Lord Shiva is also known as Mahadev Shivshankar in Dhayna Mudra with his vahana Nandi (Bull) which are made in Parad (mercury) metal, Get on this Mahashivratri for worship.
Shiva means, graciousness; auspiciousness; Mangalam. He is all graciousness, ever auspicious, Sarva Mangalam. That is the reason why the epithet, Sri, which indicates these qualities, is not added to the name Siva, Sankara, lsvara etc. It is added to the number of Avatars, for they have taken on perishable bodies for a specific purpose. They have to be distinguished from other humans, by the epithet, Shiva is eternally gracious, auspicious, mangala and so the epithet is superfluous. Shiva is adored as the teacher of teachers, Dakshinamurti. The form of Shiva is itself a great lesson in tolerance and forbearance.
As per the Brahma Purana, any person, male or female and belonging to any "Varna"- Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya or Shudra, who worships Parad idols daily is blessed with worldly pleasures and lastly achieve supreme salvation (Moksha). The Parad Idol gives to worshiper a life full of beauty, honor, fame, happiness, knowledge, and wisdom.
As per the Vedas, there is nothing more pure, pious and auspicious in Kaliyug than Parad. Parad is also found effective in controlling various diseases like High Blood Pressure, Asthma. Parad has special significance in Ayurveda too. Many ayurvedic medicine use parad as the chief ingredient for giving energy.
Dimensions:
Idol: 2.25 inches (H) x 1.5 inches (W) x 0.75 inch (thickness) (3.2 x 3.8 x 2 cm) approx
Nandi: 0.75 inch (H) x 0.4 inch (W) x 1 inch (L) (2 x 1.1 x 2.5 cm) approx
Total Weight: 197 grams approx