Short answers, pulled from the story.
Rudra was a storm god in the ancient Rigveda who was feared for his howling winds and deadly arrows yet also served as the source of healing rain. This figure represents the early form of the deity now known as Shiva, combining elements of destruction and healing.
The evolution of Rudra into Rudra-Shiva occurred in the Shvetashvatara Upanishad, which was written between the 400th and 200th centuries BCE. This text equated Rudra-Shiva with Brahman, the ultimate reality, and established the theological foundation for the worship of Shiva as the Supreme Being.
Shiva is called Neelakanta because he drank the deadly poison Halahala during the churning of the cosmic ocean to save the universe. The poison turned his throat blue, and his consort Parvati squeezed his neck to prevent the poison from spreading further, trapping it within his throat.
The temple of Chidambaram is located in Tamil Nadu in South India and is considered the center of the universe where the cosmic dance is performed eternally. This site is particularly significant for the Nataraja form of Shiva, where the Chola dynasty produced exquisite bronze statues depicting the Lord of Dance.
The oldest known archaeological lingam dates back to the 3rd century BCE and was found at Gudimallam. This vertical rounded column is often placed within a lipped, disk-shaped object called the yoni to symbolize the creative and regenerative divine energy of the universe.
Shiva influenced the development of yoga and classical dance in Southeast Asia through Shiva-related Tantra literature composed between the 8th and 11th centuries. In Indonesia, he is known as Batara Guru and his worship inspired the development of Indian classical dance, Hatha Yoga, and the theoretical ideas of Kashmir Shaivism.