Whenever we worship Lord Shiva, our elders might have told us to pray in Nandi’s ears so that the wish will come true.
When Mother Parvati whispers something into Nandi’s ear, it symbolizes devotion and faith. Nandi, the loyal gatekeeper and messenger of Lord Shiva, becomes the medium to convey Mother Parvati’s prayers and wishes directly to Mahadev.
This moment reflects the eternal bond between devotees and the divine, with Nandi serving as a bridge to “Mahadev.”
A fascinating tale connects Nandi to a game of dice played between Shiva and Parvati, where Nandi controversially declared Shiva the winner, angering Parvati.
After realizing his mistake, Nandi humbly sought forgiveness, leading to a tradition of offering grass to Lord Ganesha for blessings.
When people see Nandi Maharaj, they know Shiva, has got to be around nearby. We always see Nandi Maharaj in the sitting position, facing Shiva.
Nandi is symbol of selfless devotion, strength, wisdom, protector of Shiva, a devotee and a divine messenger.
Sanatana Dharma has a unique and exalted place for Lord Shiva as the one who transcends all rules and norms of society and civilization.
He is the lord of the Ganas, that include all life-forms even outside of the earthly realm. Among scores of Ganas that surround him, one holds the foremost position.
According to Hindu Philosophy, the purpose of human life is to attain emancipation (Moksha) which can be gained by controlling our Indriyas. Moksha can also be defined as merging Jeeva or Individual soul with the supreme God.
Our scriptures have deep significance in all the symbolic forms, similarly; Linga is the symbol of the supreme God and Nandi is the symbol of Jeeva or the individual soul.
By constant meditation, Nandi / Jeeva merges with Linga / Eeshwara to become Nandeeshwara. Thus, one can say, the sitting position of Nandi is the symbolic form of stability and realizing oneness.
Lord Shiva is believed to have solutions to all worldly sufferings. Praying to him via Nandi makes devotees believe that their problems will surely end soon.
Nandi serves Lord Shiva by setting an example as a perfect devotee, always focused on Parameshwara without interruption.
By doing so, Nandi serves as a model and inspiration to millions of other devotees, helping us to realize the infinite Anandam of Paramatman.
He is the protector of dharma (morality/religious way). He is the head of 18 siddhas (scholars) of Hinduism. As he is the assistant of the main God of Shiva – he can also grant many boons.
As per our traditional belief it is true only if prana-pratistha of Nandi Vigraha has really been done. The prana-pratistha mantra consecrates the Vigraha and it is believed that the deity becomes alive. So the deity’s body is divine and sacred.
