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Rudra

File:Part_of_Vyomamandala_Showing_Rudras_-_Circa_5th_Century_CE_-_Katra_Keshav_Dev_-_ACCN_13-362_-_Government_Museum_-_Mathura_2013-02-23_5476.JPG · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

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Rudra (, ) is a Rigvedic deity associated with Shiva, the wind or storms, Vayu, medicine, and the hunt. One translation of the name is 'the roarer'. In the Rigveda, Rudra is praised as the "mightiest of the mighty". Rudra means "who eradicates problems from their roots". Depending upon the period, the name Rudra can be interpreted as 'the most severe roarer/howler' or 'the most frightening one'. This name appears in the Shiva Sahasranama, and R. K. Sharma notes that it is often used as a name of Shiva in later languages. The "Shri Rudram" hymn from the Yajurveda is dedicated to Rudra and is im

Key facts

Deity.type
Hindu
Deity.image
File:Part of Vyomamandala Showing Rudras - Circa 5th Century CE - Katra Keshav Dev - ACCN 13-362 - Government Museum - Mathura 2013-02-23 5476.JPG
Deity.caption
Part of Vyomamandala Showing Rudras - Circa 5th Century CE
Deity.mantra
Mahamrityunjaya MantraOm Namo Bhagavate Rudraya
Deity.deity_of
God of Storm, Wind, Medicine, Hunt, Animals, Humans and Yagna
Deity.weapons
Bow and Arrow, Vajra, Ankusha
Deity.affiliation
Indra, Maruts, Ashvins
Deity.texts
Shri Rudram, Rig Veda

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Rudra
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Article

14 sections
Contents
  • Etymology
  • Rigvedic hymns
  • Form of Rudra
  • Epithets of fierceness and fright
  • Epithets of supreme rule
  • Relation to other deities
  • Non-Rigvedic hymns
  • Shri Rudram
  • Rudra and Shiva
  • In Buddhism
  • In Sikhism
  • See also
  • Notes
  • References

Rudra (, ) is a Rigvedic deity associated with Shiva, the wind or storms, Vayu, medicine, and the hunt. One translation of the name is 'the roarer'. In the Rigveda, Rudra is praised as the "mightiest of the mighty". Rudra means "who eradicates problems from their roots". Depending upon the period, the name Rudra can be interpreted as 'the most severe roarer/howler' or 'the most frightening one'. This name appears in the Shiva Sahasranama, and R. K. Sharma notes that it is often used as a name of Shiva in later languages. The "Shri Rudram" hymn from the Yajurveda is dedicated to Rudra and is important in the Shaivite sect. In the Prathama Anuvaka of Namakam (Taittiriya Samhita 4.5), Rudra is revered as Sadasiva (meaning 'mighty Shiva') and Mahadeva. Sadashiva is the Supreme Being, Paramashiva, in the Siddhanta sect of Shaivism.

==Etymology == The etymology of the theonym Rudra is uncertain. It is usually derived from the Proto-Indo-European (PIE) root rud- (related to English rude), which means 'to cry, howl'. The name Rudra may thus be translated as 'the roarer'. An alternative etymology interprets Rudra as the 'red one', the 'brilliant one', possibly derived from a lost root rud-, 'red' or 'ruddy', or alternatively, according to Grassman, 'shining'.

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