Let us recount the sacred procedure and its wondrous fruits, as revealed in the holy verses. First, the worshipper prepares offerings for Śiva with utmost reverence. Flowers from the śamī tree, bṛhat, wild agastya, apāmārga, and kadamba are gathered, and the deity is adorned with beautiful ornaments. Five kinds of incense are offered, filling the air with fragrance. Then, sweet rice, curd-rice, and foods soaked in honey and ghee are presented, followed by pure rice, mung-bean rice, and six varieties of food—or, alternatively, five kinds of food with ghee. If simplicity is desired, one may cook a single āḍhaka of pure rice, circumambulate the offering, and bow repeatedly in devotion. After praising Īśāna and worshipping Śaṅkara, the worshipper honors the five forms: Īśāna, Puruṣa, Aghora, Vāma, and Sadyojāta, reciting their mantras. By this method, Śiva, the great lord, is pleased. The trees whose flowers and leaves are used in Śiva’s worship, the cows, and the best of the twice-born who participate in this ritual, all attain the highest state. Whoever worships Śiva—whether as Rudra, Śarva, Bhava, or the Unborn—even once, attains union with Śiva, free from rebirth. If one worships Parameśāna, Bhava, Śarva, or the consort of Umā, or even glimpses him by chance, all sins are destroyed. If one worships or merely sees Mahādeva being worshipped, that mortal surely reaches the world of Brahma. Even hearing and approving this worship brings the highest state. Offering a ghee lamp before the liṅga, even once, grants the worshipper a state firm and difficult to obtain, regardless of the lamp’s material—wood, earth, iron, copper, silver, or gold. Such a person, along with his family, is honored in the world of Śiva. Whoever offers a lamp to Śiva with devotion, following the rules, is carried to Śiva’s city in vehicles radiant as ten thousand suns. Offering a ghee lamp before Śiva in the auspicious month of Kārtika, or witnessing Parameśvara’s worship, leads the faithful to the world of Brahmā. The ritual continues: the seat is prepared with the Rudra Gāyatrī and the Praṇava; ablutions are performed five times, especially invoking Rudra and the other forms. Daily, one should worship the God of gods, the consort of Umā, honoring Brahmā to the right with the Praṇava, and Viṣṇu to the north with the Gāyatrī, offering oblations as prescribed. By worshipping Śaṅkara in this manner, union with Śiva is attained. Thus, the procedure for worshipping the Liṅga is summarized, as once taught by Vyāsa, who heard it directly from Rudra himself. Now, a question arises: How did the gods, upon seeing Paśupati, shed their bondage as cattle? Let us hear how they were freed from that state. Long ago, upon the peak of Kailāsa, in his own city called Bhogya, the gods assembled by the grace of the all-knowing one. For the welfare of all, Janārdana, with Brahmā, mounted upon Garuḍa’s shoulder, approached the supreme person. Hari, together with the deities, reached the auspicious great mountain and remained there. Indra, the Sādhyas, and the Yamas bowed to the excellent mountain. Vāsudeva, the bearer of Garuḍa, descended and ascended Mount Meru with the best of the gods. The mountain was free from misfortune, bestowing supreme enjoyment, echoing with the cries of curlews, songs of serpents, melodious music, gentle darkness, bordered by groves, lovely breezes, and cool waters. It was adorned with hundreds of thousands of mansions, radiant as the sun, graced by elegant flocks of swans, interspersed with dhava, khadira, palāśa, sandalwood, and other trees, and filled with excellent birds, cuckoos, and bees. In places, divine trees grew thick—kurabaka, priyaka, tilaka, kadamba, tamāla, and vines—covering the peaks. On the summit, a supreme Śaiva abode was crafted by Viśvakarman for Bhava, the God of gods. The gods, with Indra and Upendra, beheld this city, their minds composed, bowing from afar in awe of the wielder of the trident. The Lord of Kailāsa, radiant as a thousand suns, entered the city at the slope of Meru. Filled with women, elephants, horses, chariots, and hosts of leaders, the slayer of the gods’ enemies approached the city gate, resembling a mountain lord, accompanied by Aja and Hari. They beheld mansions made of gold, adorned with jewels, aerial palaces of various forms, surrounded by ramparts. Seeing the outer city of Śambhu, Hari and the gods, Brahmā and others, became joyful and entered. The second city of the God of gods was crowded with mansions and palaces, adorned with lofty towers and four splendid gates. Networks of diamonds, beryl, rubies, and other jewels decorated the city, with swinging seats, bells, and yak-tail fans. The air was filled with the sounds of mṛdaṅgas and murajas, vīṇās and flutes, surrounded by dancing apsarases and hosts of spirits, with mansions resembling Indra’s palaces, enchanting to the eye. On the pinnacles, thousands of city women stood with hands full of flowers, fruits, and rice, showering them upon Hari’s head, as they did for Bhava. At that moment, the women, seeing Viṣṇu, their eyes intoxicated, gazed upon him with wonder. Thus, the gods approached the supreme abode, where the worship of Śiva and the blessings of union and liberation were bestowed upon all who came with faith and devotion.