Nicotine Addiction and How Psychological Aroma-Therapy Can Help You

There is a claim that the toughest part of quitting smoking is getting past the nicotine addiction. There are many nicotine gum and nicotine replacement patches on the market that claim to help in quitting smoking. But does it really make sense to break the addiction to a substance by finding another way to deliver that same substance back into your body?
We want to rid our system of nicotine, and cleanse its effects from our body. In order for this to happen we need to become completely free of nicotine. Nicotine is the cause of our cravings so the first step to beating smoking is to get free of it.
Nicotine is the reward of smoking. When we feed our addiction we feel a calmness that we think helps us to deal with stress. We have a nice and light feeling. So we need to find a good way to divert us away from this nicotine craving. You can occupy your mind by making a cup of tea, doing some exercise, even having a glass of water.
More than just an addiction to nicotine, smoking is a habit. There are places, situations and people who will trigger this habit, learn to avoid them and do something creative instead.
Habits can be as hard as addictions to break. The first step is to make a firm determination that you truly want to quit smoking. Remembering the ill effects of nicotine and those other poisons in cigarette smoke will help your determination, but it has to begin with you.
Once you have your honest determination, aroma-therapy is a tool to help you get rid of the smoking habit. Try these steps.
Find a pleasant smelling and relaxing aroma-therapy oil blend. Lavender or the rose blends are excellent. Patchouli is great for relieving stress. First put the oil near your cigarettes. Next put the oil near your lips, like you would if it was a cigarette, and inhale. Take a couple of deep breaths so you get the full effect of the oil's aroma. You will keep smelling that wonderful aroma for quite some time.
What you are doing is tricking your brain into forgetting the nicotine. This act of inhaling the oil's fragrance feels almost like smoking. Aroma-therapy is a substitute for smoking, and will allow you to escape nicotine. It is a form of psychological intervention. If you can resist the craving for even two minutes, it will pass and you will beat the habit.
You can also help yourself quit smoking by using programs specifically designed to help you on this journey. These are programs that use natural ways of helping you quit instead of adding more poisons to your body. Click here for one of the best stop smoking programs on the market. You won't regret it.

I can speak from experience when it comes to quitting smoking as I smoked for well over half my life. However I quit smoking, and I did it the first time I tried. There is absolutely no reason why you can't give up too. It's time for you to take that major step right now. To help you quit, sign up for the email course on How You Can Stop Smoking which has already helped countless people quit their smoking habit.

How Aroma Therapy Can Relax and Sooth a Headache

Aromatherapy is an alternate medicine branch that makes use of oils and their aromatic properties to heal the specific health challenges. This therapy is getting popular these days as it has negligible or no side-effects at all. The results of aromatherapy for headache treatment are found to be effective having a long-term effect.
Pains due to migraine or any other type of headache can be very tough to handle and bear at moments. Sometimes this pain renders a person's working abilities to worthless as that person becomes unable to discharge any task at all. Traditional treatments like allopathy are found least effective in such kind of headaches. Aromatherapy provides an effective and lasting solution for these headaches using some specific aromatic oils.
The basis understanding about the methodology of aromatherapy for headache is somewhat like this. The limbic center in the brain controls our emotions and certain behavior that are generally common to all human beings. Limbic center is responsible for generating the myriad of emotions like love, passion, hate, care, protection, sadness, happiness, etc. apart from some specific personal memories. Researchers and practitioners in this field believe that scent or aroma affects our health and mood to a great extent as the limbic center in the brain is connected to the olfactory center of the nose. The limbic center reacts to the various scents that pass through the olfactory in the nose. It is also believed that aromatherapy is able to affect our nervous system for good to increase our immunity. One thing that needs to be taken care of is doctor's advice particularly in case of asthma, pregnancy or any such sensitive case.
You can use aromatherapy for headache treatment in a number of ways like adding few drops to slightly warm water-bath or in diffuser by rubbing few drops to the temples. The impact of aromatherapy for headache treatment can vary person to person.
Certain aromatherapy oils are found to be more effective in aromatherapy for headache. Lavender's oil's pleasant scent has been used for generations for reducing stress and headache. It generally sets the mood on. Peppermint oil is also believed to be very effective in curing headache when rubbed over the forehead. A bad headache often leads to mental fatigue. Sandal-wood is found to be effective in treating this fatigue.
It is now time to say good bye to headaches.

How Aroma Therapy Essential Oils Work

Aromatherapy is the use of natural pure essential oils extracted from aromatic plants to promote a balanced healthy lifestyle. The oils are extracted from various flowers, herbs, fruits, leaves and resins normally via a process called steam distillation. Each natural essence has it's own special characteristics and unique aroma.
The art of aromatherapy can be traced back some 6000 years to the ancient civilisations of Egypt, Greece and Italy where essential oils were highly valued for their many uses.
It is said that the sense of smell is one of the most powerful senses that we possess with the average person being able to distinguish around ten thousand different scents.
When scents are inhaled, the aroma moves across the olfactory nerves inside the nose and then into an area of the brain called the Limbic system. This controls our memories, moods and learning ability and when stimulated, releases various feel good chemicals together with endorphins and neurotransmitters.
Vaporisation of essential oils can create different moods as well as giving your home a fresh aroma. Oil burners, aroma stone vaporisers or light bulb rings are ideal methods of vaporising essential oils.
Adding a few drops of essential oil to your bath is another delightful way to enjoy the benefits of aromatherapy. Depending on the choice of oils, you can create a relaxing or energizing bath or a bath that helps if you suffer from insomnia.
Massage is one of the most popular methods of using essential oils and helps absorption of the oils into the skin. It also maximises the healing power of the massage itself. By diluting a few drops of your favourite essential oil into carrier oil, a massage can have a powerful energising or calming effect, depending on the oil used.
While aromatherapy and essential oils do not cure any illness, they can be very effective at alleviating minor aches and joint pains, relieving the symptoms of menstrual cramps and relaxing muscles. They are also effective at lowering blood pressure, clearing congestion, relieving headache causing tension and improving sleep.
Aromatherapy and essential oils are a fantastic and natural alternative to other treatment options such as prescription medicines and caffeine. There are few side effects when used properly and any that do emerge are primarily down to a person's sensitivity to certain ingredients. Most people are normally aware of any ingredients that trigger allergic reactions or other type of sensitivity so they will avoid products containing those ingredients.
If you are new to the world of aromatherapy and essential oils, take a trip to your local health food store and experiment with the different scents. You will be certain to find a few that you love.

For more information on what you should know about Aroma Therapy and Natural Essential Oils visit Aromatherapy and Essential Oil Guide and find out some of the many ways that your sense of smell can benefit you.

Hair Loss - 5 Aromatherapies Tips On Reducing Hair Loss

Aromatherapy is a form of alternative medicine using aromatic plant extracts, known as essential oils. It is a treatment for the relief of minor pains, soothing of the skin, and revitalizing of the whole body. It can also do wonders for a person's mood as it promotes relaxation and eases tension, fatigue, and stress.
Aromatherapy is fast becoming popular with the proliferation of spas, salons, and organic cosmetic products. It is more known for its relaxing and skin improvement benefits, but it could also be used as a natural way of reducing hair loss. Some essential oils have been proven to stimulate hair growth. Others help stimulate the cells of your scalp and increase the flow of blood to your hair follicles, while others detoxify your scalp. Here are a few examples of essential oils that may help alleviate your hair loss problems:
1. Lavender and bay
Combine six drops of these two essential oils with four ounces of either soybean, almond, or sesame oil. Massage the mixture into your scalp. Let it sit for 20 minutes before washing it off with water. With the added benefit of helping you relax, these essential oils will stimulate your hair follicles. You can also add three drops of bay oil to a palmful of shampoo, and you can use this to wash your hair everyday.
2. Almond and castor
Combine equal parts of almond oil and castor oil and massage into your scalp once or twice a week.
3. Olive. Apply olive oil onto hair and scalp
Cover your head with a shower cap and let it sit overnight. Wash it off the following day. The moisturizing properties of olive oil will help keep your hair and scalp healthy.
4. Henna and mustard
Boil four tablespoons of henna leaves in 1 cup of mustard oil. Strain the mixture using a sieve and store it in a glass bottle. Massage the oil into your hair and scalp and leave it on for at least 30 minutes. It would be better, however, if it is left overnight before washing it off the following day.
5. Cedarwood, thyme, lavender, rosemary, jojoba, and grapeseed
Mix two drops of cedarwood and thyme oil, three drops of lavender and rosemary oil, half a teaspoon of jojoba oil, and four teaspoons of grapeseed oil. Apply the mixture to your scalp and massage well for two minutes nightly. Using a warm towel, wrap your head and leave it overnight. According to an article in Health Magazine's November-December 1999 issue, a study made by dermatologists of the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary in Scotland showed that among 43 people suffering from hair loss, 19 grew half of their hair back after using the said oil mixture daily for seven months. A small fraction, on the other hand, regrew almost all of their hair. Note, however, that rosemary oil should be avoided if you have high blood pressure. Moreover, grapeseed oil could cause minor irritations to those with sensitive skin.
Essential oils are very easy to procure and to apply, but it is very important that one be patient in waiting for the results when undergoing aromatherapy. It could take at least 3 to 6 months or even longer for hair to grow back and scalp health improvements to be noticed.

Darren is an online medical researcher and webmaster of Hair Loss Product Related topics: Type of Hair Loss and How To Find Your Perfect Hair Loss Treatment Products

Yoga for Focus

Yoga is a workout that has versatile applications and provides you with full control over your mind. It is a workout from India but now it has encompassed the whole world. Researchers have recognized the fact that no single workout can solve all the problems relating to human body and mind. You may gain physical strength by taking recourse to various combinations of low intensity or high intensity yoga exercises.
Yoga for Mind
Yoga, for focus of mind, is actually taken through various gazing exercises. You may fix your eyes at some distant point, idea, event, etc. It will lead you to a perfect concentration of mind. This meditation is necessary to enhance mental capabilities. It will also harmonize your body with mind and soul. Thus, you will be at a better position to tackle with day-to-day problems of the world.
Yoga for Focus While Sitting
The gazing exercises for focus may include staring at a nearer or distant thing when sitting on the floor. Your mind should be fixed at some object and the activities around must not overpower you for a certain interval of time. Focus, attained in this manner, will go a long way to provide you with mental perfection and the real purpose of your life will come to the forefront.
Yoga for Focus While Sporting
You may continue yoga exercises during sports, too. You may get these workouts, during other attainments, by just gazing and focusing your mind through eyes at the movement of the ball or any other thing. Consider the following sports activities and the focusing exercises happening simultaneously.
• During cycling, fix your gaze at a certain line, along the road, ahead of you. It will enable you to keep your balance and, at the same time, allow you to train your mind for the focus-exercises.
• While climbing, you may again set your mind at a certain line of route and forget the rest. The focus on this line will keep you stable while yoga for focus training will also continue.
• When watching a game like soccer, hockey, handball, badminton, tennis, cricket, etc you may concentrate on the movement of the ball when it moves from one hand to another. This will train your mind to attain certain capabilities.
• Swimming is also an activity which may train your mind for focus. You may concentrate and gaze at a line inside water where you are moving.
The yoga for focus exercise may be employed to get that mental attention which may not be attained by any other common workout plan. The body training, in this way, will bestow you with natural body strength and higher immunity. It is, perhaps, the only workout that relates to body, mind and soul of a person.

Author: Shahid Saleem Butt

Yoga For Weight Loss: Calorie-Burning Routines

With so many different yoga exercises available, it can be hard to know which poses are the best to do if you want to burn massive calories. Some poses will help you to stretch your muscles but will not help with intense calorie burning and weight loss. Before trying to perform high-energy routines, it is important to assess whether your body is ready for difficult yoga poses or if you need to do less-intense variations of the poses to start.
Regardless of your experience level with yoga, the Cobra Pose is a great pose for you to try if you want to burn a high number of calories. The Cobra Pose is accomplished by lying flat on the floor with your face looking toward the ground. The tops of your feet should be flush with the floor as well. You will then want to press your legs in a downward motion. You need to place your hands on the ground under your shoulders and slowly press the top half of your body up from the floor. You will then want to bring your head up slowly and keep your shoulder blades down when in this pose. After a few seconds, you will release the pose and return to the starting position. This pose can be done a few times in a row to help to strengthen the back, buttocks, and abdomen while burning calories at the same time.
The Bow Pose is another great yoga pose for shedding calories. This pose is a bit more taxing, so if you are a beginner, you may want to try a variation of the pose at first. To begin this pose, you need to lie on your belly with your knees bent while grabbing your feet. You will then need to pull in your abdomen and lift your feet toward the sky. While raising your feet, you will also want to raise your upper body from the ground. Your shoulder blades need to remain lowered at all times. After you hold this pose for a few seconds, you then return to the starting position. This pose will help advanced yoga students to burn a lot of calories. Beginners can try to get into the pose without stretching the legs or upper body in an upward motion toward the sky. This position can be done a few times in a row, but as with any yoga pose, it is important to start moderately and pace yourself so that you do not cause injury to your muscles.

Performing yoga for weight loss is a viable option for people who regularly perform high-impact poses. Although yoga for beginners typically involves low-impact poses, students can quickly build their strength and endurance.

Yoga Techniques for Headaches

Since most headaches are caused by tension, which is often caused by stress, Yoga should be at the top of the list of headache relief and prevention strategies. Most people carry their tension in the back, shoulders and neck, and this can create a contraction of muscles around the neck and jaw as well as reduced blood flow to the brain. The result is often a tension headache.
Those who experience frequent or debilitating tension headaches may have have poor posture that includes a rounded upper back and a neck that holds the head forward of the neck and shoulders. There are a variety of Yoga techniques designed to address this problem by opening the chest, stretching the neck, and extending the spine. These Yoga techniques, when practiced regularly, have a two-fold effect. First, they make practitioners more aware of their body, and thus, their posture will improve.
The second effect is accomplished by stretching these muscles into correct posture on a regular basis, Yoga practitioners can improve their neck and back alignment and increase blood flow to the brain. Since both of these effects influence neck and spinal tension, a consistent Yoga practice can serve to both relieve tension headaches and prevent their return.
Targeted Yoga Poses to Relieve Headaches
As with all Yoga poses, practitioners targeting headache relief should focus on breathing deeply and slowly and keep the muscles in the jaw, mouth, and tongue relaxed.

1. Child's Pose rests the upper back and releases the neck of its responsibility to hold the head upright.
2. Downward Dog increases blood circulation to the brain while using the weight of the head to stretch the neck and upper back.
3. Supported Forward Bend releases the neck and stretches its muscles.
4. Half Forward Bend helps to stretch the lower back, a relatively difficult region to address.
5. Corpse Pose is designed to ensure that Yoga practitioners relax completely, holding no muscles tight or tense.

Targeted Yoga Poses to Prevent Headaches
Practitioners should realize that a consistent Yoga practice can help prevent headaches, and frequent headache sufferers should consider targeting some of their regular Yoga routine toward headache prevention.

1. Bridge Pose helps to open up the chest and can work toward re-training muscles that influence poor posture.
2. Garudasana arms can help stretch the area between the shoulder blades, where tension frequently comes to rest.
3. Gomukhasana arms stretches the shoulders, and it can also correct the rounded upper back and forward-leaning neck that contributes to tension headaches.
4. Simple Seated Twist will stretch the neck muscles and relieve strained muscles in the back.

© Copyright 2012 - Aura Wellness Center - Publications Division

Beginners Yoga

Yoga is designed to ease tension in muscles, while at the same time honing the strength in those muscles. Yoga also helps to improve the flexibility of the body's joints and ligaments. Each pose is performed slowly and with fluidity. There are hundreds of different postures in yoga, but yoga for beginners keeps things much more simplified. Anyone can practice yoga because the postures range from the basic to the complex. No matter what your age, fitness or skill level, yoga can provide an invigorating workout.
Yoga has many benefits from the preventative to the theraputic affecting both the physical and the mental states of the body. Practicing yoga one will see improved flexibility, increased strength and muscle tone, improved posture and easing of bodily pains such as back aches, knee pain and others. It has also been proven to improve heart conditions, boost immune response, decrease cholesterol and encourage weight loss.
Some of the basic yoga poses include the corpse pose (savasana), easy pose (sukhasana), sun salutation (surya namaskar), bridge pose (setu bandhasana), seated forward bend (paschimothanasana), cobra pose (bhujangasana), triangle pose (trikonasana), and crane pose (bakasana). Each pose or posture can be known by it's English or Hindi name. The seven primary types of movements that your body can make through Yoga exercise are flexion, extension, hyperextension, abduction, adduction, rotation, and circumduction.
A beginners yoga session usually follows this order:
Warm-up Exercises - conditions your body for safe transition into asana practice. For beginners, you may just use the warm-up poses as your entire practice. Warm-up exercises open the shoulder muscles, the spine, the hips, the lower back, and the groin.
Standing Poses - for alignment of the feet and the body. Opens the hips, stretches the legs, add strength to your back and increases your range of movement. Standing poses facilitates digestion, blood circulation and is good for those who want to lose weight.
Sitting Poses - sitting poses allows you to infuse with the breath and prana, and to revitalize from a pose by giving you a calm and quiet feeling. These poses greatly contribute in shaping your buttocks and legs, and in adding vitality and suppleness to the spine.
Twists - twist exercises releases the tension in your spines, relieves backaches and makes your shoulders more flexible. It also facilitates in the circulation of blood and nutrients in the body making it necessary for the health of the inter-vertebral discs.
Supine and Prone Poses - these poses releases tension in your abdomen and increase the mobility of your spine. It restores strength in your back, arms and legs, and releases your hips and groins.
Inverted and Balance Poses - inverted and balance poses defies gravity and develops coordination, increase stamina and strength, and improves grace, agility and poise. It also improves you concentration and focus since being quiet is necessary to be able to do these poses.
Backbends - backbends are the poses that benefit the adrenal glands and the kidney. It also releases tension in the front body and in your shoulders and pelvic girdle, and improves the flexibility of your spine.
Finishing Poses - these are the cooling-down exercises for Yoga.
Many people think that they need to be flexible or strong in order to begin practicing yoga. But beginners to yoga will be happy to find out that it can easily be scaled to your skill level and body type. Yoga will help you improve your flexibility and strength, so there is no need to have it from the beginning. What is yoga? It is an individual experience that I encourage you to try. Your body and your mind will thank you.

Yoga Postures for Depression

A person, suffering with depression, might feel hopeless, sad, anxious, and irritated on a regular basis. There are many forms of therapy for depression, and seeking professional counseling (psychotherapy) is a wise step forward. Support groups, social support, lifestyle changes, and many prescription medications are available to help people cope with depression. Sadly, there are cases when the side effects of prescriptions can be difficult to bear. Medication can be a viable solution or it can become a short-term answer for symptoms.
Anyone who has been in a depressed state of mind, wants a permanent remedy. Depression recovery takes time. Many people, with depression, have turned to Yoga, exercise, and other holistic alternatives to help relieve the symptoms. Yoga has been proven as a gentle, effective way to eliminate many of the symptoms of depression.
Yoga provides a way to connect with one's deeper self. It allows participants to go beyond the day-to-day feelings and attitudes about life, and focus on a greater purpose. Through meditation, reflection, proper breathing, stretching, and strengthening, depressed people can begin to connect with an inner sense of peace and calm. Although any Yoga practice can bring about that inner confidence and calm, there are specific poses that will nurture it further.
Child's Pose
As the name implies, this pose can bring great comfort and security. As students curl up, almost to a fetal position, and rest their foreheads on the floor, the pose grounds the body and brings contented feelings.
Forward Bend
This pose causes much of the blood from the upper body to flow downward, encouraging contemplative thoughts. As students release the pose and bring fresh blood supply back down the body, they often feel renewed and energized.
Legs up the Wall
Legs up the Wall pose brings the blood flow from the toes and legs down toward the center of the body, giving a grounded feeling. It brings students back to the present moment, allowing one to release the past and the future, and revel in the now. Those suffering from anxiety can begin to understand the importance of releasing the anxiety to focus on a calm presence. As the pose is reversed, the circulation to the legs is renewed.
Cat and Cow Pose
This stretch forces students to focus on deep breathing with each movement. It helps students learn to breathe deliberately, which helps release feelings of anxiety, doubt, or restlessness.
Camel and Bridge
The family of back bending postures opens up the entire chest and heart area of the body. Figuratively, an open heart will welcome new, positive experiences and release old, negative energy. By performing the pose physically, it helps depressed students release negative emotions that may have been held in the heart for a long time.
© Copyright 2012 - Aura Wellness Center - Publications Division

Pranayam and there types

Acupressure For Eyes - Baba Ramdev - English

Lord Shiva and Meditation

Shiva ( /ˈʃɪvə/; Sanskrit: शिव Śiva, meaning "auspicious one") is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power, he lives a life of a sage at Mount Kailash.^[2] In the Shaiva tradition of Hinduism, Shiva is seen as the Supreme God and has five important works: creator, preserver, destroyer, concealer, and revealer (to bless). In the Smarta tradition, he is regarded as one of the five primary forms of God.^[3] Followers of Hinduism who focus their worship upon Shiva are called Shaivites or Shaivas (Sanskrit Śaiva).^[4]Shaivism, along with Vaiṣṇava traditions that focus on Vishnu and Śākta traditions that focus on the goddess Shakti, is one of the most influential denominations in Hinduism.^[3]

Lord Shiva is usually worshipped in the abstract form of Shiva linga. In images, He is represented as a handsome^[5] young man^[6] immersed in deep meditation or dancing the Tandava upon Apasmara, the demon of ignorance in his manifestation ofNataraja, the Lord of the dance, goodness, humility, and every good quality a human should have. It is said that He looks like an eternal youth because of his authority over death, rebirth and immortality. He is also the father of Ganesha, Murugan(Kartikeya), and Ayyappan (Dharma Sastha).

Etymology and other names

The Sanskrit word Shiva (Devanagari: शिव, śiva) is an adjective meaning "auspicious, kind, gracious".^[7][8] As a proper name it means "The Auspicious One", used as a name for Rudra.^[8] In simple English transliteration it is written either as Shiva or Siva. The adjective śiva, meaning "auspicious", is used as an attributive epithet not particularly of Rudra, but of several other Vedic deities.^[9]

The Sanskrit word śaiva means "relating to the god Shiva", and this term is the Sanskrit name both for one of the principal sects of Hinduism and for a member of that sect.^[10] It is used as an adjective to characterize certain beliefs and practices, such asShaivism.^[11]

Adi Sankara, in his interpretation of the name Shiva, the 27th and 600th name of Vishnu sahasranama, the thousand names of Vishnu interprets Shiva to have multiple meanings: "The Pure One", or "the One who is not affected by three Gunas of Prakrti(Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas)" or "the One who purifies everyone by the very utterance of His name."^[12] Swami Chinmayananda, in his translation of Vishnu sahasranama, further elaborates on that verse: Shiva means "the One who is eternally pure" or "the One who can never have any contamination of the imperfection of Rajas and Tamas".^[13] Shiva is considered as the Hindu God who has no Aadi or Anta i.e. no birth/death.

Shiva's role as the primary deity of Shaivism is reflected in his epithets Mahādeva ("Great God"; mahā = Great + deva = God),^[14][15] Maheśhvara ("Great Lord"; mahā = Great + īśhvara = Lord),^[16][17] and Parameśhvara ("Supreme Lord").^[18]

There are at least eight different versions of the Shiva Sahasranama, devotional hymns (stotras) listing many names of Shiva.^[19] The version appearing in Book 13 (Anuśāsanaparvan) of the Mahabharata is considered the kernel of this tradition.^[20] Shiva also has Dasha-Sahasranamas (10,000 names) that are found in the Mahanyasa. The Shri Rudram Chamakam, also known as the Śatarudriya, is a devotional hymn to Shiva hailing him by many names.^[21][22]

Attributes

• Shiva's form: Shiva has a Trident in the right lower arm, with a crescent moon on his head. He is said to be fair like camphor or like an ice clad mountain. He has fire and Damaru and Mala or a kind of weapon. He wears five serpents as ornaments. He wears a garland of skulls. He is pressing with his feet the demon Muyalaka, a dwarf holding a cobra. He faces south. Panchakshara itself is his body. It is believed that Shiva became a god through meditating everyday (smoking charas and ganja non stop for thousands and thousands of years). Even though Shiva is depicted as a man, Shiva has both male and female reproductive organs which technically make him/her hermaphrodite.

• Third eye: Shiva is often depicted with a third eye, with which he burned Desire (Kāma) to ashes,^[65] called "Tryambakam" (Sanskrit: त्र्यम्बकम्), which occurs in many scriptural sources.^[66] In classical Sanskrit, the word ambaka denotes "an eye", and in the Mahabharata, Shiva is depicted as three-eyed, so this name is sometimes translated as "having three eyes".^[67] However, in Vedic Sanskrit, the word ambā or ambikā means "mother", and this early meaning of the word is the basis for the translation "three mothers".^[68][69] These three mother-goddesses who are collectively called the Ambikās.^[70] Other related translations have been based on the idea that the name actually refers to the oblations given to Rudra, which according to some traditions were shared with the goddess Ambikā.^[71]

• Crescent moon: Shiva bears on his head the crescent moon.^[72] The epithet Chandraśekhara (Sanskrit: चन्द्रशेखर "Having the moon as his crest" - chandra = "moon"; śekhara = "crest, crown")^[73][74][75] refers to this feature. The placement of the moon on his head as a standard iconographic feature dates to the period when Rudra rose to prominence and became the major deity Rudra-Shiva.^[76] The origin of this linkage may be due to the identification of the moon with Soma, and there is a hymn in the Rig Veda where Soma and Rudra are jointly implored, and in later literature, Soma and Rudra came to be identified with one another, as were Soma and the moon.^[77] The crescent moon is shown on the side of the Lord's head as an ornament. The waxing and waning phenomenon of the moon symbolizes the time cycle through which creation evolves from the beginning to the end. Since the Lord is the Eternal Reality, He is beyond time. Thus, the crescent moon is only one of His ornaments. The wearing of the crescent moon in his head indicates that He has controlled the mind perfectly.

• Ashes: Shiva smears his body with ashes (bhasma).^[78] Some forms of Shiva, such as Bhairava, are associated with a very old Indian tradition of cremation-ground asceticism that was practiced by some groups who were outside the fold of brahmanic orthodoxy.^[79] These practices associated with cremation grounds are also mentioned in the Pali canon of Theravada Buddhism.^[80] One epithet for Shiva is "inhabitant of the cremation ground" (Sanskrit: śmaśānavāsin, also spelled Shmashanavasin), referring to this connection.^[81]

• Matted hair: Shiva's distinctive hair style is noted in the epithets Jaṭin, "the one with matted hair",^[82] and Kapardin, "endowed with matted hair"^[83] or "wearing his hair wound in a braid in a shell-like (kaparda) fashion".^[84] A kaparda is a cowrie shell, or a braid of hair in the form of a shell, or, more generally, hair that is shaggy or curly.^[85] His hair is said to be like molten gold in color or being yellowish-white.

• Blue throat: The epithet Nīlakaṇtha (Sanskrit नीलकण्ठ; nīla = "blue", kaṇtha = "throat")^[86][87] refers to a story in which Shiva drank the poison churned up from the world ocean.^[88][89] (See Halāhala.)
• • Sacred Ganges: The Ganges river flows from the matted hair of Shiva. The epithet Gaṅgādhara ("bearer of the river Gaṅgā") refers to this feature.^[90][91] The Gaṅgā (Ganges), one of the major rivers of the country, is said to have made her abode in Shiva's hair.^[92] The flow of the Ganges also represents the nectar of immortality.
  • Tiger skin: He is often shown seated upon a tiger skin,^[78] an honour reserved for the most accomplished of Hindu ascetics, the Brahmarishis.^[93] Tiger represents lust. His sitting on the tiger’s skin indicates that He has conquered lust.
  • Serpents: Shiva is often shown garlanded with a snake.^[94] His wearing of serpents on the neck denotes wisdom and eternity.
  • Deer:His holding deer on one hand indicates that He has removed the Chanchalata (tossing) of the mind. Deer jumps from one place to another swiftly. The mind also jumps from one object to another.
  • Trident: (Sanskrit: Trishula): Shiva's particular weapon is the trident.^[78] His Trisul that is held in His right hand represents the three Gunas—Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. That is the emblem of sovereignty. He rules the world through these three Gunas. The Damaru in His left hand represents the Sabda Brahman. It represents OM from which all languages are formed. It is He who formed the Sanskrit language out of the Damaru sound.
  • Drum: A small drum shaped like an hourglass is known as a damaru (Sanskrit: ḍamaru).^[95][96] This is one of the attributes of Shiva in his famous dancing representation^[97] known as Nataraja. A specific hand gesture (mudra) called ḍamaru-hasta(Sanskrit for "ḍamaru-hand") is used to hold the drum.^[98] This drum is particularly used as an emblem by members of the Kāpālika sect.^[99]
  • Nandī: Nandī, also known as Nandin, is the name of the bull that serves as Shiva's mount (Sanskrit: vāhana).^[100][101] Shiva's association with cattle is reflected in his name Paśupati, or Pashupati (Sanskrit: पशुपति), translated by Sharma as "lord of cattle"^[102] and by Kramrisch as "lord of animals", who notes that it is particularly used as an epithet of Rudra.^[103] Rishabha or the bull represents Dharma Devata. Lord Siva rides on the bull. Bull is his vehicle. This denotes that Lord Siva is the protector of Dharma, is an embodiment of Dharma or righteousness.
  • Gaṇa: The Gaṇas (Devanagari: गण) are attendants of Shiva and live in Kailash. They are often referred to as the bhutaganas, or ghostly hosts, on account of their nature. Generally benign, except when their lord is transgressed against, they are often invoked to intercede with the lord on behalf of the devotee. Ganesha was chosen as their leader by Shiva, hence Ganesha's title gaṇa-īśa or gaṇa-pati, "lord of the gaṇas".^[104]
  • Mount Kailāsa: Mount Kailash in the Himalayas is his traditional abode.^[78] In Hindu mythology, Mount Kailāsa is conceived as resembling a Linga, representing the center of the universe.^[105]
  • Varanasi: Varanasi (Benares) is considered as the city specially loved by Shiva, and is one of the holiest places of pilgrimage in India. It is referred to, in religious contexts, as Kashi.^[106]