Shiva (IAST: ; Hindi, ??? Shiv , Bengali ???, Shib, Telugu: ?????? ) is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. Often called "the Destroyer", Shiva is one of the Trimurti, along with Brahma the Creator and Vishnu the Preserver. Within Shaivism he is viewed as the supreme deity, where as in other branches of Hinduism such as the Smarta tradition he is worshipped as one of five manifestations of the divine. Followers of Hinduism who focus their worship upon Shiva are called Shaivites or Shaivas (Sanskrit ).Tattwananda, p. 45. His role as the primary deity of Shaivism is reflected in his epithets ("great god"; = great + deva = god),Kramrisch, p. 476.For appearance of the name in the Shiva Sahasranama see: ("great lord"; = great + = lord),Kramrisch, p. 477.For appearance o

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