A Page from Ancient Literature

One truth a man must keep in mind that howsoever powerful a sinner may be he meets his death. For elimination of violence, sins, atrocities and untruth, the Supreme Person takes birth, lives like an ordinary person, and then, assuming extra-terrestrial powers destroys the enemy. There are also instances that the great lord himself appears, demonstrates his presence, and ultimately after elucidating certain prominent features of the world and the other worlds of heavens, makes it clear that persons with sattvic gunas survive and attain eternity. Others just go to hell and suffer for ages in different yonis until their souls and bodies stand purified through the weal of tapa, penance and karmas where karmas prove effective and fruitful. This is quite relevant in contemporary life where if karmas have sattvic gunas and proclivities, a man is sure to impact existence.

Andhaka was a great daitya, who had undergone severe tapa for years and had tremendous strength because of severe penance. He was very strong and the power of tapa he had, even gods were incapable of killing him. To get rid of the demon was not easy for the gods of heavens. At some stage, he had seen the divine and holy beauty of the goddess while she was wandering with lord Shiva in joy and leisure. The holy beauty of Parvati enchanted him, and therefore, he realized fired with the desire to abduct the consort of lord Sankara. He began to make earnest efforts to kidnap the goddess. During that crucial period, he had a dreadful and terrible war with lord Sankara in the forest of Mahakal situated in the state of Avanti. It is believed that Sankara, in the initial stages, had not gauged the true strength of the demon or it appeared he might have ignored and so wanted to fight in a playful manner with the great demon.

The fierce war continued for years and Andhaka was so ferocious that he began to give troubles to the lord. After lord Shiva had endured dreadful strikes of demon for a long time, he materialized the most horrible weapon known as Pashupata and released it at the asura. The attack was devastating, and it injured the demon severely. However, the death of the demon eluded the lord. As blood oozed out of the body of demon, many thousands of Andhakas were born out of the drops of blood. As the blood continued to flow, therefore, many asuras took birth and it had become difficult to keep track of the crowds, and crowds of Andhakas taking birth.

Andhakas spread over the entire universe. Now, lord Shiva realized and measured the strength of the demon and he found that if the flowing of blood stopped, only then, the growth of demons could halt, and therefore, it was awesome to find a way to get out of the potential reach. Therefore, the great lord Shiva created Matrikas so that they could drink the flowing blood. Maheshwari, Brahmi, Kaumari, Malini, Shakri, Sauri, Saumya, Shiva, Duti, Chamunda, Varuni, Varahi, Vaishnavi, Rakta, Surabhi Chita, Kauna, Ekaksi, Nikumbha, Lamba, Hasini and thousands of others Matrikas appeared, and naturally, created to annihilate Andhaka.

Later on, the most frightening and threatening Matrikas, without wasting time, drank the incessantly flowing blood from the body of Andhaka. They were immensely satisfied when they drank the blood of the daitya. After those Matrikas were satisfied, there was another birth of children of Andhaka. All the newly born Andhakas had shools – weapons with celestial powers and mudraras – weapons with heavy weight with equally fatal strikes, in hands and they began to cause sufferings to lord Shiva. Now, it had become difficult for lord Shiva to contain the growing menace and threat of this demon.

With the passage of time, as the war continued to gain momentum, it caused worries and distress. When lord Shiva was extremely disturbed, he thought to seek shelter at the abode of the omnipresent and eternal god Vasudeva - Sri Hari, and so appeared before the Supreme Lord. The matter was serious they deliberated upon, and then, considering all options, lord Vasudeva, with the powers of Maya –delusory potency, created goddess Suskarevati. When she appeared in the battleground, she drank the entire blood of Andhakas within a moment. As she continued to drink blood flowing out of the wounds of Andhakas, she grew thirstier, and this made her terribly unsatisfied. Her thirst for blood took enormous proportion as she drank. Thus, the goddess drank the blood of all the Andhakas, and thereafter, lord Shiva drove away all the demons to the land of Yama. After the created Andhakas had appeared killed, the creator and caretaker of the three worlds, lord Sankara emerged stronger with celestial swiftness and valour, and began to target the mighty demons with the pointed frontal part of the holy Trident, and released the divine weapon of causing death and destruction.

Realizing that the death was close to him, the great Daitya began to sing songs praising lord Sankara. When he continued to glorify the great lord Shiva, after sometime, the lord was pleased with him. Therefore, lord blessed him with a proximity and status equal to lord Ganesha. This was a surprising boon for the demon, for he was now to live close to the lord like lord Ganesh.

When Matrikas witnessed the generosity of lord Shiva, they said, “O god, with your blessings and generosity, we wish to eat up all the gods, asuras and men along with the entire universe. Therefore, kindly permit us so that we satisfy our hunger.”

Sankara said to Matrikas, “O goddesses, you people should, in fact, protect the entire created beings. I have no doubts about it. Therefore, O holy goddesses, please abandon the most dreaded objective from your minds.”

He had tried to explain the writ of the Great Creator, and had emphasized that it would be improper to finish the lives of created beings before time it appears. However, the hungry and thirsty Matrikas ignored the earnest desires and directions of lord Shiva, and thus, without loss of time, the most ruthless and unsophisticated Matrikas began to devour the three worlds including the animate and the inanimate.

When lord Shiva witnessed the destruction around as Matrikas continued to gulp down the created beings and other things indiscriminately, he was truly worried, and therefore, he meditated on the Sri Nhrisinga - lord Vishnu, who is unborn, beyond a beginning and an end and who is the creator of all the worlds. The frontal parts of whose nails known as blood red to the world that had tore off the breast of the king of daityas Hirayanakasipu. As Shrisinga, his holy tongue lisps like the terrible thunder of lightning and whose jaws appeared large and most dreaded.

Shiva was recalling each part of the body of the great Nhrisinga, who had taken birth on earth as half-lion and half-man so that the cruel and vicious demon Hirayankasipu appeared and consequently as destined to happen, is put to death. He continued to deliberate on the mighty and divine image of Nhrisinga and his each limb, part of the body was vastly dreadful, magnificent, glorious and grand, and which spoke of the divine presence everywhere. Shiva was meditating on Sri Hari while recapitulating the terrific image of Nhrisinga. As he had been just enamored of the grandeur and divinity of the Supreme lord, Sri Vishnu appeared before his eyes. Sri Hari had appeared in the image of an incarnation in which lord Shiva had thought of him.

Shiva said to him, “O lord of the universe, you take birth as Nhrisinga, the frontal parts of whose nails are known as blood red to the world that had tore off the breast of the king of daityas Hirayanakasipu. I salute you O lord. You are unborn, beyond a beginning and an end and who is the creator of all the worlds. You are omnipresent. Your holy body is yellow like gold. You are the supreme Guru of all the gods of heavens, lord Indra and the Universe. I salute you again. Your frightening roar is like the thundering clouds of annihilation. You illuminate like crores of Suns. Your anger is equal to thousands of Yamas and the valour is again more than thousands of lord Indras. You are wealthier and prosperous than thousands of Kuberas.”

He had continued to praise the Supreme lord for a long time. Shiva eulogized the grandeur and glow of lord Vishnu and he found no parallel anywhere in the three worlds. He was like thousands of Varunas and had the patience of thousands of earths. He visualized in lord Vishnu the greatest, the only liberator, and a benevolent salvager who made lives of living beings happy and free from sufferings.

At last, he had said, “O god, I had created Matrikas for the destruction of daitya Andhaka. All the matrikas, after disobeying my instructions appeared, and forced upon devouring the entire created beings including other things. O the Invincible lord, I cannot destroy matrikas because I have created them. How can I annihilate them, when I created?”

When the great Rudra said those words, the Supreme lord Sri Hari, created Vageeshwari out of tongue, Maya out of heart, Bhavamalini from the area of Guha and Kali out of bones. The great Soul had already created Kali who with the divine power had drunk the blood of thousands of Andhakas earlier, and who was not as famous as Susakaravati. He also created the most fortunate thirty-two other matrikas out of various organs.”

The Supreme Lord revealed the names of all those matrikas and requested lord Shiva to remember the holy names of those propitious matrikas. Out of thirty-two matrikas, eight followed dutifully the instructions of Vageeshwari. Again, another eight matrikas were humble servants of Maya and eight matrikas were cohorts of Bhavamalini. Eight matrikas obeyed directions of Susakaravati. Sri Hari had given out the details of the duties of matrikas. Born out of the divine body of Sri Hari, all the holy goddesses were mighty and strong and had the power and capacity to create and annihilate the three worlds. Shiva had learnt like a true devotee. He had been so far trying to find a way out when he could get rid of matrikas, who had proved dangerous to the life of the three worlds.

~*~

Now, Sri Hari had asked those matrikas to perform their duties religiously. Thus, the moment, matrikas emerged out of the different organs of Sri Hari they pounced upon furiously on those matrikas who had been devouring created beings. The dazzling energy and brightness of these matrikas were so dreadful and unbearable that other matrikas sought shelter at the feet of lord Nhrisinga.

Nhrisingha said, “As the human beings and animals have been rearing up their offspring and the way these living beings attracted the attention of gods through the methods of devotions and bhakti, similarly I instruct you to protect the three worlds as you have taken birth out of my limbs. Likewise, one hopes and expects that the human beings and gods should organize yajna to propitiate lord Shiva. You should not create obstacles on the path of bhakti of devotees or disturb the disciples of lord Sankara. Therefore, they are devotees of Sankara and do not create disturbance. Those who worship me need your protection, O matrikas. You should fulfill the desires of those people, who perform yajnas.”

Sri Hari had asked those matrikas to protect devotes and go after his instructions. Thus, he had been guiding and instructing the great goddesses and the matrikas. After saying those words, the holy bouquet of various illuminating flames, lord Nhrisinga disappeared.

This ancient tale reveals one great facet of life of the great lords. Every lord or god has his sphere or area of operation and jurisdiction and none intervenes in the powers and regions of others. The eternal truth speaks of the peace, harmony and total balance the Supreme lord maintained in the universe. A contemporary man ought to understand that unnecessary interference in others’ domains only breeds contempt and retaliation. Such transgressions need strong curbs strictly or else end is a foregone conclusion.