Narada asks sage Pulastya about Vamana incarnation: Vamana Purana is one of the eighteen Puranas written by sage Vyasa. It contains tales pertaining to Lord Vishnu in his Vamana (dwarf) incarnation. Sage Pulastya while giving answers to Narada’s enquiry narrates the tale of Vamana Purana. All the Puranas give glimpses…
Pulastya says- “This way, both Shiva and Sati lived above the clouds till the end of rainy season. When autumn season arrived, both decided on returning to Mandar Mountain. Daksha had organised a grand Yagya in which he had invited all the prominent deities and sages except his own son-in-law,…
Lord Shiva had committed a grave sin of Brahmahatya. All his efforts of separating Brahma’s skull from his left palm went in vain. In the meantime, an entity named Brahmahatya appeared before him and entered into his body. Lord Shankar decided to go to Badrikashrama to atone for his sins….
Fearing Lord Shiva’s wrath, Lord Vishnu went to Hrishikesh and remained aloof for quite some time. Shiva’s anger generated so much heat that it was enough to melt the eight Vasus. As a result, a river named Sita started flowing from there. After being attacked by Lord Shiva, the deities…
Sage Narada was curious to know how the demon King Andhak behaved with the deities. He asked Pulastya in this regard. Pulastya replied- “After ascending the throne, Andhak did a severe penance to please Lord Shiva and received a boon according to which he could neither be killed by the…
Sukeshi was the son of demon King Vidyutkeshi. He was a great devotee of Lord Shiva. Being pleased by his devotion, Lord Shiva had blessed him with invincibility and gifted him a city, which was situated in the sky. Sukeshi was a virtuous and just king. Once, he had gone…
Sukeshi asked the sages about the sinful deeds, which leads to hell. The sages replied- “People who condemn Veda, deities, Brahmins etc. go to hell. Those who don’t believe in religious texts like Purana etc. or those who cause obstacles in the accomplishment of Yagya or those who prevent a…
Sukeshi expressed his desire to the sages to know about Jambudweep. The sages replied- “Jambudweep is a very large island. It is subdivided into nine parts. Ilavritvarsh is situated in its central part while Bhadrashvavarsh is situated towards its eastern side. Some prominent places situated around it are- Hiranyakvarsh towards…
The sages say- “Dharma consists of ten properties such as non-violence, truth, charity, not stealing the property of others, forgiveness, self-restraint, cleanliness etc. Hence it is known as Dashang Dharma. These properties are obligatory for people belonging to all castes and creeds. A Brahmin’s life is categorised into four ashramas-…
Pulastya says- “After being enlightened by the sages on various subjects, Sukeshi returned to his capital. He taught the demons all that he had learnt. As a result, all the demons became very virtuous. The newly attained virtuosity and religiousness made the demons invincible and powerful. Sukeshi’s capital was situated…
Sage Pulastya says- “Dharma, the possessor of divine body and who manifested from the heart of Lord Brahma married Murti, the daughter of Daksha. Four sons were born to them- Hari, Krishna, Nara and Narayan. Hari and Krishna engaged themselves in the practice of Yoga whil Nar and Narayan went…
Once Narayan saw all three of them coming and he treated all of them with respect. As he was aware of the reasons for their arrival, he decided to give them a surprise. He made the figure of a beautiful woman on his thigh with a flower. The next moment,…
A ferocious battle was fought between Prahlada and Nar-Narayan in which all types of lethal weapons were used. The battle continued for 1000 divine years. Ultimately, Prahlada was defeated in this battle. He went to Vaikunth and asked Lord Vishnu as to why Nar-Narayan was invincible. Lord Vishnu revealed to…
Pulastya says- “Lotus flower manifested from Vishnu’s navel in the month of Ashwin. Similarly, other vegetation also manifested from the different organs of the deities- Kadamb tree from the palm of Kamadev, Dhatura tree from the heart of Lord Shiva, Khair tree from the middle portion of Brahma’s body,…
During ancient times, there lived two demons- Rambh and Karambh who would torment people. As both were sonless, they decided to do severe penance by keeping their bodies submerged in Panchmad River with a desire of having sons. Indra becoming fearful, took the guise of a crocodile and killed Karambh…
Once, the demon brothers, Chand and Mund were passing near the Vindhya Mountain when they saw Goddess Chandika there. Both these demons were stunned by her divine beauty. They had never seen such a beautiful woman in their life. They went to Mahishasura and told him about her beauty. Mahishasura…
Narada asked sage Pulastya as to how Goddess Durga kill Mahishasura. Sage Pulastya replied- “After the killing of Chikshur, Mahishasura sent Namar to fight Goddess Durga. Namar proceeded towards the Vindhya Mountain accompanied by a huge battalion. After reaching there, he shot a volley of arrows towards the Vindhya Mountain….
Revealing the reasons for Goddess Durga’s re-incarnation, sage Pulastya says- “Goddess Durga is also known as Kaushiki as she had manifested from the cell (Koshika) of Uma’s (Parvati’s) body. After the manifestation, she went to Vindhya Mountain with the objective of killing the demons Shumbh and Nishumbh. She was accompanied…
In course of time, Tapti gave birth to a son, who possessed all the signs of royalty. After growing up, he mastered all the four Vedas and other scriptures within a very short period. At the raw age of 24, he became a scholar. When he attained marriageable age, he…
Lomaharshan told the sages- “Bali was the descendant of Virochan and the son of Hiranyakashipu. After his father’s death, he defeated the deities and drove them out from their abodes. Very soon, all the three worlds were under his control. He was a virtuous king and so were his subjects….
Lord Brahma told the deities that he was aware of their plight. He was of the opinion that the mighty Bali could be defeated only by the Almighty himself and nobody else. Lord Brahma said- “You must go to a place called Amrit, which is situated towards the north of…
Lomaharshan says- “When Bali saw the demons becoming devoid of radiance and power, he enquired about the reasons from his grandfather, Prahlada. He wondered whether it was a bad omen. Prahlada went into a deep trance and saw the whole earth shaking violently. He also saw high tides rising in…
Bali felt sorry for hurting Prahlada’s feelings. He said- “Dear grandfather! My intelligence has been overshadowed by my arrogant attitude. You have done the right thing by cursing me. I am not scared of losing all my prosperity and splendour but your anger is unbearable for me.” Now even Prahlada…
Lomaharshan says- “The shaking and trembling of earth surprised Bali and he enquired about this strange happening to Shukracharya. He was also surprised by the fact that Agni was not accepting the offerings. Shukracharya, after contemplating for a while on this matter, came to know about Vamana’s incarnation. He…
The sages requested Lomaharshan to reveal about river Saraswati’s origin, which flowed in Kurukshetra. Lomaharshan said- “Saraswati originates from Pakad tree (Indian fig tree). She enters Dwaitvan after passing through numerous mountains. While describing about her majesty, sage Markandeya felt that Saraswati was the source from, which everything originated-…
The sages requested Lomaharshan to describe about the geographical condition of Kurukshetra. Lomaharshan replied- “There are 7 different forest ranges in Kurukshetra. They are- “Kamyakvan, Aditivan, Vyasavan, Phalkivan, Suryavan, Madhuvan and Sheetvan. Nine rivers flow across Kurukshetra- Saraswati, Vaitarni, Ashga, Mandakini Ganga, Madhustrava, Vasu, Kaushiki, Kaggar and Hiranyavati. Kurukshetra is…
Sage Mankanak was the Manasputra of Kashyapa. He had seven sons, who were famously known as Marud Ganas. They are the one who hold all the movable and immovable objects of this world. Once, sage Mankanak injured his finger by the sharp edge of Kusha grass while he was trying…
Describing about the greatness of Aushanas, the most sacred place of pilgrimage, Lomaharshan narrates the following tale- “During Treta Yuga, Lord Rama had killed many demons while he was in exile. Once, while he was living in Dandak forest, he had severed the head of a wicked demon with his…
The sages asked Lomaharshan about the origin of Vashishthapava Tirtha and about the reason why sage Vashishtha was carried along by the powerful current of Saraswati river. Lomaharshan said- “There was great rivalry between sage Vashishtha and sage Vishwamitra. In course of time, it turned into a bitter enemity. Vashishtha…
The sages asked Lomaharshan about the origin of Kamyakvan Tirtha. Lomaharshan replied- “Once upon a time, the sages of Naimisharanya came to Kurukshetra to take bath in river Saraswati. But, since they were large in number, the banks of river Saraswati could not accommodate all of them. In their helplessness,…
The sages then asked Lomaharshan about the origin of Sthanu Tirtha and the importance of Sthanu Vata. They also expressed their desire to know about the reservoir named Sanihitya and how Indra had filled it up with mud. Sage Lomaharshan replied- “Once, Sanatkumar upon being asked by Balkhilya and other…
Ashamed, the sages requested Lord Brahma to tell them the way to pacify Lord Shiva. Lord Brahma assured them that they would be forgiven if they took Lord Shiva’s refuge. Lord Brahma went to Kailash Parvat accompanied by all the sages. After reaching there, he eulogised Lord Shiva with deep…
Sanatkumar says- Describing the greatness of Sanihitya Sarovar, Lord Shiva told the sages that a devotee cannot attain salvation unless he pays a visit to this sacred place of pilgrimage. There is no other Tirtha like this one. “I would be easily accessible to a devotee who worships me with…
Sanatkumar says- “The sacred places of pilgrimage named Shukra Tirtha and Soma Tirtha are situated towards north and south of Sthanu Vata respectively. Daksha Tirtha is situated towards its south and Skand Tirtha towards its west. The sacrosanct Sthanu Tirtha is situated just in between all these four places of…
Sage Markandeya then goes on to describe about the splendours of Sthanu Tirtha- Surya was Manu’s father. Vena was Manu’s grandson. He was wicked and always criticised the Vedas. Being displeased by his irreligious son, Vena’s father left for the forest to do penance where he attained salvation. In…
Sanatkumar says- “Lord Shiva became pleased by his devotion and blessed Vena that he would manifest from his body as Andhak in his next birth. Due to the sins acquired by criticising the Vedas, he would be born in the family of the notorious demon Hiranyaksh.” Lord Shiva then asked…
After creating all the movable and immovable living things, Lord Brahma created a beautiful lady. He was so infatuated by her beauty that he expressed his desire to procreate with her help. As a result of this grave sin committed by Lord Brahma, one of his four heads got detached…
Describing the majesty of Prithudak Tirtha, Mahadeva told the deities- “All of you must pay a visit to this sacrosanct place of pilgrimage situated near Sanihitya reservoir. The day on which Moon, Sun and Jupiter unitedly come under Mrigshira Nakshatra is called Akshay Tritiya. You must go to that sacred…
Mena gave birth to three daughters and a son. The eldest daughter- Ragini was red complexioned and had red eyes. Kutila was fair complexioned and had beautiful eyes like that of lotus petals. The youngest daughter- Kali was dark complexioned and had beautiful eyes like the petals of blue lotus….
After paying a visit to Prithudak Tirtha, Lord Shiva returned to his abode. At that time, he was living at Mandar Mountain. After Lord Shiva’s contemplation, the Saptarishis arrived. After the formal salutations, Lord Shiva told the sages that his wife- Sati has re-incarnated as Uma. “All of you must…
Lord Vishnu, Brahma, the deities and the Ganas were pleased to hear about Shiva’s marriage. Lord Shiva went to his abode- Kailash Mountain to make preparations for the marriage ceremony. Lord Shiva’s marriage procession proceeded towards Himalaya Mountain. His appearance was quite terrifying with a tiger skin around his waist…
After reaching Mandar Mountain, Lord Shiva instructed Vishwakarma to construct a home. Vishwakarma constructed a spacious home for Shiva, which was spread in the area of 64 Yojans. The home was decorated with Swastika symbols and its walls were made of gold. One day, Lord Shiva jokingly referred to…
Shumbh and Nishumbh were sons of Danu. They wanted to avenge Mahishasura’s death and sent many demons like to bring Goddess Chandika after enslaving her. First of all, Sugreev was sent followed by Dhumralochan but both of them were killed by the Goddess. When Shumbh and Nishumbh heard of their…
Swallowing of Lord Shiva’s sperm had subdued Agni’s radiance. The deities advised him to take Lord Brahma’s help. While he was on his way to Brahma loka, he came across a river named Kutila and requested her to hold Shiva’s sperm. She agreed and requested him to release it in…
After being appointed as the chief commander of the deities, Kartikeya sought his guardians’ permission to kill the demons- Taraka and Mahishasura. All the deities including Lord Vishnu blessed Kartikeya and wished for his victory. Lord Vishnu eulogised Kartikeya and praised his valiance. Kartikeya then proceeded with a huge…
King Ripujeet- a descendant of Raghu lived with his valiant and brave son named Ritudhwaj. Ritudhwaj being a virtuous prince thought it as his duty to protect all the sages and hermits. Under his protection, the sages performed their religious duties without any problem. During Ripujeet’s reign, a great…
Lord Shiva was so deeply attached to Uma that for 1000 years, he was possessed by only her thoughts. He forgot about his duties and as a result, there was anarchy all over the world. His obsession with Uma had also decreased his radiance. He decided to do penance with…
Mura was the Aurasputra of sage Kashyapa and Danu. When he saw the demons being vanquished by the deities, he went to do penance with the objective of getting boons from Lord Brahma. When Lord Brahma appeared before him, he said- “O lord! Bless me with a boon, which enables…
Lord Brahma, on being enquired by Sanatkumar on the different hells said- “Those who have illicit relationship or are in the company of sinners go to the first hell. Felling of trees and stealing the fruits of others’ tree lead to the second hell. People who kill creatures unworthy of…
Narada asks sage Pulastya- “What did the demon Andhak do after entering Patal loka and how was Lord Shiva’s life at Mandar Mountain?” Pulastya says- “Andhak was infatuated by Girija’s divine beauty and his lust only became stronger as the days passed by. Although Prahlada tried very hard to convince…
