Shambhu 10) Chand and 11) Bhav. These 11 Rudra Avatars of Lord Shiva, came into existence to protect divine beings and were gifted in battle. They obliterated the rakshasa and once again gave Indra, his rightful throne, as the legitimate King of the Gods and the city of Amrawati Puri since the time was forever made the city to shield it from such rakshasas and help the divine beings in their battle against evil.
To succor the law and equilibrium of nature, there were several different Avatars of Lord Shiva in different Yugas. Kurma Purana discusses 28 Lord Shiva Avatars, yet in Shiva Purana, 19 Incarnations of Lord Shiva;
Piplaad Avatar; Lord Shiva was born to Rishi Dadhichi and his wife Swarcha as Piplaad. However, the sage and his wife soon lost their lives because of Shani's position in the sky at the time of his birth. Thus, Piplaad sought revenge on Shani and was the reason behind the planet's fall from its divine home. Afterward, he pardoned Shani, when the Devas intervened, on the prerequisite that the planet could never cause trouble for anyone before it turns 16 years old. Thus, revering the Piplaad avatar of Lord Shiva assists with disposing of Shani dosha.
Nandi Avatar; This Lord Shiva Avatar took birth in the abode of Sage Shilada. The sage performed extreme atonement to make himself worthy of Lord Shiva's blessings and asked the Lord to bless him with a child who would live on forever. The child, Nandi later was given the positions of the gatekeeper of Lord Shiva's abode, Kailasha, and the Lord's mount.
Veerbhadra Avatar; came on Earth right after Goddess Sati sacrificed herself at the Daksha yagna. Lord Shiva ended up being very angry. He culled a hair strand from his head and tossed it on the ground. Veerbhadra and Rudrakali were conceived from that particular hair strand. This furious Lord Shiva Avatar is said to have broken the conciliatory vessels, offended the priests, and lastly beheaded Daksha, stomped all over Indra, broke Yama's staff, dissipated the divine beings on all sides; before retreating to his heavenly abode, Mount Kailasha. After the death of Sati into the yagya of Daksha, Lord Shiva was wandering all over the world by taking the Sati body. Lord Vishnu had cut the body of Sati into many pieces (52) by his wheel. Those pieces were fallen on the earth.
Sharabha Avatar; According to the Shiva Purana, this Lord Shiva Avatar in the form of part bird part lion was born to subdue Narasimha- the dangerous man-lion avatar of Lord Vishnu after it slew the demon Hiranyakashipu. This among all the avatars of Lord Shiva is revered as Sarabeshwara (Lord Sarabha) or Sharabeshwaramurti.
Ashwatthama; Impressed by Guru Dronacharya's extreme atonement and dedication to pleasing him so that he would be born as his son, Lord Shiva was born as Ashwatthama, a capable hero who assumed a significant part in the Mahabharata. He was being brought into the world as Bhardwaja's grandson and was raised as a Brahman but was drawn to Kshatriyahood.
Bhairava Avatar; came into existence when Lord Brahma lied with regards to his mission for superiority, Lord Shiva Avatar of Bhirava beheaded Lord Brahma's fifth head. Brahma Hatya was a serious offense and the Bhairava Avatar of Lord Shiva had committed it, and consequently, Shiva had to carry the skull of Brahma and wander as a Bhikshatana for 12 years.
Durvasa Avatar; Lord Shiva chose to be born as the Lord Shiva Avatar of Durvasa to Sage Atri and his wife, Anasuya. This avatar of Lord Shiva came on earth to ensure proper discipline in the universe. Durvasa was a sage known for commanding huge respect both from human beings and devas.
Grihapati Avatar; This Lord Shiva Avatar was brought to this world by the devoted admirer of Lord Shiva, Shuchismati. This avatar of Lord Shiva was knowledgeable in each and every one of the Vedas yet was cursed to have a short lifespan because of planetary positions. His excursion to Kashi was disturbed by Indra however Lord Shiva came to his safeguard and favored Grihapati by saying "even Kaalvajra would not have the option to kill you." Grihapati turned out to be extremely satisfied. The Shivalinga which he revered, later on, became renowned as 'Agnishwar linga'. Grihapati was appointed as the Lord of all directions by Lord Shiva.
Lord Hanuman; (Ekadasha-Rudra Avatar) Lord Shiva was so mesmerized by the presence of Lord Vishnu in his Mohini avatar during Samudra Manthan that his semen was delivered on the ground. This semen was set up by the Saptarishis in the belly of Anjani, with Lord Shiva's approval. In this manner, one of the most powerful of 19 avatars of Lord Shiva, Hanuman was conceived. This Lord Shiva Avatar was born to Mata Anjani and Kesari.
Vrishabha Avatar; Lord Vishnu deceived every one of the asuras, during the Samundra Manthan, by creating a mirage of charming beauties. At the point when the asuras saw them, they coercively took these charming beauties to their house - Patal Lok. From that point forward, they again got back to assume responsibility for the Nectar which had been taken by the divine beings. While Vishnu went to demolish them in Patal Loka he, at the end of the day, became involved with the Maya and fathered numerous corrupt children there, who caused a commotion for the Gods. It was then the Lord Shiva Avatar of Vrishabha appeared as a bull and killed every one of the horrible children of Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu came to battle the bull avatar of Lord Shiva, however, after perceiving that it was Lord Shiva's Avatar, he left the battle and retreated to his abode.
Yatinath Avatar; The Lord Shiva Avatar, Yatinath visited a tribal man, Aahuk, and his significant other who were vigorous aficionados of Lord Shiva. Their humble home couldn't oblige the Avatar of Lord Shiva disguised as a visitor, so Aahuk chose to rest outside. Sadly, he was killed by a wild creature in his sleep. His wife chose to end her own life but she was honored by the Lord Shiva Avatar, Yatinath, that they would be brought into the world as Nala and Damyanti in the following life.
Krishna Darshan Avatar; The Lord Shiva Avatar of Krishna Darshan speaks about the significance of yagna and customs in an individual's life. Prince Nabhag who was kept from his portion of the realm by his siblings had been asked by his dad to teach a sage to dispose of every one of his connections to effectively perform a yajna. At the point when the yagna was successfully performed, Sage Angiras satisfied was ready to give him all the abundance which was halted by Krishan Darshan Avatar of Shiva. Krishna Darshan Avatar taught Nabhag the importance of pious salvation and gave his blessings.
Sureshwar Avatar; The son of Sage Vyaghrapaad, Upamanyu was graced with the presence of Lord Shiva Avatar, Sureshawar (as he showed up as Indra) and Goddess Parvati camouflaged as Indra and Indrani. To test his commitment, the two of them advised Upamanyu to quit his atonement and stop revering Shiva. Upamanyu was infuriated and rejected their proposal even after being brutally cursed. Shiva and Parvati were highly impressed by his complete commitment and dedication Shiva guaranteed Upamanyu that he would be available close to his abode alongside Parvati until the end of time.
Kirateshwar Avatar; Kirat (a hunter) descended to earth while Arjuna was contemplating killing an Asura named Mooka, masked as a pig. Arjun's contemplation was disturbed by the sudden appearance of Lord Shiva's Avatar and after seeing the boar, Arjun and the Kirat struck it simultaneously. A battle broke between the Kirat and Arjuna with regards to who struck the boar first. The latter challenged Kirat for a duel. Master Shiva was impressed by Arjuna's courage and offered the young champion his Pashupati Astra.
Yaksheshwar Avatar; At the point when the gods in the wake of overcoming the Asuras during Samudra Manthan, had become egotistical, Lord Shiva hated it, as pride was not a quality for divine beings to have. A Lord Shiva Avatar then, at that point, introduced some grass before them and requested that they cut it. Lord Shiva endeavored to obliterate their bogus pride through this heavenly grass. No one could cut the grass and the pride disappeared. This avatar of Lord Shiva, at that point, came to be known as Yaksheshwar.
Avadhut Avatar; This Avatar of Lord Shiva was a reincarnation that came into existence to battle the egotistical nature of Lord Indra. Rudra Avatar of Lord Shiva is a notable incarnation of Shiva in Hindu Dharma. Rudra in a real sense implies a mighty storm and signifies a form of Shiva, his generally rough and enraged self. He is one of the three heavenly beings accepted to have made the universe.
Ardhnaarishwar Avatar: Ardhnaarishwar form of the Lord Shiva includes half body of Lord Shiva and other half of the Mata Parvati. This form is very calm and peaceful, provides blessings to the devotees.
Neel Kanth Avatar: Neel Kanth avatar is also a main form of him. Once there was arisen a lot of Vish from the churning of the ocean. Lord Shiva had drunk all the Vish to prevent his beautiful world from the bad effects of Vish. Mata Parvati had stopped the Vish to fall below the neck by putting her palm on his neck. So, this form of him is known as the Neel kanth avatar.
Bramhchari Avatar: Lord Shiva had taken this avatar to test the Mata Parvati. When Sati rebirth on the earth to the Himalaya’s house as his daughter, Parvati and started worshipping the God Shiva to marry him.
Suntantarka Avatar; This Avatar of Lord Shiva asked Goddess Parvati’s hand in marriage from her revered father Himalaya.
Authored by Dr Anadi Sahoo
