Trijata- The Sita's saviour

 'Trijata'  was one of the demoness in King Ravana’s court. She was appointed to have an eye on Sita and convinced her to marry King. Due to her past lives good deeds,Trijata, was devotee of Lord Rama despite born in demon community. Instead of threatening Sita, she was the only one there in Ashok Vatika where Sita was kept who treated Sita like her daughter. She even freed Sita from the fear by disclosing the secret that Ravana could not marry her due to involvement of previous curses to him. One night she had a dream in which she saw that Lord Rama defeated Ravana. After the dream she even tried her best to persuade King to set Sita free from his captivity.She was sure the Ravanas act of keeping Sita in his kingdom would bring destruction to the whole family. Trijata clearly understood the powers of Sita at once. Even during the war she kept the hopes of Sita alive when Ravana spread the rumors about his victory.She morally supported Sita all the way during the war. Trijata's role can never be underestimated. Actually Trijata was a niece of Ravana,the daughter of Vibhishan.

Nav Bhakti

The word 'Bhakti' means devotion towards god.According to hindu classics there are 9 forms of bhakti called "Navdha Bhakti". These 9 forms are as follows-
1) Shravan- listening the glory of Lord.is called "shravan"
2) Kirtan- singing bahajans called "Kirtan"
3) Smaran-remebering the god through mantras and japam called "smaran"
4) Pada Sewa-worship of lord's feet is called "Paad Sewa"
5) Archana-offering to god is called "archana"
6) Vandana-bowing before Lord and paying obeisance is called "vandana"
7) Dasya bhakti-when a devotee always consider himself as lord's servant
8) Sakhya-devotee considere god as his friend
9) Samarpan-is a complete surrender.

Ek Shloki Ramayana

Ramayana , the hindu epic,consist of   24000 shlokas in 7 books.Reading a Ramayana has a power to wash off all the sins of a human. But in modern era where time is always in scarcity, the benefits of reading a whole Ramayana can be obtain by reading "Ek shloki Ramayana" in which the context of whole epic is reduced into one shloka(verse).

Mantra as follows

आदि राम तपोवनादि गमनं, हत्वा मृगं कांचनम्।

वैदीहीहरणं जटायुमरणं, सुग्रीवसंभाषणम्।।

बालीनिर्दलनं समुद्रतरणं, लंकापुरीदाहनम्।

पश्चाद् रावण कुम्भकर्ण हननम्, एतद्धि रामायणम्।।

Meaning

Once Rama went to forest,

He chased the deer,

Sita was kidnapped,

Jatayu was killed, There were talks with Sugreeva,

Bali was killed,

The sea was crossed,

Lanka was burnt,

And later Ravana and Kumbhakarna,

were also killed.

This in short is the story of Ramayanam

Procedure

-consistency is required

-after the morning bath ,start chanting the mantra in front of idol of Lord Rama

-atleast recitation of 108 times is necessary everyday

 -try to recite at the same time and at the same place everyday.

Ek Shloki Bhagwat

When i was on a trip to Braj bhoomi, one of the pandit of the temple told me the shlok(stanza) in which the whole Bhagwat puraan was described. The stanza was as follows-

"Adhou devaki devi garbha jananam, Gopi gruhe paalanam,
Mayaa pootana jeevithaa apaharanam, govardhanodharanam,
Kansa chedana, kauravadi hananam, kunhi suta palanam,
Etad bhagawatham purana kaditam Shri Krishna leelamrutam"

It means -

'Born to devi Devaki,
Brought up by Gopis,
killed the deomness Pootana,
Lifted the Govardhana parvat,
Beheaded his uncle Kansa,
Helped in killing the Kauravas,
And looked after the children of Kunti.
This is   short   story of Bhagawatam,

Varuni Drink

During the churning of ocean a divine drink called "Varuni" was also produced. This was  the honey based   drink.   Once Lord Balram when drank it had exhilarating experience and had a moment of bliss . It became the favorite beverage of Lord Balram. Some text even considered as 'medium of transcedent wisdom'. Even today it is offered as prasadam to Lord Balram.

Following are the ingredients while preparing 'Varuni' drink.

1)Milk

2)Yogurt

3)Cream

4)Honey

5)White Sugar

6)Rose water

The Story of Garlic

During the war between demons and gods for the divine nectar, one of the demon manage to steal the pot of nectar(amrit). At this crunch time when gods were on the verge of defeat, Lord Vishnu appeared and killed that demon with his divine weapon "Sudrashan Chakra" which cuts his head . But that demon had drank nector and by the time he was killed the nectar had reached till his throat. As the blood drops from his body fell on his ground , at the same place a strange plant grew up, which was a garlic plant. This plant acquired two strange properties. Due to effect of nectar , garlic has a lot of medicinal value and it is considered as very good from health's point of view. On the other hand , due to demonic influence , it has a very negative effect on our psychological health and thought process. This is the reason the use of garlic is prohibited during pooja ceremony due to its negative effect(Taamsik energy) on contrary to pooja which has positive effect(saatwik energy). Still it is believe that a person who ate garlic/onion in previous 6 months before his death does not get salvation!!

Previous Birth of Ravana

Lord Brahma created 4 sons from the power of his mind. They were called as "Sankadi". Once they decided to met Lord Vishnu at his abode. The abode of Lord Vishnu had 7 gates. The successfully cleared the six gates, but when the came across the last 7th gate, they were stopped by the two gate keepers, Jaya and Vijaya. They did not allowed them to enter the abode of Lord Vishnu. After a long debate the ,four saints, Sankadis were upset and cursed Jaya and Vijaya for their arrogance that the two would be reborn as demon on earth for hundred births. Jaya and Vijaya prayed Lord Vishnu for intervention to have mercy. But it was too late . On seeing Lord Vishnu, the 4 saints agreed to mitigate the curse. So instead of 100 births, they reduced the curse for three births. In the first birth Jaya and Vijaya were born as Hiranyaksha and Hirankshyapa. In the second birth they born as Ravana and Kumbhakarana and in the final birth as Dantavakra and Shishupal. In all the births they were liberated by Lord Vishnu.

Akshay Navami

In the Kaartik month,shukla Paksha and Ashtmi tithi is considere best for charity.Many legends are associated with this day. It is believe that on this day
1) Surya Dev(the Sun God) worshiped goddess Durga to acquire its properties because of which he is lighting the whole world.
2) Bharat met Lord Rama after 14 years.
3) It is considered auspicious to eat food under the Amla tree.this ritual is associated with good health.
4) Satya yug also began on this day.
5) The amla fruit is considered as divine fruit of Lord Vishnu.This is the ripening time of this fruit.
6) Amla tree is manifistation of goddess Lakshmi.

The Legend behind Gop Ashtami

Gop Ashtami is celebrated on Kaartik month, Shukla Astami tithi. This is very important festival dedicated to Lod Krishna. According to legend when Indra, the chief of gods accepted defeat from the hands of lord Krishna, his pride was shattered,he along with his divine cow  'Surbhi' came to Lord Krishna to worship him. He understood the divine powers of Krishna. Even the Nanda, the foster father of Krishna witnessed this miracle. To bless his son , he allowed him to become  the independent cowherd. Previously Lord Krishna only looked after calves. For the first time on this day he came to Vrindavan  with a cow.He also got the title of "Govinda(king of cows)" today.
This day is celebrated in Vrindavan and Mathura with utmost faith.It is believe that in cow all the deties dwell. So cow worship on this day is very auspicious.Cowsheds are decorated and special food is offered to cow.Offerings  in the form of kind or food is to be given to cowherds also which is a custom.

Govardhan Parvat and Lord Rama

The Govardhan Parvat(hill) is one of the most sacred manifestation of Lord Krishna worshipped by his followers. This sacred hill has a close linkage with Lord Rama also due to involvement of boon given by him to this hill. It is believe that when Lord Rama ordered to built bridge across ocean to Lanka, Hanuman too went to Himalaya mountain ranges to fetch some rocks necessary for building bridge. Hanuman was flying back to Rama after taking one hill,called Govardhan then he came to know that he was too late as the bridge was already built during that time and no more rocks or mountains were needed. This was very disappointing for the Govardhan Hill as he was too eager to have glimpse and divine touch of holy feet of lord Rama. When Lord Rama came to know about this incident, he blessed Govardhan hill that, in Dwapar Yug, he himself would hold Govardhan in his hand and people will worship him.The blessings given by Lord Rama proved true in Dwapar Yug  when he himself incrnated as Lord Krishna and held Govardhan on his little finger for 7 days and nights.

Curse of Sage Bhrigu

During the fight between gods and demons, at one stage gods overpowered demons. Sensing the massive defeat ,the demons reached the ashram of Sage Bhrigu who was not present at that time. His wife greeted the demons as they were came for the help and she promised to provide shelter to demons. On the other hand, Indra who was chief of gods came to know about the hideout of demons. Indra reached the ashram and threatened demons to surrender before him. But wife of Sage Bhrigu stood in between them and drove Indra away. Indra rushed to Lord Vishnu for the help. To assist Indra he went to ashram where the demons were hidden. Again, the wife of Sage Bhrigu came to rescue demons. Finally, Lord Vishnu killed her with his Sudarshan Chakra in order to ensure win for gods. At this point Sage Bhrigu returned to ashram and shocked to see the dead body of his wife. When he came to know that it was Lord Vishnu who was responsible for the death of his wife, he cursed Lord Vishnu that he too would have to suffer the pain of separation from his wife on earth like him . Lord Vishnu accepted the curse with dignity. Due to curse he was born as Lord Rama(an incarnation of Lord Vishnu) and had to suffer the grief of separation from his wife Sita.

16 Shringaar

'Adornament' means something which add beauty. Indian classics depicts 16 steps of adornament for a married woman. This ritual is generally performed on the wedding day or some festival ,but it is very significant as married woman is a representative of goddess Lakshmi for her husband who in turn is a symbolic representative of Lord Vishnu. The following 16 ornaments are used
1) Bindi
2) Sindoor
3) Teeka
4) Kajal
5) Nose Ring
6) Necklace
7) Earings
8) Mehndi
9) Bangles
10) Armlets
11) Ring
12) Choti
13) Kamarband(waistband)
14) Payal/Toe ring
15) Itra
16) Red Saree

The beauty of Karwa Chauth: Its Rituals

Every woman is a part of ‘ Shakti’, the goddess. Fasting(Vrat) is a kind of tapasya(deep meditation) through which the hidden powers are invoked. The Karwa Chauth vrat is one of the method of invoking the inner powers of woman. There are many rituals associated with this vrat. Following are the key rituals and some important points which should be kept in mind  –

1)The first Karwa Chauth should never be missed.

2)Never wakeup any other person

3)Not to use knife in kitchen.

4)Don’t put thread in the needle for sewing.

5)Donot make any agreement with annoyed person.

6)In a pre dawn meal(called sargi), 7 kinds of food has to be eaten.

7)A shape of crescent is drawn with Haldi(turmeric) on the wall (munder) and water is offered at the start of vrat.

8) Sargi(pre dawn meal) has to be prepared by mother in law.

9)The ‘sargi’ has to be consumed before sun rise.

10)The Evening pooja before the sun set is very significant

11)A thali(plate) consisting of sweets called “Baya” is prepared to be given to Mother in law.

12)Prepare a corner with the help of rangoli for pooja called “Chowk”

13)Place the deity in the centre of the chowk

.

14)Then the ‘shakti’ is invoked by mantras in the deity.

15)Place Karwa(a small pitcher of clay) filled with water with the ‘Thaali’

16)All the women sit around the image and exchange the ‘thaali’ seven times.

17)Then comes  the sensitive time when an old lady re narrates the story of Karwa chauth, which has to be listened very carefully.

18) The’Thaali(baya)’ is offered to mother in law to seek blessings. This process is called “mansana”

19) In a house where a daughter in law give ‘Baya’ to mother in law , it is prohibited for a spouse(of daughter in law),her children or other male children of younger age to eat the things given in ‘Baya’.

20)After the pooja, at the moon rise first ardhya(water offering) has to be given to moon through the sieve. It is important to note that the fast has to be broken only after offering water to the moon. (As all Chaturthi fast is linked with moon as per blessings of Lord Ganesha)

21) Parikrama(turn full circle standing at one place) has to be done while breaking the fast.

22)The woman has to touch the feet of the husband and husband inturns blessed her by offering water in karwa to drink.

23) It is custom to cook unbroken pulse(sabut daal) and it is auspicious to prepare any thing which requires Kadai(a kind of utencil) after the fast. Its a mark of "barkat"

This marks the completion of fast.

Legend Of Karwa Chauth

Karwa Chauth is the most important festival for a Hindu married woman. This festival falls on 4^th day of Krishna Paksha of Kaartik month. For the longevity of her husband a tough fast is observed by women.   To begin the fast one has to wake up early in the morning and after bathing the food has to be consumed before the sun rise. This food is called as “sargi”(pre dawn meal). No food and water is consumed through out the day. The fast is broken only after offering water to the reflection of moon. There are many rituals and legends associated with this fasting. Every ritual has a special meaning. One must know it before keeping fast.This fast is dedicated to Savitri who was a sati ( total devotee to her husband). The legend associated with this fast is as follows-

Savitri was a beautiful daughter of a powerful king. All the efforts of the parents of choosing a bridegroom for Savitri went in vain. One day while roaming in forest Savitri fell in love with a poor young man,Satyavan. Despite opposition she chose  Satyavan as her husband. She even ignored the warning of an astrologer that Satyavan had a very short life span and he would going to die within one year of marriage. Still Savitri was adamant on her decision.. They got married. Exactly after one year , Satyavan fainted in forest and died.Savitri saw Yamraj, the god of death came to take away the soul of Satyavan to his kingdom. Savitri was determined and followed Yamraj to his kingdom. This was against the law of nature. So Yamraj granted three wishes to Savitri. As a first wish she asked the restoration of the lost kingdom of her father in law. In lieu of second wish she asked for the  eyes for her blind parents in law. The two wishes were too easy for Yamraj to fulfill. But the real dilemma occurred when Savitri demanded third wish. She demanded to become mother of a virtuous sons. Since Savitri was a sati , so without a husband it was not possible as she can not marry second time. Yamraj was in a fix. Yamaraj had to spare the life of Satyavaan in order to keep his words. This was the power of  true devotion of a wife towards her husband.

The Wealth of Goddess Lakshmi

The goddess Lakshmi is worshipped as deity of wealth and fortune. Here the word wealth does not represent only money. For a sick man the wealth is his health.Simliarly for a dying man the wealth is his life. The word wealth changes its meaning regarding the context. She is the possessor of 16 types of wealth as follows
1) Money
2) Intelligence
3) Health
4) Children
5) Grains
6) Beauty
7) Knowledge
8) Courage
9) Happiness
10) Long life
12) Fame
13) Spiritual Joy
14) patience
15) Victory
16) Strength

This is the reason why goddess Lakshmi is worshipped as 8 forms called Ashta Lakshmi to get all the above 16  wealth by HER.

Curse of Yudhishtir

In Mahabharat's war, it was on 17th day when the battle between Karna and Arjun broke. The intensity and importance of the fight could be judged from the fact that even Gods witnessed it from the heaven. Eventually, Karna was killed by the Arjun and a wave of grief spread in Kauravas camp after this shocking news. After this important victory Pandavas found that their mother, Kunti was very upset despite her son Arjun scored victory over Karna. She expressed her desire to her sons to perform the last rites of Karna. But their sons,Pandavas declined. Then Kunti revealed the secret that actually Karna was her son which was born before her marriage.Surya blessed her a son when she was unmarried. On hearing this, Yudhishtir, perhaps lost his patience for the first time in his life. He cursed the women race that they would never able to keep a secret.

100 births old curse

In the epic Mahabharata,Bhism Pitamah was the prominent charater. He was a very desciplined warrior. In the war when he was about to die, he was lying on the bed of arrows. The whole life series was running in his mind at the time of death. He reminded that since many births he hadn't committed a single mistake then why he had suffering at the time of death. He requested Lord Krishna to answer his question. Then Lord Krishna with his divine powers took Bhishma Pitamah 100 births back. In a retrogression journey he found that he was a king 100 births back and committed one sin while he was going to forest for hunting. He found a snake lying in on his way. He tried to save his life and lifted with sword and threw in the bushes. But, the snake lost its life being struck in thorns. Before dying he cursed the king that he too would die like this.

Lord krishna , brought Bhishma Pitamah back to current time frame and further explained that in subsequent births due to his good deeds the curse of snake didnt prevailed but it kept following him since last 100 births and this was his last birth so as per law of karma at the time of death he was lying on the bed of arrows just like the snake lied on thorns 100 births back.

Sri Sunder Narayan Temple

This is one of the oldest temple in the Nashik. It is situated at the edge of the Ahilya Bai Holkar bridge. It is the only temple in the world where Lord Vishnu is present along with goddess Tulsi and goddess Lakshmi. Goddess Tulsi was Vrinda, the queen of demon Jallandhar in the previous birth. The demon had a boon that he will remain immortal till his wife remain chaste(Pavitra). It was necessary to kill the demon to save the earth from his havoc. So, Lord Vishnu appeared in front of Vrinda in disguise form of her husband Jallandhar. By mistake she could not able to reveal the identity of Lord Vishnu. Thinking him as her husband , she touched him. So her promise to remain pure was broken. When she realized her mistake she cursed Lord Vishnu to turned into a black stone called Shaligram. After this curse the complexion of Lord Vishnu turned into black. Lord Vishnu rushed to the bank of Godavri river and took a holy bath. Instantaneously, he regain his divine complexion.

My guide told me the unique feature of this east facing temple. On 21st March when day and night are equal, the first ray of the rising sun fall on the feet of deity

The Kapileshwar temple

This is the only temple in the world where Nandi ji is not present in the sanctum sanctorum. It is located at the bank of river Godavri at Ram kund in Nashik(Maharashtra).My guide told me an intresting legend behind it. Once Lord Shiva punished Brahma for his mistake and cut his 5th head. But at the same time , a sin incurred to Lord Shiva for killing the 5th head of Brahma(Brahm hatya dosh). This perplexed Lord Shiva . He tried every method to get rid of this sin. Despite wandering every place on bhu-lok(the earth), there was no respite. Then nandi ji suggested one escape route. He took Lord Shiva to the bank of Godavri. He guided him to a secret spot. This was the point where the 3 rivers, Godavri,Aruna and Varuna met. Here Lord Shiva took a holy dip. He was librated from the sin after this bath. Since Nandi ji guided him so Lord Shiva treated him as a Guru (not as a follower)at this place. This is the reason that there is no idol of Nandi ji here.

Exactly at this point Lord Shiva took bath at the confluence of Godavri river,Aruna river and Varuna River

At the backdrop, its Kapileshwar temple where Lord Shiva treated Nandiji as his Guru

Signification of Shravan month

The hindu calendar is based upon the movement of moon across the zodiac. The 12 months are-
1) Chaitra
2) Vaishakh
3) Jyeshtha
4) Ashaad
5) Shravna
6) Bhadrapad
7) Ashwin
8) Kaartik
9) Margshisha
10) Paussh
11) Magh
12) Phalgun
The month number 5 i.e. Shravana is very significant to the Shivaites due to the legend associated with this month. To please the goddess of wealth Mahalakshmi, the gods and demon decided to churn ocean. It was pre decided that what ever things emit from the ocean would be share between Gods and demons. During this process, 14 divine items were emerged from the ocean. Of the fourteen items, one item was the most deadly poison called Halahal. No body was the taker of the Halahal poison. This created panic among Gods and demons. At this crunch time Lord Shiva appeared to save the earth from destruction. He accepted the pot of poison and drank in such a manner that the poison could not able to surpass his throat. The effect of the poison was so strong that the whole throat turned blue. Since then lord Shiva named as NeelKanth(means blue throat) . To mitigate the effect of poison, gods rushed to offer ganga jal(water of holy river ,ganga). The whole event was held in the month of Shravana. Since then this month of Shravana is totally dedicated to lord Shiva. Though the whole shravana month is auspicious for worshipping Lord Shiva, but the Mondays falling in this month has special significance as the ruling deity of Monday is Lord Shiva. The golden rule is that Jap(recitationof mantra) done in particular place or in particular time has special significance as its effects increases many times. So, this was the Mahatmayam(significance) of Shravan maas(month)……

The Right Choice

On the eve of Mahabharata war, there was too much anxiety in the both camps of Kauravasa and Pandavas. No body wanted to loose this battle. On the other hand Lord Krishna, the ruler of Dwarka was playing neutral role. But he had mighty army. Arjuna as a representative from Pandava side and Duryodhan from the Kauravas side went to Lord Krishna for the support for their side. Duryodhan wanted to gain upperhand and reached there before Arjun in the palace of Lord Krishna. At that time Lord Krishna was sleeping. Duryodhan hurriedly occupied a seat near the head of Krishna and Arjun decided to sit near the feet of Krishna. When Krishna woke up he saw Arjun first and then Duryodhan. On knowing the reason of their visit Krishna offered two choices to both camps. First was to choose the his mighty army which was capable of destroying any enemy and the second was his own services only as a mentor. Since Kirshna saw Arjun first so he asked Arjun to chose his option first. This made Duryodhan worried because he wanted the army of krishna dearly. On listening this Arjun fell in the feet of Krishna and asked his services in the battle. This was an absolute shocker for Duryodhan and he was overwhelmed with joy that he got the army of krishna which he thought that this would tilt the result of the battle in his own favour. He was sure shot about Kauravas victory after getting the army of krishna. But at the end of 18 day war the result was opposite. Pandavas prevails over Kauravas. Krishna played perfect role as a friend,mentor,philospher and a manager. He guided pandavas from time to time and kept the moral of his side up and high.

The same rule applies to modern day management policy.

A leader of any organisation or a family should have
1)motivational skills(Arjun who looses all his courage at the crunch time, it was krishna who motivates him)
2)controlling skills(Krishna controlled more than 1.5 million army personnel in the war)
3)Good leadership qualities( though with less resourced than Kauravas, still Pandavas won because of good leadership qualities of Krishna and his skills of utilising his limited resources effectively and efficiently)
4) Excellent strategy( Krishna knews that if Arjun fought with Karan then Arjun would surly lost. So he placed Ghatotkach against Karan. This was the turning point of the war as all the powers of Karan was wasted in killing the Ghatotkach and Arjun's strenght was safeguarded.

The Holy Pond - Kushavrat

The word 'Sarovar' means a pond or a water body. The water is one of the most important subtle element in hinduism. Bathing in a pond in a pilgrimage is one of the important ritual which includes tarpan(offering water to the departed souls) also. In Triambak town, there is such holy pond where bathing is considered as one the dream of hindu due to its holiness. This is "Kushavrat sarovar" or "Kushavrat teerth". As per legend after the boon given by Lord Shiva to Sage Gautam, the river Godavri appeared at Brahmgiri hills(in Triambak town near Nashik) for the first time. But after a short while it again disappears as she was not willing to stay on earth.. Sage Gautam couldn’t able to bath in it, which was necessary for removing his sin accrued to him because of killing of a cow accidentally. Now it was a great cause of concern for Sage Gautam to prevent river Godavri from disappearing. He took 4 blades of kusha-grass and energized it with his divine power and threw at the 4 corners. This worked like a trap for river Godavari. Since then it is believe that this pond where sage Gautam placed 4 kusha (a kind of grass) at the four corners is the source of river Godavri. After that this pond was named as “Kushavrat” means surrounded by kusha(a grass)

The Legend of Triambakeshwar

Sage Gautam was a very pious sage. He attained many divine powers with his meditation. Once there was a drought in his region called as Brahmgiri hills(Triambak) . He worshipped Lord Varun(the god of water). Pleased with the prayers of sage Gautam, Lord Varun blessed the area with plenty of water. The created jealousy among other sages. The deliberately send a cow at the hermitage of sage Gautam. While sage Gautam was trying to drive the cow away from his ashram, she died. It was considered as one of the greatest sin to kill a cow. The sage felt guilty for the sin which was done unintentionally. The only option was left to get rid of the sin was to perform the parikrama(circumambulation) of Brahmgiri hill for 101 times and bring the river Ganga here and worship the shivling . Sage Gautam performed this tough ritual. Later Lord Shiva and goddess Parvati appeared and granted the boon of appearing the river Ganga in this region. River Ganga appeared instantly on the order of Lord Shiva, but she requested Lord Shiva and goddess Parvati to stay along with here. Lord accepted the demand and decided to reside in the form of Triambakeshwar. From then the river got its name Godavri(Gautami-ganga). On seeing this divine occasion all other gods appear and promised to visit here once in twelve years when the planet Jupiter transits through the Leo sign. Since then when this planetary combination repeats ,the huge “Kumbh-mela” (festival) is held at the bank of Godavri. It is believe that to keep their promise all the gods present at the spot during that period and bathing in river Godavri considered as auspicious.

The first Glimpse of the Jyotirlingam ,Triambakeshwar

Dwar, the entrance

The main sanctum in the backdrop

This moment which will go along with me when i would leave the earth

The super eight

In Kailyuga,(the 4^th stage of time concept as per Hinduism), the maximum life span of a human is believe to be 120 years. But there are some souls who because of boon or curse roam on the earth having abnormal life span. The term used for the long life is “Chiranjeev” means a person who lives eternal life. The 8 persons who attain this title are

1) Sage Markandeya

2) King Bali

3) Vibhishan

4) Parshuram

5) Hanuman

6) Sage Vyas

7) Kripacharya

8) Ashwathama

Still it is believe that the above 8 are present on earth whose current age varies from thousands to millions of years! So while exploring India , if you come across the region dedicated to any one of above all, make sure they are there itself to listen your prayers!!!

The curse of Vedvati

King Kushadhwaj was a powerful king and he was true devotee of Lord Vishnu. His wife gave birth to a daughter. At the time of birth the little girl was chanting the vedic mantras(prayer). This was a good omen for an extraordinary child. As a result her parents named her as “Vedvati”. Like her father she was also a true devotee of Lord Vishnu. She performed very tough tapasya(meditation) to please Lord Vishnu. As she grow older and older , she became adamant that she would marry to only Lord Vishnu. All the efforts of her parents of guiding her to marry some other king on earth went in vain. After the death of her parents , she preferred to stay in the forest and did meditation just to have a glimpse of lord Vishnu. Once the King Ravana, the ruler of Lanka visited her hermitage. He was stunned by the beauty of Vedvati and proposed her to marry him. But Vedvati rejected his offer. The angry King Ravana insulted her and destroyed her tapasya. She cursed Ravana that in her next birth she would become the cause of his death .She could not bear the insult , so she immolated herself . The vedvati reborn as Sita in the next birth. Due to all her merits which she acquired in previous birth she married to Rama(an incarnation of lord Vishnu). Later , Sita(vedvati , in previous birth) became the cause of destruction of the vast empire of King Ravana!

The 3 sins of Ashwathama

Ashwathama, the son of Dronacharya was a great warrior. During the Mahabharata war he joined the Kaurava's camp. On the 13^th day of war he committed the first crime by involving in a killing of Abhimanyu by unfair means. Later,he lost all his senses when his friend Duryodhan was killed . He decided to took revenge and attacked at the Pandavas camp at night which was against the rules of war and killed the sons of Draupadi.It was his second sin. This created havoc in the Pandavas camp and they chased Ashwathama. A fierce battle broke between Ashwathama and Arjun. Despite restrictions Ashwathama invoke the “Brahmastra”, a divine weapon to kill Arjun. But sage Vyas intervened and advised Ashwathama to stop the use of the weapon to save earth. But Ashwatham didn’t knew the trick of withdrawing the weapon. To take revenge he directed the weapon towards the womb of the daughter in law of Arjun,Uttra who was carrying Abhimanyu’s son,Parikshit. He wanted to destroy the lineage of Arjun. Later Uttra delivered stillborn child. Here Lord Krishna cursed Ashwathama that he will roam like a ghost till the end of Kaliyuga and his body will suffer from the uncurable wounds. Lord Krishna also took away the divine jewel from Ashwathama which he used to wear on his forehead as this jewel had all the powers. Still it is belive that the Ashwathama is roaming with a wound on his forehead and many people has witnessed a strange man with wounds and blood oozing from his forehead.Surly, the current age of Ashwathama would be 5000 years+ today!

The Great Army

It is believe that during the mahabharata war which was fought at kurukshetra region nearly 18 akshoni unit of armymen were gathered and fought a battle of their life time. Now , I am sharing the exact constituent of the unit "akshoni". The word “Akshohini” denotes a group of warrior who were the masters in the various forms of art of war. The total 18 akshohini consisted 1968300 soldiers,1180980 horses.393660 horses ,393660 charioteers. Perhaps this was the reason Arjun felt weak at the onset of the war on seeing the huge army! One thing is sure that more than 3 million people were killed in a short span of 18 days. Following is the sub division of akshohini.

The Pandavas fought with 7 akshohini of armymen whereas Kauravas had 11 akshohini. It was the mismanagement of kauravas that led to their downfall.During the span of 18 days Kauravas were led by Bhishma for 10 days and then by Dronacharya,karna and shalya for the rest of the days. this simply rattles their plans.