One day, atop The Sacred Abode, Mount Kailash, the Great Snake, Vasuki, asked his Lord, “ what is it with your bhaktas ? Your devotees keep chanting ‘Namah Shivaya! Shambho! Har Har!’ or one of your other Names! What good can this rant … errr… chant… do?”

AdiYogi,The Timeless One, smiled His Timeless Smile.
“See that worm crawling there? Go to him, speak my name. Let’s see what happens ”, He said.

Vasuki deftly unwrapped himself from his haloed perch and slithered close to the worm to utter, rather theatrically,

“ नमः शिवाय ”

The worm, instantly, dropped dead.

Horrified, Vasuki retreated to The Yogi. “I just uttered your name and the poor worm fell dead! What in the Infinite Worlds was that ?”, he spat.

Shiva completely ignored his Adornment and the worm and pointing to a butterfly drinking nectar from a deep blue aparajita flower. NeelKantha , The Blue Throated One, calmly spoke, “Go now, repeat your mantra to that butterfly”.

The Great Snake obeyed, for it was his nature to obey The Lord.

The butterfly fell dead.

Shocked beyond his flicking tongue, Vasuki slid back to The Adi.

“ What good is your name ? ”, he hissed indignantly. “I speak It and beings die. I will not do this anymore.”

Shiva completely ignored his Adornment, the worm and the newly dead butterfly to now gesture towards a nubile gazelle grazing nearby. “ Just this once, go say it to her too” .

Vasuki, now angry with The Lord, grudgingly addressed the lissome creature,

“ नमः शिवाय ”

The deer fell dead.

“This is it!”, sobbed Vasu, tears of dismay flowing down his face. All sorts of doubts played havoc in his heart.
“ Never again. Never again will He make me do this.”
Just then a pilgrim family came to where Shiva sat, sipping a stone cup of chilled spring water.
Laying their newborn baby in His arms, they sought His blessings.

Shiva turned to the muttering Vasuki and, patted the infant, who was, by now, engaged in wrapping a cascading dreadlock around his cherubic fingers.

“ Vasuki, my friend, why don’t you try our experiment with this baby? ”
“ Our experiment ” ! Burning with disbelief, Vasuki obeyed, for it was his innate nature, remember.
Sliding close to baby, in a trembling croak, he sputtered,
, “ Na…ah..mah Shi…Shi..vaya ” , and shut his eyes. He could not bear to watch a baby die.

The newborn sat upright.

Cradled safely in The AdiYogi’s giant embrace, the infant stroked Vasuki gently, so The Great Snake may open his eyes.
And, in a lilting song, he spoke,

“ O Great One, Awake.
You have lived Timelessly
wrapped around The Timeless He;
yet, you do not See!

I was the worm. You said the words that Vibrated with Cosmic Divinity and I became a butterfly; you uttered them again and I became a deer; you spoke yet again and I became a human being.

Verily, as you repeated to me, that Spandana, that Vibration of my Source Divine,
I Transcend All
and Become That very Divine.”