When Krishna and Balarama entered sixth year of their ages, they got the permission to take the cattles out for grazing. Along with their fellow cowherds the two brothers too began to take their cattle to Vrindavana. Thus they sanctified the earth of Vrindavana with their pious feet. Seeing the…
The story of Taladhwaja was retold to solve a variety of problems—above all, how a sage could remain an ascetic when he had changed genders to marry a king. The solution in the Devi Purana was a kind of popular use of Advaita philosophy in a myth: using a popular…
The grandfather of this kalpa, Kasyapa-prajapati, founded the kingdom of serpents with his wife Kadru. Takshaka was one of her seven greatest children, the septa-nagas. Takshaka and her most righteous children were cursed to be reborn on earth and to be burned alive as their punishment for not obeying their…
Surya was a primary deity of the Aryans at the time of the earliest hymns of the Rigveda. The solar cult saw the sun as the most obvious symbol of life, consciousness, and divinity. For some time within each of the first three periods of Hindu mythology, Surya was…
In the Epics Sukra was the son or grandson of Bhrigu, the powerful magician who almost killed Agni. Sukra was also known as Kavya. Sukra became the greatest master of magic of his age, but he served the asuras. The devas (gods) sent sage Kaca to learn how he had…
The concept of purification (suddhi) is linked to pollution (mala) and the ways it is removed: ritually, physically, or even by divine grace. Central to the Vedic sacrifices was the notion that blood sacrifices would atone for wrong-doing and remove a form of purification called agnisuddhi. Siva was not invited…
