Why We Pray to Shiva for Endings and Vishnu for Continuity
Nidhi | Jul 10, 2025, 22:03 IST
( Image credit : Times Life Bureau )
Highlight of the story: When life asks us to let go of what no longer serves us, we bow to Shiva — the cosmic force that dissolves and frees us from the old. When we wish to protect what is good and lasting, we turn to Vishnu — the preserver who sustains life’s blessings and order. This piece unpacks why Hindus pray to these two divine powers, how they represent endings and continuities in the universe, and how their timeless wisdom shapes our daily lives and inner journey.
“नमः शिवाय च शिवतराय च ।”
Salutations to Shiva, and to the One even more auspicious than the most auspicious.
Sri Rudram, Yajurveda When life asks us to let go, we turn to Shiva. When we wish for what is good to stay strong, we turn to Vishnu. In Hindu thought, these are not just rituals but reflections of how life truly works.
Shiva is the force that ends what no longer serves us. Vishnu is the force that protects what must endure. One clears the path. The other keeps it steady.
This is why millions bow to these two divine guardians: one for graceful endings, one for life’s gentle continuity.
Brahma creates. Vishnu preserves. Shiva dissolves. These are not just jobs assigned to gods. They are natural laws. Without endings, there can be no beginnings. Without a force to hold things together, everything would collapse into chaos before it has a chance to grow.
This is why we invoke Shiva when we are ready to let something go, and Vishnu when we want our family, our work, and our dharma to be protected and nourished.
In yogic thought, Shiva is the stillness that remains after everything false falls away. He is pure consciousness. The dance of Shiva, the Tandava, is the dance of both creation and destruction. But when the dance ends, what remains is deep peace.
When you pray to Shiva, you are asking for the courage to end what no longer serves you. The job you have outgrown. The relationship that drains your spirit. The habits that keep you small. Shiva helps you cut the threads so your soul can breathe freely. While Shiva dissolves what must go, Vishnu protects what must stay. His very name comes from the root that means “to pervade.” Vishnu is that quiet, steady energy that flows through everything, holding the world in balance.
Whenever darkness seems to overwhelm light, Vishnu appears in a new form. As Rama, as Krishna, as Narasimha, each avatar arrives to restore the balance that keeps the world from falling into chaos. He does not just protect the world; he protects the dharma, the principles that allow life to flourish.
When you pray to Vishnu, you are asking for his gentle shield around the good in your life: your family, your prosperity, your sense of right and wrong, your faith. All the things that help you walk your path with steadiness, even when life tests you.
Vishnu reclining on the endless serpent Ananta is an image of calm preservation. Ananta means endless. Vishnu rests on this serpent, floating on the cosmic ocean, showing us that true preservation is not clinging in fear but flowing with what is eternal.
These images are gentle teachers for the human heart. They remind us that life is held together by an unseen order and that we do not need to fear what must come to an end. This cosmic story is not just about the heavens. It is about our minds, our hearts, and our daily struggles. Every day, we need Shiva. Every day, we need Vishnu.
Old beliefs that keep us stuck? Shiva helps us let them go. Old fears that block our growth? Shiva burns them away. But what about our sense of love, honesty, and kindness? These must be protected and nourished. That is Vishnu’s blessing.
The deeper truth is that our lives are a balance between holding on and letting go. Some things must end so we can grow. Other things must stay so we do not lose our way. In the modern world, we often see destruction as bad and preservation as good. But the wisdom of Hinduism shows us that they are both necessary and both sacred. If nothing ended, there would be no room for the new. If nothing lasted, there would be no stability to build on.
Shiva and Vishnu are not opposites. They are partners in the cosmic dance. The dance keeps moving and so do we.
People fold their hands before Vishnu when they want their families to be safe, their paths to be clear, and their values to stay strong. Janmashtami and Ram Navami are not just birthdays of divine heroes. They are reminders that righteousness always finds a way to endure.
Where Shiva and Vishnu Meet in Us
Next time you feel life pushing you to an ending, do not resist it. Bow to Shiva and trust that the empty space he leaves behind is not a loss but a gift. And when you feel life asking you to hold steady through storms, bow to Vishnu and know that he holds you in his cosmic embrace.
In the end, these prayers are really a way of remembering that endings and continuities are woven together. One feeds the other. One teaches us to release. The other teaches us to trust. And together, they remind us that everything is always flowing, always changing, always held by something bigger than us.
Om Namah Shivaya. Om Namo Narayanaya.
May you have the strength to let go when you must and the faith to hold on when you should.
Salutations to Shiva, and to the One even more auspicious than the most auspicious.
Sri Rudram, Yajurveda When life asks us to let go, we turn to Shiva. When we wish for what is good to stay strong, we turn to Vishnu. In Hindu thought, these are not just rituals but reflections of how life truly works.
Shiva is the force that ends what no longer serves us. Vishnu is the force that protects what must endure. One clears the path. The other keeps it steady.
This is why millions bow to these two divine guardians: one for graceful endings, one for life’s gentle continuity.
1. The Cosmic Dance: Creation, Preservation, Dissolution
Vishnu and Lakshmi in Hea
( Image credit : Times Life Bureau )
Brahma creates. Vishnu preserves. Shiva dissolves. These are not just jobs assigned to gods. They are natural laws. Without endings, there can be no beginnings. Without a force to hold things together, everything would collapse into chaos before it has a chance to grow.
This is why we invoke Shiva when we are ready to let something go, and Vishnu when we want our family, our work, and our dharma to be protected and nourished.
2. Shiva: The Kindness of Dissolution
Shiva
In yogic thought, Shiva is the stillness that remains after everything false falls away. He is pure consciousness. The dance of Shiva, the Tandava, is the dance of both creation and destruction. But when the dance ends, what remains is deep peace.
When you pray to Shiva, you are asking for the courage to end what no longer serves you. The job you have outgrown. The relationship that drains your spirit. The habits that keep you small. Shiva helps you cut the threads so your soul can breathe freely.
3. Vishnu: The Guardian of Continuity
Whenever darkness seems to overwhelm light, Vishnu appears in a new form. As Rama, as Krishna, as Narasimha, each avatar arrives to restore the balance that keeps the world from falling into chaos. He does not just protect the world; he protects the dharma, the principles that allow life to flourish.
When you pray to Vishnu, you are asking for his gentle shield around the good in your life: your family, your prosperity, your sense of right and wrong, your faith. All the things that help you walk your path with steadiness, even when life tests you.
4. Why Temples Show Us These Forms
Special darshan for women
( Image credit : IANS )
Vishnu reclining on the endless serpent Ananta is an image of calm preservation. Ananta means endless. Vishnu rests on this serpent, floating on the cosmic ocean, showing us that true preservation is not clinging in fear but flowing with what is eternal.
These images are gentle teachers for the human heart. They remind us that life is held together by an unseen order and that we do not need to fear what must come to an end.
5. What This Means in Our Daily Lives
Old beliefs that keep us stuck? Shiva helps us let them go. Old fears that block our growth? Shiva burns them away. But what about our sense of love, honesty, and kindness? These must be protected and nourished. That is Vishnu’s blessing.
The deeper truth is that our lives are a balance between holding on and letting go. Some things must end so we can grow. Other things must stay so we do not lose our way.
6. The Beautiful Balance
Shiva and Vishnu are not opposites. They are partners in the cosmic dance. The dance keeps moving and so do we.
7. How Devotees Live This Understanding
Devotee
( Image credit : Freepik )
People fold their hands before Vishnu when they want their families to be safe, their paths to be clear, and their values to stay strong. Janmashtami and Ram Navami are not just birthdays of divine heroes. They are reminders that righteousness always finds a way to endure.
Where Shiva and Vishnu Meet in Us
In the end, these prayers are really a way of remembering that endings and continuities are woven together. One feeds the other. One teaches us to release. The other teaches us to trust. And together, they remind us that everything is always flowing, always changing, always held by something bigger than us.
Om Namah Shivaya. Om Namo Narayanaya.
May you have the strength to let go when you must and the faith to hold on when you should.