THE GOD OF ALL THINGS

THE GOD OF ALL THINGS

He loved mountains. He loved to dance. He loved to wear his hair long.
He was as regular a hillbilly as they came, and he loved his fellow mountain men.
But he was not considered in turn, a fellow man. 
It was said of Him that He was God Himself, the Primal One.
He was said to be the timeless Lord of the mountains and the men he so loved.
He was Shiva, the auspicious. Shiva, whose very presence was able to transform humans into demi –gods. He, Shiva, was supposed to be the ultimate spiritual alchemist.
But whatever he could see of Himself , was plainly human.
He felt like a human , fond of the forest life , and like all the other creatures that roamed
in the forest , always looking forward to more of it.
Gods were said to be without desire, but he was so fond of life!
Gods were timeless, but He was always contemporary , always in the present.
Gods were supposed to have some subtle form of body ,
or then none at all,
but He was the most earthily magnetic mountain man.
Yet, legend insisted that he was no ordinary forest dweller, He was the supreme in the midst of all beings. He was God, they said, ultimately, of all things.

{From the forthcoming book SHIVA by Shail Gulhati, Shail Gulhati: Shiva and Mysticism.}