BharatiyaStories

      Shvetaki and Agni Once there was a king called Shvetaki He was powerful and glorious. He was righteous, smart and very good with his citizens. More than governing his country and people, Shvetaki was more interested in performing rituals and sacrifices. All these sacrifices that Shvetaki did were long and elaborate ones where many priests were involved. Some of these sacrifices were long drawn out affairs with many days of sacrifices, chants and offering to the yagna. The priests who were assisting these sacrifices where well rewarded and respected by the king for their services. Nevertheless, they assisted him for many years. Finally, the constant exposure to the fire and the long days standing near the yagna did take a toll on them. They came to Shvetaki and said that they wanted to leave as they were unable to take the strain of standing next to the smoke and fire for so many days. Shvetaki pleaded with...

  Agasthya drinks up the ocean We have already done a couple of stories about Sage Agasthya. ( https://bharatiyastories.blogspot.com/2024/05/lopamudra-and-agasthya.html ; https://bharatiyastories.blogspot.com/2024/03/agasthya-and-vindhyas.html ). Let us do one more story about this great Sage Agasthya. Once upon a time, Indra had committed the sin of killing a brahmin - his Guru Visvarupa over a minor grouse. ( https://bharatiyastories.blogspot.com/2024/05/indra-and-viswarupa.html ). Visvarupa’s father Twasta got angry with Indra on hearing of his son’s death. He created a demon Vritra to avenge his son’s death. Vritra along with the Kalakeyas attacked Indra and the other Devas. A huge battle ensued between the Devas and the Asuras. After many set-backs, the Devas managed to overcome Vritra with the help of a weapon (Vajra) made from the bones of Sage Dadichi. After the death of Vritra, their king and head, the  Kalakeyas were very disheartened. They retreated to the bot...

  Lopamudra and Agasthya We saw the story of Anusuya and Arundhati. ( https://bharatiyastories.blogspot.com/2024/05/anusuya-and-trimurtis.html ; https://bharatiyastories.blogspot.com/2024/05/arundhati.html ).This is the story of another Rishipathni, Lopamudra, the wife of Sage Agasthya. (One clarification – There is a wrong story that goes around that says Agasthya married his own daughter. That is completely incorrect. Agasthya married Lopamudra a woman created using his meditative and yogic powers. Let us see how and why). (The story of Agasthya and Lopamudra is narrated to Yudhistra by Sage Lomarshana in Vana Parva of the Mahabharata). Sage Agasthya is well known amongst the galaxy of Sages in the Sanathana cosmos. We will discuss the life and journey of Sage Agasthya in a separate story. Now let us discuss Lopamudra. Sage Agasthya was wandering the cosmos and saw some pitrus (ancestors) hanging upside down in a pit. Sage Agasthya questioned the elders as to who they w...

  Arundhati We saw the story of Anusuya. ( https://bharatiyastories.blogspot.com/2024/05/anusuya-and-trimurtis.html ). This is the story of another Rishipathni, Arundhati, the wife of Rishi Vasishta. Arundhati and Vasistha were an ideal couple. There is an interesting story in the Shivapurana on the previous birth and life of Arundhati and her rise to eminence and fame.      In the constellation of stars that we call the the Saptarishi Mandala (Ursa Major constellation), we can see the star that represents Vasishta, while Arundhati is a smaller (twin) star circling Vasistha. At a Vedic wedding, the priest shows the twin stars to the couple asking them to emulate the ideals of Arundhati and Vasistha in their married life.  Arundhati is mentioned in our Puranas and Ithihasa. So who was Arundhati? Why is she famous enough to have a star named after her and placed in the Saptarishi Mandala. Let us go back a bit. ...

Anusuya and the Trimurthis The Rishis and Rishipathnis (their wives) are an important part of the narratives of our Puranas and folklore. There are many well known tales that we use as examples in our everyday life. For example, a short tempered person is described: “That person is like Durvasa”. In this story, we talk about the story of a Rishipathni, Anusuya. Anusuya was born to Prajapati Kardama and Devahuti, the daughter of Svayambhu Manu. Anusuya was the sister of Sage Kapiala and also had eight sisters. Anusuya means one without any jealousy. Anusuya and all her eight sisters were married off to various sages. Anusuya was married to Sage Atri. Anusuya was a gentle and kind person. She was extremely devoted to her husband and was considered a shining example of how a woman should run her family. Her fame spread across the three worlds and she was known as Sati Anusuya. The Tridevis – Lakshmi, Saraswati and Parvati – were very proud of their devotion to their husbands and t...

  d   We have seen earlier the story of Sukeshi who went to the ashram of the sages in the Magadh forest and learnt many Dharmic concepts. ( https://bharatiyastories.blogspot.com/2024/02/pious-asuras-and-worried-gods ). Amongst the many things he learnt from the sages, he also got the knowledge of the ten basic principles of Dharma that is common to all people irrespective of their occupation (varnas). We had already covered a few of these Dharmas through relevant stories. Please see the links below. Dasha Dharma 1.         Dhṛti – Patience ( https://bharatiyastories.blogspot.com/2024/02/dashdharma-patience-shabari.html ; https://bharatiyastories.blogspot.com/2024/02/dash-dharma-patience.html ) 2.         Kṣhamā – Forgiveness ( https://bharatiyastories.blogspot.com/2024/03/dashadharma-story-of-kaakasura-from.htmll ) 3.  ...