hindi shivpuran

5/22/2018 Hindi Shivpuran

1/40

Shiva Purana

The Shiva Purana has twenty-four thousand shlokas. These are divided into sixsamhitas or sections. The names of the sectiosn are jnana samhita, vidyeshvara

samhit, kailasa samhita, sanatkumar samhita, vayaviya samhita and dharma samhit.Each samhita is further subdivided into chapters adhyaya!. "nana samhita has

seventy-ei#ht chapters, vidyeshvara samhita sixteen, kailasa samhita twelve,sanathkumar samhila fifty-nine, vayaviya samhita thirty and dharma samhita sixty-

five.

The Shiva Purana was recited by $edavyasa%s disciple &omaharshana, alternatively,'oma-harshana.

Romaharshana and The Other Sages

There were many sa#es who lived in a forest named naimisharanya. (ne day, these

sa#es accosted &omaharshana and said, &omaharshana, you are blessed. )ou havetau#ht us a lot, but we are still not satisfied. )ou have had the fortune of studyin#

under $edavyasa and there is nothin# that you do not know, past, present or future.Tell us about Shiva, we do not know very much about Shiva.

&omaharshana replied, * will relate to you that which you want to know. +nd * am not#oin# to make anythin# up. any years a#o, the sa#e arada had wanted to find out

about Shiva from his father, rahma. /hatever rahma had instructed his son. * am#oin# to relate to you.

Brahma

+t the be#innin# of creation, there was nothin# in the universe. The universe was notthere either. *t was only the brahman divine essence! which was everywhere. The

brahman was neither hot nor cold, neither thick or thin. *t had no be#innin# and no

end.There was water everywhere. 'ord $ishnu manifested himself in his #reat form and

slept on the water. /hile $ishnu was sleepin#, a lotus flower padma! sprouted fromhis navel. *t had many petals and its stem shone like a thousand suns. 0rom the cells

of the lotus rahma was born. 1e be#an to wonder, There seems to be nothin# aroundexcept for this lotus. /ho am *2 /here did * come from2 /hat am * supposed to do2

/hose son am * 2 /ho made me2rahma thou#ht he mi#ht find the answers to these 3uestions if he explored the lotus

a bit. Perhaps he ou#ht to try and find the centre of the lotus. rahma descendeddown the stem of the lotus and wandered around for a hundred years. ut he could

not find the flower%s centre. 1e then decided that he mi#ht as well #o back to the cellfrom where he had been born. ut despite wanderin# around the stem for another

hundred years, rahma could not find the cell. y then he was so tired that he #ave up

and rested.Suddenly he heard the words, rahma, perform tapasya meditation!.rahma meditated for twelve years. /hen the twelve years were over, the four-armed

$ishnu appeared before rahma. *n the four hands $ishnu held a shankha conchshell!, a chakra a bladed discus!, a #ada mace! and a padma. rahma didn%t know

who this person was and he asked, /ho are you2$ishnu didn%t directly answer the 3uestion. *nstead, he replied, Son, the #reat 'ord

$ishnu has created you./ho are you to call me a son2 demanded rahma.


2/40

4an%t you reco#ni5e me2 came the reply. * am $ishnu. *t is from my body that youhave been created.

ut rahma was not convinced. 1e be#an to fi#ht with $ishnu.

The Linga

/hile they were thus en#a#ed in fi#htin#, a shinin# lin#a Shiva%s ima#e! arrived onthe scene. *t seemed to have no be#innin# or end.

$ishnu said, rahma, let us stop fi#htin#. There is a third bein# here now. /hat onearth is this lin#a2 +nd where did it come from2 'et us try and find out what this is.

)ou adopt the form of a swan hamsa! and #o up. * shall adopt the form of boarvaraha! and #o down. 'et us try and find the extremities of this lin#a.

rahma a#reed. 1e became a whilte swan and flew up. $ishnu became a white boarand went down. They looked for four thousand years, but could not find the end of the

lin#a. So they returned to where they had started off from and be#an to pray. Theyprayed for a hundred years. +fter the hundred years were over, the sound of om was

heard and a bein# with five faces and ten arms appeared before them. This wasahadeva or Shiva.

$ishnu said, *t is #ood that rahma and * have been fi#htin#. *t is because of our fi#htthat you arrived.

Shiva replied, /e are all three parts of the same entity and have been divided intothree. rahma is the creator. $ishnu is the preserver and * am the destroyer. There is

another bein# named &udra who will be born form my body, but &udra and * are reallyone and the same. 'et rahma create now.

Shiva disappeared and rahma and $ishnu #ave up their forms of a swan and a boar.

Creation

There was water everywhere. *n the water, $ishnu created a hu#e e## anda!. 1e thenhimself entered the e## in his hu#e form.

eanwhile, rahma started to pray. 0rom the powers of his meditation he createdseveral sa#es rishis!. 6ardama, 7aksha and arichi were amon# them. arichi%s son

was 6ashyapa. 7aksha had sixty dau#hters and thirteen of them were married to6ashyapa. The children of 6ashyapa and these dau#hters became adityas #ods!,

daityas demons!, danavas demons!, trees, birds, snakes, mountains and creepers.Thus was the world populated.

+ bein# named &udra, who was none other than Shiva himself, was also born fromrahma. &udra lived on ount 6ailasa. 7aksha%s dau#hter Sati was married to &udra.

ut 7aksha and &udra did not like each other. 7aksha arran#ed a yajna sacrifice! andhe did not invite &udra to attend this sacrifice. +lthou#h Sati was not invited either,

she went to attend the ceremony . ut 7aksha insulted her so much that Sati #ave upher life in protest. This so an#ered &udra that he sent his companions to destroy the

sacrifice, disrupt the ceremony, and kill all the #ods who had #one to attend it. This

was done. ut &udra was subse3uently pacified and brou#ht the dead #ods back tolife. The sacrifice was completed. Sati herself was reborn as the dau#hter of themountain 1imalaya and his wife enaka. She was known as Parvati and she was a#ain

married to &udra or Shiva.

Tarakasura

There was an asura demon! named Tara. Tara%s son was Taraka.


3/40

Taraka wished to defeat the #ods. 1e therefore went to a place named adhuvana andbe#an to perform very difficult tapasya. 1e #a5ed at the sun and stood there with his

arms raised. 1e stood on one le# and that too, only on the toes of his feet. + hundredyears passed. 0or those hundred years, Taraka drank only water and had no food to

eat. 0or the next hundreds, he #ave up that also and lived only on air. + hundredyears were spent in performin# tapasya inside water, another hundred years on earth

and a hundred years more inside fire. 0or a hundred years he performed tapasyaupside down, standin# on his hands. +nd for yet another hundred years, he hun#upside down from the branches of a tree.

The meditation was so difficult that rahma was pleased. 1e appeared before

Tarakasura and said, * am pleased with your tapasya. /hat boon do you want2*f you are pleased, replied Tarakasura, #rant me two boons. The first boon should be

that no one created by you should be as stron# as me. The second boon should bethat * should be killed only by Shiva%s son.

Shiva at that point of time had no sons. Sati had died and althou#h she had beenreborn as Parvati, she had not been married to Shiva.

rahma #ranted Tarakasura the two boons. The demon went to a city namedShonitapura and be#an to live there. +ll the other demons made Tarakasura their kin#.

Thanks to the boon. Tarakasura was so stron# tha the easily defeated the #ods. 1econ3uered the three worlds and drove the #ods out of heaven. 1e stole all their

belon#in#s and employed the #ods as his servants.The despondent #ods went to rahma and asked him to find a solution to the

Tarakasura problem.* can%t, said rahma. *t is because of my boon that the demon has become so

powerful. esides, my boon says that Tarakasura can only be killed by Shiva%s son.Shiva has #ot to have a son. 1e is now performin# tapasya in the 1imalaya mountains.

Parvati is also in that re#ion. 7o somethin# so that these two fall in love with eachother and marry.

The Burning of the God of Love

The #ods decided to follow rahma%s advice. ut how could it be ensured that Shivaand Parvati fell in love with each other2 The kin# of the #ods was *ndra and the #od oflove was 6andarpa or adana.

*ndra summoned 6andarpa. )ou have to help us, said *ndra. There is no other wayout. Shiva is performin# tapasya in the 1imalayas. Parvati is also in the re#ion. ake

sure that the two fall in love. That is your job.6andarpa went to the place where Shiva was meditatin#. +nd as soon as the #od of

love appeared, the place took on the traits of a sprin# which was pernnial. 0lowersbloomed and bees bu55ed amon# the flowes. 4uckoos san# and fra#ant bree5es

started to waft throu#ht the forest. Shiva tried to concentrate on his meditation. uthe kept #ettin# distracted.

/hile all this was #oin# on, who should arrive there but Parvati2 She was so beautiful

that Shiva was smitten with love for her. Parvati also seemed to like Shiva.ut life is never simple. Shiva was, after all, Shiva. 1e reali5ed that somethin# waswron#. 1ow could his meditation have been disturbed2 1ow was it that the season

seemed to be sprin# althou#h it had no business to be sprin#2 /hen Shiva #lancedaround, his eyes fell on 6andarpa who was hidin#. 1e reali5ed that it was 6andarpa

who was responsible for all this mischief.Shiva was an#ered. 1e had a third eye in the middle of his forehead. 0rom this third

eye flames sprouted and these flames burnt 6andarpa to ashes.6andarpa%s wife was &ati. /hen &ati saw that her husband had been burnt to ashes,

her #rief knew no bounds. +t first she lost consciousness. /hen she recovered, she


4/40

lamented, /oe is me. /hat is #oin# to happen to me2 y husband, my love, wherehave you #one2

The #ods and &ati sou#ht out Shiva. They explained that it had been no fault of6andarpa%s. 1e had been asked to disturb Shiva%s tapasya because of the Tarakasua

problem. /hat would happen to &ati now2Shiva replied, /hat has happened has happened. othin# can be done about kandarpa

now. 1e will eventually be born in the city of 7varaka as 6rishna%s son Pradyumna.&ati will then be reuntied with 6andarpa. ut till such time, let her simply wait.The #ods dispersed, still despondent. The matter of Shiva and Parvati%s marria#e had

not pro#ressed at all.

Parvatis Tapasya

ut Parvati had fallen in love with Shiva and she didn%t know what she could do about

it. She thou#ht of Shiva all the time.(ne day the sa#e arada came and told her, Shiva is only pleased with tapasya.

/ithout tapasya, even rahma and the other #ods do not #et to see Shiva. /hy don%tyou perform tapasya2

Parvati decided to do what arada had asked her to. She asked her parents forpermission. 1er father a#reed with alacrity. +lthou#h her mother enaka was not at

all keen that Parvati should perform difficult tapasya, she too eventually a#reed.Parvati #ave up her jewellery and handsome clothes. She wore deerskin instead. There

is a peak in the 1imalayas known as 8ouriskikhara. *t is there that Parvati went forher tapasy. The meditation was very difficult. 7urin# the monsson Parvati meditated

while seated on the #round. *n the winter she mediated under the water. /ild beatsdared not harm her. +ll the #ods and sa#es assembled to see this wonderful tapasya.

The #ods and the sa#es also be#an to pray to Shiva. 'ord, can%t you see that Parvati is

performin# difficult tapasya2 They asked. o one has meditated like this before. oone will meditate like this in the future. Please #rant her what she wants.

Shiva adopted the form of an old brahmana the first of the four classes! and appeared

at Parvati%s hermita#e. Parvati welcomed the old man and worshipped him with flowers

and fruits./hy are you meditatin#2 asked the brahmana. /hat is it that you want2* wish to have Shiva as a husband, replied Parvati.

)ou are indeed stupid. Said the brahmana. That is like #ivin# up #old for a piece of#lass or #ivin# sandalwood for mud. 7oes anyone #ive up the water of the 8an#a and

drink water from a well instead2 arry one of the #ods instead, #o and marry *ndra.Shiva is a stupid fellow. 1e has three eyes and five faces. 1is hair is matted and his

body is smeared with ashes. 1e wears snakes as #arlands. 1e is always accompaniedby #hosts, 1e has no clothes and no wealth. o one knows who his parent are. 1e live

sin the forst and his throat is blue with poison. * think you are makin# a bi# mistake.0or#et about Shiva and don%t waste your life.

The brahmana%s words an#ered Parvati. *t is you who are stupid, she said. )ou don%t

know a thin# about Shiva. 1e is the lord of everthin#. )ou have insulted Shiva andcursed am * that * made the mistake of worshippin# you. )ou are a#ain #oin# to saysomethin# nasty about Shiva. ut before you can do that, let me #o away. * shall not

stay to hear Shiva insulted.+s Parfati was about to depart, Shiva adopted his own form and said, /here are you

#oin#2 * thou#ht that you were prayin# for me. )ou can%t forsake me now. * am not#oin# to let you #o. +sk for a boon.

Please marry me accordin# to the prescribed rites, replied Parvati.Shiva a#reed and Parvati returned home.


5/40

The Marriage

Shiva called the seven #reat sa#es saptarshis! and asked them to #o to 1imalaya ashis messen#ers. The messa#e was that he wished to marry 1imalaya%s dau#hter

Parvati. 1imalaya was deli#hted to see the sa#es and even more deli#hted to learnthat Shiva wanted to marry Parvati. + date was fixed for the marria#e.

The day of the marria#e dawned. 8andharvas sin#ers of heaven! san# and apsaradancers of heaven! danced. +ll the #ods came to 6ailasa to accompany Shiva on theprocession. 1imalaya had also #ot ready. 1e had built many #ates in front of his house

and had placed fla#s on them. The beauty of 1imalaya%s residence at that time isimpossible to describe. /hen the procession arrived at the residence, Parvati%s mother

enaka rushed out.'et me see Shiva, she exclaimed. 'et me see my son-in-law. y dau#hter Parvati has

performed tapasya to obtain Shiva as a husband. 1e must be exceedin#ly handsome.The first person enaka saw was $ishvavasu, the kin# of the #andharvas. $ishvavasu

was very handsome and, at first, enaka thou#ht that this was Shiva. ut when shewas told that this was only a sin#er who entertained Shiva, she thou#ht that Shiva

would be more handsome. Then her eyes fell down on the handsome 6ubera, the #od

of wealth, and she thou#ht that this had to be Shiva. 6ubera was more attractive than$ishvavasu. ut enaka was told that this was not Shiva either. Then came $aruna,more attractive than 6ubera. ut this was not enaka%s son-in-law. or was her son-

in-law the #reat #od )ama, handsomer than $aruna. The handsome #ods *ndra, Suryaand 4handra passed by. ut arada told enaka that these were not Shiva, they were

simply Shiva%s servants.enaka%s joy knew no bounds. *f these were the servants, what was the master #oin#

to be like2 She mistook rahma, $ishnu and rihaspati for Shiva, and each timearada told her that she was wron#. /here then was Shiva2 0inally Shiva came and

arada pointed him out to enaka. +t the si#ht of her son-in-law, enaka fellunconscious.

Shiva was surrounded by #hosts on all sides. The faces were fierce, their complexions

were dark and they made a tremendous racket. Shiva himself rode on bull. 1e had

three eyes, five faces and ten arms. 1e was smeared with ashes and the moonadorned his forehead. 1e was dressed in a ti#er%s skin and a #arland of skulls hun#

around his neck. o wonder enaka fainted./hen she recovered, she be#an to lament. She scolded 1imalaya, arada and Parvati

for her misfortune. rahma, the other #ods, and the sa#es tried to pacify enaka. utto no avail.

* will not permit my dau#hter to be married to Shiva, enaka said. * will #ive herpoison instead. * will throw her into a well and kill her. * will chop her up into pieces

with a weapon. * will hurl her into the sea. * will kill myself. * will #et Parvati marriedto someone else. ot to Shiva.

Parvit resolved, * shall not marry anyone other than Shiva. *s a jackal a fitreplacement for a lion2

$ishnu then tried to pacify enaka. ut this did not succeed either. 0ianlly aradaasked Shiva to display his beautiful form and Shiva obli#ed. This form is exhibited only

to those who are very faithful to Shiva. Everyone was charmed by this beautiful form,even enaka. 1is body shone like a thousand suns and a crown sparkled on his head.

1is clothes #littered and the lustre of his jewels put the stars to shame.enaka be##ed for#iveness for her foolishness and now there were no further

obstacles to the marria#e. 9nder rahma%s supervision, the marria#e ceremony tookplace and Shiva and Parvati returned to 6ailasa.

Kartikeya


6/40

Shiva and Parvati%s son was Skanada or 6artikeya. /hen the baby was very small, it#ot lost in some reeds. Six princesses discovered the baby in the reeds and each

wanted to brin# up the baby as her own son. +ll of them finally cooperated in brin#in#up the body. These princesses were the 6rittikas and the boy came to be known as

6artikeya.The #ods #ot to know from arada that 6artikeya had been brou#ht up by the

6rittikas. They came and appointed 6artikeya their #eneral. The army of #ods theninvaded Tarakasura%s city Shonitapura. + terrible fi#ht ra#ed for ten days. The #odscompletely decimated the demons and 6atikeya killed Tarakasura.

+fter the victory celebrations were over, 6artikeya was restored to his parents.

Tipura

Tarakasura had three sons named $idyunmali, Tarakaksha and $iryavana. These three

be#an to perform tapasya. 0or a hundred years they meditated standin# only on onele#. 0or a thousand more years they lived on air and meditated. They stood on their

heads and meditated in this posture for yet another thousand years.rahma was pleased at this difficult tapasya. 1e appeared before them and said, /hat

boon do you want2ake us immortal, answered Tarakasura%s sons.

* can%t make you immortal, replied rahma. * don%t have the power. +sk for somethin#else instead.

$ery well, then, said $iyunamali, Tarakaksha and $iryavana 8rant us the followin#. 'etthree forts be made. The first will be of #old, the second of silver and the third of iron.

/e will live in these forts for a thousand years. +t the end of the thousand years, theforts will become one. This combined fort will be called Tripura. +nd it anyone can then

destroy Tripura with only a sin#le arrow, that shall be the death destined for us.

This rather unusual boon rahma #ranted. There was a danava named aya who wasvery #ood at buildin# work. rahma asked him to build the forts. The #olden fort was

built in heaven, the silver one in the sky and the iron one on earth. Tarakaksha #ot the

#olden fort, $iryavana the silver one and $idyunmali the iron one. Each of the forts

was a bi# as a city and had many palaces and vimanas spaces vehicles! inside.The demons populated the three forts and be#an to flourish. The #ods did not like thisat all. They first went to rahma, but rahma said he could not help them. +fter all,

the demons had #ot Tripura thanks to his boon. The #ods then went to Shiva for help.ut Shiva said that the demons were doin# nothin# wron#. +s lon# as that was the

case, he did not see why the #ods wre so bothered. The #ods then went to $ishnu.$ishnu%s su##estion was as follows. *f the problem was that the demons were doin#

nothin# wron#, the solution was to persuade them to become sinners.(ut of his powers $ishnu created a man. This man%s head was shaven, his clothes

were faded and he carried a wooden water-pot in his hands. 1e covered his mouthwith a piece of cloth and approached $ishnu.

/hat are my orders2 he asked $ishnu.

'et me explain to you why you have been created, replied $ishnu. * will teach you areli#ion that is completely a#ainst the $edas. )ou will then #et the impression thatthere is no svar#a heaven! and no naraka hell! and that both heaven and hell are on

earth. )ou will not believe that rewards and punishments for deeds committed onearth are meted out after death. 8o to Tripura and teach the demons this reli#ion,

which they are dislod#ed from the ri#hteous path. Then we will do somethin# aboutTripura.

The bein# did as he had been asked to. 1e and four of his disciples went to a forestthat was near Tripura and be#an to preach. They were trained by $ishnu himself.

Therefore, their teachin#s were convincin# and they had many converts. Even the sa#e


7/40

arada #ot confused and was converted.*n fact, it was arada who carried news of this wonderful new reli#ion to kin#

$idyunmati.6in#, he said, there is a wonderful new teacher with a wonderful new reli#ion. * have

never heard before. * have #ot converted.Since the #reat sa#e arada had #ot converted. $idyunmati also accepted the new

reli#on. +nd in due course, so did Tarakaksha and $iryavana. The demons #ave upreverin# the $edas, they stopped worshippin# Shiva%s lin#a.$ishnu and the other #ods then went to Shiva and be#an to pray to him. /hen Shiva

appeared, they told him that the demons had now become evil and should be

destroyed. They had even stopped worshippin# Shiva%s lin#a.Shiva a#reed to destroy Tripura. $ishvakarma was the architect of the #ods. Shiva

called $ishvakarma and asked him to make a suitable chariot, bow and arrow. Thechariot was made entirely out of #old. rahma himself became the charioteer and the

chariot was speedly driven towards Tripura. The #ods accompanied Shiva with diverseweapons.

y then a thousand years had passed so that the three forts had become a sin#leTripura. Shiva instilled a divine weapon known as pashupata into his arrow and shot it

at Tripura. The arrow burnt up Tripura into ashes in a split second./hile the celebrations were #oin# on, the shaven-heads reli#ious teachers arrived.

/hat are we supposed to do now2 they asked.rahma and $ishnu told them to #o and live in the desert. The last of the four eras

was kaliyu#a and in kaliyu#a, evil would rei#n supreme. /hen kaliyu#a arrived, theywere to come back and be#in their teachin# afresh.

Sita and the Ketaki !o"er

&omaharshana told the assembled sa#es, *t is easy to please Shiva. ut Shiva mustnever be worshipped with a ketaki or a champaka flower.

/hy, what is wron# with these flowers2 asked the sa#es.

'et me tell you about the ketaki flower first, replied &omaharshana.

&ama%s father 7asharatha asked &ama to spend fourteen years in the forest. So &amawent to the forest with his brother 'akshmana and his wife Sita. The three of themstarted to live on the banks of the river 0al#u. ews reached the forest that

7asharatha had died in their absence and a shraddha funeral! ceremony had toperformed for the dead kin#.

&ama sent 'akshmana to a nearby villa#e to #et the necessary in#redients. Timepassed and 'akshmana did not return. &ama then went to #et the in#redients and look

for 'akshmana. ut &ama too did not return. *t was almost noon and the ceremonyhad to be performed before noon. *n desperation, Sita decided to perform the

ceremony herself. She went and bathed in the 0al#u river and lit an earthen lamp. Shethen made the offerin#s pinda! to the dead ancestors herself.

*mmediately, a voice was heard. Sita, you are blessed, it said. /e are satisfied.

*n utter ama5ement Sita watched some disembodied hands appear in the air to acceptthe offerin#s./ho are you2 +sked Sita.

* am your dead father-in-law, answered the voice. The funeral ceremony has beensuccessful. * have accepted your offerin#s.

ut &ama and 'akshmana are #oin# to believe me, said Sita. They will never believethat such disembodied hands appeared out of thin air to accept the offerin#s.

They have to. answered the voice. )ou have four witnesses. The first is the 0al#u river.The second is the cow over there. The third will be the fire. +nd the last one will be the

ketaki bush.


8/40

&ama and 'akshmana returned and said, 4ook the food 3uickly. There is very littletime left. /e have to complete the funeral ceremony before noon.

Sita told them what happened, and naturally, the two brothers did not believe her.They made fun of her and su##ested that she was lyin#. Sita called upon her four

witnesses, but each denied that it had seen anythin#. /ithout ar#uin# any further,Sita cooked the food and &ama made offerin#s to his ancestors.

+ voice was then heard from the sky. /hy are you callin# us a#ain2 it said. Sita hasalready satisfied us.* refuse to believe that, said &ama.

*ndeed, it is true, retorted the voice. +sk the sun #od.

The sun #od confirmed that everythin# had happened just as Sita had said it had.&ama and 'akshmana were ashamed that they had doubted Sita and were also

impressed with the power of her virtue. ut Sita cursed the four false witnesses. Shecursed the 0al#u river that it would henceforth only flow under#round. She cursed the

ketaki flower pandanus odoratissimus! that it would never be accepted by Shiva as anofferin#. She cursed the cow that its mouth would henceforth become impure. *t had,

after all, lied with its mouth. The hind sections of the cow would however continue tobe pure. +nd finally Sita cursed the fire that it would consume everythin#

indiscriminately.That is the reason why a ketaki flower must never be used to worship Shiva.

#arada and the Champaka Tree

or must a champaka flower be used.

*n the land of 8okarna there was a temple dedicated to Shiva. arada decided that he

would #o and visit the temple. (n the way, he saw a flowerin# champaka tree and

stopped to admire it. + brahmana came there to pluck flowers from the tree. utseein# that arada was there, the brahmana refrained from pluckin# any flowers.

/here are you #oin#2 asked arada.The brahmana lied and replied, To be# some alms.

arada went to the temple. eanwhile, the brahmana plucked flowers from thechampaka tree and placed them in a basket that he covered up well. arada met the

brahmana a#ain on his way back from the temple./here are you #oin# now2 1e asked the brahmana.

The brahmana lied a#ain, 1ome, he said, * could n%t #et any alms.arada%s suspicions were aroused. 1e went to the champaka tree and asked, 1as that

brahmana plucked any flowers2/hat brahmana2 replied the tree. * don%t know of any brahmana. o one has plucked

any flowers.arada went back to the temple and discovered fresh champaka flowers lyin# there on

top of the Shiva lin#a. There was another devotee prayin# there. arada asked him,7o you know who came to worship with these champaka flowers2

)es, * do, replied the devotee, *t is an evil brahmana. 1e worships Shiva every daywith champaka flowers. Thanks to Shiva%s blessin#s, he has completely brainwashed

the kin# and has secretly been stealin# the kin#%s wealth. 1e also oppresses otherbrahmanas.

arada asked Shiva, /hy do you encoura#e such evil2* am helpless, replied Shiva. * cannot resist it if someone worships me with champaka

flowers.

"ust then, a brahmana woman came runnin# with her tale of woe. 1er husband wascrippled. ut they had mana#ed to #et some money from the kin# so that their


9/40

dau#hter could be married. They had also received a cow from the kin#. ut the evilbrahmana was claimin# that half of whatever they had received was his. *t was due to

his #ood offices that the kin# had been so #enerous, he was sayin#. The evil brahmanahad already appropriated half of the money. ut how was a cow to be divided2

arada then decided that somethin# needed to be done about the champaka tree andthe evil brahmana. +part from everythin# else, the champaka tree was a liar. arada

cursed the champaka tree that its flowers would never be accepted by Shiva as anofferin#. 1e cursed the evil brahmana that he would be born as a rakshasa demon!named $iradha. ut the brahmana had been a devotee of Shiva. So the curse was

3ualified by the stipulation that $iradha would be killed by &ama and would then a#ain

become a brahmana.

Ganesha

The door to Parvati%s place was #uarded by two of Shiva%s companions, andi andhrin#i. ut Parvati%s companions, "aya and $ijaya, didn%t like this at all. They thou#ht

that there should be a #uard who would be answerable to Parvati rather than to Shiva.*t was Parvati%s place, not Shiva%s. oreover, Shiva was in the habit of walkin# in at

awkard moments, and andi and rin#i never stopped Shiva. "aya and $ijaya askedParvati to do somethin# about this.

Parvati took some clay of a pond and fashioned the clay into a very handsome son.She dressed the son in beautiful clothes and jewellry. 1e was named 8anesha. Parvati

told 8anesha, )ou are my son. Stand at the #ate and do not allow anyone to enter.8anesha picked up a rod and be#an his duty as sentry. Parvati went to have a bath.

Soon Shiva turned up with his companions. /here are you #oin#2 asked 8anesha. )oucannot pass. y mother is havin# her bath.

* am Shiva, answered Shiva.

/ho is Shiva2 retorted 8anesha. * don%t know of any Shiva. )ou cannot #o in.Shiva tried to i#nore 8anesha and enter, but 8anesha started to beat Shiva with the

rod. Shiva then asked his companions to remove this upstart. ut they only #ot

thrashed by 8anesha in the process. andi tried to #rasp one of 8anesha%s le#s and

rhrin#i the other. ut 8anesha uprooted a wooden door and beat them so hard thatthey fled. The #ods and the sa#es all came to see what the uproar was about.Shiva told rahma, /hy don%t you try to pacify that creature2

rahma advanced to reason with 8anesha. ut 8anesha didn%t know rahma: hethou#ht that this was another one of Shiva%s companions. 1e therefore #rabbed

rahma and tore off rahma%s beard by the handful. rahma fled in pain.This had become a matter where Parvati felt her pride to be at stake. So she kept

8anesha supplied with weapons. The #ods attacked 8anesha with all sorts of weapons.1e drove them back.

$ishnu told Shiva, This fellow can only be killed with some trickery. (therwise, heseems to be invincible.

8anesha flun# a mace at $isnu and hurt him considerably. 1e struck down Shiva%s bow

with another mace. $ishnu and 8anesha then be#an to fi#ht, with the sudarshanachakra bein# used by $ishnu and maces by 8anesha. /hile this duel ra#ed, Shivacrept up stealthily from behind and cut off 8anesha%s had with his trishula trident!.

This was the trickery that $ishnu had planned for./hen Parvati learnt of 8anesha%s death, her ire was roused. She #ot ready to destroy

the universe and everyone was alarmed. arada was sent to Parvati as a messa#er.1e was to try and pacify Parvati. ut Parvati a#reed to relent only if two conditions

were satisfied. The first condition was that 8anesha should be brou#ht back to life. Thesecond condition was that 8anesha should be accepted as a #od and should enjoy all

divine ri#hts.


10/40

These conditions wre readily accepted. 8anesha%s headless body was cleaned andbathed. ut the head could not be found. *t had been lost in the heat of the battle.

Shiva sent his companions out with the head of the first livin# bein# that they saw.This happened to be an elephant with one tusk. The elephant%s head was stuck onto

8anesha%s body and rahma, $ishnu and Shiva combined their powers to brin# backlife to the dead body.

Shiva accepted 8anesha as his son. 1e also made 8anesha the lord of all hiscompanions, the #anas. That is why the elephant-#od is called 8anapati. *t was alsodecreed that worship to any #od would be useless unless it was preceded by prayers to

8anesha.

4haturthi tithi is the fourth lunar day. 6rishnapaksha is that part of the lunar fortni#htdurin# which the moon wanes. Since Parvati created 8anesha in the month of 6artika

and on chaturthi tithi in krishnapaksha, that is the day on which 8anapati isworshipped.

Ganesha and Kartikeya $uarre!

Shiva and Parvati had two sons, 8anesha and 6artikeya. oth sons wanted to #et

married. +nd Shiva and Parvati found it difficult to decide who should be married first.The other one was bound to feel hurt. oth the sons were e3ually dear to them.

They decided to have a test. They called 8anesha and 6artikeya to them and said, /ehave devised a competition. oth of you have to travel around the world and return

here. /hoever returns first will be married first. That should be fair and s3uare.+s soon as these words were out, 6artikeya dashed out on his journey. ut 8anesha

tarried and pondered. 1e reali5ed that this was a task that was impossible for him toaccomplish. 1e found it difficult enou#h to travel a couple of miles.

8anesha found a solution. 0irst, he bathed. Then, he made Shiva and Parvati sit on

two seats. 1e worshipped them and circled them seven times. +fter he finished circlin#them. 8anesha said, ow please make arran#ements for my weddin#.

/hat do you mean, exclaimed Shiva and Parvati. 7idn%t you hear what we said2 /e

asked the two of you to travel around the world and come back. )ou%d better hurry.

6artikeya has already left. *f you don%t take care, he will beat you to it.ut * have already been round the world seven times, replied 8anesha. 1aven%t *circled the two of you seven times2 The $edas say that circlin# one%s parents is the

same thin# as circlin# the world. *f you do not wish to ar#ue that the $edas are wron#,then you have to a#ree that * have circled the world seven times.

Shiva and Parvati could not very well ar#ue that the $edas were wron#. They thereforehad to accept 8anesha%s lo#ic. +rran#ements were made for his weddin#. $ishvarua,

the son of 6ashyapa, had two dau#hters named Siddhi and uddhi. These two weremarried to 8anesha with a lot of fanfare. 8anesha and Siddhi had a son named 'aksha

and 8anesha and uddhi had a son named 'abha.6artikeya returned to 6ailasa after travelin# around the world and discovered that

8anesha was already married and was already the proud father of two children. 1e

heard the entire story from arada and felt that he had been cheated. 1e decided thathe would no lon#er live with his parents. 1e also decided that he would never marry.That is the reason why 6artikeya is called 6umara, someone who is married.

6artikeya be#an to live on ount 6rouncha. Shiva #oes to visit him there on the day ofthe newmoon amavasya! and parvati #oes to visit him on the day of the moon

purnima!.

Linga


11/40

+ lin#a is an ima#e of Shiva. There are several lin#as. /hichever is the place wheredevotees con#re#ate, there Shiva manifests himself in the form of a lin#a.

1owever, there are twelve important lin#as and these are known as jyotirlin#as areSomanatha, allikarjuna, ahakala, (mkara, 6edara, hima-shankara, $ishvanatha,

Trymbaka, $aidyanatha, a#esha, &ameshvara and 8hushnesha.

#andikeshvara Tirtha

+ tirtha is a place of pil#rima#e. +t a tirtha named andikeshvara, there is a famousShiva lin#a.

*n a city named 6arnaki there used to live a brahmana. 1e left his two sons with hiswife and went to visit the city of $aranasi. *t was then learnt that the brahmana had

died in $aranasi. 1is widow brou#ht up her sons and eventually married them off. Shebecame old and it was time for her to die. ut death would not come. *t seemed to the

sons that their mother was hankerin# after somethin# and would not die until her wishhad been satisfied.

other, they asked, /hat is it that you want2* have always wanted to visit the tirtha of $aranasi, the mother replied. ut now * am

#oin# to die without ever visitn# the place. Promise me that when * am dead, you willtake my ashes to $aranasi and throw them into the river 8an#a there.

/e will, said the sons. )ou can die inpeace.The mother died and the sons performed her funeral ceremony. Then the eldest son,

Suvadi, set out for $aranasi with his mother%s ashes. The way was lon# and hestopped to rest and spend the ni#ht in a brahmana%s house.

+ cow was tied in front of the house and it was time for milkin#. Suvati saw that whenthe brahmana tried to milk the cow, the calf would not permit the milkin# and kicked

the brahmana. The brahmana then hit the calf with a stick. The brahmana went away

after the milkin#. ut Suvadi was still there and and he heard the cow tell her calf, *am distressed that the brahmana struck you. Tomorow * am #oin# to #ore the

brahmana%s son to death.

ext day, the brahmana%s son came to do the milkin#. The cow #ored him with horns

so that he died. u this meant that the cow had committed the sin of killin# abrahmana. *mmediately, because of the sin, the while cow turned completely black.The cow left the house. Suvadi followed, ama5ed at this stran#e si#ht. The cow went

to the banks of the river armada, to the place named andikeshvara. She bathed inthe river and became white once a#ain. This meant that the sin of killin# a brahmana

had been completely washed away. Suvadi marvelled at this and reali5ed what apowerful tirtha andikeshvara was.

1e was about to leave for $aransi after bathin# in the river himself, when he wasaccosted by a beautiful woman.

/here are you #oin#, Suvadi2 asked the woman. Throw your mother%s ashes in theriver here. This is a far #reater tirtha than $aranasi.

/ho are you2 asked Survadi.

* am the river 8an#aa, came the reply.The woman vanished and Suvadi did as he had been bidden. +s soon as he had donethis, his dead mother appeared in the sky and told him that she was immensely

#ratified. She would now #o strai#ht to heaven.andikeshvara is a wonderful tirtha because a brahmana woman named &ishika had

earlier performed very difficult tapasya there to please Shiva.

%trishvara Tirtha


12/40

There was a forest named 6amada. *t did not rain there for a hundred years. Theleaves dried up and the dwellers of the forest started to suffer.

The sa#e +tri decided that he would meditate to try and brin# the rains. +tri%s wife was+nasuya and she thou#ht that she mi#ht as well perform tapasya to#ether with her

husband. oth of them started to pray to Shiva and it was very difficult to decidewhose tapasya was the more difficult. 0ifty-four passed and they meditated without

eatin# or drinkin# anythin#.+tri%s meditation was finally over and he felt thirsty. 1e therefore asked his wife to #oand fetch some water so that he mi#ht 3uench his thirst. /hile +nasuya was #oin# to

fetch the water, the river 8an# appeared before her.

* am pleased with your tapasya, said 8an#a. /hat boon do you desire2*f you are pleased with me, replied +nasuya, please make a pond here and fill the

pond with your water.8an#a obli#ed. +nasuya filled her water-pot from the pond and brou#ht the water to

her husband. +tri drank the water and found that it was far tastier than the water theywere used to. /hen he asked +nasuya why this was so, she told him what happened.

oth husband and wife came back to the pond. +nasuya had earned a lot of punyastore of merit! thanks to her tapasya. 8an#a a#reed to stay on provided +nasuya

handed over to 8an#a whatever punya she had ac3uired in one year of tapasya. Thisconditon +nasuya a#reed to.

eanwhile, Shiva appeared and offered to #rant +nasuya a boon. +nasuya desire theboon that Shiva would always be present in that forest. Shiva consented.

This sacred place is known as +trishvara tirtha.

Chandra and Somanatha

Twenty-seven of 7aksha%s dau#hters were married to the moon-#od 4handra. (ne of

these wives was named &ohini and 4handra loved &ohini more than he loved the otherwives. The other wives felt ne#lected and they complained to their father. 7aksha

repeatedly warned his son-in-law to devote himself e3ually to all twenty-seven wives.

ut 4handra was in no mood to listen.

7aksha thereupon cursed 4handra that he would #radually fade away. 4handra didn%tknow what to do. 1e went and sou#ht advice from rahma and rahma told him thatthe only rescourse was to pray to Shiva. 4handra went to Prabhasa tirtha and made a

lin#a on the banks of the river Sarasvati. 1e prayed to Shiva for six months.+t the end of the tapasya Shiva appeared before 4handra and offered to #rant him a

boon. 4handra explained what the problem was./ell, said Shiva, 7aksha%s curse cannot be entirely i#nored. 'et us have a

compromise. 7urin# krishnapaksha you will wane. +nd durin# shuklapaksha thebri#ht part of the lunar fortni#ht! you will wax. That should satisfy everybody.

4handra was deli#hted. The lin#a to which 4handra prayed is Somantha, the first ofthe jyotirlin#as. Shiva is always present at that tirtha.

Ma!!ikar&una

/hat about the second jyotirlin#a. allikarjuna2

)ou already know that 6artikeya felt cheated when 8anesha #ot married. 1e decidedthat he would not live with Shiva and Parvati any lon#er, and be#an to live on the

mountain 6rouncha.Parvati was miserable that her son had left her. She sent #ods, sa#es, #andharvas and

apsaras to brin# her son back. ut 6artikeya would not return. Shiva and Parvati then


13/40

went to visit 6artikeya themselves, but 6artikeya would not let them #et too close.Shiva and Parvati started to live at a place that was about six miles away from where

their son was livin#. They are always there, so as to be near their son. This place isknown as allikarjuna.

'ushana and Mahaka!a

The third of the jyotirlin#as is ahakala.

The city of +vanti is on the banks of the river 6shipra Shipra!.+ brahmana named $edapriya used to lived in the city of +vanti. 1e used to worship

Shiva everyday and he had brou#ht up his four sons to do the same. These sons werenamed 7evapriya, Priyamedha, Suvrita and Suvrata.

ot very far away, on a hill named &atnamala, there used to live an asura named7ushana. 7ushana was evil, he could not stand the idea of the $edas bein# read and

the reli#ion prescribed in them followed. 1e went about destroyin# this ri#hteousreli#on wherever he could. 7ushana #ot to know that in the city of +vanti there lived

four brahmanas who followed the ri#hteous reli#ion and worshipped Shiva. These were

7evapriya, Priyamedha, Suvrita and Suvrata. Their father $edapriya had died by then.7ushana and his cohorts came and attacked the city of +vanti. They threatened to killthe four brahmanas, but the brothers were not at all perturbed. They continued to

pray to Shiva. They bowed in obeisance before the lin#a.

Suddenly a tremendous sound was heard and a pit appeared in the #round in front ofthe lin#a. Shiva himself appeared in this pit. 7ushana was burnt into ashes from the

force of Shiva%s roar. +nd Shiva put all of 7ushana%s soldiers to fli#ht.The brahmanas prayed that Shiva mi#ht always be present at that place and Shiva

a#reed. This is the place that is known as ahakala.

(indhya and Omkara

The fourth of the jyotirlin#as is (mkara.

arada had once #one on a visit to the mountain $indhya. $indhya worshippedarada. ut because $indhya was sli#htly proud, he also said. * am full of all the

desirable objects that one can think of.Perhaps, replied arada. ut ount Sumeru is superior to you, becaue the #ods are

always there.$indhya decided to become the e3ual of Sumeru. 1e be#an to pray to Shiva. 0or six

months he prayed. /hen Shiva appeared, $indhya desired that Shiva mi#ht always be

present there so that he mi#ht become the e3ual of Sumeru.The lin#a that $indhya worshipped as called (mkara.

#aranarayana and Kedara

The fifth of the jyotirlin#as is 6edara. *n one of $ishnu%s incarnations, he revealedhimself as the two sa#es, ara and arayana. These two sa#es prayed for a lon# time

in the hermita#e known as vadrikashrama. ear this hermita#e there was a peak ofthe 1imalayas named 6edara.

+fter the two sa#es had prayed to Shiva for a very lon# time, Shiva appeared andsaid, * don%t understand why the two of you worshippin# me. *t is you who should be

worshipped. ut since you have been prayin# to me, let me #rant you a boon.


14/40

ara and arayana desred that Shiva should always be present in the form of a lin#aon the peak 6edara.

Bhimashankara

The sixth of the jyotirlin#as is himashankara.

)ou know about &ama and &avana from the &amayana and you also know that &amakilled not only &avana, but also his brother 6umbahakarna.

+ rakshasa woman named 6arkati used to live on the mountains named Sahya.6arkati had been married to 6umbhakarna and her son was named hima. (ne day,

hima asked 6arkati, other, whose son am *2 /hy do we live alone in this forest26arkati said, 'et me tell you my sad story. * used to be married to the rakshasa

$iradha. ut &ama killed $iradha. 'ater on, 6umbhakarna came and married me hereand you were born. 6umbhakarna had promised to take me to 'anka. ut he was

killed by &ama and * never #ot to see 'anka. That is the reason we live here alone. /ehave nowhere else to #o.

hima was very sorry to hear this story. 1e resolved to aven#e himself on $ishnu

because he knew that &ama had been an incarnation of $ishnu. 0or a thousand yearshe prayed to rahma with his hands raised up to the sky. /hen rahma appeared,hima wished for the boon that he mi#ht become very stron#. This boon rahma

#ranted.

The first tar#et of hima%s attention was the kin# of 6amarupa. The kin#%s crime wasthat he was devoted to $ishnu. hima attacked the kin#, stole all his belon#in#s,

con3uered his kin#dom and imprisoned him and his wife. 1e then proceeded tocon3uer the rest of the world.

*n their prison, the kin# and his wife started to pray to Shiva. This news was brou#ht

to hima by the rakshasa #uards and hima decided to kill the kin#. 1e found the kin#prayin# before a Shiva lin#a. /hen hima raised his sword to cut off the the kin#%s

head, Shiva appeared from the lin#a and repelled the sword with his trident. himaflun# a spear at Shiva, but this too was driven back by the trident. /hatever weapon

was used by hima, Shiva%s trident destroyed them all. 0inally, Shiva killed hima andall his rakshasa cohorts.

The #ods were #ratified and they craved that Shiva mi#ht always remain in the placein the form of the lin#a.

(ishvanatha and (aranasi

The seventh of the jyotirlin#as is named $ishvanatha and it is located in the cityof

$aranasi or 6ashi.

$aranasi is a very sacred place. rahma himself performed difficult tapasya there. So

difficult was the tapasya that $ishnu shook his head in disbelief. /hen $ishnu shook

his head, a jewel mani! fell down from $ishnu% ear karna!. The place where the jewelfall is known as anikarnika and it is a famous tirtha.

$aranasi is not destroyed when the rest of the world is destroyed. Shiva himself raises

it on the point of his trident and protects it while destruction ra#es all around. /henthe world is re-created. Shiva replaces $aranasi to its appointed place.

Shiva and Parvati once went to visit rahma. rahma be#an to chant hymns in Shiva%spraise with all of his five mouths. (ne of the mouths however made mistakes in the


15/40

pronunciation of the hymns. This an#ered Shiva and Shiva severed the offendin# headwith a #a5e of his third eye. ut this effectively amounted to the killin# of a brahmana

and Shiva committed a crime. The severed head therefore #ot stuck to Shiva%s backwould would not come off, no matter where Siva went. ut when Shiva arrived in

$aranasi, the head fell off his back. Shiva reali5ed that $aranasi was a special placeand he resolved that he would always be present there.

Goutama and Trym)aka

Towards the south of the country there was a mountain named rahmaparvata. There

the sa#e 8outama and his wife +halya performed tapasya for ten tousand years. /hilethey were meditatin#, there were no rains in the forest for a hundred years and there

was a shorta#e of water. 'ivin# bein#s died from the drou#ht. 8outama prayed to$aruna, the #od of the ocean and the rain. $aruna appeared and offered to #rant a

boon.Please #rant the boon that it mi#ht rain, said 8outama.

* can%t do that, replied $aruna. That is beyond my powers. +sk for somethin# elseinstead.

Then let us have a pond in the forest that will always be full of water, said 8outama.This was within $aruna%s powers and the pond was created. The other sa#es also

be#an to use water from this pond. ormally, 8outama sent his disciples to fetchwater. ut the disciples complained that the wives of the other sa#es did not let them

take the water. So +halya herself started to fetch the water. The wives of the othersa#es annoyed and pestered +hyalya, but she never reacted. These wives then

complained to their husbands about +halya and 8outama. +t first the sa#es did notlisten, but eventually, they were convinced that +halya and 8outama were wicked.

They therefore sou#ht to devise a plan so that these two mi#ht punished. They be#an

to pray to 8anesha./hen 8anesha arrived, the sa#es said, Please #rant us the boon that 8outama and

+halya mi#ht be banished from the hermita#e.

+lthou#h 8anesha reali5ed that this was an unfair boon, he decided to #rant it because

he reali5ed that the sa#es and their evil wives needed to be punished.8outama had some fields of paddy and #rain. 8anesha adopted the form of a lean andstarvin# cow and be#an to eat up the crop. 8outama tried to drive away the cow with

a blade of #rass. ut as soon as he struck the cow with the blade of #rass, the cow felldown and died. This was a terrible calamity. *t was the killin# of a cow.

The other sa#es banished 8outama and +halya from the hermita#e. They had to setup an ashrama hermita#e! that was a fair distance away. The other sa#es completely

disassociated themselves from 8outama and +halya. 8outama be#an to think of waysof performin# prayashchitta penance! for the crime that he had committed. The other

sa#es told him that he would first have to travel around the world. +fter that, he wouldhave to pray very hard for an entire month. The next task was to circle rahmaparvata

a hundred times and bathe in a hundred pots of water. This would complete the

penance. +ll this 8outama and +halya did. They also prayed for a lon# time to Shiva.Shiva appeared before them and offered them a boon. 8outama desired the boon thatthe river 8an#a mi#ht always be present in the hermita#e. 8an#a said that she would

a#ree subject to the condition that Shiva and Parvati were also always present in thehermita#e. Parvati and Shiva a#reed to do this. This established Trymbaka, the ei#hth

of the jyotirlin#as. The river 8an#a which flowed there came to be known as the8odavari. So Trymbaka is on the banks of the 8odavari.

/hat happened to the evil sa#es and their wives2 8outama asked that they mi#ht bepardoned. They performed penance by circlin# rahmaparvata one hundred and one

times, and be##ed for#iveness from 8outama and +halya.


16/40

Ravana and (aidyanatha

The ninth of the jyotirlin#as is named $aidyanatha.

&avana, the kin# of the rakshasas, meditated in the 1imalayas so as to please Shiva.0irst he prayed on ount 6ailasa, but Shiva did not appear. 1e then went to a place

named $rikshakhandaka which was a little towards the south. 1e prayed there, butShiva did not appear. &avana next du# a pit in the earth and started to pray inside the

pit. 1e established a Shiva lin#a inside the pit. Shiva still not appear.&avana therefore decided that he would immolate himself. &avana, as you know, had

ten heads. 1e lit a fire and severin# his heads, be#an to offer them one by one to thefire. /hen nine of the heads had thus been offered, Shiva appeared.

Enou#h is enou#h, said Shiva. /hat boon do you want2Please #rant me the boon that * may be very stron#. +nd please restore my nine

heads, replied &avana.These boons Shiva #ranted and the place where &avana prayed is known as

$aidyanatha.The #ods were not at all happy that &avana had become so stron#. They were afraid

tha the rakshasa mi#ht start to oppress them. They therefore sent arada to createsome mischief. arada met &avana and asked him why he was lookin# so happy.

&avana related the story of the boon.oon, exclaimed arada. /ho believes in Shiva2 'et me see if you can lift up ount

6ailasa. *f you can do that, * shall indeed believe that you have become stron#.*ncited by arada, &avana returned to 6ailasa and lifted up the mountain. +s the

mountain shook, Shiva and Parvati were disturbed. Shiva cursed &avana that soon abein# would be born who would kill &avana. This bein# was of course &ama, $ishnu%s

incarnation.

#agesha

The tenth of the jyotirlin#as is named a#esha.

There used to be a rakshasa name 7aruka. 1is wife was named 7aruki. They lived in a

forest on the banks of the western sea. Parvati had #ranted 7aruki the boon thatwherever 7aruki went, the forest would follow.

9sin# this forest as a base, 7aruka and 7aruki be#an to oppress the world. Theydestroyed the yajnas and killed all the ri#hteous people. *n desperation, the survivors

went to a powerful sa#e named (urva. They told (urva that he alone could save theworld from the depredations of these rakshasas. (urva cursed the rakshasas that if

they committed any violence on earth, they would immediately die.+s soon as the #ods #ot to know about this curse, they attacked the rakshasas. The

demons were in a fix. *f they did not fi#ht with the #ods, they would be slau#htered.

ut if they fou#ht with the #ods, they would die because of (urva%s curse. They

decided that they would #o and live in the ocean. Thanks to the boon that 7aruki hadreceived from Parvati, the entire forest was also submer#ed in the ocean and becamethe home of the rakshasas.

There the rakshasa lived. They did not return to earth. ut they imprisoned and killed

any people who travelled in boats across the ocean.*n this fashion, they once captured a vaishya the third of the four classes! who was

devoted to Shiva. The vaishya set up a lin#a in the prison and be#an to pray to Shiva./hen the rakshasas saw this, they attacked him with weapons so as to kill him. This

vaishya was named Supriya. Shiva #ave Supriya a pashupata, a divine weapon


17/40

associated with Shiva. /ith this the vaishya killed many demons. The remainin#rakshasas were saved by Parvati%s intervention.

The lin#a that Supriya worshipped is a#esha.

Rama and Rameshvara

The eleventh of the jyotirlin#as is named &ameshvara.

&avana had kidnapped Sita and &ama looked for her everywhere. 1e was aided in his

search by the monkeys. The search brou#ht them to the shores of the ocean./hile &ama was tryin# to decided how to cross the ocean, he felt very thirsty. 1e

therefore asked the monkeys to fetch him some water. ut when the water wasbrou#ht, &ama reali5ed that he should not drink the water without first prayin# to

Shiva.&ama constructed a lin#a and worshipped it with many fra#rant flowers. Such were the

powers of &ama%s prayers that Shiva, Parvati and their companions appeared before&ama. Shiva blessed &ama and &ama re3uested him to stay in that place forever. *t is

this lin#a, on the shores of the ocean, that is known as &ameshvara.

Ghushna and Ghushnesha

The twelfth and last of the jyotirlin#as is named 8hushnesha.

To the south, there is a mountain named 7eva. + brahmana named Sudharma used to

live there. 1is wife was called Sudeha. 1usband and wife were ri#hteous and re#ularlyprayed to the #ods. They had only one reason for complaint; they had no son. Sudeha

was especially disturbed at this. (ther women tended to insult her because she had noson.

Sudharma decided to conduct an experiment. 1e plucked two flowers and offeredthem in front of a sacred fire. 1e mentally associated one of the flowers with havin# a

son and asked his wife to choose a flower. 9nfortunately, his wife chose the flowerthat was not associated wtih havin# a son. 0rom this Sudharma concluded that they

were not #oin# to have a son and he did his best to console Sudeha. ut Sudeharefused to be consoled, she was miserable.

/hy don%t you marry a#ain2 asked Sudeha. Perhaps you will then have a son. arrymy niece 8ushna.

o, replied Sudharma. )ou love her now because she is your niece. ut if she doesindeed have a son, you will become jealous and will come to hate her.

Sudeha convinced her husband that this would never happen. So Sudharma married

8hushna.Every day, 8hushna made a hundred and one lin#as out of clay and worshipped them.

/hen the day%s prayers were over, she immersed the lin#as in a pond. /hen one lakh

lin#as had thus been worshipped, 8hushna #ave birth to a handsome boy. Shiva had

taken pity on Sudharma and 8hushna.ut when the son was born, Sudeha%s nature chan#ed. +s her husband had warnedher, she felt jealous. She thou#ht that 8ushna #ot more important and she was

treated like a maid. *n the middle of the ni#ht, Sudeha slew the boy with a knife andthrew the dead body into the pond. This was the pond where the lin#as had been

immersed.+s was her wont, 8hushna #ot up in the mornin# and be#an to worship a lin#a. lood

was discovered on the bed, the boy could not be found and everyone raised the alarm.ut 8hushna was not distracted by this racket and did not leave her prayers. Shiva


18/40

was so impressed with 8hushna%s devotion that he restored her son back to life. 1ealso wished to kill the evil Sudeha with his trident, but 8ushna be##ed for her aunt%s

life and Shiva spared Sudeha. Shushna%s act of for#iveness so impressed Shiva that hewished to #rant 8hushna another boon, apart from restorin# her son.

8hushna desired that Shiva mi#ht alwaysbe present in a lin#a near the pond. This isknown as 8hushnesha.

%r&una and Shiva

7uryodhana robbed the Pandavas of their ri#htful share of the kin#dom in a #ame of

dice. +s a result of this, the Pandavas had to spend many years in the forest. /hilethey were in the forest, $edavyasa came to visit the Pandavas. $edavyasa told them

that they should pray to Shiva. ut since +rjuna was the best suited amon#st thePandavas for worshippin# Shiva, $edvyasa tau#ht +rjuna a special mantra

incantation!. Then he asked +rjuna to #o to ount *ndrakila and pray to Shiva there.ount *ndrakila was on the banks of the river ha#irathi.

+rjuna went to ount *ndrakila. 1e made a lin#a out of clay and started to pray toShiva. The news of +rjuna%s wonderful tapasya spread everywhere. +rjuna stood on

one le# and continualy chanted the mantra that $edavyasa had tau#ht him.Suddenly, +rjuna saw a boar. +rjuna thou#ht that this fierce boar mi#ht have come to

distract him from his tapasya. +lternatively, it mi#ht be a relative of the severaldemons that he had killed and therefore mi#ht wish him harm. Thinkin# this, +rjuna

picked up his bow and arrow and let fly an arrow at the boar. eanwhile, Shiva haddecided to subject +rjuna to a test and he had also arrived at the spot dis#usted as a

hunter. /hen +rjuna shot an arrow at the boar, so did Shiva. Shiva%s arrow struck theboar in its hind3uarters and +rjuna%s arrow struck the boar in its mouth. The boar fell

down dead.

+ dispute started between +rjuna and the hunter about who had killed the boar. Eachclaimed it for his own. They be#an to fi#ht. ut whatever weapons were hurled by

Shiva were easily repelled all of +rjuna%s weapons. /hen all the weapons were

exhausted, the two started to wrestle.

+fter the fi#ht had #one on for a while, Shiva #ave up his dis#uise of a hunter anddisplayed his true form to +rjuna. +rjuna wa ashamed that he had been fi#htin# withthe very person to whom he had been prayin#.

Please for#ive me, said +rjuna.*t is all ri#ht, replied Shiva. * was just tryin# to test you. )our weapons have been like

offerin#s to me, you are my devotee. Tell me, what boon do you desire2+rjuna wanted the boon that he mi#ht obtain #lory on earth. Shiva #ave +rjuna his

pashupata weapon. This was such a divine weapon that its possession made +rjunainvincible.

Sudarshana Chakra

Sudarshana chakra a bladed discus! was $ishnu%s weapon. $ishnu received thiswonderful weapon as a result of Shiva%s #race.any years a#o, the demons oppressed the #ods and the #ods went to $ishnu for

deliverance. $ishnu said that the demons were so powerful, that he would first have to

worship Shiva if somethin# was to be done about the asuras. $ishnu went to ount6ailasa and bean to pray to Shiva. 1e chanted many mantras, but there was no si#n of

Shiva. Shiva has a thousand names and $ishnu next started to chant these names.

Each day he chanted the thousand names and offered a thousand lotus flowers toShiva.


19/40

Shiva decided to test $ishnu. (ne day, he stole a lotus flower from the thousand thatwere to be offered. /hen $ishnu reali5ed that there was one lotus flower less, he

#ou#ed out his own eye and offered it in place of the missin# lotus flower. Shiva wasnow pleased and appeared before $ishnu. 1e offered to #rant $ishnu a boon.

)ou know that the powerful demons have been oppressin# the #ods, said $ishnu. *need a weapon to fi#ht the demons with. Please #ive me a weapon.

Shiva then #ave $ishnu the sudarshana chakra. +nd with this weapon, $ishnu killedthe demons.

Shivas Thousand #ames

/hen the sa#es heard this story, they said, &omaharshana, what are these thousand

names of Shiva that you have mentioned2 &elate them to us.&omaharshana obli#ed. 0or convenience, let us list out these thousand names in a

hundred #roups of ten each.

Sharva, Shambhu.=! aheshvara, 4handrapida, 4handramouli, $ishva, $ishvamareshvara,

$edantasara-sandoha, 6apali, ilalohita, 7hyanadhara, +paricchedya.>! 8ouribharta, 8aneshvara, +shtamurti, $ishvamurti, Trivar#asvar#asadhana,

"nana#amya, 7ridaprajna, 7evadeva, Trilochana, $amadeva?! adadeva, Patu, Parivrida, 7rida, $ishvarupa, $irupaksha, $a#isha,

Shuchisattama, Sarvapramanasamvadi, $rishanka.@! $rishavahana, *sha, Pinaki, 6hatvan#a, 4hitravesha, 4hirantana, Tamohara,

ahayo#i, 8opta, rahma.A! 7hurjati, 6alakala, 6rittivasah, Subha#a, Pranavatmaka, 9nnadhra, Purusha,

"ushya, 7urvasa, Purashasana.

B! 7ivyayudha, Skanda#uru, Parameshthi, Paratpara, +nadimadhyanidhana, 8irisha,8irijadhava, 6uberabandhu, Shrikanatha, 'okavarnottama.

C! ridu, Samadhivedya, 6odandi, ilakantha, Parashvadhi, $ishalaksha,

ri#avyadha, Suresha, Suryatapana, 7harmadhama.

D! 6shamakshetra, ha#avana, ha#anetrabhida, 9#ra, Pashupati, Tarkshya,Priyabhakta, Parantapa, 7ata, 7ayakara.

Sutrakara, Sanatana, aharshi.


20/40

=! Shubhan#a, 'okasaran#a, "a#adisha, "anardana, hasmashuddhikara, eru,(jasvi, Shuddhavi#raha, +sadhya, Sadhusadhya.

=

==! ahabhuta, ahanidhi, +mritasha, +mritavapu, Panchajanya, Prabhanjana,Panchavimshatitattvastha, Parijata, Para-vara, Sulabha.

=>! Suvrata, Shura, rahmavedanidhi, idhi, $arnashrama#uru, $arni, Shatrujita,Shatrutapana, +shrama, 6shapana.=?! 6shama, "nanavana, +chaleshvara,Pramanabhuta, 7urjneya, Suparna,

$ayuvahana, 7hanurdhara, 7hanurveda, 8unarashi.

=@! 8unakara, Satyasatyapara, 7ina, 7harma#a, +nanda, 7harmasadhana,+nantadrishti, 7anda, 7amayita, 7ama.

=A! +bhivadya, ahamaya, $ishvakarma, $isharada, $itara#a, $initatma, Tapasvi,hutabhavana, 9nmattavesha, Pracchanna .

=B! "itakama, +jitapriya, 6alyanaprakriti, 6alpa, Sarvalokaprajapati, Tarasvi, Tavaka,7himana, Pradhanaprabhu, +vyaya.

=C! 'okapala, +ntarhitatma, 6alpadi, 6amalekshana, $edashastrarthatattvajna,+niyama, iyatashraya, 4handra, Surya, Shani.

=D! 6etu, $aran#a, $idrumacchavi, haktivashya, +na#ha, Parabrahm-amri#avanarpana, +dri, +dryalaya, 6anta, Paramatma.

>! "a#ad#uru, Sarvakarmalaya, Tushta, an#alya, an#alavrita, ahatapa,7ir#hatapa, Sthavishtha, Sthavira 7hruva.

>

>=! Siddha, ahareta, ahabala, )o#i, )o#ya, Siddhi, ahateja, Sarvadi, +#raha,$asu.

>>! $asumana, Satya, Sarvapaphara, Sukirti, Shobhana, Shrimana,+vanmanasa#ochara, +mritashashvata, Shanta, $anahasta.

>?! Pratapavana, 6amandalundhara, 7hanvi, $edan#a, $edavita, uni, hrajishnu,hojana, hokta, 'okanantha.

>@! 7uradhara, +tindriya, ahamaya, Sarvavasa, 4hatushpatha, 6alayo#i, ahanada,

ahotsaha, ahabala, ahabuddhi.>A! ahavirya, hutachari, Purandara, ishachara, Pretachari, ahashakti,

ahadyuti, +hirdeshyavapu, Shrimana, Sarvacharyamano#ati.>B! $ahushruta, iyatatma, 7hruva, +dhruva, Sarvashaska, (jastejodyutidara,

artaka, rityapriya, rityanitya, Prakashatma.>C! Prakashaka, Spashtakshara, udha, antra, Samana, Sarasamplava,

)u#adikrida, )u#avarta, 8ambhira, $rishavahana.

>D! *shta, $ishishta, Shishteshta, Shalabha, Sharabha, 7hanu, Tirtharupa,Tirthanama, Tirthadrishya, Stuta.

?! +rthada, +pamnidhi, +dhishthana, $ijaya, "ayakalavita, Pratishthita, Pramanajna,1iranyakavacha, 1ari, $imochana.

?

?=! Sarvabandhavimochana, $yavasaya, $yavasthana, Sthanada, "a#adadija,8uruda, 'alita, +bheda, havatmatmasamsthita, $ireshvara.

?>! $irabhadra, $irasanavidhi, $irata, $irachudamani, $etta, Tivrananda, adidhara,+jnadhara, Tridhuli, Shipivishta.

??! Shivalaya, alakhilya, ahachapa, Ti#mamshu, adhira, 6ha#a, +dhirma,Susharana, Subrahmanya, Sudhapati.

?@! a#havana, 6oushika, 8omana, $irama, Sarvasadhana, 'alataksha, $ishvadeha,Sara, Samsarachakrabhrita, +mo#hadanda.

?A! adhyastha, 1iranya, rahmavarchasi, Paramartha, Para, ayi, Shambara,


21/40

$ya#hralochana, &uchi, $irinchi.?B! Svarbandhu, $achaspati, +harpati, &avi, $irochana, Skanda, Shasta, $aivasvata,

)ama, )ukti.?C! 9nnatakirti, Sanura#a, Paranjaya, 6ailashadhipati, 6anta, Savita, &avilochana,

$idvattama, $itabhaya, $ishvabharta.?D! +nivarita, itya, iyatakalyana, Punyashravanakirtana, 7urashrava, $ishvasaha,

7hyeya, 7uhsvapnanashana, 9ttarana, 7ushkritiha.@! $ijneya, 7uhsaha, hava, +nadi hurbhuvakshi, 6iriti, &uchiran#ada, "anana,"anajanmadi, Pritimana.

@

Pranava, Satpatchachara, ahakasha.@=! aha#hana, "anmadhipa, ahadeva, Sakala#amapara#a, Tattva, Tattavit,

Ekatma, $ibhu, $ishvavibhushana, &ishi.@>! rahmana, +ishvaryajanmamrityujarati#a, Panchayajnasamutpatti, $ishvesha,

$imalodaya, +tmayoni, +nadyanta, $atsala, haktalokadhrika, 8ayatrivallabha.@?! Pramshu, $ishvavasa, Prabhakara,, Shishu, 8iriraha, Samrata, Sushena,

Surashatruha, +mo#ha, +rishtanemi.@@! 6umuda, $i#atajvara, Svayamjyoti, Tanujyoti, +chanchala, +tmajyoti, Pin#ala,

6apilashmashru, halanetra, Trayitanu.@A! "nanaskandamahaniti, $ishvotipatti, 9paplava, ha#a, $ivasvana, +ditya,

)o#apara, 7ivaspati, 6alyana#unanama, Papaha.@B! Punyadarshana, 9darakirti, 9dyo#i, Sadyo#i, Sadasanmaya, akshatramali,

akesha, Svadhishthanapadashraya, Pavitra, Paphari.@C! anipura, abho#ati, 1rit, Pundarikasina, Shatru, Shranta, $rishakapi, 9shna,

8rihapati, 6rishna.@D! Paramartha, +narthanashana, +dharmashatru, +jneya, Puruhuta, Purushruta,

rahma#arbha, $rihad#arbha, 7harmadhenu,7hana#ama.A! "a#addhitaishi, Su#ata, 6umara, 6ushala#ama, 1iranyavarna, "yotishmana,

anbhutarata, 7hvani, +ra#a, ayandyaksha.A

atamaha, atarishva, abhasvana, a#aharadhrika, Pulastya.

A=! Pulaha, +#astya, "atukarnya, Parashara, iravarananirvara, $airanchya,$ishtarashrava, +tmabhu, +niruddha, +tri.

A>! "nanamurti, ahayasha, 'okavira#ranti, $ira, 4handa, Satyaparakrama,$yalakapa, ahakalpa, 6alpaviriksha, 6aladhara,

A?! +lankarishnu, +chala, &ochishnu, $ikramonnata. +yuhshabdapati, $e#i, Plavana,Shikhisarathi, +samsrishta, +tithi.

A@! Shatrupreamathi, Padapasana, $asushrava, Pratapa, 1avyavaha, $ishvabhojana,

"apaya, "aradishamana, 'ohitatma, Tanunapata.AA! $rihadashva, abhoyoni, Supratika, Tamisraha, ida#ha, Tapana, e#ha,

Svaksha, Parapuranjaya, Sukhanila.AB! Sunishpanna, Surabhi, Shishiratmaka, $asanta, adhava, 8rishma, abhasya,

$ijavahana, +n#ira, 8uru.AC! +treya, $imala, $ishvavahana, Pavana, Sumati, $idvana, Travidya, aravahana,

anobuddhi, +hamkara.AD! 6shetrajna, 6shetrapalaka, "amada#ni, alanidhi, $i#ala, $ishva#alava, +#hora,

+nuttara, )ajna, Shreye.B! ishshreyahpatha, Shaila, 8a#anakundabha, 7anavari, +rindama, &ajanijanaka,

4haruvishalya, 'okakalpadhrika, 4haturveda, 4hatrubhava.B

aharupa, Sarvarupa, 4harachara, yayanirmayaka.B=! yayi, yaya#amya, irantara, Sahasramurddha, 7evendra,

Sarvashastraprabhanjana, unda, $irupa, $ikranta, 7andi.


22/40

B>! 7anta, 8unottama, Pin#alaksha, "anadhyaksha, ila#riva, iramaya,Sahasravahu, Sarvesha, Sharanya, Sarvalokadhrika.

B?! Padmasana, Paramjyoti, Parampara, Paramfala, Padma#arbha, aha#arbha,$ishva#arbha, $ichakshana, 4haracharajna, $arada.

B@! $aresha, ahabala, 7evasura#uru, 7eva, 7evasuramahashraya, 7evadideva,7eva#ni, 7eva#nisukhada, Prabhu, 7evasureshvara.

BA! 7ivya, 7evasuramaheshvara, 7evadevamaya, +chintya, 7evadevatmasambhava,Sadyoni, +suravya#hra, 7evasimha, 7ivakara, $ibudha#ravara.BB! Shreshtha, Sarvadevottamottama, Shivajnanarata, Shrimana, Shikhi-

shriparvatapriya, $ajrahasta, Siddhakhad#i, arasimhanipatana, rahmachari,

'okachari.BC! 7harmachari, 7hanadhipa, andi, andishvara, +nanta, a#navratadhara Shuchi,

'in#adhyaksha, Suradhyaksha, )o#adhyaksha.BD! )u#avaha, Svadharma, Svar#ata, Svar#akhara, Svaramayasvana, $anadhyaksha,

$ijakarta, 7harmakrit, 7harmasambhava, 7ambha.C! +lobha, +rthavit, Shambhu, Sarvahbutamaheshvara, Shmashananilaya, Tryksha,

Setu, +pratimakriti, 'okottaras-futaloka, Trymbaka.C

+kshaya#una, 7akshari, Pushadantabhit, 7hurjati, 6handaparashu.C=! Sakala, ishkala, +na#ha, +kala, Sakaladhara, Pandurabha, rida, ata, Purna,

Purayita,C>! Punya, Sukumara, Sulochana, Sama#eyapriya, +krura, Punyakirti, +naymaya,

anojava, Tirthakara, "atila.C?! "iviteshvara, "ivitantakara, itya, $asureta, $asuprada, Sad#ati, Satkriti, Siddhi,

Sajjati, 6alakantaka.C@! 6aladhara, ahakala, huasatyapraryana, 'okalavanyakarta, 'okottarasukhalaya,

4handrasanjivana, Shasta, 'oka#uda, ahadhipa, 'okabandhu.CA! 'okanatha, 6ritajna, 6rittibhushana, +napaya, +kshara, 6anta,

Sarvashastrahadvara, Tejomaya, 7yutidhara, 'oka#ranti.CB! +nu, Shuchismita, Prasannatma, 7urjjeya, 7uratikrama, "yotirmaya, "a#annatha,

irakra, "aleshvara, Tumbavina.

CC! ahakopa, $ishoka, Shokanashana, Trllokapa, Trilokesha, Sarvashuddhi,+dhokshaja, +vyaktalakshana, 7eva, $yaktavyakta.

CD $ishampati, $arashila, $ara#una, Saramandhana, aya, rahma, $ishnu,Prajapala, 1amsa, 1amsa#ati.

D! $aya, $edha, $idhata, 7hata, Srashta, 1arta, 4haturmukha, 6ailasashikharavasi,Sarvavasi, Sada#ati.

D

rahmanapriya, 7evapriya.D=! 7evanatha, 7evajna, 7evachintaka, $ishamaksha, $ishalaksha, $rishada,

$rishavardhana, irmama, irahamkara, irmoha.D>! irupadrava, 7arpha, 7arpada, 7ripta, Sarvabhutaparivartaka, Sahasrajit,

Sahasrarchi, Prabhava, Sni#ddhaprakriti, Sahasrarchi, Prabhava,Sni#ddhaprakritidakshina, hutabhavyabhavannatha.

D?! hutinashana, +rtha, +nartha, ahakosha, Parakaryaikapandita, ishkantaka,6ritananda, irvyaja, $yajamardana, Sattvavana.

D@! Sattvika, Satyakirti, Snehakrita#ama, +kampita, 8una#rahi, aikatma,aikakarmakrit, Suprita, Sumukha, Suksha.

DA! Sukara, 7akshinaila, andiskandhadhara, 7hurya, Prakata, Pritivardhana,+parajita, Sarvasattva, 8ovinda, +dhrita.

DB! Sattvavahana, Svadhrita, Siddha, Putamurti, )ashodhana, $arahabhrin#adhrika,hrin#i, alavana, Ekanayaka, Shrutiprakasha.

DC! Shrutimana, Ekabandhu, +nekakrit, Shrivatsalashivarambha, Shantabhadra,


23/40

Sama, )asha, hushaya,hushana, huti.DD! hutakrit, hutabhavana, +kampa, haktikaya, 6alaha, ilalohita, Satyavrata,

ahatya#i, ityashantiparayana, Pararthavritti.


24/40

Shiva now took pity on &urdruha and removed all evil thou#hts from his mind. Thehunter spared the deer. Shiva himself appeared before &urudruha and said, 0rom now

on your name will be 8uha. )ou will be so blessed that &ama will become your #uest.This story demonstrates that even if shivaratrivrata is performed unconsciously, #reat

punya is obtained.

(edanidhi

*n the city of +vanti there used to be a ri#hteous brahmana. 1e had two sons, Sunidhiand $edanidhi. $edanidhi was wicked.

The kin# of +vanti was so pleased with the brahmana that he #ave him a #oldenban#le as a present. The brahmana took it home and #ave it to his wife to store safely.

There it was discovered by $edanidhi. $edanidhi stole the ornament and #ave it to adancin#-#irl.

*t so happened that the kin# was watchin# a dance performed by the dancin#-#irl andhe noticed the ban#le on the #irl%s hand. 1e found out from the #irl that the ban#le

had been #iven to her by $edanidhi. 1e retrieved the ban#le and called the brahmana.7o you remember the #olden ban#le that * had #ive you2 said the kin#. 4an you

please return it to me2 * need it.The brahmana hurried home and asked his wife for the ban#le. ut it could not be

found and they reali5ed that it was $edanidhi who had stolen it. $edanidhi wasbanished from his parents% house.

1e wandered around here and there and be##ed food so that he mi#ht eat. (ne day,he did not #et any food at all. That day happened to be shivaratri. ut $edanidhi didn%t

know this. 1e saw several people #oin# to Shiva%s temple with all sorts of offerin#s,includin# food, in their hands. The evil brahmana thou#ht that he mi#ht be able to

steal and eat this food. 1e followed the devotees to the temple and waited till they

should fall asleep./hen they did so, $edanidhi crept up to the place where the offerin#s had been

placed. This was ri#ht in front of the lin#a. *t was very dark there and $edanidhi could

not see very well. + lamp was burnin# and the shadow of the lamp fell on the lin#a.

$edanidhi tore off a piece of cloth from his clothin# and stuffed it into the lamp so thatit mi#ht burn better. The flame rose and the shadow on the lin#a was removed.ut when $edanidhi was about to steal the food, the devotees awoke. They #ave chase

to the thief and shot at him with arrows. These arrow struck $edanidhi and he died.)ama%s messen#ers arrived and wanted to take the evil brahmana to hell. ut Shiva%s

companions also arrived and they would not permit $edanidhi to be taken to hell. Thebrahmana had fasted on shivaratri day, he stay awake at ni#ht and he had removed

the shadow from the lin#a. These were acts of the faithful, even if they had beenperformed unconsciously. $edanidhi%s sins were all for#iven.

Chandrashekhara

Parvati once asked Shiva, 'ord, tell me, why do you wear a crescent moon on yourforehead2 /hat is the story behind this2Shiva told her the story.

Earlier, Parvati had been born as Sati, the dau#hter of 7aksha. +s Sati, she had been

married to Shiva. Since 7aksha insulted her husband Shiva, Sati #ave up her life./hen Sati died, Shiva no lon#er found pleasure in anythin#. 1e be#an to live in the

forest and started to perform tapasya. Such was the power of the tapasya that any

trees or mountains that were near the place where Shiva was meditatin# used to beburnt into ashes. +s Shiva moved from place to place, the earth started to burn and


25/40

wither away . The #ods were #reatly alarmed at these developments. They went torahma to seek advice as to how the earth mi#ht be saved.

rahma, said, 'et us take the moon #od 4handra with us and make a present of himto Shiva. 4handra%s visa#e is so pleasin# that Shiva may feel happy and pacified.

The #ods placed 4handra in a pot of amrita a life-#ivin# drink!. They also had anotherpot that was full of poison. /ith these two pots they went to Shiva and offered him the

pots.rahma said, The #ods have brou#ht you two pots. Please accept them.Shiva first accepted the pot that contained the amrita. +s soon as he did this, the

crescent moon came out and #ot fixed to Shiva%s forehead. ext Shiva accept the pot

of poison and touched it with his middle fin#er. 1e touched his throat with the fin#erand the throat became blue. That is the reason why Shiva is known as ilakantha,

blue of throat. +nd because the moon is like a crown to Shiva. Shiva is called4handrashekhara.

+t the si#ht of the moon, Shiva was pacified.

The %shes

Parvati said, * understand about the moon now. ut why do you always smear asheson your body2 /hat is the reason for that2

Shiva told her the story.There used to be a brahmana who was descended from the #reat sa#e hri#u. This

brahmana be#an a very difficult tapasya. The tremendous heat of the summer madeno difference to him. or was he disturbed by the downpour of the monsoon. 1e was

only interested in meditatin#. /hen he felt hun#ry, he used to ask the bears, the deer,the lions and the jackals to fetch him some fruits. The wild beasts had lost all fear of

him, they served him instead. 'ater on, the brahmana #ave up eatin# fruits also. 1e

ate only #reen leaves. +nd because leaves are called parna, the brahmana came to beknown as Parnada. 1e performed tapasya for many years.

(ne day, Parnada was cuttin# some #rass and his scythe slipped and sliced off his

middle fin#er. Parnada was ama5ed to find that no blood issued from the severed joint.

*nstead, a sap like that which issues from plants came out. Parnada%s vanity knew nobounds. 1e reali5ed that his was due to the fact that he had been livin# on #reenleaves for such lon# time. Parnada be#an to jump with deli#ht.

Shiva decided that Parnada needed to be tau#ht a lesson. 1e dis#uised himself as abrahmana and arrived before Parnada.

/hy are you so happy2 asked Shiva.4an%t you see2 replied Parnada. y tapasya has been so successful that my blood has

become like the sap of plants.This sort of vantiy destroys the fruits of all tapasya, said Shiva. /hat have you #ot to

be so proud about2 )our blood has only turned into the sap of plants. /hat happenswhen you burn plants2 They become ashes. * myself have performed so much tapasya

that my blood has becomes ashes.

Shiva sliced off his middle fin#er and ashes came out of it. Parnada was impressed. 1ereali5ed that there was nothin# that he could be proud about: here was a far #reaterhermit than he. 1e asked Shiva who he was and Shiva then displayed his true form to

Parnada.Ever since that day, there have always been ashes on Shiva%s body.

#andi


26/40

There was a sa#e named Shilada. 1e once saw that his ancestors were bein# torturedin hell. /hen he tried to find out why this was so, he was told that htis was because

Shilada did not yet have a son.To obtain a son, Shilada be#an to pray to Shiva. 1e prayed for a thousand years. +t

the end of the tapasya, Shiva appeared and offered to #rant Shilada a boon. Shiladawanted the boon that he mi#ht have a virtuous son.

+ few days later, when Shilada was plou#hin# the land, he discovered a baby boy onthe blade of theplou#h. The boy was as bri#ht as the sun and the fire. Shilada wasfri#htened and started to run away. ut the boy called after him, 0ather, stop. 0ather,

stop, + voice was then heard from the sky. This voice told Shilada that this was the

son he had wanted. Since this son would make everyone happy, he was to be namedandi.

Shilada brou#ht nandi home to his mermita#e. 1e tau#ht his son the $edas, the arts ofthe medicine and fi#htin#, dancin# and sin#in# and several other sacred texts. +ll this

andi mastered within fifteen days./hen nandi was seven years old, two powerful sa#es arrived in Shilada%s hermita#e.

Their names were itra and $aruna. Shilada worshipped them and presented andibefore them. The sa#es blessed andi with the words, e learned, be faithful to your

teacher.Shilada said, Sa#es, why didn%t you bless my son with a lon# life2

/e couldn%t, replied the sa#es. )our son is #oin# to die when he is ei#ht years old.That is written in his stars.

Shilada was crestfallen to hear this, but andi consoled his father. 1e promised hisfather that he would do somethin# so tha this fate would have to be rewritten. 1e

would pray to Shiva. +nd when he met Shiva, he would ask of him a boon.eetin# Shiva, exclaimed Shilada. * had to meditate for a thousand years before *

could #et to meet Shiva. 1ow do you expect to meet Shiva in the one year tha tis leftto you2%

/ait and see, father, replied andi. Shiva is difficult to meet if you only performtapasya or thirst for knowled#e. The secret lies in faith and devotion. * will mana#e.

There is a river named huvana. andi entered this river and be#an underwater

prayers to Shiva . 1is efforts pleased Shiva so much that Shiva appeared before him./hat boon do you want2 asked Shiva.

Please #rant me the boon that * may be devote to you, replied andi. * don%t want tobe born become old and die.

Shiva #ranted andi the boon tha the and his father would #et to live in Shiva%sresidence in Shivaloka. Shiva%s companions are known as 2#anas. Shiva made andi

#anapati, the chief of the #anas and retained him as a perpetu 2 companion. Shiva

also #ave andi a wonderful #arland to wear. +s soon as he put this #arland on, andibecame resplendent with three eyes and ten hands.

Time

The smallest unit of time is nimesha. This is the amount of time it takes to blink.0ifteen nimeshas make one kashtha and thirty kashthas are one kala. Thirty kalasmake one muhurta and thirty muhurtas are one day. Thirty days are one month. Each

month is divided into two lunar fortni#hts, shukapaksha and krishnapaksha. Sixmonths are called an ayana. There are thus two ayanas in a year. Three hundred and

sixty human years are e3uivalent to one year for the #ods.The len#ths of the four yu#as eras! are defined in terms of years of the #ods, not in

terms of human years. There are four eras and their names are kritayu#a orsatyayu#a, tretayu#a, dvaparayu#a and kaliyu#a. Satyayu#a lasts for four thousand

divine years, tretayu#a for three thousand, dvaparayu#a for two thousand and


27/40

kaliyu#a for one thousand. This adds up to ten thousand divine years. The sandhyasand sandhyamshas are the intervenin# periods between the yu#as and these add up to

two thousand divine years. Thus, the four yu#as taken to#ether last for twelvethouand divine years.

*n a kalpa cycle!, each of the four yu#as occurs a thousand times. + kalpa hasfourteen manvantaras eras!. *n a manvantara, each of the four yu#as thus occurs

seventy one times. (ne kalpa corresponds to one day for rahma. (ne thousandkalpas are one of rahma%s years and ei#ht thousand of rahma%s years make one ofrahma%s yu#as. (ne thousand such yu#as make up one savana and rahma lives for

three thousand savanas. This period is known as a trivrita.

7urin# each of $ishnu%s days, one rahma is born and dies. +nd durin# each of Shiva%sdays, one $ishnu is born and dies.

'aksha *a&na

The sa#es aid, &omaharshana, you have not told us the story of the 3uarrel between

7aksha and Shiva which led to Sati%s death. )ou have only mentioned it in passin#.Tell us the story now.

&omaharshana related the followin# story.7aksha%s dau#hter Sati was married to Shiva. (ne day, the #ods, the demons and the

sa#es went to visit Shiva and Sati in the 1imalyas. 7aksha accompanied the other#ods on this visit. /hen the #ods arrived, Shiva was seated and did not #et up. 1e

showed no special honour to 7aksha because 7aksha happened to be his father-in-law. 7aksha interpreted this as a si#n of disrespect. 1e felt insulted.

Subse3uently, 7aksha arran#ed for a yajna and sent invitations to all his other sons-in-law and their wives. 1e did not invite Shiva or Sati. ut Sati heard about the

sacrifice and resolved that she would attend it, invitiation or no invitation. *n a

beautiful vimana, Sati travelled to her father%s house.7aksha was not at all pleased to see Sati. *n fact, he i#nored her completely and

devoted all his attention to his other dau#hters. /hen Sati wished to know the reason

for this, 7aksha told her that this was because of her husband, who happened to be a

worthless fellow and did not deserve any respect. 1earin# this, Sati #ave up her life.The mountain 1imalaya had prayed that Sati mi#ht be born as his dau#hter. Sati wasborn as his dau#hter Parvati and married Shiva a#ain. This story you already know.

Several years later, 7aksha resolved to hold an ashvamedha yajna horse sacrifice! inthe 1imalayas. The #ods and the sa#es were all invited to this sacrifices, althou#h

Shiva was not amon#st the invites. The sa#e 7adhichi did not like this sli#ht to Shivaand he boycotted the yajna in protest.

Parvati heard about this sacrifice and she be#an to incite Shiva to do somethin#. Shivacreated a bein# named $irabhadhra. $irabhadhra shone with ener#y and he had

thousands of mouths and eyes. 1is hair #listened like li#htin# and his hands were fullof all sorts of weapons. /hen he spoke, it was like thunder. 0rom his body, $irabhadra

created a female demon named hadrakali./hat are our orders2, asked $irabhadra and hadrakali of Shiva.

8o and destroy 7aksha%s yajna, was the order.To help them in their endeavour, $irabhadra created several other demons from parts

of his body. +ll of them had a thousand arms and carried weapons. $irabhadra,hadrakali and these other demons headed for 7aksha%s sacrifice.

/hen they #ot there, they found that the sacrifice had already started and the sacred

fire was burnin#. The sa#es were recitin# hymns and the #ods were watchin#. usicalinstruments were bein# played. $irabhadra roared and the sound of the roar was so


28/40

terrible that several of the #ods be#an to run away. The earth shook with the sound ofthe roar. There were tidal waves in the ocean.

7aksha was fri#htened. ut he summoned up coura#e and asked, /ho are you andwhy have you come here2

/e are Shiva%s servants and we have come to take part in the sacrifice, replied$irabhadra.

$irabhadra and the other demons then proceeded to bu

hindi shivpuran

Documents