With his neck consecrated by the flow of water that flows from his hair, And on his neck a snake, which is hung like a garland, And the Damaru drum that emits the sound "Damat Damat Damat Damat", Lord Shiva did the auspicious dance of Tandava. May he give prosperity to all of us. I have a deep interest in Shiva Whose head is glorified by the rows of moving waves of the celestial Ganga river, Which stir in the deep well of his hair in tangled locks. Who has the brilliant fire burning on the surface of his forehead, And who has the crescent moon as a jewel on his head. May my mind seek happiness in Lord Shiva, In whose mind all the living beings of the glorious universe exist, Who is the companion of Parvati (daughter of the mountain king), Who controls unsurpassed adversity with his compassionate gaze, Which is all-pervading And who wears the Heavens as his raiment. May I find wonderful pleasure in Lord Shiva, who is the advocate of all life, With his creeping snake with its reddish brown hood and the shine of its gem on it Spreading variegated colors on the beautiful faces of the Goddesses of the Directions, Which is covered by a shimmering shawl made from the skin of a huge, inebriated elephant. May Lord Shiva give us prosperity, Who has the Moon as a crown, Whose hair is bound by the red snake-garland, Whose footrest is darkened by the flow of dust from flowers Which fall from the heads of all the gods – Indra, Vishnu and others. May we obtain the riches of the Siddhis from the tangled strands Shiva’s hair, Who devoured the God of Love with the sparks of the fire that burns on his forehead, Which is revered by all the heavenly leaders, Which is beautiful with a crescent moon. My interest is in Lord Shiva, who has three eyes, Who offered the powerful God of Love to fire. The terrible surface of his forehead burns with the sound "Dhagad, Dhagad ..." He is the only artist expert in tracing decorative lines on the tips of the breasts of Parvati, the daughter of the mountain king. May Lord Shiva give us prosperity, The one who bears the weight of this universe, Who is enchanting with the moon, Who has the celestial river Ganga Whose neck is dark as midnight on a new moon night, covered in layers of clouds. I pray to Lord Shiva, whose neck is bound with the brightness of the temples hanging with the glory of fully bloomed blue lotus flowers, Which look like the blackness of the universe. Who is the slayer of Manmatha, who destroyed the Tripura, Who destroyed the bonds of worldly life, who destroyed the sacrifice, Who destroyed the demon Andhaka, who is the destroyer of the elephants, And who has overwhelmed the God of death, Yama. I pray to Lord Siva, who has bees flying all around because of the sweet Scent of honey coming from the beautiful bouquet of auspicious Kadamba flowers, Who is the slayer of Manmatha, who destroyed the Tripura, Who destroyed the bonds of worldly life, who destroyed the sacrifice, Who destroyed the demon Andhaka, who is the destroyer of the elephants, And who has overwhelmed the God of death, Yama. Shiva, whose dance of Tandava is in tune with the series of loud sounds of drum making the sound “Dhimid Dhimid”, Who has fire on his great forehead, the fire that is spreading out because of the breath of the snake, wandering in whirling motions in the glorious sky. When will I be able to worship Lord Sadashiva, the eternally auspicious God, With equanimous vision towards people or emperors, Towards a blade of grass and a lotus, towards friends and enemies, Towards the most precious gem and a lump of dirt, Toward a snake or a garland and towards the varied forms of the world? When I can be happy, living in a cave near the celestial river Ganga, Bringing my hands clasped on my head all the time, With my impure thoughts washed away, uttering the mantra of Shiva, Devoted to the God with a glorious forehead and with vibrant eyes? Anyone who reads, remembers and recites this stotra as stated here Is purified forever and obtains devotion in the great Guru Shiva. For this devotion, there is no other way or refuge. Just the mere thought of Shiva removes the delusion. Ravana was a fierce devotee of Shiva and there are many stories about them. A devotee shouldn't become great, but he was a great devotee. He came to Kailash all the way from down south – I want you to just imagine walking all the way – and began to sing Shiva’s praises. He had a drum which he used to set the beat and composed 1008 verses extempore, which is called the Shiva Tandava Stotram. Shiva was so pleased and enamoured listening to this music. As he sang, slowly, Ravana started climbing Kailash from its Southern Face. When Ravana was almost on top, and with Shiva still engrossed in this music, Parvati saw this man climbing up. There is space only for two people on top! So Parvati tried to bring Shiva out of his musical rapture. She said, “This man is coming all the way up!” But Shiva was too engrossed in the music and poetry. Then finally, Parvati managed to bring him out of being enthralled, and when Ravana reached the peak, Shiva just pushed him off with his feet. Ravana went sliding down the South Face of Kailash. They say his drum was dragging behind him as he slid down and it left a furrow on the mountain all the way down. If you look at the South Face, you will see a wedge-like scar in the center going straight down. Without trying to distinguish or to discriminate between one face of Kailash and the other, but the South Face is dear to us because Agastya Muni merged into the South Face. It is just a South Indian prejudice that we like the South Face and I think it is the most beautiful face! It is definitely the whitest face because it is very snowy there.