The drum that gave language
Fourteen beats of Shiva's drum after his dance become the fourteen Maheshvara Sutras of Sanskrit grammar.


The damaru is the small hourglass-shaped drum of Shiva, held in Nataraja's upper right hand. Its sound stands for the rhythm of creation, and tradition holds that its fourteen beats gave rise to the Maheshvara Sutras, the basis of Sanskrit grammar.
The texts tell different stories.
Fourteen beats of Shiva's drum after his dance become the fourteen Maheshvara Sutras of Sanskrit grammar.
In Nataraja images the drum in the upper right hand stands for creation, opposite the fire of dissolution.