Search Results: Shiva

Shiva (Siva) is one of the most important gods in Hinduism and a member of the holy trinity (trimurti) with Brahma and Vishnu. Shiva is a complex character who may represent goodness and benevolence, and he serves as the Protector. Shiva...

A terracotta head of Shiva. He has the matted hair of an ascetic and on his forehead is the third eye of wisdom. 400-500 CE, northern India. (Ashmolean Museum, Oxford)

Learn how to identify the Hindu deity Shiva and hear a story related to a depiction of Shiva in the Asian Art Museum's collection.

The great Hindu god Shiva has many guises and many representations in art, but perhaps the most familiar is as a dancing figure within a circle of fire, that is as Shiva Nataraja, Lord of the Dance. It is an image seen in museums, temples...

Like many great civilisations, the origins of the Chola, a Tamil Hindu dynasty in southern India, are shrouded in the temporal mists of uncertainty and obscurity. It is however known that they were influential from at least the 3rd century...

Shiva Nataraja, Lord of the Dance, bronze sculpture, 11th century. Musée Guimet, Paris. The Hindu god is represented in his triple role as Creator, Preserver, and Destroyer. He stands within a flaming halo representing Time, which is cyclical...

A copper alloy Chola sculpture of Shiva Tripuravijaya ("Vanquisher of Three Cities"). Created c. 1000 CE. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

A majestic Shiva with his consort Parvathi, the outer pathway of Kailasanatha Temple, Kanchipuram, India. 700-720 CE.

A sculpted sandstone panel from the 8th century CE Durga Temple, Aihole, Kamataka, India. Depicted are Shiva and Nandi.

Shiva. Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh, India, 11th CE.