The sun-god Surya was born as the son of Kashyapa and Aditi. Surya was born as an egg (anda). For days on end, nothing happened to the egg and the shell did not crack. Vishvakarma was the architect of the gods. When Vishvakarma found that nothing was happening to the…
―Who are the ancestors?‖ asked the sages. Lomaharshana recounted the following story. When Brahma first started to created, the gods were born. These gods not only did not worship Brahma, they started to create themselves. Brahma therefore cursed them that they would become ignorant. The gods did not relish this…
King Prithu had two sons- Antardhan and Vadi who were very religious minded themselves. Antardhan’s wife Shikhandi gave birth to Ivirdhan. Prachin Barhi was the son of Ivirdhan and his wife, Ghishna. Shukra, Gaya, Krishna, Vrij and Ajin were their other sons. Prachin Barhi was a great fosterer of his…
Daksha‘s descendants have already been mentioned in the section on creation. The Vayu Purana now gives an account which is, in certain respects, contradictory to the earlier account. Daksha married Asikli, the daughter of Virana, Daksha and Asikli had a thousand sons named the Haryashva. But the sage Narada persuaded…
Prithu had a son named Antardhana and Antardhana‘s son was Havirdhana. Havirdhana‘s son was Prachivarhi. Prachinavarhi married Savarna, the daughter of the ocean. Prachinavarhi and Savarna had ten sons known as the Prachetas. The Prachetas were interested in meditating. They performed tapasya for thousands of years under the oceans. They…
The sixth Manu was Chakshusha. One of Chakshusha‘s descendants was the great king Pirthu, the son of Vena. Chakshusha had a son named Uru and Uru had a son named Anga. Agna maried Sunitha, and they had a son named Vena. Vena was evil and when he became the king,…
In the month of Chaitra, the Sun rides his chariot as Dhata. During that period, apsara Kratusthala, sage Pulastya, Nag Vasuki, Yaksha Rathmirith, demon Heti and the Gandharva Tumbaru are also present on the chariot as his assistants. In the month of Vaishakh, the Sun rides his chariot as Aryama…
Lomaharshana next told the sages about the various manvantara (eras). Each of Brahma‘s days is referred to as a kalpa (cycle) and that there are fourteen manvantaras in each kalp. Each manvantara is ruled over by a Manu and lasts for a duration of 30,67,20,000 years. The gods, the seven…
The sages requested Lomaharshana, ―Please tell us how the sacred Vedas came to be divided.‖ Lomaharshana recounted the following story. When dvapara yuga arrived, Brahma noticed that people were becoming evil and were no longer paying sufficient attention to the Vedas. They were gradually deviating from the righteous path. Brahama…
Many years ago, in satya yuga, the sage Vashishtha met Kartikeya, the son of Shiva and Parvati. Having worshipped Kartikeya, the sage said, ―Please tell me how Shiva‘s throat came to be blue.‖ ―I do know the answer and I will satisfy your curiosity,‖ replied Kartikeya. ―I was once on…
The earth is made up of five elements (bhuta). These are earth, wind sky, water and energy. There are seven regions in the underworld (patala). These are known as atala, sutala, vitala, gabhastala, mahatala, shritala and patala. The ground in atala is dark in colour; in sutala it is pale;…
Daksha‘s daughter, Sati, was married to Shiva. Daksha was thus Shiva‘s father-in-law. But, as a son-in-law. Shiva never showed Daksha adequate respect. Or so Daksha felt. For instance, Shiva never bowed down before Daksha. On one occasion, Daksha invited all his daughters to his house. The only one whom he…
You will remember that Shiva had granted Brahma the boon that he would be born as Brahma‘s son. To ensure that this indeed happened Brahma began to perform very difficult tapasya (meditation). But despite all this meditation, nothing happened. This failure greatly angered Brahma and he started to cry. As…
After Shiva had left, two brothers named Mahdu and Kaitabha appeared. They were demons. One of the demons wished to eat honey (madhu) as soon as he was born and thus came to be known as Madhu. The other demon looked like an insect (kita) and thus came to be…
At the end of the last kalpa, there was a minor destruction and the world was flooded with water. Vishnu alone slept on this water, balanced on the hood of the great snake, Ananta. While Vishnu was thus sleeping, a lotus sprouted from his navel. It was a huge lotus…
There was a sage named Savarni. He told the wind-gold Vayu, ―We know that the present kalpa is called varaha kalpa. But how long is a kalpa? And what are the various other kalpas? Please tell us the answers to these questions.‖ Vayu said the following. There are 4,320,000,000 years…
Dreams and omens help people to predict the future. A person who cannot see the Pole Star (Dhruva) or the Milky Way (Chhayapatha) will die within the space of a year. If the sun seems to be faded to you, you will not live for more than eleven months. A…
Shiva taught the world the technique of yoga. Yoga literally means union and is a form of meditation that teaches about the union between the individual human soul (atman) and the divine soul (paramatman). It is this knowledge that is strived for by those who meditate. And one who does…
SIVA ENDS BRAHMA – VISHNU DISPUTE AND SHABDA BRAHMA “I asked him as to who he was. Vishnu replied that he was the fulfiller of all of his desires. But I replied to him that I only was the creator, nurturer and the supreme soul of this world. Vishnu became…
VICTORY OF NARADA OVER ‘KAMA’ Once upon a time a Narada was performing a penance in the cave of Himalaya mountain. Indra becoming fearful sent Kamadev to obstruct his penance. But Kamadeva was unsuccessful in his attempt as the place where Narada was doing penance was the same place where…
There are roughly seventy-one mahayugas in a manvantara. A mahayuga lasts for twelve thousand years of the gods and consists of four different eras or yugas – satya yuga or krita yuga, treta yuga, dvapara yuga, and kali yuga. Satya yuga lasts for four thousand years of the gods treta…
At the end of the last kalpa, there was a destruction and the universe was flooded with water. Vishnu slept on the water as long as Brahma‘s night lasted. Since nara means water and anyana means resting-place. Vishnu is accordingly known as Narayana. When Brahma‘s day dawned, he wished to…
King Adhisima Krishna (alternatively, Asima Krishna) ruled the earth well. During his reign, several sages organized a yajna (sacrifice) on the banks of the sacred river Drishadvati. The river flowed through the region that was known as Kurukshetra. The sacrifice went on for a very long time and the sage…
SAGES ENQUIRE Viddyeshwar Samhita which is classified into twenty five chapters, has a narration in its first chapter which goes as follows- Once upon a time, the sages were performing a yagya at Prayag kshetra. Sage Suta came to know about this and arrived there. All the sages were very…
CONDUCT OF THE RESPECTIVE CASTES–DHARMA On the request of the sages, Suta described about the virtuous and invirtuous activities of a man according to the respective castes he belongs to. He said: “A brahmin who performs the rituals, as described in the Vedas, only is entitled to be called a…
THE METHODS OF WORSHIPPING SHIVA On the request of the sages, Suta retold the preaching which had been narrated by Brahma to Narada. Describing the method of Shiva worship he says- “A devotee should get up early in the morning and contemplate on Shiva, who gives benediction. After that, he…
Parashar describes about the dynasties that would occur in Kali Yuga. Ripunjay or Puranajay would be the last king of Brihdrath dynasty. The kings of Nand dynasty would succeed this dynasty. Then a diplomat Brahmin, named Chanakya, would exterminate this dynasty and enthrone Chandragupta Maurya. In Maurya dynasty, a great…
Vasudev, the son of Shoorsen was married to Devaki, the daughter of Devak. On that occasion of their marriage, Devaki’s cousin Kansa was driving their chariot. At that time, a celestial voice declared that the eighth son of Devaki would kill Kansa. Kansa in the excitement was ready to kill…
King ambarish story – Sukhdev says, ” Parikshit, Sharyati was the king Nabhag. His son was Nabhag. He was a great devotee of his parents. As a result of his service for his parents, Nabhag was very much comfortable. He had a son Ambarish who was a great devotee of…
The king Parikshit asked, ” O Lord, kindly relate to me the knowledge (Vaishnavi Vidya) by the power of which Devraj Indra easily defeated the demons.” Shukdev says, ” Parikshit now I am telling you about the knowledge that was once taught to Indra by Vishwrup. So listen to it…
Shukdev says, “Parikshit, when the servers of Lord Vishnu failed the attempt of Yamadutas, they returned to Yamaloka and complained Yama about the event.” “O Yamadev, we had so far known that you are the sole authority of punishing the people as per their deeds. No body had dared so…
Anybody who studies the sacred texts of ‘Brahma-Gita’ is certain to attain salvation for it brilliantly propounds the theory of divinity of man by proclaiming that in each individual dwells Brahman-the supreme Almighty. Eulogizing the glory of ‘Brahma Gita’ Lord Vishnu said– ‘Brahma-Gita declares that in each individual dwells Brahman…
Describing the origin of this stotra, Sutji said– ‘Lord Vishnu himself had taught this powerful stotra to Sage Markandeya. The daily chanting of this powerful mantra had enabled Markandeya to conquer death. One who daily chants this stotra thrice a day enjoys a long life and never dies a premature…
Sage Narada once asked Lord Shiva about the means by which a man could become free from the delusions of the world. Lord Shiva revealed to him the contents of ‘Kulamrit stotra’, eulogizing the majesty of Lord Vishnu. By chanting this stotra, Narada successfully attained to that supreme status, which…
Before setting out for Gaya to offer Pinda dan, a man should appropriately perform ‘Shraddh rituals’ in the village or town he lives. Each step taken towards Gaya acts as a stepping stone to the heaven for the ancestors. Getting one’s head tonsured or observing fast is prohibited in some…
Describing how a Shaligram is named on the basis of number of Chakra present on it, Lord Vishnu said–‘If there is only one Chakra on the Shaligram idol then it is called ‘Sudarshan’. In the same way, Shaligram with two Chakras is known as ‘Lakshmi Narayan’ while that having three…
A devotee desirous of acquiring wealth and prosperity must worship Goddess Lakshmi with appropriate rituals. He should begin by making salutations to the goddess by chanting the following mantra — Om Srim Hrim Mahalakshmyai Namah. Then follows the rituals of ‘Shadangnyas’ that is performed by chanting the specific mantras meant…
While worshipping Lord Vishnu, first of all a devotee should worship the ‘Asan’ of the deity by chanting– Om Vasudeva Asanay Namah. He should then make salutations to Lord Vishnu by chanting the following mantras– Om Vasudevay Murtaye Namah, Om Aim Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevay Namah, Om Am Om Namo…
There are various mantras used in the rituals of Shiva worship. A devotee should begin by worshipping the ‘Asan’ (the pedestal) on which the deity is seated. There is a specific mantra for this particular ritual- Om Hram Shivay Namah. Subsequently, a salutation to lord Shiva is made by chanting…
Lord Vishnu, continuing with the tales of Garuda Purana told Shiva–‘Uttanpad had two wives- Suruchi and Suniti. From his former wife he begot a son named Uttam, while Suniti gave birth to Dhruva, who became immortal because of his unflinching devotion in me. Dhruva had a mighty son named ‘Shlishta’….
The sages thanked Vayudeva for giving the knowledge of Jnana Yoga. The next day, they took bath in river Saraswati and performed their worship and rituals. After that they proceeded towards Kashi. At Kashi after taking their bath in river Ganga they had a darshan of lord Vishwanath. They saw…
The eighth day and the fourteenth day of both the fortnights of each Hindu month are considered to be the most auspicious for the worship of lord Shiva. Similarly the solstice day (Sankranti), when the sun is positioned north of equator and eclipse day are considered to be very auspicious….
The deities went to lord Vishnu, after being tormented by the demons. They requested him to annihilate the demons. After assuring them, Lord Vishnu went to Kailash mountain to do his penance. But even his tremendous penance was not enough to please Lord Shiva. Lord Vishnu then worshipped lord Shiva…
There was a king named Satyarath who ruled over Vidarbha. Once he was attacked by a neighbouring king. Satyarath was killed in that battle. His wife somehow managed to save her life by hiding in a forest. The queen was pregnant at that time. At the shore of a pond…
Shukracharya did a severe penance for five thousand years to please Shiva and acquire the secrets of Mritasanjivani Viddya (bringing back dead person alive) from him. When Lord Shiva did not appear even after such a tremendous penance, then he indulges himself in severest form of penance, by quitting having…
With the help of his divine powers, Lord Vishnu created many inauspicious dreams while Vrinda was asleep. Vrinda became very restless and when the anxieties become unbearable she proceeded towards the forest. Vrinda saw a hermit in the forest who was preaching his disciples. The hermit was none other than…
Both Kartikeya and Ganesha grew up to become handsome youths in due course of time. Shiva and Parvati started to think about their marriage. When Ganesha and Kartikeya came to know about the plan of their marriage both of them started quarreling among themselves as to who should get married…
The mountain – Kraunch, who was tormented by the activities of the demon named Banasur, went to Kartikeya and narrated his woeful tales. Kartikeya threw his weapon – Shakti in the direction which Banasur lived. The weapon banged right on target and returned back to him. Bamnasur was burnt to…
Pururava had six sons- Ayu, Amavasu, Vishwavasu, Shrutayu, Shatayu and Ayutayu. Amavasu had a son Bhima and Bhima in turn had a son Kanchan. Jahnu was the son of Kanchan’s son, Suhotra. At the time of Ganga’s descend on earth, when Jahnu saw his hermitage inundated, he drank all her…
Maitreya says- “Lord! At the end of a life span, all the people come to be controlled by Yamaraj. When they are bound to undergo scores of suffering in different kinds of hells. Kindly narrate about such action by which a human being gets free from the noose of Yamaraj.”…