Nandi Bull

Last time we read about Shiva as the Bull. But the best known bull is Lord Shiva’s vahana, the Nandi bull. A recent slip of my finger over my TV remote took me to a supposedly popular serial on Lord Shiva. One of the characters was being referred to as the Nandi bull and his only resemblance to the Lords vahana was a pair of stretched ears. The character depicted in the serial was nothing short of an apology of the mythical character, Nandi. This article is only set straight the record and an attempt to correct the sorry state of a majestic mythical character.

Unlike many vahanas of the prominent gods, Nandi is not just an appendage to the deity. Nandi is a character in its own right and has mythology attached to it. (Besides Nandi, Garuda, Lord Vishnu’s vahana is probably the only other vahana to share such distinction, if I may add). Different Puranas have mentioned about Nandi and a lot has been written about it. Though Nandi is depicted as a bull, many say that Nandi was a deity in his own right and was one of the door-keepers of Lord Shiva in his abode. He is also considered to be the chief gana (follower) of Lord Shiva and is the main disciple of Lord Shiva. Nandi in earlier times was imagined in the form and structure of Lord Shiva, except that he was bull faced. As an anthropomorphic deity, he had the body of a human, with four hands and a face of a bull. However, with time the human figure transformed into a permanent white bull.

                                                                             

A number of legends are associated with Nandi. Some say that Nandi was the son of a sage who got him by the grace of Lord Shiva, while some say that he was born out of Lord Shiva’s sides and later given to a sage, who brought him up. There is an interesting legend related to Nandi. Once when Shiva and Parvati were playing dice, Nandi was asked to arbitrate. However, Nandi declared Shiva as the winner during a dispute, when Parvati was the clear winner. This angered Parvati and she cursed him to suffer from a debilitating disease. Nandi is supposed to have made an emotional justification for his unflinching support to his Lord and the alleged bias was to be viewed as just another sign of his devotion to the Lord and nothing else! Parvati was moved by his explanation and suggested that during the next Chaturdashi if he offered what pleased him the most to Lord Ganesha, then he would be cured of his disease. It is said that on that day, Nandi offered green grass (the staple of a bull) to Ganesha and was soon cured of his disease. This act is considered to be the the genesis of the practice of offering ones choicest of foods on Chaturdashi to Lord Gannesha, whose other name is Ganapati, head of the ganas.

Another legend has it that during the amrit-manthan, it was Shiva who came forward to consume the poison (halahal) that came out of the churning of the ocean. While Shiva was drinking the poison, Nandi saw a few drops falling from his mouth. Lest the drops fall on earth, Nandi took them in his mouth. When everybody saw it and expressed their concern about Nandi’s drinking the poison, Shiva is supposed to have said, that nothing would happen to Nandi as he had all his powers and his protection. Today Nandi is found guarding all Shiva temples. In many south Indian temples, there is a custom of whispering ones wishes in the ears of the idol of Nandi, hoping that Nandi would carry it to his Lord.

The importance of Nandi can be found in the fact that in Bangalore, there is a temple which is entirely dedicated to Nandi. Situated in Basavanagudi, it has one of the largest idols of Nandi and according to a legend; the temple was built to appease a bull that would destroy all the groundnut crop of that area. The bull is supposed to have stopped doing the same after the temple was built and the villagers started holding a fair in its honour which is celebrated till date.

The worship of Nandi bull as an individual deity in its own right can be seen as a sign of the man’s dependence on cows and dairy culture as well as agriculture. A bull was a necessity both for agriculture as well as to ensure that the cow’s could be milked. Thus the significance of Nandi in the Indian pantheon cannot be undermined and projecting him as a perennially teary-eyed, sorry-faced figure, is – well, sad, to say the least!

Pics courtesy - Wikipedia 

Shiva – as a Bull

On the occasion of Shivratri, here is an interesting myth related to Lord Shiva and some of the most visited shrines of Shiva in the modern times. All of us are aware of Shiva’s vahana as the bull, better known as Nandi. But did you know that once Lord Shiva himself had to take the form of a bull as a disguise?

According the epic Mahabharata, Mb, Sage Vyasa had advised the Pandavas that they should seek pardon from Lord Shiva, since they were culpable of killing their own brothers and many more relatives during the war of Kurukshetra. On the advice, the Pandavas left in search of Lord Shiva.

Lord Shiva was aware of this and was upset by the mass-murder that was about to be unleashed. He was also of the opinion that that the Pandavas would be guilty of this, and so to avoid meeting the Pandavas, who were seeking pardon, he took the form of a bull and went and into hiding amongst a herd of cattle.

The Pandavas seeking Shiva reached the herd but couldn’t identify Shiva from amongst the herd. On an advice from Narada Muni, Bhim took a gigantic form and spread his legs across two mountains, while the others kept pushing the cattle from under his legs. The idea was that all but Shiva would pass from under Bhim’s legs. When all the animals had passed through, Shiva in the form of a bull decided to sink into the ground below. Seeing this, Bhim tried to get hold of the bull by its hump and managed to stop Shiva from sinking under the ground.

Shiva pleased by the determination of the Pandavas, granted them salvation from their sins. A temple in the honour of Lord Shiva was built by the Pandavas, which is better known as Kedarnath temple and the hump that Bhim managed to hold on to is worshipped as a Shiva linga in the temple.

The other parts of the bull, gave birth to the other spots which came to be better known as Panch-kedar, which according to the Padma Purana are as follows –

Kedarnath – where the hump of the bull was held by Bhim

Maddhyameshvra – where the naval of the bull is worshiped

Tungnath – the hand or a limb of the bull is worshiped

Rudranath – the mouth of the bull is worshiped here

Kalpeshwar – the hair of the bulls head is worshiped here

In due course of time, the five temples which were supposed to have initially built by the Pandavas and then re-built successively are part of a pilgrimage and amongst the most visited temples of Lord Shiva. The temples stand testimony to the perseverance of the Pandavas and the initial reluctance of Lord Shiva who gives up on being followed.

Such myths abound in all the major pilgrimages associated with deities. They lend credence to the mass following and also become tall testimonies to faith and belief system of the masses.

Other articles on Lord Shiva –

This is Utkarsh Speaking: Mahashivratri 

 

This is Utkarsh Speaking: Mahashivratri - Part 2

This is Utkarsh Speaking: Sharabha Deva – A form of Lord Shiva 

This is Utkarsh Speaking: Lord Shiva's Wedding Procession 

 

Kumbh Mela and the Naga Baba’s

In the last post, we discussed the origins and significance of the massive Kumbh Mela which is currently being held in Allahabad, India. Its sheer enormity and the gathering from all over the country and parts of the world, has intrigued many a foreigner, who come down to attend every Kumbh Mela in hordes. Besides the religious fervour, which is at its full display, there is another very intriguing aspect of the Mela and that is the Naga Baba’s, or the naked ascetics.

World over, they seem to be the most photographed and also the most discussed aspect of the fair. In some, they evoke a sense of faith, while in some they evoke a sense of intrigue while for some they evoke a sense of revulsion. Just who are these babas and why are they the way they are?

The Naga babas are notable by their appearance, they are naked, and have long, knotted and unkempt hair, with ash smeared all over their bodies. They do not wear a shred of cloth even in peak winters and keep themselves warm by smoking ‘chillum’ or local marijuana. Many of them carry trishul or the trident carried by Lord Shiva as they are all followers of Lord Shiva. Many are known to perform inhuman tasks and some of them are known for doing things that the modern day civilisation might term weird, like standing on one leg for decades or using only one hand, or sleeping on a bed of sharp nails or standing on their heads for days, so on and so forth.

If one observes them closely, one can find in them all aspects of Shiva, except for the nudity. The nudity is a sign of renunciation of all material possessions and a sign of lack of any human inhibition. It also shows that they have parted with worldly pleasures and nothing arouses them, both sexually as well as emotionally and are at one with their god. This is another aspect which distinguishes them from their Lord (Shiva), who is a much married and a family man with wife and children. However, this renunciation of the baba’s is to end to the cycle of life and death and attain salvation. The reverence given to them can be seen in the fact that the first dip in waters during the Kumbh Mela is allowed to them.

The Naga baba’s consider the god Dattatreya as their Guru (who was considered to be the first naga baba) and the Adi Shankaracharya is supposed to have organised them in akharas, or camps, some of them being the Udasins, the Gorakhnatis, the Aghoris and the Yogis amongst the main ones. They were brave and did not care much for their lives and thus have been part of regiments fighting the early Mughals and later British. This streak of aggression is found in many of these babas even today, and thus often referred to as the warrior-ascetics.

If anybody tells me that they get photographed due to their nudity, then I would like to say, that there is much more nudity (and aesthetic at that), elsewhere and the Naga babas are definitely not satisfying that voyeuristic need. It is their unique lifestyle and the way they are that arouses both a sense of wonder and a squeamish suspicion about the babas. Needless to say, that they also have a heavy following in terms of disciples many of who are amongst the rich and famous of India.

Many feel threatened and embarrassed by this uncanny focus on such people during the fair. To this I only have to say, that these men are the followers of an ancient faith and live in the past out of their own volition and the impression that they create cannot be interpolated on an entire country or a philosophy which has many aspects to feel proud of. I don’t see this even as an aberration, but just another aspect of the diverse fabric of a philosophy, better known as Hinduism.

Diwali and Gambling

Diwali as we all know is a festival of lights. A festival which has its religious ceremonies, but is also marked by festivities, which involves, food, new dresses, rangolis (This is Utkarsh Speaking: Rangoli), illuminating homes and bursting crackers. However curiously, it also marks the legitimacy of gambling. On the night of Diwali, tradition has it that gambling is a must and young and old, all sit together to gamble.

Where do we look at, to find clues, but mythology?

Though not much is found as a clue, there is but one instance of Goddess Parvati playing dice with Lord Shiva on the night of Diwali. According to this myth, on this night, Lord Shiva and Parvati played the game of dice and Shiva lost, then son Kartikeya played and defeated Parvati. After this Ganesha played with Kartikeya and defeated him. Since then gambling on this day is considered to be a family past time and one day, when this is acceptable. Some legends also mention that Parvati was cheating during the game and Shiva is supposed to have caught her hand when he found her cheating. This famous episode from mythology has been beautifully carved in one of the caves of Ellora, India, shown below –

According to the legend, Parvati is supposed to said, that anybody who does not gamble on the night of Diwali, would be born as a donkey in his/her next birth!

I find this practice and its association with the legend nothing but a contradiction. Diwali is traditionally a day when we worship wealth in the form of Goddess Lakshmi. This is a day when you light diyas and illuminate your homes to enable the goddess to spot your house and step into it, thus ushering in a year of prosperity. Gambling away wealth on this day is a contradiction of sorts. How does one justify such flimsy usage (or misuse?) of wealth and that too on this day? Wouldn’t it be dangerous to spite her by ensuring that you gamble ‘her’ on this day?

Some have taken a high moral ground, by giving a philosophical interpretation to it. According to this school of thought, gambling on this day is to test one’s sense of control. One’s ability to keep dice as dice and not change it to a vice is being tested on this day. Sounds good, but just another justification for indulging in a vice, which is known for bringing down empires and the worst in mankind, and one doesn’t need to go far, mythology itself has a few obvious examples, the epic Mahabharata for one. Also, the myth referring to Shiva-Parvati playing dice does not mention anything about stakes, so justifying gambling of wealth is thus out of place.

Traditional painting depicting Shiva-Parvati playing Chaupar

Diwali is a festival which has lots to celebrate about. Let’s all do it with the right spirit. Wealth is an important but temporary resource, and it pays to value it. Hindus are probably the only community which worships wealth, and this is done out of respect for it as against a crass display of materialism. I don’t think we should look for false pretexts to abuse it. A vice is a vice is a vice and there can be no two ways about it. Needless to say, that Lakshmi, is also known as ‘chanchala’ or the restless-one – I would rather find ways to make her stay at my place for ever, than allow her to leave me by disrespecting her!!

My views on gambling are not didactic in nature, but to take recourse to mythology to justify such actions is quite unfair. Gambling, per se, is an act of individual choice, but keep it that way. Don’t look for vague justifications!

Enjoy your Diwali, and take good care of the Goddess Lakshmi and don’t bet on her!!