Nandi There was a sage named Shilada. He once saw that his ancestors were being tortured in hell. When he tried to find out why this was so, he was told that htis was because Shilada did not... Read more

Shivarati Vrata Shivaratri is the tithi (lunar day) on which Brahma and Vishnu had worshipped Shiva. A vrata is a special religious rite that is performed. A vrata observed on shivaratri (th... Read more

Shiva’s Thousand Names When the sages heard this story, they said, Romaharshana, what are these thousand names of Shiva that you have mentioned? Relate them to us. Romaharshana obliged. For... Read more

Vindhya and Omkara The fourth of the jyotirlingas is Omkara.  Narada had once gone on a visit to the mountain Vindhya. Vindhya worshipped Narada. But because Vindhya was slightly proud, he a... Read more

Linga A linga is an image of Shiva. There are several lingas. Whichever is the place where devotees congregate, there Shiva manifests himself in the form of a linga. However, there are twelv... Read more

Narada and the Champaka Tree Nor must a champaka flower be used.  In the land of Gokarna there was a temple dedicated to Shiva. Narada decided that he would go and visit the temple. On the w... Read more

Kartikeya Shiva and Parvati’s son was Skanada or Kartikeya. When the baby was very small, it got lost in some reeds. Six princesses discovered the baby in the reeds and each wanted to bring... Read more

The Burning of the God of Love The gods decided to follow Brahma’s advice. But how could it be ensured that Shiva and Parvati fell in love with each other? The king of the gods was Indra and... Read more