The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
Yesterday was Kumara Sasthi, a day special for Lord Karthikeya, who is also known as Kumara, Muruga or Subramanya.
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| Muruga at Enkann Temple near Thiruvarur |
Among the legends of Karthikeya is the story of how he, as a child, asked Lord Brahma the meaning of the word 'Om'. Brahma, affronted at the idea of such a question from a small child, ignored him. The young Subramanya imprisoned the creator, and creation came to a stand still. The Gods were aghast, and searched for the cause, which led them to the abode of Shiva. Shiva reprimanded Muruga, and asked him to release Brahma at once. Muruga refused, explaining that Brahma did not know the meaning of the word Om, and thus did not deserve to be the creator. Shiva was stunned, and asked the child if he knew the meaning himself. Muruga replied that he did know, but if Shiva wanted him to explain, he would have to take the place of a student, and give him (Muruga) the place of a teacher. Shiva agreed, and Muruga explained to him, the meaning of Om. Shiva and Brahma humbly accepted that the child was right, and blessed him. This legend is associated with the temple at Swamimalai, near Thanjavur, and is the story I grew up hearing.
However, there is another version of the same story, one where Brahma is imprisoned, and then released at the instigation of the Gods. However, Muruga has to pay a price for imprisoning the creator. He is transformed into a snake, and disappears from Kailas. Parvati is upset at her son's disappearance, and prays for her son to be restored to his former glory. After weeks of dedicated prayers, her efforts bear fruit and Muruga appears before her in the form of a snake. The other gods appear too, invoked by the power of Parvati's prayer, and in front of them all, Muruga is restored to his original form. This story is associated with the temple of Kukke Subramanya near Mangalore, and this day is celebrated as Kumara Sashthi with great pomp and splendor.
Next door to our house is a temple managed by the Kukke Subramanya Mutt, and every year, this festival is celebrated with great enthusiasm. The celebrations begin almost a week in advance, but for 3 whole days (including the days before and after Kumara Sashti) we wake up to the sound of Panchavadhyams and go to bed amidst the clanging of the temple bells! Year before last, I had posted about the Lord taking a tour of our colony during the Kumara Sashti procession, and today, I bring you a video of the procession as well as a few photos....
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| Firecrackers lit up the night! |
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| These were certainly the highlight of the procession! |
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| Posing..... |
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| More posing..... |
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| And some more! |
It looks so very colorful and Smahith must have had a good time.
ReplyDeleteDelightful festival, loved it! Many Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSamhit's last pose is wonderful with bent legs and hand resting on his waist. A year ago I too did cover Swami Malai in my Hindi blog with the story.
ReplyDeleteAn exciting and beautiful festival. I enjoyed reading the stories. Great pictures and video.
ReplyDeletenice pics anu
ReplyDeleteoh yes! he was out for the whole procession! i just went to click pics towards the end!
ReplyDeleteIt was fun, Arti!
ReplyDeleteHe will be thrilled to hear that! is always posing for the camera these days!! yes, i remember reading about Swami malai on your blog.. it s a nice temple... we had been there almost 4 yrs back!
ReplyDeleteThanks Shrinidhi!
ReplyDeleteThanks Callie!!
ReplyDeleteThose dressed up people look so intersting...
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It is nice to live near temples that celebrate these important days in the calendar. You are lucky that way. I guess Samhit wants his signature in all your posts :) Nice shot that!
ReplyDeleteYour blog provides a fresh look at the subject. Nice pictures.
ReplyDeleteNice post. remember last year's post too. Kukke Subramanya temple I could not visit.and came to know the legend thru' your post only. thanks.
ReplyDeleteIts nice indeed to live amidst these celebrations, but it feels even worse when we miss so many celebrations simply because the temple is so near and we are caught up in other things and unable to visit! and as for samhith, well, he manages to get seen everywhere!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks chitra! i didnt know about this earlier either! came to know abt it from the temple only!
ReplyDeleteThank you!
ReplyDelete