Shiva. Legenda marelui zeu. Povestiri și învățături din Shiva Mahapurana

by Vanamali

În amețitoarea galaxie de zei a panteonului hindus, Shiva iese în evidență ca fiind cel mai vechi și cel mai iubit. În zorii creației cosmosului, cu mult înainte de crearea omului, el a apărut sub forma arcașului divin ce avea arcul îndreptat spre Absolutul cel nerevelat. Lumea este terenul lui de vânătoare. Universul răsună de prezența sa. El este atât sunetul, cât și ecoul. El este atât vibrația intangibilă, cât și substanța infinitezimală. El este atât ruginiul frunzelor uscate, cât și verdele lucios al ierbii încolțite. El este atât barcagiul care ne poartă pe fluviul vieții către moarte, cât și cel care ne eliberează de ciclul renașterilor și ne conferă nemurirea. El apucă, susține, dă drumul și eliberează. El este atât boala, cât și distrugătorul bolii. El este hrana, cel care ne hrănește, cât și procesul hrănirii.
Maiestuozitatea și puterea sa divină sunt reprezentate prin descrieri simbolice și totodată extrem de realistice, prezentând atât o imagine impresionantă, îndepărtată,
distantă și rece în fortăreața sa retrasă din munții Himalaya, cât și una apropiată, binevoitoare și iubitoare, un simbol viu și vibrant al Absolutului.

Genres: Spirituality, Hinduism, Nonfiction, Religion, Mythology, Classics, Philosophy

432 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2002

Reviews

[Ashish Iyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Om Namah Shivaya!

[Ajay · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fascinating book this was.

[Shrungi Bhatt · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely incredible book!!!!

Throughout this book I was just fascinated by how charming Shiva was!! As if I needed a reason to love him more. The book handles the age old stories in the most profound way possible!

[Äsruþr Cyneaþsson · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent collection concerned with Shiva. Vanamali provides great insight into each story with an exegesis which decodes the esoteric symbolism of each.

[Erik Steevens · Rating 4 out of 5]

About the rider on the bull, the wearer of the pure white moon on his locks ... Saint Sambandar.
I was looking for a long time to find out more about the whereabouts and adventures of Lord Shiva and this book is an excellent example. With dignity and respect Vanamali tells us all there is to know about Shiva and his appearances, manifestations which also paints a big smile on your face to read what this rascal-deity sometimes is up to.

[Renu · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the Introduction in the book. It was enlightening. It also compares the Hindu puranic view versus the Modern Science view of energy and matter.

The book goes very deep in the mythological stories of Hindu Gods. Not the stuff i was looking for. I wanted more spiritual level rather than religious. So, I skipped a lot in chapters.

[Dawnn Nwarache · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are a lot of great aspects to this book with knowledge and information

Really does a great job of explaining a lot of the stories after having read this you will walk away with more knowledge

[Navya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good experience reading, so well explained the myth

[Erjon 7 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Om namah Shivaya.

[Sneh Lata · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb book. Best amongst the books on shiva other than holy books. You’ll fall in love with lord shiva yet again after reading

[Harry Palacio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incarnations of shiva wed eternally to shakti… stories of the first yogi the blue throated god… where shivaya and krishna worship each other in a perennial cosmic dance

[Karan · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/5

I would change title to just stories from the Shiva Mahapurana. I picked this book to understand about Shiva, why people worship him the way they do and importance of him in Hinduism but I was disappointed

[Heidi Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful book, very clearly explained! This covers everything from Shiva’s devotees to his stories, which I’m very thankful for as there does not seem to be many readily available translations of the Shiva Mahapurana.

Om Namah Shivaya🙏 Har Har Mahadev! ❤️

[Nithila P. · Rating 5 out of 5]

- perfect to pick up and read aloud, with family and friends during the week, when honoring MahaSivaratri. Vanamali's eloquence and devotion - makes the stories sparkle with life. Along with her words, we could envisions the ancient sacred-fables. We used her nuggets of discernment in each story, to debate with one another and have fun conversations as we kept awake for several hours... Highly recommended.

[Sowvik Chowdhury · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! While other writers use poetry or incomprehensible language to explain stories this book is clear and concise. Using simple prose the author transports you to the mountains of Kailasa Shiva’s abode. This is a great book to read for anyone. The tales of the Shiva Mahaparanas are beautifully told. Also, there is a handy glossary at the back that readers can easily access the meanings of any Sanskrit terms used.

[Bhargav · Rating 5 out of 5]

What I learnt?
1. Teachings about advaita
2. How advaita ties to Shiva tattva...
3. What is the real meaning of kundalini
4. Origin of Shiva (not really origin...but..existence)/ Shiva Leela (how karma affects maha yogi)
5. Stories about origin of Universe
6. Stories about Vishnu
7. Links between stories of Vishnu and how that ties with stories from Shiva Mahapurana...

This was a great read...! :)

[Haridevi Sathasivam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful experience reading this book! An enchanting book. Writer Vanamali is superb in rendering the ancient knowledge in simple and conscise language from Shiva Mahapurana.

[SAYANTAN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must Read for all Lord Shiva Devotees!! Om Namah Shivay

[Tushar · Rating 5 out of 5]

must read for all humanity

[Chaitanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

First book of the year! Well, I started this in 2018 but read through the majority this year. I knew most of the stories if not all, but I liked Vanamali's style. I loved some of the customs in the deep South India. I'd like to read more Lord Shiva stories.

Solid read. Especially if you like to tell stories to friends and family. 4/5!

[Muni Sreenivas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many good stories, some bad ones. The book also had stories from the Periya puranam in addition to the Shiva Mahapurana. There was some science bashing, which was absolutely unnecessary. I learnt a good deal about the colorful personality of Shiva.

[Celeste · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 stars!

loved how extensive it was, it truly made me connect more to him! however, sometimes the language used or views shared in the book are a bit too crude/ rough around the edges for my taste

[Vinita Tewari]

Interesting read about Shiv. A glimpse of few stories from shivpuran...

[Cherie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating book full of lots of interesting stories of Shiva's life.

[Savita Ramsumair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspiring

Another inspiring book by this devout writer. I truly felt a personal connection with Mahadev after reading this beautiful text.