Cosmic Couple
Kama,
lord of desire, catalyst of all creative processes, was reborn the moment
Parvati embraced Shiva. She softened the stern hermit with sweet words; her
smile stirred love in his austere heart. The twang of the love-god's bow and
the fragrance of spring filled the air. Everyone cheered this divine union.
Parvati
made Kailas her home, close to lake Manasarovar. Its snowy peaks served as her
courtyard, its caves became her mansion. There she domesticated Shiva, turned
him into a householder, much to the satisfaction of the gods. In the chilly
waters of Manasarovar, amidst the blooming lotuses and the beautiful swans, she
sported with him. On its shores they danced and sang, captivating the attention
of forest spirits and divine beings. The two complemented each other perfectly.
She was gentle and graceful; he was wild and forceful. Her subtle lasya
tempered his energetic tandav and created perfect harmony, encapsulating the
vibrations of the universe, capturing the music of the spheres.
On
the hill slopes she conversed with Shiva. She asked him questions about the
cosmos, about Nature, about society, life and marriage. Each time he replied,
she asked him a thousand other questions. Skillfully Parvati enticed Shiva into
the ways of the world, arousing his concern for society. Thus his great wisdom,
acquired through aeons of meditating and brooding, was revealed for the good of
the cosmos.
Parvati
was the perfect student, Shiva the perfect teacher. Ultimately the world was
enriched by these sacred conversations; through them was revealed the secrets
of the Vedas, the splendours of the Shaastras and the mysteries of the Tantras.
With
Parvati by his side, Shiva made a declaration: "Let it be known, no
worship or sacrifice will be accepted by the gods until a man has his wife by
his side." And so it is that no yagna or puja is conducted without the
wife sitting to the left of the husband. Since then the wife is called vamangi,
she-who-sits-to-the-left.
He
said, "He who escapes from life's joys and sorrows, rather than dealing
with them, is a fool. He is running away from the Truth."
She
said, "He who is obsessed with the pleasures and pains of life, unable to
look at the serenity beyond them, is a fool. Even he is running away from the
Truth."
They
said, "Truth lies in harmony, harmony between matter and spirit, between
the body, mind and soul, between the individual and society, between society
and Nature, in purusha and prakriti."
Above the Clouds
Shiva
and Parvati travelled across the cosmos on the bull Nandi. In winter, they
wrapped themselves with soft tiger skins to keep out the cold. In summer, they
sought refuge from the harsh glare of the sun in the shade of trees. And when
dark rain-bearing clouds made their way towards the mountains, Shiva took
Parvati in his arms and carried her above the clouds, above the rain.
Parvati
was pleased with Shiva. She gave him a new name, jimutavahana,
he-who-rides-the-clouds.
Shiva's Dance
Parvati's
beauty inspired Shiva to create music and dance. From his melodious voice came
the musical notes and tunes that enchanted the entire cosmos. He created the
various dance elements gait, gestures, expression and posture that best
expressed human emotion. Shiva became lord of the arts, Kaleshvar.
One
day, as Shiva danced, Parvati said, "Whatever he can do, I can do
beter." She imitated all his movements and her performance won the praise
of the gods. But then Shiva raised one of his legs and took the pose known as
urdhva-nataraja. Parvati refused to take this stance which she felt outraged
feminine modesty.
Shiva
brust out laughing and Parvati realised that he was just teasing her.
Game of Dice
Shiva
and Parvati often played dice atop Mount Kailas.
Once,
to make the game more exciting, Shiva offered to wager his trident, if Parvati
wagered her jewels. She did, but he lost. Then Shiva wagered his serpent, he
lost that too. Soon he had lost everything he possessed: his skull-bowl, his
rudraksha beads, his ash, his drum, his smoking pipe . . . and finally even his
loin cloth.
Humiliated
by this defeat, Shiva went into the deodar forest. Vishnu, feeling sorry for
Shiva, offered to help him out. "Play another game. This time I promise
you will win," he told Shiva.
And
that was exactly what happened. Shiva won back all that he had lost in earlier
games, even the loin cloth.
Parvati,
suspicious of Shiva's sudden success, called him a cheat. Shiva, outraged by
the accusation, demanded an apology. Words were exchanged, insults were hurled
. . .
To
pacify them both, Vishnu appeared on the scene and revealed to Parvati the
secret of Shiva's victories. "My spirit entered the die. The dice moved
not according to your moves but according to my wish. So neither has Shiva
really won nor have you really lost. The game was an illusion; your quarrel a
product of delusion."
On
hearing Vishnu, Parvati and Shiva realised that life was like their game of
dice totally unpredictable and beyond control. They said, "Let the gods
bless all those who play dice on this day and realise this cosmic truth."
That day is Diwali, the festival of lights.
Annapoorna
Shiva
once told Parvati, "The world is an illusion. Nature is an illusion.
Matter is just a mirage, here one moment, gone the next. Even food is just
maya."
Parvati,
mother of all material things including food, lost her temper. "If I am
just an illusion, let's see how you and the rest of the world get along without
me," she said and disappeared from the world.
The
disappearance of Parvati caused havoc in the cosmos. Time stood still, seasons
did not change, the earth became barren ... there was a terrible drought. There
was no food to be found anywhere in the three worlds. Gods, demons and humans
suffered the pangs of hunger. They wept like children who seek their mothers.
"Salvation makes no sense to an empty stomach," cried the sages.
News
reached Shiva that Parvati had reappeared at Kashi and had set up a kitchen
there for the benefit of the world. He ran there as fast as he could, along
with every other hungry creature in the world. As he presented his bowl to her
he said, "Now I realise that the material world, like the spirit, cannot
be dismissed as an illusion."
Parvati
smiled and fed Shiva with her own hands.
Since
then Parvati has come to be known as Annapoorna, the goddess of food. The image
of her serving food to her hermit-husband Train worshipped at Kashi, Varanasi,
in Uttar Pradesh. It is said she does not eat a morsel unless all her devotees
have been fed.
The Tribal Woman
Shiva
once got bored of married life. He went into the deodar forest to resume his
austerities. Unable to bear this separation, Parvati followed him there. But
Shiva took no notice of her.
"What
do I do now?" wondered Parvati. Vishnu whispered a solution in her ears.
Accordingly Parvati dressed up like a tribal-woman, bright beads round her
neck, peacock feathers in her hair. She sang and danced until Shiva could no
more ignore her.
Distracted,
he followed Parvati back to the romantic shores of lake Manasarovar. There,
inspired by Parvati's beauty, he picked up his lute, the rudra-vina and created
the most enchanting tunes ever heard in the cosmos.
Kali or Gauri
Once,
as sunlight streamed into their cave, Shiva looked at Parvati and laughed.
"You are so dark. You are Kali, the black one, black as coal, black as the
night sky, black as a crow, black as the pit of death."
Hurt
by Shiva's cruel words Parvati walked out of Kailas and moved into the deodar
forest. There she performed rigorous tapas. By the strength of her austerities
she shed her dark colour, which it is said percolated into the river Kalindi.
She became the radiant Gauri, as bright as a full moon and returned to Kailas.
Parvati,
as mother of the world and source of life, is called Gauri, bright and radiant,
full of hope. But when she becomes death, the final devourer of all things, she
is called Kali, the dark one from whom there is no escape.
Adi's Embrace
Shiva
never brought any gifts or food for Parvati. Sometimes he smoked narcotic drugs
in his chilum and ignored her for days on end. Once, tired of his callous
attitude, she ran into the deodar forest.
Taking
advantage of her absence, a demon called Adi entered Kailas and walked right
into Shiva's cave. The ganas did not stop him for he looked just like Parvati.
The demon had used his magic powers to bring about this transformation.
Adi
wanted to dupe Shiva. He was envious of the cosmic couple; he wanted to make a
fool of the great lord, humiliate him, mock his love for Parvati, and perhaps
even kill him at a vulnerable moment.
When
Shiva saw his beloved entering the cave he was delighted. He rushed to greet
her. But he soon divined the true identity and intention of this 'Parvati'.
Infuriated
by this deception Shiva became Ashani, the thunderbolt. His love turned into
rage, more terrible than lightning. He caught hold of Adi and sapped the
demon's life with his embrace. The gods cheered the destruction of the demon.
Days
passed. Parvati showed no sign of returning to Kailas. Her absence drove Shiva
mad. He began to dance wildly. The heavens trembled and the earth shook. Cracks
appeared on the foundations of the seas. Fearing the worst, the gods begged
Parvati to restrain her husband. Only she had the power to do that.
Parvati
returned to Kailas. As she walked up the hill singing songs of love, Shiva's
dance of sorrow turned into the dance of joy.
The
cosmos regained its balance, the world was safe and the gods were happy.
Parvati becomes a Fisherwoman
Shiva
and Parvati often discussed the secrets of the universe. Together they explored
the wonders of the cosmos.
But
one day, as Shiva spoke to Parvati, he found her attention wavering. She was
looking at the fish swimming in the lake Manasarovar. "If fish is more
interesting than my words, I would rather you become a fisherwoman."
Parvati
obeyed Shiva and instantly took birth as a fisherman's daughter. She grew up to
be a strong and beautiful maiden. She oared her father's boat, mended his nets
and cleaned all the fish he caught. He was proud of her; his only worry was to
find a husband good enough for her.
Shiva
meanwhile, regretted his harsh words. From Kailas he looked at Parvati running
along the seashore and wondered how he could win her back. Manibhadra, Shiva's
faithful gana, saw his master's plight. He decided to do something to reunite
the lord with his beloved.
Taking
the form of a huge shark, Manibhadra began terrorising the sea coast near
Parvati's village. The fishermen didn't dare venture out into the sea. "It
broke our boats and tore up our nets. We are lucky to return alive," said
the men who survived its many attacks.
"He
who captures the shark will marry my daughter," declared Parvati's
fisherman father. Shiva immediately disguised himself as a young fisherman. Net
in hand, he sailed into the sea and captured the shark with ease.
Shiva
and Parvati were reunited. The fisherfolk celebrated their wedding in pomp and
style.
Parvati and Shiva isolate themselves
"I
don't understand," said Brahma looking at Shiva and Parvati, "At
times they are the loving couple, locked in embrace for seveal aeons, happy to
be with each other. Then, they fight, for as long and with the same intensity.
What is this great mystery?"
Vishnu
smiled. "You see the quarrels and the reconciliations between husband and
wife. I see the interactions between the cosmic spirit, purusha, and the cosmic
substance, prakriti. The relations of that divine couple reflect the ways of
the world; it oscillates the universe into life."
Once
Shiva and Parvati did not step out of their cave for a thousand years.
Impatient to meet their lord, the seven cosmic sages, the sapta rishis, walked
in without announcing themselves.
Parvati,
who was caught unawares, was so embarrassed that she picked up a lotus and
covered her face. The image of Parvati with a lotus over her face came to be
known as Lajjagauri, the-shy-Parvati.
Irritated
by this intrusion, Shiva and Parvati decided to isolate themselves. They moved
far into the inaccessible caves of the Himalayas. Some say, it was the cave at
Amarnath, Kashmir.
Here,
away from all interruptions and distractions, they explored the limits of
ecstasy. For the first time sensual pleasure, bhukti, became the tool of
spiritual emancipation, mukti.
Arousal of Kundalini
In
isolation, Shiva and Parvati let loose their full potential. Shiva stood on the
right as the fiery pingala. Parvati lay on the left as the frigid ida. By
various physical postures, asanas, mental exercises, dhyana and breath control,
pranayama, they balanced each other's energy until they were both in perfect
harmony, in a state of sushumna.
Parvati
was like a coiled serpent, kundalini, forming the base of the sushumna passage,
seeking union with Shiva. To that end, she began arousing herself with the five
makara tools: Bold diagrams, mandalas, appeared before her eyes. The sound of
chants, mantras, filled her ears. On her tongue was the rich taste of spiced
meat, mansa. Her nose was filled with the overwhelming scent of perfumes and alcohol,
madya. Her skin was stretched and awakened by many positions, mudra. She was
soon ready to rise.
Shiva
waited for her at the other end of the cosmos, at the complementary pole of
existence. While her senses were being excited, he stood beyond sensual
stimulations.
They
were two extremes of the cosmos she was water, he was fire; she was matter, he
was the spirit; she was the flesh, he was the soul; she was the senses, he was
the consciousness. She was in a state of agitation, he was calm; she was
Shakti, all the manifestations of energy, he was Shiva, pure, unadulterated by
any form or shape.
He
was Bhava, the eternal being; she was Bhavani, the eternal transformation. They
were ready to become one.
Parvati
uncoiled herself and rose through the sushumna, the very axis of existence. She
was like a dart, let loose by a strong bow. Her rise was spectacular: she
pierced six great cosmic nodes to reach her lord, it was the great
shat-chakra-bheda. She pierced the centres of fear, desire, hunger, emotion,
communication, introspection located in the body. These were the six chakras
which govern life: Muladhar, Svadhistana, Manipur, Anahata, Vishuddha and Ajna.
As
she pierced them, they bloomed like flowers, reaching their full potential. She
rose beyond the needs and demands of her physical existence. She crossed every
level of being and then joined her lord, the pure cosmic consciousness, in the
form of the thousand petaled lotus, the Saharsrapadma. He was the seed, the
jewel, mani, that she enclosed within her petals, padma.
Together
they returned to the time between creation, Om, and destruction, Hum. In that
state of dissolution, laya, beyond all opposites, there was just perfect bliss.
Man and woman became one, ardhanaranari, as the lotus of matter enclosed the
seed of the spirit.
Om
Mani Padamane Hum
Writer Name: Devdutt Pattanaik
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