SRI RAMAKRISHNA AS SIVA by R.S. Ramabadran Koshur Samachar March 1994 Siva is one of the three major deities of Hinduism, the other two being Vishnu and Sakti. 'Shiva' literally means 'auspicious'. The Vedic deity Rudra became popular in the Puranic age as the great god, Mahadeva (Siva). The cult of Siva is perhaps the most ancient monotheistic religion in the world. Saivism was once spread ...