23) SAGE SHWET

The sages were very curious to know about sage Shwet. Lord Brahma narrated the following tale

 

“Once, there lived a sage named Shwet. He was a great devotee of Lord Shiva. He lived in a cave and engaged himself in severe penance, continuously chanting the holy name of Shiva. When the time of his death approached, ‘Kal arrived there to take his life. Sage Shwet started eulogizing Lord Shiva. He challenged ‘Kal’ that being a devotee of Shiva he was beyond the reach of death. But, Kal made fun of him and told him that  nobody could escape death. Sage Shwet had unshakable faith in Lord Shiva. Pointing towards the Shivalinga, he told Kal that he would remain unharmed because of Lord Shiva who was present in that Shivalinga. Suddenly, Kal tied him with his noose and said—See, Now you are absolutely under my control and even your deity seems to be helpless. To protect his devotee, Lord Shiva arrived on the scene accomplished by Goddess Amba, Ganapati and Nandi. ‘Kal’ got scared to such an extent that he fainted and died.”

 

The sages curiously asked Lord Brahma about the means with which Shiva could be pleased. Lord Brahma told them that only deep devotion and nothing else could please Lord Shiva.

 

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