One is Three that is Four yet Five & Six
                                                                        ➥ Diavolo                                 ➥ Paredras

                                                  ➦ 常道                               ➦ 'all pervasive' 常名

ब्रह्मा Brahma is शिव Siva & और Visnu, Three

                                                                        ➥ नटराज, Naṭarāja or शिव Śiva, as the divine dancer 舞神

ब्रह्मा Brahma the creator, और Vishnu the preserver, and शिव Shiva the destroyer

the trinity make up the Holy Trimurti त्रिमूर्ति trimūrti, "three forms" or "trinity"

Their paredra (consort of sorts) made them Six

Left: Brahma & Saraswati, Middle: Vishnu & Lakshmi, Right: Shiva & Parvati

                                                                                                              ➥ 'the pervader'                  ➥ Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers

That so-called Trimurti (also known as the Hindu Triad or Great Trinity) represents the three fundamental forces (guṇas) through which the universe is created, maintained, and destroyed in cyclic succession. Each of these forces is represented by a Hindu deity:

• Brahma: represents Rajas (passion, creation)
• Vishnu: represents Sattva (goodness, preservation)
• Shiva: represents Tamas (darkness, destruction)

In Hindu tradition, the trio is often referred to as Brahma-Vishnu-Mahesh. All have the same meaning of three in One

Lord Brahma the creator; the first member of the Trimurti trinity and the creator of our universe. When the universe is destroyed and recreated, Vishnu sleeps in the causal plane (karmic realm) then Brahma springs forth (not born, more like emerges) in a lotus from the navel of the sleeping Vishnu. The daily alternation of light and dark is attributed to the activity of Brahma.

When Brahma wakes up in the morning the universe is created.  When he sleeps, the universe is destroyed, then recreated again in the morning. One Brahma day (not including night) is equal to 4.3 Billion of our earth human days. During those years we have 1000 cycles of the four main ages.

Brahma is supposed to live for 100 of his years, at that time he dies and the entire causal plane is destroyed, waiting to be recreated again by the great Brahmin, Lord beyond causality. If you think about it, without Brahma we don’t exist. Yet, there are few temples dedicated to him, mostly Lords Vishnu and Shiva are worshipped.

Lord Vishnu the preserver; is the embodiment of mercy and goodness, the self-existent, all-pervading power that preserves the universe and maintains the cosmic order; the Supreme Being. He is the second member of the Trimurti trinity and considered the central and most revered of the Trimurti. He is the God of time, space and life. As the God of Joy, he brings great bliss to devotees and the world.

Lord Vishnu is very popular with the followers of Vaishnavism and is also called Vasudeva, Hari, Kesava, Purusottama and Narayana. Lord Vishnu is blue-skinned (symbolic of the infinite, vast like the ocean) and manifests on Earth as an avatar. The following 10 avatars are the most famous in Hindu mythology

1. Matsya (fish) – recovers the Vedas from demons
2. Kurma (tortoise) – sustains the earth on his back
3. Varaha (boar) – brings the earth back from the bottom of the ocean
4. Narasimha (man-lion) – kills the demon King Hiranyakashipu
5. Vamana (dwarf) – the first human incarnation of the Lord
6. Parasurama (the warrior with an axe) – saves Brahmins
7. Rama (Lord) – kills Ravana, the demon king of Lanka.
8. Sri Krishna (Lord) – the most popular incarnation
9. Buddha (Lord) – Hindus accept his teachings but do not worship him
10. Kalkin – (a man on a white horse) – this incarnation is yet to come and will mark the end of all evil in the world.

Lord Shiva the destroyer is the god of the yogis, as the third and final member of the Trimurti trinity, he instils both fear and love within his followers. Lord Shiva is self-controlled and celibate, while at the same time a devoted lover of his spouse Shakti. Lord Shiva is the destroyer of the world, following Brahma who creates and Vishnu who preserves, after which Brahma again creates the world and so on. Shiva is responsible for change both in the form of death and destruction and in the positive sense of destroying the ego, the false identification with the form. This also includes the shedding of old habits and attachments. He is known by over 1000 names, destroys evil, blesses, provides divine grace and enlightens his followers. That is why the yogis love him and built countless temples in his name.

The Sivalingam is now famous (although a misunderstood phallus symbol), a penis or shaft on the statue of Lord Shiva. It is symbolic of the first linga, made only of light. The story goes that at the beginning Vishnu & Brahma were together and saw this shaft of light without end. For years they tried to find the beginning and end but failed. When they returned, Lord Shiva appeared and was thus hailed at the greatest of the three. It represents the supremacy of Shiva. At the base of the Sivalingam is a circular base that represents the female part of Shiva (Shakti or divine energy), something like Yin/Yang. All humans have both male and female qualities.

There are endless verses on Shiva, his poetic majestic forms, his dances, his grace and his divine presence.