Shiva- The destroyer

Jai Gurudev! After a wonderful Shivaratri and beautiful Darshan on yesterday's St. Valentine's day, we would like to share with you again an excerpt from Last Shivaratri's Speech, till the new speeches are available. On the night of Shivaratri we perfomed Abishekam to the Lingam and also Sri Swami Vishwananda explained us again why we celebrate Shivaratri. But who is Shiva actually?

Sri Swami Vishwananda: Let’s look a little bit who is Shiva.
Before I have asked all of you, who is Shiva?
And what you have answered me- He is a…?

Some: Destroyer.

Someone: Destroyer and Renewer.

Sri Swami Vishwananda: Destroyer. (Smiling)
It’s true.
In the Trinity, the Hindu Trinity, there is the Creator, which is…?

Audience: Brahma.

Sri Swami Vishwananda: Protector?

Audience: Vishnu.

Sri Swami Vishwananda: And Shiva the destroyer.
As you see everything in this world, whatever we see with our eyes has a beginning and has an end.
So, actually what we call an end is not really an end.
It’s a beginning for new things to be born again.
So Shiva is responsible for this.
He is the one, who dissolves all the old to make place for new one.

Here is a very good Shiva Bhajan:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zpu6bMhM_L0