Shiva

Quick Facts

About Shiva

The destroyer and supreme ascetic, who tested Arjuna in the form of a Kirata hunter before granting the Pashupatastra, and whose boon to Amba ensured Bhishma's fall.

In Their Words

You fought me without knowing me - that courage earns my weapon.

Shiva

Traits

• transcendent
• fierce
• generous
• unknowable

Story Appearances

• The Divine ArsenalThe hunter who tested Arjuna❧ 19 min
• Adventures in the ForestGranter of the Pashupatastra❧ 30 min

Stories Featuring Shiva

113 further tales on this site name Shiva, in canonical reading order.

• Ancient BeginningsThe Earth's Plea, the Descent of the Gods, and the Sages Who Began the TellingAdi Parva ‧ 22 min
• Samudra ManthanThe Churning of the OceanAdi Parva ‧ 18 min
• The King Who Was BothChanged from man to woman, ancestor of a great lineAdi Parva ‧ 10 min
• How Ganesha Got His HeadThe Birth of the Lord of BeginningsAdi Parva ‧ 10 min
• The Demon Who Burned HimselfBhasmasura and the Dance of MohiniAdi Parva ‧ 9 min
• The Fire-Born and the Woman Who Became a ManDrupada's Children, Drona's Old Feud, and Amba's Vow Across LivesAdi Parva ‧ 29 min
• The King Who Made Fire SickTwelve years of butter and the appetite it ruinedAdi Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Bow Out of the WaterWhat Varuna kept until two men needed itAdi Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Lineages of Gods and DemonsVaishampayana recites the descent of every creature from Brahma and the daughters of DakshaAdi Parva ‧ 22 min
• The Thousand-Armed KingUsha, Aniruddha, and the War of BanasuraSabha Parva ‧ 11 min
• The Lake Called BinduWhere Maya found Bhima's club and Arjuna's conchSabha Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Vow of the Soft TongueVyasa's warning, and the promise Yudhishthira made insteadSabha Parva ‧ 16 min
• Thirteen Years of FireThe exile teaches that suffering, accepted with dignity and used as a forge, transforms weakness into strength. The...Vana Parva ‧ 27 min
• The Warrior With the AxeParashurama, Jamadagni, and the Long VengeanceVana Parva ‧ 11 min
• The Descent of the RiverBhagiratha and the Sons of SagaraVana Parva ‧ 11 min
• The Sage Whose Blood Was SapShiva humbles Mankanaka's pride with a touch of his thumbVana Parva ‧ 9 min
• The Birth of the War-GodSkanda and the Slaying of TarakaVana Parva ‧ 10 min
• The Sage Who Defeated DeathMarkandeya, Shiva, and the Conquest of DeathVana Parva ‧ 9 min
• The Chaste Wife and the Three GodsAnasuya and the Test of the TrimurtiVana Parva ‧ 9 min
• The Abduction of DraupadiJayadratha's Crime and the Five Tufts of ShameVana Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Promise Made in the Kamyaka WoodsThe allies arrive, and Draupadi asks Krishna what her friendship is worthVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Blind King Counts the OddsA father adds up his enemies and hears whose fault it wasVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Mountain That Answers SpeechWhere a sage's temper made silence the price of passageVana Parva ‧ 16 min
• Rudra's Share and the Sinking EarthTwo quarrels over what may be given away, on the Kalinga shoreVana Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Council at PrabhasaThe Yadavas find the exiles on the shore and argue about ending the exile by forceVana Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Weapons That Must Not Be ShownA demonstration the three worlds could not surviveVana Parva ‧ 16 min
• Swaha and the Six DisguisesThe wives who were punished for a child that was never theirsVana Parva ‧ 20 min
• The Thunderbolt and the Seizers of ChildrenWhat came out of the wound, and the bargain that followedVana Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Five Lakes of BloodParashurama's oblation to the fathers at SamantapanchakaVana Parva ‧ 19 min
• Sakamvari and the Ford of GoldThe goddess who fed the sages on herbs, and the tirtha where Vishnu knelt to RudraVana Parva ‧ 21 min
• Indra Comes to GandhamadanaMatali brings Arjuna home from heaven, and the king of the gods follows him downVana Parva ‧ 11 min
• The Children of AgniMarkandeya names the whole family of fires, from the daughters of Angiras to the rivers who mothered themVana Parva ‧ 18 min
• How the Krittikas Took Abhijit's PlaceA star leaves the sky in envy of her elder sister, and Skanda's six nurses are raised into the empty stationVana Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Boon Bought With a HeadA small favour saved for one day of the warVana Parva
• The Ten Names of ArjunaA frightened prince demands proof at the burning groundVirata Parva ‧ 20 min
• The Lineage of GandivaBrihannala names five sets of weapons and the six who held the great bowVirata Parva ‧ 12 min
• The Princess Who Became DeathAmba's story reveals how injustice, even unintentional injustice, creates cycles of suffering. Bhishma meant no harm -...Udyoga Parva ‧ 22 min
• Garuda's Map of the WorldThe four directions described from a bird's backUdyoga Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Ascetic Who Would Not Be CarriedA thought Garuda never spoke aloud costs him his wingsUdyoga Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Yaksha Who Lent His ManhoodSthuna, Sikhandini, and the curse that made the loan permanentUdyoga Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Question of DaysEach commander prices the enemy army in morningsUdyoga Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Ten Kinsmen Against the Ten SonsDay six: Dhrishtadyumna kills two princes, ten Pandavas duel ten Kauravas, and Bhima goes into the elephants on footBhishma Parva ‧ 14 min
• Sanjaya Describes the EarthThe blind king asks what the earth is worth, and his charioteer answers with the whole of itBhishma Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Islands Beyond JambudvipaSanjaya measures the seven islands, the world elephants and the sunBhishma Parva ‧ 17 min
• What Krishna Told His CharioteerThe night Krishna decided to break his own vowDrona Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Armour of MantrasThe one day Duryodhana stood in front of Arjuna and did not fallDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Lake and the Hall of ArrowsKrishna unyokes the horses in the middle of the battleDrona Parva ‧ 17 min
• One Man Against an Army of the NightAshwatthama burns a full akshauhini of Ghatotkacha's rakshasasDrona Parva ‧ 16 min
• Kurukshetra Day 15: The Day the Teacher DiedFrom the Dawn Prayers to the Half-Truth at NoonDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Weapon That Would Not Burn ThemAshwatthama's fire, and why it left two men standingDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The One Who Walked Ahead of the ChariotArjuna finally asks who has been winning his battlesDrona Parva ‧ 17 min
• Karna Takes the FieldThe vow that kept him out of ten days of war, and the grief that brought him into itDrona Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Boon Somadatta Asked ForA wrestling match at Devaki's self-choice, and the son born a generation later to answer itDrona Parva ‧ 17 min
• The One Who Walked Before the CarVyasa tells Arjuna whose lance was breaking the ranks in front of himDrona Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Road to JayadrathaArjuna breaks through the head of Drona's array on the fourteenth morning, from the omens at dawn to the river of bloodDrona Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Brothers of AvantiTwo kings see Arjuna's horses tire, and one of them walks up to Krishna with a maceDrona Parva ‧ 16 min
• Bhima's Harvest on the Fourteenth EveningDrona takes the head of the king of Sivi, and Bhima kills with his fists, his palm and a caught dart until the kings call him RudraDrona Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Whole Host Against DronaYudhishthira sends every man he has at the preceptor, and the fifteenth morning breaks into duelsDrona Parva ‧ 23 min
• Bhima Carried From the FieldAshwatthama's afternoon after the Narayana weapon, and the shaft that took Bhima's charioteerDrona Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Journey to the MountainKrishna and Arjuna go north in the night before the vowDrona Parva
• The Burning of the Three CitiesShiva, the Ender of TripuraKarna Parva ‧ 10 min
• The King Names the PairsYudhishthira assigns each Pandava his enemy as Karna's array comes onKarna Parva ‧ 16 min
• How Parashurama Won Shiva's WeaponsYears of penance, a war fought with empty hands, and the arsenal that reached KarnaKarna Parva ‧ 17 min
• Karna and Satyaki ClashOne Vrishni holds the Kaurava army, and the sixteenth day ends in dustKarna Parva ‧ 14 min
• Arjuna Cuts His Way to KarnaAn army ordered to tire one man before Karna kills himKarna Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Vows Before the Final DuelKarna, Shalya, Krishna and Arjuna each say what they will do when the other man diesKarna Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Fourth CommanderA nephew's water poured on an uncle's head at the foot of HimavatShalya Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Head That Would Not Let GoWhy the ford on the Sarasvati is called KapalamochanaShalya Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Head That Followed IndraA treaty kept to the letter and broken in every other wayShalya Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Anointing of the War GodEvery god brings a gift to a six-day-old commanderShalya Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Lords of the Waters and the TreasuresBalarama walks the Sarasvati past the fords where Varuna, Kubera, Indra and Surya won what they holdShalya Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Being at the GateAshvatthama offers himself to MahadevaSauptika Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Weapon He Could Not LiftAshvatthama's bargain on the Dwaraka shoreSauptika Parva ‧ 16 min
• Why Rudra Broke the SacrificeKrishna explains who really emptied the campSauptika Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Age Before KingsHow men who protected one another stopped, and what had to be writtenShanti Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Day the Rod VanishedWhat happened to the world when Chastisement disappearedShanti Parva ‧ 20 min
• The Four Shares of a SinWho agreed to carry a quarter of Indra's guilt, and what it cost themShanti Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Sweat That Became FeverA drop from Shiva's forehead, and the disease scattered through the worldShanti Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Sage Inside the GodHow Usanas robbed Kuvera and came out as ShukraShanti Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Son Struck From the Fire SticksA hundred years of penance, a parrot on a branch, and a child born of frictionShanti Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Rishi Born From a WordVyasa tells his disciples who he was before he was VyasaShanti Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Road of WorksBrahman and the first Rishis stand a thousand years on the shore, and sacrifice is foundedShanti Parva ‧ 22 min
• The Eighth Portion of VishnuSanatkumara tells the defeated Vritra what holds up the universe, and Bhishma tells Yudhishthira who Krishna isShanti Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Signs of Approaching DeathYajnavalkya tells the king of Mithila which door the soul leaves by, and how a man learns that his year has begunShanti Parva ‧ 20 min
• The Curses of the RishisKrishna names the marks that Brahmanas left on gods, seas and mountainsShanti Parva ‧ 19 min
• The Gold Mountain in the Ocean of MilkBrahma tells Rudra of the one Purusha whom neither of them can seeShanti Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Sacrifice of SatiDaksha's Pride and the Wrath of ShivaShanti Parva ‧ 10 min
• The Procession of IndrasIndra's Pride and the Vastness of TimeShanti Parva ‧ 11 min
• The King Who Lost His SonGrief turned to the knowledge of the deathless soulShanti Parva ‧ 10 min
• The Sage Who Tested the GodsBhrigu finds the greatest is greatest in forbearanceShanti Parva ‧ 10 min
• The Birth of the SwordNakula asks which weapon came firstShanti Parva
• The Three Born of the FireBhrigu, Angiras and Kavi rise from a libation, and three gods claim themAnushasana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Savitri Mantra of SalutationsBhishma gives Yudhishthira the roll of names to be said at dawnAnushasana Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Names That Cleanse SinAsked what destroys sin, Bhishma answers with a litany of gods, rivers, mountains, sages and kingsAnushasana Parva ‧ 15 min
• Upamanyu's PenanceThe boy who refused every god but Shiva, and the god who came disguised as Indra to hear him do itAnushasana Parva ‧ 24 min
• Tandi and the Ten Thousand YearsA rishi meditates for a hundred centuries, sees Mahadeva, and hymns him as the end of all five roadsAnushasana Parva ‧ 20 min
• The Vow of Ten and Two YearsKrishna keeps a twelve year vow on the mountain and a fire walks out of his mouthAnushasana Parva ‧ 19 min
• How Vishnu Got the DiscusUpamanyu tells Krishna where Sudarsana came from, and Krishna climbs Himavat to ask Mahadeva for a sonAnushasana Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Devotees of MahadevaKapila, Valmiki, Gritsamada and others tell Yudhishthira what a lifetime's devotion to Mahadeva bought them.Anushasana Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Brahmanas Who Deserve WorshipNarada tells Krishna whom he bows to, and Bhishma tells a king what it costs to forgetAnushasana Parva ‧ 24 min
• Gifts Under the Lunar MansionsNarada tells Devaki what to give under each star, and the gods ask Brahman for ground to stand onAnushasana Parva ‧ 23 min
• The Mysteries of Religion, Part OneThe deities, the Pitris and the Rishis each give up a duty whose reason is secretAnushasana Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Mysteries of Religion, Part TwoLomasa, Arundhati, the night-wanderers and the elephants of the quarters give up the last of their secretsAnushasana Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Child Who Stopped Indra's ArmA boy on Uma's lap holds the thunderbolt in the airAnushasana Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Foundations of RighteousnessBhishma is asked whether the eye or the scripture decides, and answers with three foundations and a long list of small rulesAnushasana Parva ‧ 18 min
• Why Gold Is the Highest GiftThe metal left behind by fireAnushasana Parva
• The Cow Born of NectarDaksha's gift, Mahadeva's third eye, and why cattle wear many coloursAnushasana Parva ‧ 14 min
• Four Faces and a Blue ThroatUma asks her husband to account for himselfAnushasana Parva ‧ 19 min
• Uma Questions ShivaThe Goddess and the Great God on DharmaAnushasana Parva
• The Naked Priest of VaranasiHow a king outbid Indra for a brother nobody wantedAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 31 min
• The Eight Who Questioned BrahmaThe ladder from the Unmanifest down to a bodyAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Return of the PortionsWho everybody turned out to have beenSvargarohana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Rewards of the Eighteen ParvasVaishampayana prices each stage of hearing the Bharata against a sacrifice, from the Agnishtoma to twenty-one thousand years with IndraSvargarohana Parva ‧ 17 min

Places in Shiva's Story

Drawn from the stories Shiva appears in.

• Kashiकाशी
• Hastinapurहस्तिनापुर
• Shalvaशाल्व
• Gandhamadanaगन्धमादन
• Kurukshetraकुरुक्षेत्र
• Himavatहिमवत्
• Kampilyaकाम्पिल्य
• Mount Mandaraमन्दर पर्वत
• Amaravatiअमरावती
• Mount Kailasaकैलास
• Kamyaka Forestकाम्यक वन
• Dvaitavanaद्वैतवन

Related Characters

Others counted among the Divine Beings.

• ❉Krishna
• ◭Hanuman
• ❧Kacha
• ≈Goddess Ganga
• ★The Eight Vasus
• ॐSage Vyasa