Draft:64 Forms of Lord Shiva

Hinduism describes Shiva, the destroyer god in the Hinduism, as both formful and as formless. Hinduism describes elaborately the 64 forms that Shiva takes. These 64 forms of Shiva are:

1. Linga Murti - Shiva as formless in the form of a Linga, which shows him as a fertility god.
2. Lingodbhava Murti - Shiva in the form of a pillar of fire along with Brahma and Vishnu in the forms of a swan and a boar on his top and bottom, holding him and sitting on him respectively.
3. Mukhalinga Murti - Shiva with his face on a Linga.
4. Sadashiva Murti - Shiva with five faces doing the five actions of his, namely the (Panchakrityas) of Shiva - which areSrishti (Creation), Sthithi (Preservation), Samhara (Destruction), Vilaya (Hiding Grace), Anugraha (Revealing Grace).
5. Maha Sadashiva Murti - 25 faced form of Shiva showing the 25 states of consciousness and the 25 actions created from the matrix of the five basic actions of the Panchakrityas.
6. Uma-Maheshvara Murti - Uma-Maheshvara is the divine couple of Shiva and Parvati following their wedding.
7. Sukasana Murti - Sukhasana is Shiva and Parvati sitting in ease.
8. Umesha Murti - Shiva with Parvati and in a Varadana (boon-giving) to the deities.
9. Somaskanda Murti - Somaskanda is Shiva accompanied by Parvati and Kartikeya.
10. Vrishabhantika Murti - Shiva seated on Nandi, his bull mount.
11. Chandrashekara Murti - Chandrashekara is Shiva who wears Chandra as the crescent moon on his matted hair.
12. Bhujanga Lalita Murti - Shiva with Chandra as the crescent moon on his head and Vasuki as the snake around his neck.
13. Nataraja Murti - Nataraja is Shiva who is the king of the dance.
14. Gangavisarjana Murti - Shiva releasing Ganga from his head after he got it poured from Brahma's Kamandalu by Brahma after being taken from Vishnu as Vamana's feet after he restored Mahabali and the deities to peace thereby bringing in prosperity and life to planet Earth.
15. Ardanarishvara Murti - Ardhanarishvara is the hermaphroditic form of Shiva and Parvati.
16. Vrishabharuda Murti - Vrishabharuda is Shiva who is accompanied by Parvati and seated on his bull mount, Nandi.
17. Bhujanga Trasa Murti - Shiva with Vasuki as a snake in one hand and holding fire in one hand.
18. Chandathandava Murti - Shiva dancing the tandava dance standing on Apasmara as Nataraja.
19. Tripurantaka Murti - Tripurantaka is Shiva who burned the three cities of the Tripurasuras and killed all three of them.
20. Gajasurasamhara Murti - Gajasurasamhara is Shiva who killed the monster Gajasura, who had assumed the form of an elephant and swallowed him.
21. Sandhya Nritta Murti - Shiva and Parvati with two Damarus in their hands.
22. Gangadhara Murti - Shiva with Ganga falling into his matted hair and purifying him with all the other deities and the Earth.
23. Kalyanasundhara Murti - Kalyanasundara is Shiva during his wedding ceremony with Parvati as Kalyanasundari.
24. Jvarabhagna Murti - Shiva with three faces and three legs.
25. Shardhula Hara Murti - Shiva sitting on the skin of the monster Vyaghrasura, who had assumed the form of a tiger and fought with him.
26. Harihara Murti - Vishnu and Shiva as a combined form with a deer in one hand and Sudarshana Chakra in one hand.
27. Chandisha Anugraha Murti - Shiva is crowning Chandisha to be a guardian god of him in his temples.
28. Vinadhara Dakshinamurti Murti - Shiva as Dakshinamurti holds a Vina.
29. Lakulishvara Murti - Shiva holding his Damaru and his Trishula.
30. Vaduka Murti - Shiva holding his snake Vasuki and a bowl.
31. Agorastra Murti - Shiva in the form of an Aghori as a wandering ascetic who practices intense tapas and renunciation.
32. Guru Murti - Shiva teaching the truths of the sciences of enlightenment in the Vedas and Agamas to the ancient sages.
33. Jalandharavadha Murti - Shiva and Parvati together kill Jalandhara, an asura who was born from Shiva and Parvati's own third eyes.
34. Ekapada Murti - Shiva with Brahma and Vishnu attached to him and all of them are standing on their one legs.
35. Parvatilila Samanvita Murti - Shiva and Parvati with all their children together.
36. Brahma Shiva Shirachetha Murti - Brahma and Shiva getting beheaded by the other for not saving the universe and Vishnu restores both of them to their normal states and they all save the universe then.
37. Varahasamhararaya Murti - Vishnu as Varaha kills Shiva as Sharabha and Hiranyaksha.
38. Shishyabhava Murti - Shiva assuming the role of a disciple to listen to the exposition of the meaning of Om from his and Parvati's son Kartikeya.
39. Pashupata Murti - Shiva in the form of a Pashupata as a wandering ascetic who is holding a Japamala.
40. Bhikshatana Murti - Shiva as a wandering mendicant adorned with ornaments and holding a bowl in his hand and a dog as his mount.
41. Vyakhyanamudra Dakshinamurti Murti - Shiva as Dakshinamurti holds the Vyakhyanamudra, which represents the gesture of teaching while discoursing the Vedas and Agamas to the ancient sages.
42. Kalantaka Murti - Kalantaka is Shiva who rescued his devotee Markandeya from Yama by defeating and overthrowing him.
43. Bhairava Murti - Shiva as a wandering medicant with a dog as his mount.
44. Kshetrapala Murti - Shiva takes this form to safeguard the temples of him and Parvati.
45. Dakshayajnahara Murti - Shiva and Parvati kill and ressurect Daksha who humiliated them as mendicant deities in the Daksha yajna.
46. Ashvaruda Murti - Shiva who is accompanied by Parvati and seated on his horse mount.
47. Ekapada Trideva Murti - Shiva is attached with Vishnu and Brahma together and all three of them are standing on their one legs.
48. Parvativaraprada Murti - Shiva and Parvati together.
49. Vishapaharana Murti - Shiva and Parvati sitting near and resting together.
50. Kurmasamhararaya Murti - Vishnu as Kurma kills Shiva as Sharabha and asuras and asuris during Samudra Manthana.
51. Prarthana Murti - Shiva and Parvati are dancing together.
52. Vamanasamhararaya Murti - Vishnu as Vamana kills Shiva as Sharabha and asuras and asuris after restoring peace to Mahabali and the deities.
53. Narasimhasamhararaya Murti - Vishnu as Narasimha kills Shiva as Sharabha and Hiranyakashipu.
54. Yoga Dakshinamurti Murti - Shiva teaches the science of Yoga to the ancient sages.
55. Kamadeva Dahana Murti - Shiva and Parvati burn and ressurect Kamadeva with their third eyes for trying to disturb them while in the process of mating to give birth to Kartikeya and he killed the all demons and demonesses with all the gods and goddesses.
56. Apatuttarana Murti - Shiva as a simple hermit in this form with a stick and a bow.
57. Virabhadra Murti - Virabhadra is Shiva who destroyed the Daksha yajna of Daksha because Daksha humiliated him and Parvati as Bhadrakali as mendicant deities.
58. Kirata Murti - Kirata is Shiva who assumed the form of a hunter and bestowing the Pashupatastra to Arjuna.
59. Airavatika Murti - Shiva fuses the tusks of Airavata, the elephant of Indra after all the deities killed all the monsters and Kartikeya killed Gajamukhasura, Simhamukhasura with all monsters and split Surapadma in two halves and ressurected him as a peacock to live with him and his other peacock mount until the end of the Kali Yuga, after which Surapadma would die.
60. Tripada Trideva Murthi - Shiva with Vishnu and Brahma attached to him and all of them standing on their one legs.
61. Sudarshanachakradanasvarupa Murti - Sudarshanachakradanasvarupa is Shiva who gave the Sudarshana Chakra of Vishnu after it was coated in Surya's gold by Vishvakarma to Vishnu.
62. Garudantika Murti - Brahma and Shiva blessing Garuda to be the eagle mount of Vishnu.
63. Matsyasamhararaya Murti - Vishnu as Matsya kills Shiva as Sharabha and Hayagriva.
64. Raktabhiksha Pradana Murti - Shiva takes and drinks his own blood as his food after Vishnu cuts his blood vessels on his forehead by his Sudarshana Chakra to feed him in his hunger while Vishnu restores both Brahma and Shiva to their normal states after both of them are beheaded by the other for not saving the universe and after that, saving the universe after that and they all become normal and go their respective abodes of Kailasha, Vaikuntha, Satyaloka.