An epithet for the Hindu god Shiva where he is represented as an ascetic, sitting with his legs crossed and meditating, with matted hair in a jatamukha and featuring the crescent moon. He is shown dressed in tiger skin. The representation It may also include Mount Kailasa in the background. A popular sculptural representation of Mahayogi Shiva is present in the Elephanta Caves. From the Sanskrit words maha, meaning “great” and yogi, meaning “one who practices yoga.”
More Definitions
Bhairava
A fierce form or manifestation of the Hindu god, Shiva, he is a guardian deity and one of the central…
Vedas
A body of religious texts composed in Sanskrit and considered the oldest scriptures in Hinduism. There are four primary texts…
Janaka
In the Indian epic Ramayana, the father of Sita and father-in-law of Rama. In later Vedic texts, Janaka is stated…
Madhu
A demon in Hindu mythology who is said to have originated from the earwax of Vishnu. He is believed to…
Madrassa
An institution of higher learning in the Islamic thought. In its earliest form, it was an extension of mosques and…
Kama
In Hinduism, Kama is the god of love and desire. Some of his iconographical attributes are a bow made from…
Adimurti
Also known as Para Vasudeva, it is a manifestation of the Hindu deity Vishnu. The conventional iconography of the form…
Krishna
A major deity of the Vaishnavite tradition and the eighth avatar of Vishnu. He is believed to have been born…