The three horizontal stripes of ash on the forehead of Lord Shankar represent these three memories. Ash projects the desires of a person. This shows how harmful desires are. The dhananjay vital energy of every dead being made up of the absolute earth element (pruthvi) surrounds the ash. (The universe has the mahadhananjay vital energy.) When a person is reborn this dhananjay vital energy re-enters the body. The frequencies emitted by ash are mostly a result of a painful death. The ash says, Let go of ignorance. The physical body is not real. The happiness derived from it is fake. Do not get trapped in it. Human ash is applied to a jyotirlinga. Pure ash is called holy ash (bhasma). Just as holy ash is an essential ingredient in ritualistic worship so also it plays a very important role in the Shaiva sect. It is considered as the semen of Lord Shiva. Special significance is given to the holy ash from the fireplace (agnikunda) of the Brahmans who perform the ritual of Agnihotra. The ash o ...more