PrabhuBhakti Blog

The Hindu goddess Durga is considered to be the mother of all beings and is also believed to be the energy behind creation, protection and destruction. Her name comes from the Sanskrit term for ‘the inaccessible’ or the Bengali word for ‘the invincible’ and she is often referred to with the prefix of ‘Maa’ or mother. She holds both destructive and creative power in her. She has multiple aspects of her being each of which represents an unique quality. The integral attributes of goddess Durga are courage and patience. At times she is shown as mother of Kartik, Lakshmi, Ganesha and Saraswati.

Durga devi, being the embodiment of courage formed from Shakti, was created to kill the demon king Mahishasura. The Earth, the heaven and the Paatala were being controlled by Mahishasura, the cruel king. He had been blessed by Brahma and thus could not be defeated by any man. Vishnu and Shiva were sought by the beings of these worlds and its then that a female fighter was created by uniting the energy of Shiva and Lord Vishnu.

After she had manifested herself she went down to meet Mahishasura on the battleground. Upon encountering her for the first time Mahishasura underestimated her thinking that it was impossible for a woman to defeat him. The demon king made use of all his strength to defeat the goddess, but finally he was killed in the battleground. Thus victory over evil forces and darkness was achieved. It is believed that the dexterous goddess built an army to help in her fight against the forces of the demon. Durga gave them the knowledge to make ornaments in gold for the help offered by the army in the battle.

She is usually depicted as having ten arms, each holding a different weapon. She holds a lotus in one hand, which indicates the power of creation. Usually she is pictured to be riding on a tiger or a lion, the symbol of fearlessness. She is believed to take various avtars with her power. The goddess of violence and the wife of Lord Shiva, Kali, is one of her forms.

Durga puja forms one of the biggest festivals of the eastern states of the country and is mainly celebrated in Bengal, Orissa, Assam and Bihar. Durga puja is called Dashain by people of Nepal. It is a 10 day long festival in which five days are celebrated with unbridled festivity. The last day when Durga defeated Mahishasura in the battle is called as Vijayadashami and Dussehra.

Of the trinity of Hindu gods, Brahma is the first member followed by Vishnu and Lord Shiva. He is responsible for the creation of the world and all beings within it. He is considered as the origin of time, space, names and form. He is known by many names such as Lokesha (the divine creator), Pitamaha (the supreme father) and Vishwakarma (the supreme architect). The cycle of day and night is attributed to him.

There are many fables which tell of the birth of Lord Brahma. Lord Vishnu fell into a deep sleep after the destruction of the previous world and in his sleep the idea of development happened. This thought made way for the birth of a Golden Embryo. This is how Lord Brahma was created, which also gave him the name Hiranya Garbha or the Golden Embryo. Another fable connected with the birth of Brahma is that he came from the Lotus, which grew from Lord Vishnu’s navel. That is how He got the names Kanja Ja (Lotus born) and Nabhi Ja (born from navel).

Manusmriti says Brahma created himself by designing the waters and depositing a seed and he is self-manifested. The seed took the shape of a Golden Egg from which Brahma was reborn. Birth of Brahma is also narrated in Ramayana. It says that Brahma was born out of the ether in which the universe is suspended.

The stories of creation attributed to Lord Brahma have the creation of his manas putras or the sons born of his own thought. His mind gave birth to Marici, Atri, Angiras, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratuj, Pracetas, Vashishta, Bhrgu and Narada. From his body came 9 sons Daksa, Dharma, Kama, Anger, Greed, Maya, Lust, Joy, Death, Bharata and a daughter called Angaja.

While developing the universe and the living and non-living beings, he created goddess Gayatri to help him. She is also referred to as Saraswati. Together they form the subject for many pieces of Hindu literature and mythology. They also symbolize understanding, meaning, science and the arts.

He is mostly pictured as an old man (with a white beard). He has four arms in which he carries a scepter, a lotus, a spoon, Vedas, a string of Rudraksha beads and sacred water. Even though he had five heads, he is shown in images with four heads. This is because of the fact that he had offended Lord Shiva and Shiva is his anger had then opened the third eye which burned off the 5th head.

No temples have been built to revere Lord Brahma although he is the creator of the world. Pushkar in Ajmer is a pilgrimage site for the worshippers of Brahma. Temples of Shiva and Lord Vishnu usually have the northern wall dedicated to him. He is called Parivara Devata.

Among the holy places where Lord Vishnu’s shrine is situated, Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh) is very famous. The shrine in Tirupati where Lord Vishnu is Lord Venkateswara is known as Tirumala Venkateswara Temple. Devotees believe, Tirupati means the husband of Devi Lakshmi. Venkatadri, one of the seven important hills in Tirupati, is home to the shrine. Lord Vishnu has other names like Srinivasa, Govinda and Balaji.

According to the reports, Tirupati is visited by numerous devotees (almost 1 lakh) everyday and the number increases on special days like Brahmotsavam festival. It is estimated that the temple sees around 3 to 4 Crore devotees per year. According to Lord Vishnu’s worshippers, the shrine is among the 108 holy places.

Mythology

A huge amount of money was donated to the temple, when Lord Kubera and Padmavati got married. Lord Vishnu’s debt is repaid by his worshippers by depositing money in the Hundi at the Tirupati temple.

How it Became Prosperous?

It was under Vijayanagara emperors’ rule that the place and the temple grew popular. It’s a popular belief that they donated gold and valuable stones to the sacred shrine. It was by the order of King Krishnadevaraya, that the shrine was gold-plated. After some time, it was Raghoji Bhonsle who founded an administrative system for the shrine.

The Seven Hills

There are seven hills in Tirupati, which are called Saptarishi or Saptagiri. Vishnu was given the name of Saptagirinivasa because of these hills.

It is believed that several gods and goddesses reside on each hill. The hills are Vrushabadri - the abode of Nandi (vehicle of Shiva), Neeladri - hill of Neela Devi, Anjanadri - abode of Hanuman , Garudadri - hill of Garuda who is Vishnu’s vehicle, Seshadri - abode of Sesha (the servant of Vishnu), Narayanadri - the abode of Lord Vishnu and Venkatadri - hill of Venkateswara.

Why Offering Hair at Tirupati is Famous?

People believe that a small portion of Lord Vishnu’s head became hairless when a shepherd hit him. Neela Devi offered her hair when she observed that Lord Vishnu lost his hair. Vishnu promised devi Neela that his followers will give their hair to her in response to her good deed. The practice of cutting hair started from then and even today devotees from across the world come there and offer their hair. People think that devi Neela accepts the offering from them.

Festivals

As there are more believers of Vaishnavism, the people of Tirupati celebrate all types of special days related to Vishnu. Rama Navami, Vaikunta Ekadasi and Janmashtami are celebrated with great zest by the people. Rathasapthami as well as Vasantholsavam (the festival of spring) are celebrated also. In Rathasapthami, the idol of Venkateswara is taken in processions.