Bali

Our Bharathiya cultural heritage has withstood the test of time and we have to be grateful to our great Rishis for this. Among the eighty four lakhs of living beings, man is considered to be the most superior. Hence, our great Sages have said that, by virtue of occupying such…

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60) Exploring the Divine Power of Lord Vishnu, the Almighty God

Describing  about  the  superiority of  Lord  Vishnu  among  the  trinity  Gods’  Sage  Vashishtha narrated the following tale–During ancient times, Swayambhuva manu had once gone to Mandarachal mountain to perform a yagya. Many scholars and learned men had come to attend that yagya. Very soon, they got into a debate as…

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58) THE DECLINE OF YADU DYNASTY

Parvati was listening to the divine tales of Sri Krishna with rapt attention. Lord Mahadeva told Parvati– ‘Paundrak was the king of Kashi. He did an austere penance for twelve years to please me. When I appeared before him, he requested me to make his appearance look like Sri Krishna….

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57) ANIRUDHA MARRIES USHA

Lord Mahadeva continued with the divine tales of Sri Krishna–O Parvati! Sri Krishna had a son from Rukmini whose name was ‘Aniruddha’. Aniruddha was very brave and had killed a demon named Shambasur. There is an interesting tale how Aniruddha married Usha. Once, Usha–the daughter of Banasur, saw a very…

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56) SRI KRISHNA’S QUEENS

Continuing with the divine tales of Sri Krishna, Lord Mahadeva told Parvati–Sri Krishna had 16 thousand queens among whom Satyabhama, Kalindi, Mitravinda, etc. were prominent. King Sattajit had a priceless diamond named–Syamantak, which he had presented to his younger brother–Prasena. Sri Krishna was fascinated by that diamond and demanded it…

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55) ABDUCTION OF RUKMINI

Lord Mahadeva told Parvati— When Jarasandh learnt about Kalyavan’s death, he attacked Balarama to avenge his friend’s death. But, very soon he realized that it was beyond his capacity to defeat Balarama, so he retreated alongwith his army. Sri Krishna and Balarama returned to Dwarka.In course of time, Balarama married…

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54) JARASANDH

 Jarasandh was the father-in-law of Kansa. When he learnt about Kansa’ death he surrounded Mathura with a huge army. Sri Krishna was well aware of Jarasandh’s might and bravery. He was also convinced that it would not be easy to defeat Jarasandh. So, he remembered Daruk–his eternal charioteer and sought…

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53) KILLING OF KANSA

Continuing with the divine tales of Sri Krishna, Lord Mahadeva told Parvati–When Kansa failed in his repeated attempts to kill Sri Krishna, he instructed ‘Akrura’ to invite both Krishna and Balarama to Mathura on the pretext of attending a ceremony called Dhanush-yagya. Kansa had planned to kill Sri Krishna by…

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51) SRI RAMA’S CORONATION

Describing the coronation of Sri Rama Lord Mahadeva told Parvati–People of Ayodhya rejoiced at the return of Sri Rama. An auspicious day was chosen for his coronation and Sri Rama became the king of Ayodhya amidst the chantings of Vedic mantras. Sri Rama ruled over Ayodhya for one thousand years…

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50) SRI RAMA’S EXILE

Lord Mahadeva continued with the tale of Sri Rama and told Parvati –Dasharath wanted to appoint Sri Rama as his successor but Kaikeyi did not like this idea. She wanted Bharata to be made the king of Ayodhya and Sri Rama to be sent into exile for 14 years. Once,…

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49) SRI RAMA GROWS UP

Continuing with the tale of Sri Rama, Lord Mahadeva told Parvati–Dasharath requested Vashishtha to perform the Jatkarm Sanskar of Sri Rama. In course of time Kaikeyi gave birth to Bharata–an incarnation of Panchajanya conch. Similarly, Sumitra gave birth to two sons– Lakshman and Shatrughan. Lakshman was the incarnation of Sheshnag…

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48) SRI RAMA’S BIRTH

Describing about Sri Rama’s incarnation Lord Mahadeva told Parvati–‘Once, Swayambhuva Manu had expressed his desire of having Lord Vishnu as his son to which Lord Vishnu had agreed. During Treta Yuga Manu manifested himself as Dasharath and Vishnu kept his promise by taking birth as his son–Sri Rama. Similarly, during…

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47) VAMANA–INCARNATION

Continuing with the various incarnations of Lord Vishnu, Lord Mahadeva told Parvati — Prahlada had a son named Virochan.The most benevolent king–‘Mahabahu-Bali’ was Virochan’s son. Bali had defeated the deities and ruled over all the three worlds. Sage Kashyapa commenced the most austere penance–Payovrata to help the deities regain their lost…

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46) NRISIMHA–INCARNATION

Continuing with the various incarnations of Lord Vishnu, Lord Mahadeva told Parvati — Sage Kashyapa had two mighty sons from Diti–Hiranyakashipu and Hiranyaksha. Hiranyaksha had once carried the earth to Rasatala. The deities requested Lord Vishnu to rescue the earth. Lord Vishnu took the incarnation of a boar and killed…

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45) THE INCARNATIONS OF MATSYA AND KURMA

Once, goddess Parvati expressed her desire to know about all the incarnations of Lord Vishnu. Lord Mahadeva replied– Lord Brahma had created numerous Prajapatis like Bhrigu, Marichi, Atri, Daksha, Kardam, Pulastya, Pulaha, Angira and Kratu. Marichi was the father of Kashyapa. Sage Kashyapa had four wives–Aditi, Diti, Kadru and Vinta.Aditi…

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44) VAIKUNTH–THE ABODE OF LORD VISHNU

Describing about the grandeur of Vaikunth, Lord Shiva told Parvati–A person who has total devotion in Vishnu attains to Vaikunth after his death. Vaikuntha is the abode of Vishnu and constitutes of numerous Janapadas. The magnificence of Vaikunth is beyond description and it houses  many grand  palaces  fully decorated with …

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43) INDRAPRASTHA

The sages enquired from Suta about the holiest city situated on the banks of river Yamuna. Suta narrated the tale which Sage Saubhari had once told Yudhisthira—Once, Narada and Parvat were travelling through an aerial route, while they were flying over Khandav forest, they were lured by the beautiful sight…

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42) QUALITIES OF A VAISHNAV

Giving a detailed description of the qualities of a Vaishnava, Lord Shiva told Narada — A person who has total devotion in Lord Vishnu is called a Vaishnava. He is truthful, kind and forgiving by nature. He engages himself in austere penance and refrains from any kind of violence. He…

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41) DASHARATH PACIFIES SHANI

Sage Narada curiously asked Lord Mahadeva as to what made Shani such a volatile planet.Lord Mahadeva replied— Shani is extremely violent by nature and everybody is scarred of this planet. Once, the royal astrologer of Dasharath was petrified at the prospect of Shani entering the constellation of Rohini and warned…

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40) THE DESCENT OF RIVER GANGA

Describing about the reason why river Ganga was brought down on the earth, Lord Mahadeva told Narada— King Bhagirath was the architect of Ganga’s arrival on the earth. He wanted to liberate his dead ancestorss from the curse of Sage Kapila. King Sagar came from the lineage of the famous…

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39) UTTAR – KHAND BADRIKASHRAMA

Once, on being asked by the sages about the greatness of Badrikasharama, Suta narrated the same tale, which Lord Shiva had once told sage Narada — Lord Mahadeva had told Narada that altogether there were one lakh and twenty-five thousand mountains   and   Badrikashrama   was   supreme   among   them.   Lord   Mahadeva   said—…

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38) SITA RETURNS TO AYODHYA

Sri Rama eulogised all the revered sages who had arrived to attend the Ashwamedha Yagya. The holy water of Saryu was brought and sprinkled in the yagya kund where Ashwamedha Yagya was being performed, amidst the chanting of vedic mantras. Hardly had Sri Rama touched the horse with his hands…

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37) SRI RAMA SENDS LAKSHMAN TO BRING SITA

Sage Valmiki was present in Ayodhya to attend the Ashwamedha Yagya. Sri Rama asked him about the identity of the two children–Lav and Kush. Valmiki said — Sita was pregnant at the time you had abandoned her. I gave her refuge in my hermitage where she gave birth to twins–…

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36) THE ARMY RETURNS TO AYODHYA

Shatrughan  decided to  return  to  Ayodhya.  He  instructed Sumati  to make all  the necessary arrangements for the safe return of the caravan, which comprised not only of Sri Rama’s army but also of all the defeated kings and their vanquished armies. When Sri Rama came to know about their arrival,…

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35) LAV BECOMES UNCONSCIOUS

When Shatrughan learnt about Hanuman’s fate he was infuriated and went to fight Lav. But when he saw a tender looking child in front of him he was surprised. Shatrughan asked — ‘O brave child! Who are you! Who is your father?’ But Lav was not interested in his irrelevant…

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34) LAV VANQUISHES THE WHOLE ARMY

Shatrughan became extremely furious after seeing the condition of his injured soldiers. He instructed Kalnemi to teach Lav a lesson. Kalnemi confronted Lav with a huge army and a ferocious battle took place. Lav managed to kill Kalnemi, which created havoc in the rival’s army. The surviving soldiers tried to…

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33) LAV FASTENS THE HORSE

Some of the kings tried to stop the horse, but were defeated by Shatrughan. This way the horse continued to move ahead without any problem till it reached the bank of river Ganga. It was early morning and Lav after noticing the presence of horse become curious. He went near…

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32) THE HORSE IS LET LOOSE

As per the advice of Sage Vashishtha, Sri Rama instructed his soldiers to bring a white-horse. A white parasol was fixed on its back and the horse was decorated with colourful clothes. The horse was then let loose and the faithful soldiers of Sri Rama followed it wherever the horse…

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31) AGASTYA ADVISES SRI RAMA TO PERFORM ASHWAMEDHA YAGYA

Sri Rama requested sage Agastya to tell about the means by which he could become liberated from the sins of killing brahmins. Sage Agastya advised him to perform Ashwamedha Yagya. He also described the rituals of performing Ashwamedha Yagya— “Get a horse of white colour and after worshipping it on…

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30) PATAL KHAND – RAVANA– THE MIGHTY DEMON

People of Ayodhya lived peacefully during Sri Rama’s reign until one fateful day when they were struck by a bad news–Sri Rama had abandoned Sita after a Washerman leveled an unfair charge against her character. Such was the greatness of Sri Rama that opinion of each and every individual was…

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27) SWARGA KHANDA – KASHIPURI, KAPARDISHWAR AND GAYA

On being asked by Yudhisthira about the grandeur of holy places like Kashipuri, Kapardishwar and Gaya. Narada said — Just as Lord Mahadeva is supreme among all the deities, in the same manner Kashipuri holds a significant status among all the places of pilgrimage. Hence an individual should make it…

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26) SWARGA KHANDA – ‘DHARMA TIRTH’ AND YAMUNA-SNAN

Sage Narada continued with the description of various holy places and said— “A pilgrim must visit  Dharma  Tirth,  which  is  named  after  the  lord  of  death–Dharma.  Once  upon  a  time Dharmaraj had performed an austere penance at that place this is the reason why it became famous as Dharma Tirth….

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25) SWARGA KHANDA – JAMBUMARG, RIVER NARMADA AMARKANTAK

Continuing with his narration, Sage Vashishtha said— A man desirous of going on a pilgrimage should first of all visit Jambumarg, because it is revered even by the deities and the sages. By visiting this holy place a man acquires virtue equivalent to the accomplishment of an Ashwamedha Yagya and…

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24) SWARGA KHANDA – SOME PROMINENT HOLY PLACES OF BHARATAVARSHA

Once, sages requested Suta to describe about the most prominent places of pilgrimage situated in Bharatavarsha. Suta commenced his narration by describing the origin of creation and then switched over to the geographical characteristics of Bharatavarsha. Suta said—‘There are seven prominent mountain ranges in Bharatavarsha–Mahendra, Malay, Sahya, Shaktiman, Rikshavan, Vindhya…

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23) BHUMI KHAND – KUNJAL NARRATES ABOUT HIS PREVIOUS BIRTH

Sage Chyavan, who had been listening to the narration of Kunjal, was amazed by his profound knowledge. He asked Kunjal—O great soul! Who are you? From where did you acquire such divine knowledge.’ Kunjal, who remembered everything about his previous birth said– In my previous birth, I was the youngest…

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22) BHUMI KHAND – KUNJAL PREACHES VIJJWAL

Describing  the  virtue  of  benevolence  to  Vijjwal.  Kunjal–the  learned  parrot  narrated  the following tale — Once, there lived a king named Subahu who ruled over chola desha. A learned brahmin named Jaimini used to counsel him on religious and spiritual matters. One day, while Jaimini was giving a discourse on…

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21) BHUMI KHAND – KUNJAL–THE ENLIGHTENED PARROT

Once,  while  describing  about  the  importance  of  a  teacher,  Lord  Vishnu  had  narrated  the following tale to king Vena— Sage Chyavan came from the lineage of Bhargav. Once, he arrived at Omkareshwar with the objective of acquiring knowledge. Since he was tired, he decided to take rest under the shade…

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20) YAYATI MARRIES ASHRUBINDUMATI

Once, king Yayati went into a forest for hunting. He saw a stag, which had four horns and chased it. The deer led him deep into the forest and then disappeared. Yayati was tired and thirsty. He saw a lake and decided to quench his thirst. First of all he…

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19) KING YAYATI PROPAGATES VAISHNAVA–DHARMA

King Yayati was the son of Nahush and a descendant of Soma–dynasty. He was a great devotee of Lord Vishnu and had contributed a lot in the propagation of Vaishnava–dharma. Yayati had sent many emissaries in all directions to propagate Vaishnava–dharma. During Yayati’s reign his subject were prosperous and were…

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18) BHUMI KHAND – DIFFERENT TYPES OF SIN AND VIRTUE

 Once, Yayati requested Matali to describe the various sinful and virtuous deeds, which a man normally commits in his life. Matali  replied—‘One  who  criticizes  the  vedas  and  follows  the  religion  of  other’s  after abandoning his own or torments virtuous people is a grave sinner. Similarly, not respecting one’s parents,  not…

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17) THE IMPORTANCE OF SURYA’S WORSHIP

Once, while describing about the importance of Surya’s worship to Vaishampayan, Sage Vyasa narrated the following tale — There lived a king named Bhadreshwar. He ruled over Madhyadesh. Once his left hand was infected with leprosy. Bhadreshwar, fearing the prospect of dreadful leprosy spreading to his whole body, decided to…

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16) THE SIGNIFICANCE OF RUDRAKSHA, AMLA AND TULSI

 Once, while describing about the importance of Rudraksha to the sages, Vyasa said— One who wears a Rudraksha rosary is supreme among all human beings. The mere sight of such a holy man absolves people of their sin. A Rudraksha bead bears features of a Linga and yoni on its…

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15) NAROTTAM—THE BRAHMIN

Describing about the importance of five virtuous deeds, Pulastya said to Bhisma—“The five supreme virtuous deeds are–obedience to parents, faithfulness towards husband, equanimity, not having enmity towards friends and devotion towards Lord Vishnu. By pleasing his father, one pleases all the deities. Mother is superior even to all the places…

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14) BRAHMIN’S LIVELIHOOD

Describing how a brahmin should earn his livelihood, Lord Brahma said to Narada–Alms, which a brahmin gets without making any demand for it, is called Vritta. ‘Unchhavritti’ is even better than Vritti and it means collecting foodgrain which are scattered in places like fields, granary, market-place etc. A brahmin should…

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13) AN IDEAL BRAHMIN AND THE SIGNIFICANCE OF GAYATRI MANTRA

Describing about the qualities of an ideal brahmin, Sage Pulastya said— Once, Narada had asked Lord Brahma as to who was worthy of receiving Vishnu’s blessings. Lord Brahma had told Narada that Lord Vishnu showered his blessings on those who engaged themselves in the service of brahmins. A brahmin should…

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