In this world, seekers worship the Divine in many ways. Some turn again and again to forms both with attributes and without, honoring the Lord as the all-knowing presence in the heart, as the sacred liṅga of Śiva, or as the fire itself. Among them, certain sages—immersed in the duties of worldly life—worship only the form with attributes, as do householders with wives and children, who continually offer their devotion in this manner. Śiva and the Goddess are inseparable; as Śiva is, so is the Goddess, and as the Goddess is, so is Śiva. Understanding their non-difference, the wise recognize twenty-seven distinctions in the ways of worship. Devotees honor the Divine both within their own bodies and outside, perceiving the sacred in forms such as the four-sided, six-angled, ten-spoked, twelve-spoked, sixteen-spoked, and three-sided figures. By his own will, Śiva, the Lord, abides eternally with the Goddess. For the purpose of liberation, he transcends both manifestation and non-manifestation, existing beyond all dualities. Some declare Śiva to be one; others say he is twofold; still others speak of his threefold nature. And those learned in the Vedas proclaim Śiva as the transmigrating soul itself. Brāhmaṇas, ever devoted to righteousness and marked by pure devotion and yoga, worship the Lord of Yoga—he who is all forms—at the center of the six-angled figure. Those who perceive Śiva in the three-sided form, amidst the three principles, as threefold and three-eyed, attain him; other yogins do not. By the grace of the Goddess, one attains the ancient Person. Now, let me declare the complete fruit that arises from establishing the self-willed form, for the benefit of all the worlds. When one establishes the god, together with Skanda, seated upon the supreme seat, with devotion, all desires are fulfilled. Even worshipping the god with Skanda just once, according to the proper method, brings immense results, as I have heard. The devotee is carried in aerial chariots shining like ten million suns, fulfilling every desire, filled with the daughters of Rudra, accompanied by song and dance. Such a yogi delights like Śiva himself until the dissolution of creation, enjoying great pleasures in celestial chariots that fulfill every wish. He attains the realms of Auma, Kaumāra, Īśāna, Vaiṣṇava, Brahma, and Prajāpati—the great radiant ones—as well as Janaloka and Mahas. Having reached the realm of Indra, he becomes Indra for ten thousand years, enjoying splendid divine pleasures in the world of Bhuvar. Upon reaching Meru, he delights in the abodes of the gods, with one foot, four arms, three eyes, and bearing a trident. There, he creates Hari standing on his left, the four-faced one on his right, and a crore of twenty-eight Rudras, all with resplendent forms. The twenty-fivefold Person arises directly from the heart; Prakṛti is on the left, and Buddhi is established in the seat of intellect. From ahaṃkāra arises further ahaṃkāra, then the subtle elements, and from the senses, the sense objects—all this is the play of the Supreme Lord. From the soles of the feet comes the earth; from the secret place, water; from the navel, fire; and from the heart, the sun. From the throat comes Soma, from between the brows the self, and from the crown of the head, the heavens. Thus, all the worlds, moving and unmoving, stand manifest. By establishing the all-knowing, all-pervading God according to the prescribed methods of knowledge and ritual, one attains union with Śiva. When the Lord of Sacrifice is fashioned as three-footed, seven-handed, four-horned, and two-headed, he is honored in the realm of Viṣṇu. There, enjoying great pleasures for a hundred thousand aeons, the happy soul, returning in due course to this world, becomes the consummation of all sacrifices. Whoever establishes the bull-mounted Lord, adorned with the crescent moon, gains the merit of ten thousand horse sacrifices. Traveling in a golden aerial chariot adorned with networks of bells, he reaches the divine city of Śiva and is liberated there. Now, hear of the fruit gained by establishing the Lord together with Nandi, with Ambā, and surrounded by all the hosts. In aerial chariots radiant as the sun, yoked with bulls and crowded with apsarases—chariots rare even for gods and demons—the devotee is surrounded by troupes of dancing apsarases, resplendent in every way, and reaches the divine city of Śiva, attaining the state of Gaṇeśa. There, he beholds the Lord of gods, the master, dancing with the daughter of the mountain—sometimes with a thousand arms, all-knowing, or even with four arms. He sees the supreme Lord, surrounded by hosts of beings led by Bhrigu and others, together with the mountain’s daughter, manifest as the bull-bannered Lord. The supreme Lord is ever worshipped by Brahmā, Indra, Viṣṇu, Soma, and others, and is surrounded by mothers and sages as well. The fruit of such devoted establishment is as great as that gained from all sacrifices, austerities, gifts, pilgrimages, and worship of the gods. Indeed, the fruit is multiplied a hundred million times, and the devotee attains the abode of Śiva, enjoying great pleasures there until the dissolution of beings. When a new creation arises, he is born again as a human—naked, four-armed, white, three-eyed, and girdled with serpents. Establishing with devotion the Lord of gods, holding a skull, with black, curled hair, he attains union with Śiva. This Lord, son of the lord of elephants, together with Ambā, bestower of success, is of dusky hue, red-eyed, three-eyed, and adorned with the moon. He bears crow’s-wing hair on his head, serpent earrings, a lion’s skin as upper garment, and deerskin as his clothing. With sharp fangs, holding a mace, raising a skull in hand, he utters ‘huṃ’ and ‘phaṭ’, making a mighty sound that resounds in every direction. Wearing a lotus-hide with both arms, holding a conch, laughing, roaring, and drinking the dark ocean—thus is the Lord revealed to those who worship with true devotion.