There are countless myths about Shiva. One famous one tells of the origin of the sacred river Ganga, the Ganges. A certain king wanted the heavenly Ganga to come down to earth to purify the ashes of his dead warrior sons. Eventually a sage went to the Himalayas and convinced the river to come down, but in order to prevent the powerful force of the river from destroying the world, the sage convinced Shiva to allow the water to be diverted through his hair. When Ganga did so, the three great rivers were formed that make up the present Ganges.