What is Shiva?

In Non-Dual Shaivism (paramadvaya) the word "shiva" doesn't always refer to the blue fella sitting atop a tiger skin mat meditating in the Himalayas. 

While "shiva" literally means "blessing" or "auspicious", the word "Shiva" in this context comes closer in meaning to Satchidananda Brahman, which means pure, Formless Awareness...but with a few nuances! 

In order to show how the Satchidananda Shiva of Tantra differs in some respects from the Satchidananda Brahman of the Vedas, we first have a discussion about Consciousness Itself (Shiva) and demonstrate what exactly makes it "shiva", a blessing. In what sense is Consciousness and Bliss the same?  In this lecture, we make the claim that the more aware you are, the happier you feel since Happiness Itself is intrinsic to Awareness Itself. 

Ultimately, the Saguna Sakara form of Shiva as the God of Meditation/Renunciation (the blue fella on the tiger skin mat) is nothing other than the Nirguna Nirakara form of Shiva and Formless Awareness.  In a different lecture, we'll demonstrate this claim. For now, we'll continue to dwell on the Formless aspect some more which is at the heart of Non-dual Shaivism. 

Next week while we're on the topic of Formless aspect of Shiva, we will have a discussion about how this Formless Awareness is playful.
 Lord Shiva, that is, the very Awareness that you yourself are, by which you are made aware of all the varied phenomena of your life, performs 5 divine acts in His sacred dance: Creation, Maintenance, Preservation, Self-Revelation and Self Concealment. 
It's almost as if Consciousness, in a spirit of play, manifested Itself as a world in order to play hide and seek in. This is one of the foundational ideas that is unique to Non-Dual Shaivism (Paramadvaya/ Advaita Shaiva Darshana) and we'll take it up in earnest in the next class.

This the second lecture in our new series exploring foundational concepts in Kashmir Shaivism. 

Lectures happen live every Monday at 7pm PST.  There's Q&A from 8-10pm PST right after.
It is free and open to the public. All are welcome!
Use this link and I will see you there:
https://www.zoom.us/j/7028380815

For more videos, guided meditations and instruction and for access to our lecture library, visit me at:
https://www.patreon.com/yogawithnish

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