Long ago, when the gods and others churned the great ocean to find its treasures, a terrible poison rose up first — dark and burning, enough to harm the whole world.
No one knew what to do. Then Shiva stepped forward, gathered the poison, and drank it to save everyone, holding it in his throat so it could go no further.
The poison turned his throat a deep blue, and ever since he has been lovingly called Nilakantha, the Blue-Throated One — the one who took the world's pain upon himself.