Diti had a son named Hiranyakashipu. This demon meditated for eleven thousand years under the water. Throught this period, he did not eat or talk at all. These meditations pleased Brahma and Brahma offered to grant Hiranyakasipu a boon. ―What boon do you wish for?‖ he asked. ―If you are…
Telling about the origin of this stotra, Sutji said–‘Lord Shiva had created this stotra praising the glory of Lord Nrisinha and invoking him to protect the world from the wrath of Matrikas. The stotra goes as follows — Namastestu Jagannath Narsinha Vapurdhar; Daiteshwar Endra Sanharinakha Bhukti Virajit. Nakh Mandal Sambhinna…
Jambuka’s ascetic practices threatened the very foundations of Rama’s perfect rule as king (ramarajya). Jambuka was a Sudra who had adopted spiritual exercises (tapas) that he was not entitled to practice. Rama had returned from twelve years of exile, and his rule in Ayodhya seemed to fulfill dharma (righteousness)…
This tree bore fruit throughout the year, fruit the size of elephants. The branches of the Jambu tree reached to heaven. The juice of the fruit flowed as a river. According to the Bhagavata Purana the Jambu tree was watered by devas (gods) called Siddhacaranas. Near the tree lived the…
Jambha was the leader of the asuras who snatched away the pot of amrita (nectar of immortality) from the sage Dhanvantari when he emerged carrying it during the churning of the Milky Ocean. Jambha, along with his demon cohorts, was tricked by the beautiful woman Mohini, the form taken…
There is a lot of confusion as to whether Jambhavan was a monkey (kapi) or a bear (riksha). Valmiki’s Ramayana presented some stories of Jambhavan as a bear and other stories of him as a monkey. In one version Brahma sent the celestial damsels (apsaras) to be reborn around…
