
It is a common belief that no one can defeat Lord Shiva, but there is a story in a book named “Navnath Bhaktisar” (Chapter 39) in which it is stated that Lord Shiva was defeated by Charpatinath, one of the nine great sages (Navnath). Other than this story, there are other stories in which Lord Shiva retreated temporarily from the wars but was never comprehensively defeated.
Charpatinath Defeats Lord Shiva:
Navnath is a collective noun used to address the nine great saints who spread the Navnath Sampradaya, initiated by Lord Dattatreya, in the world. Navnath Bhaktisar is a devotional book that praises Navnath and depicts them as more powerful than the Hindu Trinity. In this book, a story mentions that one of the Navnath once defeated Lord Shiva.
Once, Lord Indra insulted Narada Muni. Therefore, he wanted to avenge his insult. So, he took Charpatinath to heaven, where they ate some fruits and plucked flowers from the garden. When guards in heaven learned about this, they tried to arrest Charpatinath. Narada Muni immediately vanished from the scene. Charpatinath defeated soldiers, as they were no match for him.
One of the soldiers informed Indra about this. Therefore, Indra sent other gods to look into the matter. The gods attacked Charpatinath, but he defeated them as well.
Indra understood that he couldn’t defeat Charpatinath. Therefore, he went to Lord Shiva and asked for help. Lord Shiva and his ganas came to the scene and attacked Charpatinath, but the yogi used “Vatakarshana Vidya” against them, which stopped their breathing and made them unconscious.
Afterward, Charpatinath defeated Lord Vishnu as well. When Pippalayan learned about this, he intervened and rescued Lord Shiva and the other gods.
The Harihara War:
Banasura was an asura who propitiated Lord Shiva and got the blessing of having a thousand arms. He also asked Lord Shiva to protect him whenever needed. After a few years, his daughter fell in love with Lord Krishna’s grandson, Aniruddha and married him.
Banasura did not like it and kidnapped both his daughter and Aniruddha. Therefore, Lord Krishna attacked Banasura. He was no match for Lord Krishna, so he requested Lord Shiva to protect him. A fierce war began between Lord Krishna and Lord Shiva, lasting many days. As both were equally powerful, there was no end to it.
Therefore, Lord Krishna told Lord Shiva that he could not protect dharma if Lord Shiva supported Banasura. Hence, Lord Shiva told Lord Krishna to use Jurumnastra, which put him in a deep sleep for some time. Then Lord Krishna cut off a thousand arms of Banasura, and he accepted his defeat. Lord Shiva woke up after this.
Lord Vishnu Saved Lord Shiva from Bhasmasura:
Bhasmasura was an asura who was born from the ash of Lord Shiva’s body. He did severe penance and propitiated Lord Shiva. He asked for the power to burn anybody to ashes on whose head he placed his hand. After getting the boon, Bhasmasura decided to test the boon by placing his hand on Lord Shiva’s head.
Therefore, Lord Shiva fled the scene and reached Vaikuntha, but Bhasmasura followed him there. Lord Shiva requested Lord Vishnu to protect him from the demon. Therefore, Lord Vishnu assumed the form of a highly gorgeous woman named Mohini. When Bhasmasura saw her, he was flabbergasted and started to dance with her. He started copying her every move. After some time, when he was off guard, Mohini put her hand on her own head. Bhasmasura also copied her move and put his hand over his own head. Thus, he was burned to ashes.
The War Between Lord Rama and Lord Shiva:
After becoming the king of Ayodhya, Lord Rama performed the Ashwamedha Yagya. When the holy horse reached Devpur, it was captured by King Veermani’s son. Therefore, a war broke out between Ayodhya’s army and Devpur. When Devpur was about to be defeated, King Veermani requested that Lord Shiva protect his state as promised.
Therefore, Lord Shiva sent his army to protect him. Ayodhya’s army was no match for Lord Shiva’s army; hence, they requested that Lord Rama intervene. Lord Rama used a divine weapon against Lord Shiva’s army. Therefore, they requested Lord Shiva to protect them.
Lord Shiva stopped the weapon, and a fierce war occurred between Lord Rama and Lord Shiva. The war was unending because no weapon was effective against Lord Shiva. Therefore, Lord Rama decided to use Pashupatastra and said, “O Lord! You promised me that anyone using this weapon would not be defeated. Therefore, I am using it against you with your permission.”
Pashupatastra went into the heart of Lord Shiva and settled there. Lord Shiva was satisfied with this and asked Lord Rama to ask for a boon. Lord Rama asked him to bring all the dead warriors who died in the war back to life. Mahadeva accepted his request and revived all the dead warriors.
Who Can Defeat Lord Shiva?
I think the following are the situations where one can defeat Lord Shiva:
1. If a person does penance and obtains a boon to defeat Lord Shiva in his original form, it is possible to defeat him.
2. If Lord Shiva Himself wants to be defeated.
Conclusion:
Most of the stories about Lord Shiva’s defeat are from Vaishnava literature. These stories are not 100% reliable because there was a conflict between Shaivites and Vaishnavites in old times. Scholars believe that their devotees created the stories of Lord Shiva defeating Lord Vishnu and vice versa to prove the supremacy of their gods.