He is the subtle wind that dries up all things, yet remains perfectly unmoving—the destroyer and creator alike, the sustainer of the worlds, and the one who abides even when all has dissolved. His form is universal, with faces turned to every direction. The Atharvaśīrṣa is his head, the Yajur his arms, and the Ṛg his eyes. He crafts poetry, imparts sacred instruction, and knows the very roots of all words. Taking the form of Śeṣa, he stands foremost, embodying the essence of the sound-Brahman. Endowed with keen discernment, he bears the conch and is steadfastly devoted to truth. His austerity is great, his penance fearsome, and he is the bountiful giver of all things. His valor is unmatched, and he bestows every kind of wealth, pervading all, his voice resounding like thunderclouds. He is the prosperous one, the bestower and enjoyer of beings and pleasures, adorned in splendor, affectionate toward Shankara, devoted to the worship of Shambhu. He grants liberation, and like fire, consumes the bonds of worldly existence. He is truth itself, an ascetic, the very form to be meditated upon, and the embodiment of action. His greatness encompasses both the collective and the individual, standing apart from the five sheaths. He is the storehouse of radiance, the very form of the universe, upholding all moving and unmoving bodies. He is the giver of life, the embodiment of knowledge, united with the form of sound, and utterly imperishable. The origin of all elements, fiery in nature, without parts and perfectly pure, he abides as the immutable, conscious Rudra, the knower of the field, the person, and the wise one. Though he needs no support, he sustains all. Though formless, he creates, facing all directions. His form is beyond all reasoning—he is the younger brother of Skanda, radiant as the sun, and of dazzling brilliance. He is the receiver, performer, and bestower of the fruits of sacrifice; the protector and very embodiment of sacrifice itself, and the destroyer of Daksha’s sacrifice. He is the one with a curved trunk and a great body, shining with the brilliance of ten million suns. Single-tusked, with dark and tawny eyes, formidable in appearance, his complexion is like smoke. Wielding an axe, he is likened to a jackal, a leader with ears like winnowing fans. His womb is golden, his face beautiful, and he bestows prosperity and all accomplishments. Golden is his complexion, his limbs and soul radiant like sandalwood. His own limbs and eyes shine with bliss, for he is the embodiment of all worlds and their perceptions. He is Indra, the victorious one, smoke-bannered and fiery, worthy of worship, the destroyer of forest fires. He is complete bliss, supreme bliss, the ancient and supreme person. He holds a pot, is associated with a pitcher, and is hunchbacked, satisfied by offerings of fish and meat. He is composed of constellations, stars, and planets, assuming the form of time, and is the lord of the universe. Powerful and beloved at the beginning of the lunar fortnight, he is established in non-duality, of three forms, the third fire, of triple form and triple nature. He is the god beloved on the fourth day, the one who leads across, whose voice is heard on the fifth day. He enjoys the six tastes, is unborn, the sixth, and the year of sixty. He moves through the seven streams, is the very essence, the lord of the seventh day, desired and bringer of joy on the eighth day, free from pain, and honored by devotion on the ninth day. Worshipped by the lords of the ten directions, he is the tenth, Brahma, swift, the soul of the eleven, leader of the hosts, revered in the twelve pairs. He is praised in the thirteen syllables, dear to the gods of the fourteen worlds, extolled by the fourteen Indras, and his form is full of bliss on the full moon day. He is both new moon and full moon, the vision and the seer, the forest-dweller, lord of sages, silent, his speech sweet, the root of all words, embodied, and his vehicle is the cloud. He is the great elephant, conqueror of anger and enemies, the refuge of victory, fierce and dear to Rudra, golden, son of Rudra, and destroyer of evil. Beloved of Bhava and Bhavānī, he bears burdens, creates beings, is skilled in Gandharva arts, unimpeded, Vaikuṇṭha, and served by Viṣṇu. He is the slayer of Vṛtra, remover of obstacles, strong and destroyer of all misfortune, charming, purifier, intoxicated, son of Durgā, and never indolent. He is the endless stream of nectar-like consciousness, the hero, the sole accomplisher of valor, crowned with radiant jewels and encircled by the tinkling of little bells. He bears a trunk, his snout moves, he is coiled, adorned with a garland of skulls. His eyes are like lotuses, he holds a lotus in his hand, and is worshipped by Padmanabha. Praised in hymns, adorned with a garland of human teeth and ornaments, he is Narada, the elephantine one, with restless ears like winnowing baskets. Attainable by those seated in great delight, he pervades the three worlds, the life-giver who bestows grace upon those bewildered in the realm of earth. His mighty ear-ends generate winds that conquer all directions, and his great roar from his mouth overwhelms the terrifying shell of the universe. His vast feet stride across the seven netherworlds, causing them to tremble; he fiercely delights in battle, his great tusks exuding the essence of joy in combat. With his mighty hands he wields all weapons and subdues the demons; his face shines with vermilion, and his eyes blaze with fiery brilliance. The jingling of anklets adorned with radiant jewels resounds around him; he is surrounded by rivers filled with swiftly moving streams and countless droplets of water. His lotus feet are worshipped by hosts of wandering elephants, and he is revered by Brahma, Achyuta, and the great Rudra, with the foremost of the gods. He is attended by all kinds of serpents, including the mighty Shesha; the roar of five-faced lions reaches the very peaks of the mountains. His mind is bewildered by the fierce cries of the gods, “Ha Ha” and “Hū Hū”; his form is empowered by the fifty seed-syllables and mantras. The earth is flooded by the nectar-stream of Vedanta’s teachings, and the sound of the conch fills the realms from the netherworld up to the heavens. He is the wish-fulfilling gem, the great wrestler, holding a strong spear in his hand, powerful and victorious. He shines forth in the three worlds, illuminating them with the glory of the Krita and Treta ages. He is Dvapara, the sole lord of the other world, the moonlight that dispels the darkness of karma, his form anointed with nectar, pervading the cosmic egg and all within it. He radiates with the series of letters from ‘A’ to ‘Kṣa’, resounding with the musical tones sung from ‘A’ and ‘Ā’, echoing with the sound of the highest note. He delights in the garland of mantras beginning with ‘I’ and ‘E’, joyfully whirling them; he is adorned with the dread serpent as a sacred thread, emerging from the utterance of ‘U’ and ‘O’. Such is his wondrous, all-encompassing, and blissful form—source, sustainer, and liberator of all that exists.