Topic Research: Lord Shiva and the Epics

An Ever-Lasting Presence

Shiva's ever-present being in both my own life and in the epics is what inspired my decision to choose this topic. Shiva, possessing many different forms, is present in the epics. The epics are more than just the Mahabharata and Ramayana. It is also pieces of these stories in more detail or events that happen before and after. In some way, they are all connected and demonstrate the power of Shiva and his continuous involvement in not only the lives of these epics, but our own.

The sources I chose for this post are fairly simple. I chose the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, and another epic called the Kiratarjuniya.

Ramayana

In the Ramayana, Lord Shiva appears in the form of Hanuman and demonstrates his presence in the form of the bow. I found this incredibly interesting because he uses his form as a bow as a symbol. As a bow, he reaps karma; as Hanuman, he brings about victory. In the Ramayana, Shiva is reincarnated as Durvasa. Durvasa is a rishi who also makes an appearance in the Mahabharata.

Source: Hanuman, Incarnation of Shiva by Shakti Online. Web Source.

Hanuman flew to speak to Sita. Source: Wikimedia

Mahabharata

In the Mahabharata, Lord Shiva has several roles as in the Ramayana. Here he is Durvasa, Ashwatthama, and Hanuman again. As Durvasa, he had a major role in interacting with Kunti as a young girl. This is an important portion of the story. As Ashwatthama, Lord Shiva fought against the Pandava brothers but was later crowned the King of Panchala. Hanuman reappears within the Mahabharata is a reincarnate of Shiva as mentioned above.

Source: Durvasa by Sagar World. Web source.

A cloth painting of Durvasa chastising Sakuntala in the Mahabharata. Source: Wikimedia
British Museum circa 1895 

Kiratarjuniya

The epic of the Kiratarjuniya is an episode within the Mahabharata; however, it is one of the most impactful encounters. Arjuna and Shiva have a conversation that is about 13 poems long, but the message that comes out of it is important for us even today. This epic is interesting in that Shiva fully reveals himself in front of Arjuna, so this role is most important of all in the Mahabharata.

Source: Bharavi's Poem Kiratarjuniya Translation by Carl Cappeller. Literary source.

Arjun surrendering himself once Shiva revealed himself. Source: Wikimedia.