The Legend of Shiva
Lord Shiva has always been accorded the highest reverence in the pantheon of Gods in Hindu religion. He is been worshiped since ages in the form of a deity image or a linga. Rarely will you find a town, village or hamlet in India not blessed by the divine presence of his Shivalinga. The literary meaning of Shivalinga is Shiva (benefit, blessings) Linga (symbol, aspect).

The love and devotion towards Lord Shiva is so widespread that it's not just the Gods but also the demons who worship Him with total dedication. Ravana who was a bitter enemy of Lord Rama is known to be a Lord Shiva devotee. Part of this widespread devotion can also be attributed to the fact that Lord Shiva is regarded as a Lord who smiles easily on His worshippers. Stories abound in the Puranas of how easily He blesses anyone who venerates Him - be it an accomplished yogi or a petty criminal.

No wonder there are references of Shivalinga worship across the world. In the Indian subcontinent too, Lord Shiva is famous under various names - Amarnath in Kashmir, Somnath in Gujarat, Vishwanath in Varanasi, Mahakaaleshwar in Ujjain, Pashupatinath in Nepal etc.

The Legend of Parad (Mercury)
In the continuing war between the Gods and demons, the Gods had to continuously suffer defeats from the might of the Rakshasas (demons). Unable to cope up, the Gods lead by Indra approached Lord Brahma in an attempt to find a lasting solution. Lord Brahma answered that only a warrior conceived out of Shaktipunj (the semen of Lord Shiva) can lead the Gods to victory. The Gods requested Lord Shiva who then advanced towards Goddess Parvati to father a son. Out of curiosity, the Gods sent Agnideva (the God of fire) in the form of a pigeon to spy. Lord Shiva, having found this, released His semen in the fire of Agnideva, who couldn't endure the heat of this marvel and released it in the cool waters of river Ganges. However, Mother Ganges too couldn't stand the heat and threw it back on Earth. Thus, the semen of Lord Shiva having passed through the holy fire and sacred waters became Mercury or Para, which happens to be the only metal in liquid form. The solid form of mercury is popularly known as Parad.

Solidifying mercury itself is an ancient vedic science. 'Dharnidhar Samhita' lists out sixteen different steps through which the liquid mercury has to pass to enable it to become pure and beneficial. After undergoing these sixteen steps, mercury is ready to be moulded into any form.

Vedic references point to a highly rewarding worship precedent of Shivaling made out of solid mercury and the base (vedi) in the form of solid sulphur; solid sulphur being the essence of Goddess Parvati.

Vedic references of Mercury (Parad)
A number of vedic references point out to the holistic benefits of Parad Shivalinga. 'Shivnirnaya ratnakara' states that there's no better Shivalinga ever made than the one made out of mercury. In 'Sarvadarshana Sangraha', Lord Shiva says to Goddess Parvati that anyone who worships the Linga made out of solid mercury will face no death, disease or dearth. Its mentioned in 'Rudrasamhita' that Parad Shivalinga embodies the power of Lord Shiva and one can attain anything desired through its worship.

'Rasarnaavtantra' states that one can receive a billion-times more good blessings through the worship of a Parad Shivalinga than that one can receive through worship of a billion ordinary stone Shivalingas. 'Rasratnakar' says worship of a Parad Shivalinga showers one oneself a happy long-life, wealth, health, power, beauty and youth. 'Rasratnakara' also mentions that whatever a devotee spends on acquiring a Parad Shivalinga, Lord Shiva blesses him a lot more in terms of wealth, grain and peace. 'Shivnirnaya ratnakara' says that a gold Shivalinga is billion times more powerful than a ordinary stone one, a gem Shivalinga is billion times more potent than a gold one, but a Parad Shivalinga is billion times more effective than a gem one and can bestow immense benefits to its worshipper even through a simple darshan (sight).

Maharishi Vashist suggests a Parad Shivalinga for attainment of peace and harmony to anyone who's sinned in his entire life. Maharishi Yadnyavalkaya says that one can't understand why man is full of sorrow, violence and poverty, when one can achieve peace and harmony though the worship of Parad Shivalinga.

Indeed Parad Shivalinga is considered so powerful and live, that a worshipper is supposed to receive Lord Shiva's blessings directly by just seeing, remembering, touching, eating, gifting and revering it. Naturally, one need not always make an elaborate pooja before installing it in your home, office, factory, car etc. Just fold your hands with faith and the experience the eternal blessings of Lord Shiva.

Test of true Parad Shivalinga
A real Parad Shivalinga looks more or less like silver. Depending on the moisture and pollution in the surrounding air, it can turn slightly black on the surface. It can be easily cleaned though by washing it with lime juice.

There are cheap artificial variants of Shivalinga available in the market, which are made out of lead and a little mercury solution. These Shivalingas turn black immediately. Besides, one of the test of differentiation between a lead-based Shivalinga and a Parad Shivalinga is the drop test. If you drop a Parad Shivalinga from 2 - 3 feet on a hard floor, it will crack up, while a lead Shivalinga will withstand the shock and not crack at all.

A true Parad Shivalinga is the one where the Linga is handmade by solidifying mercury and the base is made of Sulphur.