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Shiva is the destroyer - destroyer of ignorance, desire, ego, and death.
Worldly matters do not interest Shiva. Unaffected by the whims of the world, he is innocent and guileless, pure of mind and heart. He does not adorn his body with jewels or flowers; he mats his hair; wraps his body in animal hide and lets the serpent slither around his neck. He rejects social norms and does not mind the company of ghosts, gnomes , goblins, bhutas, pisachas and yakshas. He even rejects his body; hence he is worshipped as a linga.
Sometimes he wanders into crematoriums, smears his body with ash and dances in the light of the funeral pyres, reminding all about the transitory nature of material things.
Shiva prefers to isolate himself atop Mount Kailas, shutting his eye, restraining his senses, meditating and transcending samsara. In fact so intense is the power of his tapas that it transforms him into a pillar of fire that has neither an origin nor an end.
But the gods seek his wisdom. They wanted him to participate in the worldly affairs. They wanted him to marry and produce mighty sons who would protect the world. So they enlisted the help of the mother-goddess Shakti. Manifesting as Parvati, the goddess succeeded, after great difficulty, in becoming Shiva's consort. Together they created two sons: the wise Ganesha and the mighty Kartikeya. Parvati inspired Shiva to compose music, choreograph dances and unravel the mysteries of the Tantra and the secrets of Yoga for the benefit of the universe. He even enlightened her on the art of lovemaking, delighting man and god alike.
Occasionally, Shiva does tire of family life and goes back into the forest to meditate or dance in serene isolation. As he alternates between being an austere hermit and an amorous householder, the cosmos either withdraws into itself or blooms like a lotus.
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