Tag: Shiva

In Theravada Buddhism, Vishnu = Upalvan
In Mahyana Buddhism, Shiva = Demchog(Chakrasamvara Tantra)

Upulvan is also known Guardian God of Buddhism or Protector of Buddhism.
Demchog is same as Shiva because According to Mahayana Buddhism, Mt.Kailash is residence of Demchog.

-Kunal Modi

This legend underscores the point that devotion to God may not be due to awe or fear of Him
*********************************************************************

It was a wedding day. There were celebrations all around. Nambi Arooran looked around his familiar town of Thirunavalur with its festivities. It was an era when a wedding meant celebrations for the entire town. It was getting closer to the Muhurtha time — the time when he would tie the maangalyam and officially declared wedded.

There was some commotion in the crowd, and Nambi saw someone walking in from the entrance towards the dais. It was an old man. He walked with a stick. He was brisk, though; age did not show in his pace. Something about him was divine, but Nambi could not figure out what it was. Nambi wondered who this mysterious fellow was, and why he was causing a ruckus here.

The old man stood in front of the crowd and with a booming voice said, “Hear Ye, one and all. I have something to say before the wedding happens.” He consulted his olai (leaf scroll) and paused for a dramatic effect, and said, “This man here, Nambi, is a slave to me.”

There was evident commotion all around. A fine orator the stranger was. He knew when to get the audience engaged and when to stop. In his booming voice he continued, “So it says, in this parchment, which was signed by his grandfather.”

Nambi was furious. He hissed at the old man, “Who are you, and where are you from?” The Brahmin responded that he was from the adjoining village, Thiruvennainallur. Nambi then roared in laughter, “You, my dear friend, must be stark raving mad (afflicted by pitthu).”

He sized the old man up and down, and taunted, “Perhaps senility has set in at this old age of yours.”

The old man smiled and responded by showing Nambi the parchment. Nambi’s smile vanished on reading it, which clearly mentioned that he was his slave. Nambi’s smile returned with an even more evil twist to it and, in a fit, he tore up the parchment, and roared with laughter.

The old man, in his booming voice, said, “This young whipper snapper thinks that, by destroying that parchment, he has gotten rid of the evidence. I knew this would happen, and that is why I brought a copy of the parchment, and not the original. The original is in Thiruvennainallur. The only way to settle this argument is to settle it in front of the elders of Vennainallur.

Nambi did not have a choice. The entire crowd, along with Nambi, followed the elderly Brahmin to the adjoining village, where a village hearing was organised in front of the temple where most disputes were settled. The elderly Brahmin brought forth the original manuscript, turned to the village elders and said, “Please make sure this young fellow does not tear up this document also. It is your responsibility.”

The contents of the manuscript were verified. The signature matched with other records that had been preserved by the village authorities, and the case was settled. Nambi was now the old Brahmin’s slave, and there was nothing he could do about it.

Sadness was wrought on Nambi’s face. All of 16 years old, he was looking forward to the marriage and settling down to grihasthaashrama. He followed the old man towards the local Shiva temple. The latter vanished into a blinding light as he approached the main sanctum sanctorum (garbhagriham).

It was then that Nambi realised that the old man was none other Lord Shiva, and that the lord had come down to earth to remind Nambi of his past at Kailasha and fulfill his task on earth.

It was then that he started remembering how he had come down to the earth from the snowy abode of Lord Shiva.

In the past

Lord Shiva had once been admiring his own beauty on a mirror. He had been so pleased at his own appearance that he affectionately called out to his own reflection, “Sundaraaavaa” (Come here, my beautiful one). Given the powers Shiva had, his reflection stepped out as a person from the mirror. From that day on, Sundarar had become a constant companion and servant of the Lord (anukkathondan).

On a fine summery morning, Sundarar was out plucking flowers for the lord. He chanced to see two maidens of Goddess Parvati — Kamalini and Anindhithai — in the garden. In a spontaneous minute of love, he fell for their beauty. Lord Shiva somehow got to know of this, and did not approve of this love.

“There is a time and place for everything, and this is not it,” he said. “You would need to go down to earth for this and finish what you started. You will enjoy your time with these two maidens, who will also descend to earth with you. I want you to go to the southern part of India, and sing my praises in verse and song.”

Sundarar realised his mistake and was ready to accept the punishment, but he had made a request to the lord — to come to him and remind him of this very moment, in case he got lost in the pleasures of earthly living. All these thoughts came flooding in as he stood in front of the blinding light, now feeling thankful that the lord had come and reminded him of his past.

“But, I do not know how to sing, or compose, or any of that, my Lord, How am I supposed to sing about you?”

The Lord still loved him very dearly. He said, “Talk to me, swear at me, admonish me, like you just did a few hours ago. Remember you called me a senile, old fool. It will still sound like music to my ears.”

Lord Shiva also added, “You will always be my Sundarar, my beautiful self. So I do not want you to renounce anything. I want you to always dress up like what you are now – in true wedding dress (kalyaanakolam). You will also be called Vanthondan — the argumentative follower. And the lord vanished.

Over the course of the next couple of years, he met Anindithai and Kamilini as Paravai Naachiyar (from Thiruvarur) and Sangili Naachiyar (from Thiruvatriyoor). And in these two years, he made dozens of temple tours, singing about Lord Shiva, as he moved from temple to temple.

Anecdotes abound on how the friendship of the lord and Sundarar are played out. The Lord pulls out all stops to keep Sundarar, his friend, happy. Sundarar, on the other hand, continues to admonish the lord, never being satisfied with what he is given. A peculiar kind of friendship-based devotion plays out in this Nayanmaar’s life. The story is meant to personify how devotion to God should not be of fear, but of trust and respect.

“His back left hand carries a purifying flame (agni) … grasping a trident that Lord Shiva holds (trishul), and beating a drum(the damru which is lord Shiva’s instrument) from which all of the sounds of the universe emanate …”
-An inscribed invocation to Lord Shiva in Sanskrit at the Baku Ateshgah Fire Temple , Azerbaijan

Story of Muruga, Ganesha and the Mango

The story of Muruga, Ganesha and Mango (Gnana Pazham) is associated with the history of Palani Temple.
According to legends, once Sage Narada visited Lord Shiva at Mount Kailash. He gave a fruit to the Lord and told him that it was a unique one, the fruit of wisdom (in Tamil it is called as Gnanapazham). Lord Shiva decided to give the fruit to his children – Lord Kartikeya and Lord Ganapati. But the sage advised that this fruit should not be cut because its power would be reduced.

Consequently, a competition was arranged to get the fruit. The competition was that the son who first surrounds the earth would get the fruit. Without delaying, Lord Murugan (Kartikeya) started his trip around the world on his divine vehicle, the peacock.
Lord Ganesha on the other hand believed that his parents were his world, just circled Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati and claimed the fruit.

On returning, Lord Muruga found that Lord Ganesha had already won and felt that he was tricked. He decided to leave the Mount Kailash and reached Tiru Avinankudi at the foot of the Sivagiri Hill. Lord Siva and the Goddess tried to appease their son by saying that he himself was the fruit (pazham) of all wisdom and knowledge; ‘Nee’ means you. For this reason, the place was called ‘Pazham Nee’ or Palani or Pazhani.

Mystic Mountain Mt. Kailash is a mysterious mountain. A great mass of rock soaring to over 22,000 feet, Mt. Kailash is one of the world’s most scared places and yet it is the least visited. The supremely sacred site of Hindus and 3 other religions and billions of people, Kailash is seen by no more than a few thousand pilgrims each year. The reason for this is the mountain’s remote location in far western Tibet. No planes, trains or buses journey anywhere near the region and even with rugged over-land vehicles the journey still requires weeks of difficult, often dangerous travel.The weather is always cold and pilgrims must carry all the supplies they will need for the entire journey.The landscape around the mountain is rugged and dry but crossed by crystalline blue streams and other bodies of water.

Near the sacred mountain is the source of the Indus, Sutlej and Bramaputra rivers and on its south side are two freshwater lakes,the easternmost of which is the highly sacred Lake Manasarovar. With an altitude of 14,950 feet, Mansarovar is the highest body of fresh water in the world. The other lake, Rakshastal, also has legendary significance. According to Vedic Hindu texts, Shiva, the god of destruction and regeneration, resides at the summit of a legendary mountain named Kailasa. Mount Kailas is regarded in many sects of Hinduism as Paradise, the ultimate destination of souls and the spiritual center of the world. According to a description in the Puranas, Mount Kailash’s four faces are made of crystal, ruby, gold, and lapis lazuli; it is the pillar of the world; rises 84,000 leagues high; is the center of the world mandala; and is located at the heart of six mountain ranges symbolizing a lotus. From it flow four rivers, which stretch to the four quarters of the world and divide the world into four regions. Kailash is sacred to other religions which emerged from Vedic dharma, Hinduism. The Jains call the mountain Astapada and believe it to be the place where Rishaba, the first of the twenty-four Tirthankaras attained liberation. Followers of Bon, Tibet’s pre-Buddhist, shamanistic religion, call the mountain Tise and believe it to be the seat of the Sky Goddess Sipaimen.

Additionally, Bon myths regard Tise as the sight of a legendary 12th century battle of sorcery between the Buddhist sage Milarepa and the Bon shaman Naro Bon-chung. Milarepa’s defeat of the shaman displaced Bon as the primary religion of Tibet, firmly establishing Buddhism in its place. Most pilgrims to Kailash will also take a short plunge in the nearby, highly sacred (and very cold) Lake Manosaravar.

The word ‘manas’ means mind or consciousness; the name Manosaravar means Lake of Consciousness and Enlightenment. Adjacent to Manosaravar is Rakas Tal or Rakshas, the Lake of Demons. Pilgrimage to this great sacred mountain and these two magical lakes is a life changing experience and an opportunity to view some of the most magical scenery on the entire planet. No pilgrims climb Mt. Kailash; all four religions believe it would be a serious act of sacrilege to set foot on its slopes.

Legend has it that the only person to have reached the summit is the Buddhist champion Milarepa (who flew to the top in the 12th century) and that all others who have ventured to defy the warning have died in the process.The mountain is located in a particularly remote and inhospitable area of the Tibetan Himalayas. Only those in the best health are able to undertake the journey even to the starting point of the circumambulation, let alone walk 52 km in a single day. A few modern amenities, such as benches,resting places and refreshment kiosks, exist to aid the pilgrims in their devotions.

Mount Kailash is a tremendous spiritual energy. For thousands of years, realized beings always traveled to Mount Kailash and deposited their knowledge in a certain energy form. They used this mountain as a basis and created this. It is because of this that Hindus say Shiva lives there. When we say it, is the Abode of Shiva, it doesn’t mean that he is sitting there or something, but his unmanifested energy lies there. It is a long cherished dream of mine to visit the mystical place..

-Shared by Hrishikesh Khamitkar

Ganga Talao (also known as Grand Basin) is a crater lake situated in a secluded mountain area in the district of Savanne, deep in the heart of Mauritius. It is about 1800 feet above sea level. The first group of pilgrims who went to Ganga Talao were from the village of Triolet and it was led by Pandit Giri Gossayne from Terre Rouge in 1898.It is considered the most sacred Hindu place in Mauritius.

There is a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva and other Gods including Hanuman, Lakshmi, and others along the Grand Basin. During Shivaratri, many pilgrims in Mauritius walk bare feet from their homes to the lake.During the Maha Shivaratri most of the devotees leave their homes and start a journey to Grand Basin on foot. It has been a tradition that volunteer people offer foods and drinks to the pilgrims (the devotees). No one knows the depth of Ganga Talao lake.

During the week there is an idyllic and calm atmosphere at Grand Basin, whereas between the end of february and the beginning of march crowds of pilgrims are heading to the lake: when Maha-Shivaratri is celebrated, more than 400.000 believers make the pilgrimage to Ganga Talao to make sacrifices to their gods.

Along Grand Basin there are several temples dedicated to Shiva and other Gods, little shrines and colorful statues.Not far from Grand Basin one can admire an impressive statue of the Lord Shiva. It is 33 meters tall and is known as the highest statue in Mauritius.Grand Basin is one of the highlights of a holiday in Mauritius. If you are interested in foreign cultures and religions, you should not miss out to visit the temples and the sacred lake!

Sair-ul-Okul is an anthology of ancient Arabic poetry available in the Turkish library Makhtab-e-Sultania in Istanbul. In this anthology is included a poem by Prophet Mohammed’s uncle Omar-bin-e-Hassham. The poem is in praise of Mahadev (Shiva), and uses ‘Hind’ for India and ‘Hindu’ for Indians.

Some verses are quoted below:. One of these has survived on page 235 of Sair-Ul-Okul and reads as follows:

Kafavomal fikra min ulumin Tab asayru
Kaluwan amataul Hawa was Tajakhru
We Tajakhayroba udan Kalalwade-E Liboawa
Walukayanay jatally, hay Yauma Tab asayru
Wa Abalolha ajabu armeeman MAHADEVA
Manojail ilamuddin minhum wa sayattaru
Wa Sahabi Kay-yam feema-Kamil MINDAY Yauman
Wa Yakulum no latabahan foeennak Tawjjaru
Massayaray akhalakan hasanan Kullahum
Najumum aja- at Summa gabul HINDU

which translates as:

The man who may spend his life in sin
and irreligion or waste it in lechery and wrath
If at least he relent and return to
righteousness can he be saved?
If but once he worship Mahadeva with a pure
heart, he will attain the ultimate in spirituality.
Oh Lord Shiva exchange my entire life for but
a day’s sojourn in India where one attains salvation.
But one pilgrimage there secures for one all
merit and company of the truly great.

*(MAHADEVA means Lord SHIVA )

Source: Famous Works of Purushottam Nagesh Oak(P.N Oak)

PS: We cant confirm the authenticity or validity of the above post. Please research on yourself.