What is the secret of Harihara form of God? What is the context of ‘Harihara Avatar’ of God? In order to remove the differences between the Shaivas and the Vaishnavas, how did Lord Shiva and Vishnu perform a leela and give a message to the world that God is one, no matter which way he is worshipped.
It is said in the Vedas that the Supreme Soul appears in many forms through Maya and manifests in these three forms – ‘Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh’ – for the stage of creation and destruction. The combined form of Lord Vishnu and Shiva is seen in the ‘Harihara Avatar’ of the Lord. The word ‘Harihara’ is made up of two words. Lord Hari (Vishnu) and Har means Lord Shiva.
Once Brahmaji and Vishnu ji praised Lord Shankar, which is known as ‘Sharvastava’. Then Lord Shankar was pleased and asked Brahmaji and Vishnu to ask for a boon. Brahmaji asked for a boon that you should be my son. Lord Shankar said – I will fulfill your wish when you will not get success in creation and you will get angry; Then I will be born out of that anger. Then I will be called the eleventh Rudra in the form of Prana. But Lord Vishnu sought only devotion in the boon for himself. Shankarji was very pleased with this and considered him half his body. Since then he is worshiped as ‘Harihara’.
Shankha Padma Parahastau, Trishul Damru Statha. Vishweshwaram Vasudevaaya Harihara: Namostute.
In the right part of Lord Harihara there are signs of Rudra and in the left part of Vishnu. In his right hand he holds a shool and a rishti, and in his left hand a mace and a chakra. Gauri sits on the right side and Lakshmi sits on the left side.
It is said in the Puranas that Shiva and Vishnu are each other’s conscience and are constantly engaged in worship, praise and worship of each other – ‘Shivasya Hriday Vishnu: Vishnoscha Hridaye Shivah’. That is, Vishnu is in the heart of Lord Shankar. And Lord Vishnu has a lot of affection in the heart of Shankar. For example, the exclusive devotee of Lord Shiva Srihari is the supreme Vaishnava. That is why it is said for him – ‘Vaishnavanam yatha shambhuah’ meaning – Shankarji, the foremost of the Vaishnavas.
Lord Shiva tied the Ganges that emerged from the feet of Shri Hari in his jatajut and was called ‘Gangadhar’. Shiva is Tamasmurti and Vishnu is Sattvamurti, but by meditating on each other Shiva becomes white (Karpoor Gaur) and Vishnu becomes black (Meghvarnam).
Vaishnavas’ tilak (Urdhwapundra) is in the form of trident and Shaiva’s tilak (tripunda) is in the form of bow. Therefore, there should be no distinction between Shiva and Vishnu. The nature (real element) of both Hari and Hara is the same. In ‘Shiva Sahasranama’, the names of Lord Shiva are ‘Chaturbahu’, ‘Hari’, ‘Vishnu’ etc. On reciting ‘Vishnu Sahasranama’, the names of Lord Vishnu are mentioned as ‘Sharva’, ‘Shiva’ and ‘Sthanu’, which are the names of Lord Shiva. That is why God Himself has said in Agnipuran – ‘There is definitely no difference between us, those who see the difference are hell-goers.’
There are many examples in the Puranas showing the unity of Lord Hari and Har. Here only a few are being described to explain to the readers – Lord Vishnu took the form of Narsimha to kill Hiranyakashipu the demon and when he became very furious in passion, it was Lord Shiva who pacified him by taking ‘Sharabhavatar’. .
Once Lord Shankar appeared to the devotee Narsiji and asked him to ask for a boon. Then Narseeji said that ‘Give what you like the most.’ Lord Shankar said- ‘I like Shri Krishna the most, so I take you to him.’ Saying this, Lord Shankar said. He took them to Goloka.
Shiva Mahiman: According to Gandharva Pushpadantji, who composed the stotra, Lord Vishnu used to worship Lord Shankar with a thousand lotus-flowers while reciting ‘Shiva Sahasranama Stotra’ every day. One day Shankarji hid a lotus to take the examination. On this Lord Vishnu offered his own lotus to Shankar. Then what was there ! The quintessential form of devotion was transformed into a chakra, which is always attentive to the protection of the world by staying in the lotus hands of Lord Vishnu.
In the Lanka Kand of Ramcharitmanas, Lord Shri Ram in the form of Vishnu, while stating his inseparability from Shankarji, has clearly said – “Siv Drohi Mam Das Kahwa. So male dreams do not get fascinated. Sankar Dear Mum Drohi Siv Drohi Mum Das. Te nar karhin kalp bhari ghor hell mahun bas. In the Brahmavaivarta Purana, Lord Krishna himself while expressing his reverence for Lord Shiva says – ‘Dev! I have no one dearer than you. You are dearer to me than your soulmate.
The story of the union of Shri Hari and Har
Once in Vaikuntha, Shri Hari saw Shankarji in a dream, when he lost his sleep, he rode on Garuda along with Lakshmi and went towards Kailash. Similarly, on Kailash, when Shankarji saw Shri Hari in a dream, he too went to Vaikuntha, riding on Nandi along with Parvati. On the way, Shri Hari and Shankarji met. Both hugged happily. Then Shri Hari started urging Shankarji to walk to Vaikunth and Shankarji started urging Shri Vishnuji to walk to Kailash. For a long time, both of them kept making this love request to each other. In this, Devarshi Narada came there playing the veena, singing Hariguna. Then Parvatiji asked Naradji to find a solution to this problem. Naradji said with folded hands – ‘What can I solve for this? To me Hari and everyone seem to be the same, the one who is Vaikuntha is Kailash.