Shiva and Vishnu

If Lord Rama worshipped Shiva, does that mean Shiva is superior to Rama?

COUNSELLING:

Krishna Sewak asked like this:

hare krishna ,pranam..dandavat!! to dear prabhu ji

i have some question which make me difficult to make preaching on KC from my side.

in sarabha upanishad it is said that sarabha is form,incarnation of vishnu lord where in linga puran and shiva puran it is said that sarabha is form,incarnation

of lord shiva!is it true and are shiva and vishnu r one or same??in episode 174 of ramanand sagar krishna lila there is shown and said that krishna and shiva are one ,same body soul!!also in ramayan when ram built rameshworam to shivling then ram said shiva is lord of ram?what is this who is supreme,are they one,same?similarly in krishna leela and ramayan of ramanandsagar of mahashivaratri episode there is shown krishna,ram is worshipping to lord shiva,it  means lord shiva is supreme,,dear prabhu ji this things make me confused,plz help me guide me to know the truth inside this behind this!!hare krishna,jai srila prabhupada!!

also if bhagawan word consist 6 opulences who posses only lord krishna then why in ramanandsagars ramayan and krishna lila there is said manytimes manyplaces bhagawan to shiva from mouth of krishna and ram??i am in great hope that this spiritual all questions answers would be given by you for the spiritual advancement to me as well as to other also..hare krishna

REPLY:

As per Bhagavad Gita, all the gods are originating from Krishna because Krishna is the Adhi Purusha. He says in Vibhoodhi Yoga some examples for that.  There is nothing in this world that has not originated from Krishna.

Lord Krishna says in Vibhoodhi Yoga that He is Siva among Rudras.  This means, he Himself has taken the form of Shiva.

There are many types of avatars taken by Lord.  One among them is Guna Avatar.  Guna avatar means, taking the forms to represent individual gunas such as Satva guna, Rajo Guna and Thamo Guna.

Krishna took the form of Vishnu to represent Satva Guna;  He took the form of Brahma to represent Rajo guna and He took the form of Shiva to prepresent Thamo Guna.

This means, Shiva is non diferent from Krishna, but, at the same time there is a minute difference between them.

Krishna is Nirguna, ie, He does not represent any guna and He is always free from any guna.  But, Lord Shiva represents thamo guna.

This can be compared to Milk and curd.  Milk has no taste until we add sugar to it.  It has no sweetness, not sour, not bitter, etc.  Whereas curd has an aparent taste and it is sour tasted that represents thamo guna.

Similarly, Lord Shiva is different from Krishna like the difference between curd and milk.  Curd comes from milk, but, it is not similar to milk.  Shiva too comes from Krishna, but, he has differnce in accepting a guna representation to Him.

Only the people are fighting by representing various gods, but, the forms of Krishna does not quarrel among themselves beccause all have a single source.  The brothers and sisters in a family are expeccted to be united without any fightings.  Because all of them have only one source - father.

Similarly, all the gods have only one source - Krishna.  So, they never fight among themselves.  We, the people develop differences considering the gods worshipped by the people.  All gods are considered as the devotees of Krishna because the source of all of them is Krishna.  So, they can be considered as vaishnavas. Krishna always honours His devotees and add fame to them.

Thus, Lord Rama does not hesitate to honour Lord Shiva because, Shiva is His form and hence Shiva is His devotee/ vaishnava.  Krishna honours His devotees.  So, whether He is in Krishna form or Rama’s form, he always honours Lord Shiva.

That is why, I have been writing in this page NOT TO insult any gods because they are all have the same source Krishna.  If we insult them, Krishna will feel for our innocence/ ignorance.

So, as said by Srila Prabhupada, Lord Shiva is ALMOST EQUAL to Krishna, but, they have slight differences including guna accepted by Shiva. Krishna is free from any kind of material contaminations.  Eventhough he is the source of all the material and spiritual existences, he is not affected/ contaminated by them.

So, we too should honour Lord Shiva as the form of Lord Krishna.  Never offend any Gods by speaking ill about them.

SO, MY MANTHRA RECOMMENDED FOR ALL:

WORSHIP KRISHNA, THE SUPREME PERSONALITY OF GODHEAD, AND, RESPECT ALL THE GODS AS HIS FORMS.  NEVER INSULT ANY GOD OR LIVING BEING.