On the other side, after the departure of Parvati from Kailash Mountain and after the illusionary powers created by Jalandhar had ended all the apsaras and gandharvas vanished. Shiva realized that whatever he was watching, was nothing more than illusion. Lord Shiva recommenced his battle. The demons-Shumbh and Nishumbh, came…
One day Sage Bhrigu came to meet Jalandhar. After receiving him with due respect Jalandhar asked him as to who severed the head of Rahu. Sage Bhrigu then told him about Hiranyakashipu who was the maternal uncle of Rahu. Sage Bhrigu also told him about Virochana – the son of…
The effulgence, which had been divided by lord Shiva into the Ocean resulted into the manifestation of a small child. This incident happened at the place where river Ganges submerged into the ocean and which is also known as Gangasagar now a days. The child was crying so ferociously that…
Suta narrates the following story to the sages- “Once upon a time, Indra was going towards Kailash mountain to have a ‘darshan’ of lord Shiva. Sage Brihaspati was accompanying him. Lord Shiva came to know about his arrival. He wanted to test his devotion towards him. While both Indra and…
When Shiva agreed to kill the demon – brothers Tripurasur the deities became extremely joyous. They gave their respective weapons to Shiva, so that he did not have any difficulty in killing the demons. Vishwakarma gave his beautiful chariot to him. Lord Shiva proceeded towards the forts of Tripurasur followed…
A fierce battle was fought between Shiva and Ganesha. When Lord Shiva realized that Ganesha was dominating the fight, he severed his head with his trishul. Parvati became extremely furious at the death of Ganesha. Her anger resulted into the manifestation of innumerable goddesses, who started creating havoc on the…
On the request of Himalayas, Sage Vashishtha who was one of the Saptarishis narrated the story of Padma the princess and sage Pippalad- “At the time of his marriage sage Pippalad was old and weak, but still Padma devotely performed the duties of a faithful wife. To test her faithfulness…
Shiva remained at his in-laws house for many days. One day he sought the permission of Himalaya to go back. Everybody became sad at the prospect of Shiva’s departure. Especially Maina who was very saddened by this news. At last it was time for Shiva to depart for Kailash, accompanied…
Lord Shiva invited all of his Ganas to the marriage ceremony. He also instructed sage Narada to intimate all the deities, sages and the celestial entities. After getting the invitation from Shiva everybody started making preparations to be a part of Shiva’s marriage-procession. The seven mothers- Brahmi, Maheshwari, Kaumari, Vaishnavi,…
Parvati, after successfully accomplishing her penance came back to her home. Everybody was happy at her arrival. After sometime Himalaya went out to take his bath in the river Ganges. Meanwhile lord Shiva arrived in his appearance of Nataraj and started dancing in front of Parvati’s mother Maina. She was…
The sages asked Suta— Lord Shiva is formless then how come Shivalinga is worshipped? What is the significance of Shivalinga? What is the proper method of worshipping a Shivalinga? Suta replied— Once, Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu developed serious different on the matter of superiority. A tremendous duel broke out…
After the deities went back, lord Shiva summoned the Saptarishis (Vashishtha etc) and instructed them to test Parvati’s love for him. The Saptarishis went to Parvati and tested her resolve to marry lord Shiva. They tried to deter her by all means, but Parvati was firm in her resolve. They…
When Parvati reached her home, she became very sad as she was unable to bear the sorrow of Shiva’s separation. Sage Narada arrived there. Her father Himalaya narrated the whole story to him Sage Narada then gave the five lettered mantra – “OM NAMAH SHIVAY’ to her and he also…
Lord Brahma told Narada that the deities decided to send Kamadeva to influence lord Shiva so that the marriage between him and Parvati is felicitated. Indra called Kamadeva and told him that the demon king Tarakasur could be killed only by such a person who was the son of Shiva…
Varangi gave birth to Tarakasur, the valiant and brave demon. During the time of his birth, the world was affected by inauspicious events like earthquakes, cyclones etc. His name Tarakasur was given by Kashyapa. After he grew up, Tarakasur went to Madhuvan to do penance. His tremendous penance scarred the…
One day lord Shiva accompanied by his ganas like Bhringi, Nandi, etc, arrived at Himalaya, with the purpose of doing penance. When Parvati father Himalaya came to know about his arrival, he went to receive him. After he had made his salutations to Shiva, he was instructed by Shiva to…
Once, when the ganas of Shiva praised the glory of mother Sati, lord Shiva became overjoyed just like an ordinary human being. In his joy, he travelled all around the three world without any clothes on his body. He returned back to Kailash and went into meditation. While he was…
Himalaya and Maina commenced their penance with the objective of getting Uma as their daughter. Maina did a tremendous penance which lasted for twenty-seven years. Goddess Uma became very pleased by her penance. She appeared before her and asked her to demand anything she wished for. Maina expressed her desire…
Narada requests lord Brahma to shed light on the birth of Maina and also too she was married with Himalaya. Brahma said- “After relinquishing her body, Sati, the daughter of Daksha attained to the abode of Shiva. In her next birth she was born to Maina, the wife of Himalaya…
When Nandi informed Shiva about Sati’s death, he became very furious. He angrily pulled out a lock of hair and dashed it against the mountain, which got divided into two parts. From one part manifested the valiant Veerbharda and from the other part Mahakali. Veerbhadra and Mahakali were instructed by…
When Sati reached, where Daksha was performing his yagya, she met her mother and sisters. They met her with all the respect and honor. But Daksha did not even caste a glance at her. Imitating him many other people did the same. But Sati not bothering about the disrespect shown…
Devarshi Narada who was listening to the divine tales of Shiva, narrated by lord Brahma with rapt attention, requested him to describe about other characteristics of Shiva. Brahma said- “Once, lord Shiva accompanies by Sati, arrived at Dandak aranya, where Sri Rama was wandering in search of Sita, who had…
Daksha presented invaluable things to his daughter- Sati as dowry. Similarly the brahmins were presented with large quantities of wealth. Lord Brahma was enchanted by the divine beauty of Sati. With a desire to see her face, he put logs of wood which were wet, into the yagni kunda and…
When Sati attained marriageable age, Daksha started worrying. Sati understood the reason behind her father’s worried. She went to her Mother Virani and expressed her desire of marrying lord Shiva. Her mother made all the arrangements so that Sati could worship Shiva without any problem. Sati commenced her austerity named…
Kama tried his best to bring lord Shiva under his influence. All the living creatures were spell bound by his powers except lord Shiva and Ganesha. Kama returned back to Brahma ad told him about his unsuccessful attempts. Brahma sighed heavily. From his sighes were created the ferocious ganas. These…
Sandhya was very ashamed of herself. For the atonement of her sin she decided to do penance. She went to Chandrabhaga mountain and commenced her tremendous penance. Lord Brahma then instructed Vashishtha to go to her in disguise and help in getting her initiated. He went to Chandrabhaga mountain in…
“When I became infatuated by the divine beauty of Sandhya, my infatuation resulted into the manifestation of my another Manas-putra named Kamadeva. His beauty and qualities were incomparable. His manifestation not only inflicted me with lust, but also my other Manasputras became filled up with lust. Kamadeva made salutations to…
In the Sati Khand of Rudra-Samhita, Narada enquires lord Brahma about the reason, why lord Shiva married Sati, inspite of being a ‘yogi’. He also requested Brahma to tell, how Sati became the daughter of Daksha Prajapati and in her next birth as Uma the daughter of Himalaya. How did…
When Rudra – the Ansha of the Almighty Brahma, heard about the tremendous penance, Kubera was doing he started to play his ‘damaru’ (drum), the sound of which reached all the three worlds. Rudra then reached the place where Kubera was doing penance.” “Hearing the sound of his damaru, all…
Narada asked lord Brahma, when did lord Shiva make Kailash as his abode and what was the reason of friendship between Shivaji and Kubera. Brahma narrated the following story- – There used to live a brahmin by the name Yagyadutt in Kampilyanagar, who was proficient in the performance of Somyagya….
Brahma said to Narada- “When I accomplished my penance, Lord Shiva manifested in his incarnation of Rudra from in between the eyebrows. Half of his body resembled like that of a woman (Ardhanarishwar). I requested him help me in my creational activities. Rudra created his hosts (Rudragana) who resembled like…
Brahma revealed to Narada how the process of creation commenced- “After Lord Shiva vanished from our sight, I transformed myself into the appearance of a swan and Vishnu transformed his appearance into that of a boar with the purpose of commencing the process of creation. First of all, I created…
On Narada’s request Brahma said- “During the period of MahaPralaya (Final annihilation) nothing exist, except Shiva. The power which Shiva manifested from his own self came to be known as Ambika. This Ambika is understood to be the cause of the whole world as well as the Nature. Lord Shiva…
King Sagar had two queens, Sumati, the daughter of Kashyapa and Keshini, the daughter of Vidarbha’s king. Keshini had a son Asmanjas whereas Sumati had sixty thousand sons. Anshuman was the son of Asmanjas. Asmanjas was very whimsical since his childhood. Even in his youth, he did not change his…
SHIVA GOES TO KAILASH When Rudra – the Ansha of the Almighty Brahma, heard about the tremendous penance, Kubera was doing he started to play his ‘damaru’ (drum), the sound of which reached all the three worlds. Rudra then reached the place where Kubera was doing penance.” “Hearing the sound…
THE WORSHIP OF PARTHIVA LINGA Suta then explains the greatness of worshipping a Parthiva Linga-: “Parthiva Linga is the most supreme among all the Shivalingas. All the aspirtions of he deities as well as men are fulfilled by the worship of Parthiv linga. During the era of Satya, jewel was…
Describing about the methods of installing a Shivalinga Suta says– A devotee should install a Shivalinga made of either gold, silver or copper. The shivalinga should be installed along with the altar. The altar of the Shivalinga symbolizes goddess Uma. Lord Brahma is said to manifest at the base of…
Before commencing the rituals of initiation, the Guru should purify the place where the rites are supposed to be performed. He should make an attar and draw an eight-petalled lotus at its center. He should then establish the various embodiments of Shiva like Aghor, Pranav, Vamadeva, on each of the…
A devotee should commence the worship of Lord Shiva only after taking permission from his Guru, Only such a person is worthy of being called a Guru who is virtuous and well versed in the scripture. A disciple should unwavering by be in the service of his Guru and should…
The learned and sages call Shiva by many names —Kshetragya, Prakriti Vyakta, Kalatma etc. The synonyms of Kshetragya and Prakriti are Purusha and Pradhan respectively.The delusionary net of the Prakriti is known as Vyakta (apparent). Kala (time) is the resultant by product of Pradhan and Vyakta. Some sages call Hiranyagarbha…
Lord Maheshwar is beyond the reach if any kind of bondage. He is totally liberated entity. It is only by his blessings that the Nature-Prakriti, creates intelligence–buddhi. Similarly, intelligence creates ego-ahamkara and subtle forms of matter–tanmatra creates the greatest of matter by the blessings of Lord Shiva. No word can…
The sages were curious to know why Lord Shiva was also known as Pashupati (lord of animals). Suta retold the same tale which sage Shiladi had once narrated to Sanatkumar — Once, Sanatkumar went to the hermitage of Sage Shiladi and asked him as to why was Lord Shankar also…
Describing about the greatness of Shadakshar mantra that consists of six letters, Suta said– The sacred mantra — OM NAMAH SHIVAY holds a supreme place among all the mantras. During the Meghavahan kalpa of the first Treta Yuga, there lived a brahmin named Dhoondhmook. He became a licentious person due…
The sages were curious to know how Lord Shiva had bestowed the designation of Ganpatya and an ocean of milk to Upamanyu. They requested Suta to shed light on the two incidents. Suta narrated the following tale — Upamanyu was a brilliant child. There is an interesting story how he…
Once, the deities requested Lord Shiva to device some means so that they no longer had to live under the threat of the demons.The most merciful Lord Pinaki Shiva then took the incarnation of Ganeshwar. He had a human body but his heard resembled like an elephant. He held a…
The Sages were curious to know how Lord Vishnu in his incarnation of Varaha (Boar), had liberated the earth from the captivity of Hiranyaksha. They also wanted to know why Lord Shiva adorned himself with the horn of that boar. Suta narrated the following tale— Hiranyaksha–Andhak’s father was a tyrant….
On being asked by the Sages how Andhak–the demon was appointed as the lord of Ganas by Lord Shiva, Suta narrated the following tale to them.–The mighty demon, Andhak was Hiranyaksh’s son. By the virtue of his austere penance he had received a boon of immortality from Lord Brahma. In…
The Sages asked Suta as to how did Maya–The demon acquire three well fortified forts from Lord Brahma and how was lord Shiva finally successful in destroying them. Suta replied– After Tarakasur’s death his three sons, Vidyunmali, Kamlaksha and Tarakaksha did tremendous penance to please Lord Brahma. When Lord Brahma…
Ahuka came from the lineage of Yadu. He had two sons– Devak and Ugrasen. The eldest son, Devak had eleven children–four sons and seven daughters. The names of his sons were– Devavan, Upadeva, Sudeva and Devarakshit. All his seven daughters, which also included Devaki were married to Vasudeva. Ahuk’s youngest…
On being enquired by the Sages about the respective lineage of Aditya (Sun) and Soma (moon) Suta replied— Sage Kashyapa had a son–Aditya, from Aditi. Aditya had four wives–Sangya, Rajyi, Prabha and Chhaya. Sangya gave birth to Manu whereas Ragyi was the mother of Yama, Yamuna and Raivat. Prabha gave…