Once there was a mighty and devoted king who, though lacking in wealth, was steadfast in righteousness and wholly dedicated to Bhava, the great Lord Shiva. His heart brimmed with the desire to perform the horse sacrifice, a sacred rite, and he pondered deeply on how this might be accomplished. In his search, he encountered the illustrious Taṇḍi, the son of Brahmā and a brāhmaṇa of great renown. From this noble sage, the king sought guidance, for Taṇḍi was famed among the twice-born for his wisdom. Long ago, Brahmā himself had spoken of a thousand names of Rudra, and Taṇḍi, knowing their power, praised the great Lord Shiva with these very names. Through this profound devotion, Taṇḍi attained lordship over the Gaṇas, Shiva’s celestial hosts. In turn, Taṇḍi imparted this sacred knowledge to the king, who received it with reverence and joy. By reciting the thousand names as Taṇḍi had done, the king too was elevated, attaining the honored state of Gaṇapati, leader of the Gaṇas. These thousand names of Rudra, spoken by Taṇḍi and born from Brahmā’s wisdom, encapsulated the very essence of the Vedas. The sages urged Sūta, steadfast in his vows, to recite these auspicious names to the assembled brāhmaṇas, so that all might hear the glories of Hara, the soul of all beings, of immeasurable brilliance. “Listen, O steadfast ones,” the sages proclaimed, “to the thousand and eight names of Shiva, radiant and firm, the bestower of boons, the excellent one. He is the soul of all, known everywhere, all-pervading, the doer of all, Bhava; with matted hair, staff in hand, crowned, the creator of all. He is Hari, the deer-eyed, remembered as the remover of all beings, both active and withdrawn, tranquil-souled, eternal, and unchanging. He dwells in cremation grounds, the blessed one, roaming the skies and earth, fierce and worthy of reverence, performer of great deeds, ascetic, and supporter of all beings. Sometimes he assumes the guise of a madman, hidden from sight, yet he is the universe itself, lord of all creatures, of great and many forms, famed throughout the worlds. Of great soul and present in all beings, he manifests in countless ways—as dwarf, as man, protector of the worlds, gracious, giver of fearlessness, all-pervading. Pure and disciplined, he is the refuge of the disciplined, self-born, doer of all acts, the beginning, the originator, and the treasure of all. He is thousand-eyed, wide-eyed, Soma, accomplisher of the stars, the moon, the sun, Śani, Ketu, the lord of planets. He is king, cause of the rise of kingdoms, doer, shooter of arrows at deer, cloud, of great austerity, long in penance, unseen, and bestower of wealth. He is the year, possessor of sacred formulas, breath-control, supreme ascetic, yogī and yoga, great seed, great chariot, great strength. Of golden seed, all-knowing, bull-bannered, ten-armed, unblinking, blue-throated, husband of Umā. Of universal form, supreme by himself, mighty hero, creator and lord of the Gaṇas, clothed with directions, desired by all. Knower of mantras, supreme mantra, creator of all beings, Hara; holder of the water-pot, archer, bearer of arrows, skull-bearer. Armed with a hundred-bladed missile, sword, spear, and many weapons; the great one, unborn, with the form of a deer, the radiance that gives radiance, the creator. He is turbaned, beautiful-faced, exalted yet humble, tall, with tawny hair, of excellent sanctity, and dark in complexion. He takes the form of a jackal, is the essence of all, shaven-headed, bringer of all auspiciousness, with forms of lion and tiger, the fragrance-giver, and also with matted locks. He is of upward-flowing seed, with an upward-pointing emblem, lying upwards, abiding in the sky, three-braided, clothed in bark, Rudra, the lord of armies, all-pervading. He is day and night, nocturnal, fierce in wrath, radiant, slayer of elephants, destroyer of demons, time itself, sustainer of the worlds, and repository of all qualities. He assumes the forms of lion and tiger, wears moist hides as garments, is master of time, the great sound, dwelling everywhere, present at the crossroads. He moves by night, wanders among the dead, sees all, the great lord, manifests in many forms, is very wealthy, the essence of all, and the lord of immortality. He delights in dance, is ever-dancing, the dancer, accomplisher of all, armed with a bow, great-armed, exceedingly fierce, and of great austerity. He is the great arrow, the great noose, eternal, mountain-dweller, thousand-armed, victorious, resolute, and blameless. He is unyielding, patient by nature, destroyer of sacrifice, destroyer of desire, slayer of Daksha, attendant, laughing, and also moderate. He is the remover of brilliance, powerful, renowned, ever-rising, manifold, of deep voice, yogic in nature, destroyer of sacrifice and desire. He is of deep wrath, profound, with a vehicle of great strength, in the form of the banyan tree, the banyan itself, maker and enjoyer of the universe. Skilled in sharp means, with tawny horses, a companion, knower of the time for action, appeased Vishnu, sacrifice, the ocean, and the submarine fire. He is the companion of fire, of tranquil mind, fire itself, of fierce and great energy, victorious, knower of the time of victory. He is the abode of light, accomplishment, peace, and conflict; armed with a sword, conch-holder, matted-haired, flaming, sky-walker, space-traveler, and strong. He is the player of the lute, drummer, time, dark-throated, of dreadful throat, starry form, existence and non-existence, with faces in all directions. He is the liberator, refuge, born with golden armor, of girdle-like form, water-dweller, and praised. He is the player of the lute, drummer, cymbalist, flutist, and the one with the reed-pipe; the sound of all instruments, all-pervading, unattached. He takes the form of a serpent, dwells in burrows, abides in caves, moves with the waves, is a tree, performs auspicious acts, and is the liberator from all bonds. He is the bondage of the lords of the gods in battle, the destroyer of enemies, a friend, an exile, difficult to attain, and served by all the virtuous. Thus, by the power of these thousand and eight names, the king, like Taṇḍi before him, attained lordship over the Gaṇas and the blessings of the great Lord Shiva, whose forms and glories are infinite and whose grace bestows liberation and auspiciousness upon all who remember him with devotion.