Shiva

[ shee-vuh ]

/ ˈʃi və /

noun Hinduism.

“the Destroyer,” the third member of the Trimurti, along with Brahma the Creator and Vishnu the Preserver.

Also Siva.

Origin of Shiva

< Sanskrit: literally, the auspicious

Related forms

Shi·va·ism, nounShi·va·ist, nounShi·va·is·tic, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for shiva

How many times were the names of political prisoners such as Majid Tavakoli or Shiva Ahari raised?
How America’s Nuclear Deal Sold Out Iran’s Liberals|David Keyes & Ahmad Batebi|December 3, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Second, hundreds of more dissidents remain in jail: Shiva Ahari, Hossein Maleki, and Bahare Hedayat to name just a few.
Iran Rejails Political Prisoner Majid Tavakoli|David Keyes|November 7, 2013|DAILY BEAST
I noticed that my three main characters, Sarita, Karun and Jaz, formed a trinity just like Vishnu, Shiva, and Devi.
A Mathematically Impossible Novel: Manil Suri Explains “The City of Devi”|Manil Suri|March 15, 2013|DAILY BEAST
After my father died, he came to the shiva on the fifth or sixth day and walked in with an ironic, pained, "How ya doing kid?"
In A Very Deep Way: Remembering Rabbi David Hartman|Bernard Avishai|February 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST

In the Tantric model, it's Shakti who brings healing and enlightenment to the god Shiva, just as Neytiri does with Jake.
The Tantric Sex in Avatar|Asra Q. Nomani|March 4, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Some time afterwards Shiva and Parwati came again to the temple.
Deccan Nursery Tales|Charles Augustus Kincaid
Another fakir stood on a "sacred stone of Shiva," a small stone about five inches in diameter.
From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan|Helena Pretrovna Blavatsky
One day he formed the wish to fill the shrine of Shiva, the moon-god, with milk up to the ceiling.
Deccan Nursery Tales|Charles Augustus Kincaid
"Would you mind explaining first the philosophical idea of the four faces and eight hands of your Shiva," interrupted the padre.
From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan|Helena Pretrovna Blavatsky
The Shiva temple at Madura is the more interesting as its towers are ornamented with six thousand idols.
Humanly Speaking|Samuel McChord Crothers

British Dictionary definitions for shiva

Shiva

/ (ˈʃiːvə, ˈʃɪvə) /

noun

a variant spelling of Siva

Derived Forms

Shivaism, nounShivaist, noun, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012