If Vishnu is the most popular god in Hinduism, Shiva runs a close second. You won't be able to miss Shiva if you run into him ! He's the naked one sitting on a tiger skin with snakes wrapped around his arms. His body is smeared with ashes.
Shiva is naked because he is the stark reality, pure consciousness itself. He sits in meditation rather than holding down a job because Absolute Being makes no effort at all, yet due to its mere existence, all of time and space unfolds. He is covered with ashes because after the entire universe has blown away into cosmic dust, he alone remains.
You will also often see beautiful South Indian statues of Shiva dancing gracefully within a halo of flames. This represents the end of the present cycle of time when Shiva will annihilate the universe, reabsorbing all existence into his pure awareness. (After some eons, of course, Brahma the Creator will reincarnate in the vast expanse of Shiva's consciousness and start the whole cosmic process all over again!)
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