Archives: mythology

By Aditi Pasumarthy and Niranjana Sivaram

Our Puranas are filled with some of the most intriguing gods and goddesses. Many know the stories of popular gods and goddesses such as Krishna, Ganesha, Durga, and others. However, there are many goddesses who have fascinating stories but are not known by many. Let’s take a look at some of the lesser-known goddesses of Indian mythology.

Ushas 

Ushas, the goddess of dawn, brings life and light into the world every day. She is praised for driving away oppressive darkness and evil demons. As dawn breaks Ushas. representing the cosmic order, dispels darkness and chaos each morning.

Ratri 

Ratri, Ushas’ sister, is the goddess of night. Some praise her for her countless stars, which provide light in the dark, and for protecting people from the dangers of the night. However, she is sometimes associated with those very dangers which nighttime brings.

Vac

The goddess of speech, Vac, makes creation possible by naming things. She is essential in the ritual mantras of priests and the insightful vision of the sages. Vac is also the reason that people can see and recognise friends, and communicate with each other.

Karni

When goddess Karni asked Yama. the god of death, to bring a woman’s son back to life, Yama refused. Karni then vowed that her devotees would never die, but would instead be reborn as mice in her temple in Rajasthan. The mice would again be reborn as her devotees.

Kotravai

Kotravai is the goddess of war and victory. She is a fierce, wild and vicious goddess who haunts battlefields, granting victory to her favourites. She is worshipped in South India.

Mariamman

Mariamman is a very popular village goddess of Tamil Nadu. She is the goddess of rain to whom the people pray every year for a good monsoon. Her devotees like keeping her happy. as her anger was thought to cause epidemics like smallpox.

Alakshmi 

Alakshmi is the goddess of misfortune and the inauspicious. She is the sister of Lakshmi and also her opposite. She can never be in the same place as Lakshmi, who represents harmony and abundance. This is why people first pray to Alakshmi to go away from their homes, taking all the negativity with her.

Aranyani 

Aranyani is the goddess of the forest. She cannot be seen but can be heard in the sounds of the forest, like the shout of a man calling his cattle, or the sound of a tree in a storm, or a screech of an owl in the night. She stays away from villages but is usually kind and offers nuts and berries to those who come close to her.

Manasa

Manasa, the goddess of snakes, protects her devotees from snake bites. She also provides them with prosperity and fertility. She is mainly worshipped in Bengal, especially in the rainy season which is when the snakes come out.

Sarama 

Sarama is an attendant goddess known as the mother of all dogs. She is the messenger of Indra and protects his herds. Sarama once punished the minor deify Panis for stealing some cows.

Read stories of other Indian goddesses in our title Shakti. Now available on the ACK Comics App, Kindle, Amazon, Flipkart, and other major e-tailers. 

By Shivam Pathania

Samudra Manthan or the churning of the ocean is one unique occasion when the Devas and their arch-nemesis, the Asuras, unite for an important reason. The churning of the ocean was a result of a curse by Sage Durvasa. Once, he offered a garland to Indra, the king of Devas. Indra accepted the garland and showed his happiness, putting the garland on his elephant, Airavata, as an ornament. Airavata, irritated by the scent of the garland, picked it with his trunk and threw it on the ground. Durvasa was furious and cursed Indra and the devas to lose their kingdom, power, and glory.

As a result, Indra’s mighty vahana instantly went into oblivion. Lakshmi, the goddess of fortune, could no longer stay in the same realm as the Devas, and parted ways with her consort, Vishnu. She made the depths of Kshir Sagar her new home. Due to Lakshmi’s absence in Devlok, the devas lost all their riches. The luminous Chandra, adorning Shiva’s matted hair, disappeared too. Robbed of their power, the devas were soon defeated by the asuras in battle. The defeated devas approached Lord Vishnu for a solution, who advised them to churn Kshir Sagar, to obtain Amrit. Amrit or the elixir of immortality would help the devas regain their powers. The Asuras willingly offered to assist their half-brothers since they too wanted immortality and invincible powers by consuming Amrit. 

Mount Mandara was used to churn the ocean, which was kept afloat in the ocean by Kurma, Vishnu’s turtle avatar. The Naga king, Vasuki, who Shiva wears as a garland, became the churning rope. Several precious items, ratnas, emerged from the cosmic ocean which were distributed amongst the Devas, the Asuras and the Sages.

Halahala

The Halahala was a deadly poison that had the potential to destroy all beings in the three realms. None amongst the armies of asuras and devas stepped in to stop the poison from spreading into the universe as they feared the poison would destroy them too. Lord Shiva descended from Mount Kailash to consume the poison. Goddess Parvati, Shiva’s consort, used her powers to stop the Halahal in Shiva’s throat, and as a result, his throat turned blue. Thus he came to be called Neelkanth. 

Airavata

Airavata, the king of elephants, was a white coloured winged being with six trunks and six pairs of tusks. He said to dig his trunk deep into the ground and reach water which is inaccessible to humans. He uses his trunk to spray the water in the form of monsoon showers. After appearing from the cosmic ocean, Airavata chose to serve his master Indra, who was delighted to reunite with his loyal vahana. 

Uchhaisravas

Often considered as the king of the horses, the seven-headed, snow-white horse, was one of the three animals that appeared during the Samudra Manthan. The magnificent steed was taken by Indra. Eventually, Uchhaisravas came into the hands of King Mahabali, the asura king, who ruled over the three worlds.

Once Goddess Lakshmi was spellbound by the beauty of Uchhaisravas and forgot to pay attention to her consort, Vishnu. This infuriated him and he cursed Lakshmi to be born as a mare.

The colour of Uchhaisravas’ tail once became a topic of debate for two sisters, Kadru and Vinata. The sisters studied the horse from a distance and Vinata declared that the horse’s tail was white, while Kadru insisted that the tail was black. The sisters decided to come back and see the horse the next day. Whoever of the two had guessed the wrong colour, would have to become the slave of the other. Kadru won the bet by treachery as she commanded her sons, the Nagas, to cover the tail of the horse. Thus Vinata ended up becoming Kadru’s slave.   

Kamdhenu

Kamdhenu was one of the precious ratnas obtained from the cosmic ocean and is considered to be the mother of all cattle. Kamdhenu is depicted with the face of a woman, the body of a cow with a pair of wings and the tail of a peacock. She was given to the Saptrishis as she provided them with ample milk. The milk was used to prepare curd and ghee which were regularly required for their sacred rituals. According to the Mahabharata, Kamdhenu was in the possession of one of the Saptrishis, Jamadagni. The sage invited King Kartavirya Arjuna to a feast. The greedy king learnt about the resourcefulness of Kamdhenu and forcefully took Kamdhenu and her calf away from the sage. The sage’s son, Parshurama, the sixth avatar or incarnation of Vishnu, single-handedly defeated the king and his army, successfully retrieving the sacred cow and her calf.  

Apsaras

Apsaras are female heavenly spirits of Devaloka or the home of the gods. They are associated with music and dance. After appearing from the cosmic ocean, they chose Gandharvas as their companions. The Gandharvas served as musicians in Indra’s court. Indra, who was constantly insecure about his throne, often commanded the enchanting apsaras to distract sages or asuras from their tapasya to achieve his own ends.

Parijat

From the depths of the ocean, sprung a divine flowering tree called the Parijat. The flowers of the tree were white, with a tinge of orange at the stalk. Indra decided to keep the beautiful flowering tree with the enchanting fragrance for himself and planted the tree in his garden in Devaloka. Yugas later, Krishna and Indra duelled over the tree as Krishna wanted to bring the tree bearing the scented flowers to Prithvilok for his wives Satyabhama and Rukmini. Eventually, Krishna defeated Indra, and took the tree. The tree has a special significance in Hinduism, as it is forbidden to pluck its flowers and only the fallen flowers can be used to worship deities.  

Vishnu’s Sharanga bow, Panchajanya Conch, and Kaustubh Mani 

The Sharanga bow was one of the two divine bows crafted by Vishwakarma, the architect of the gods. Vishnu used the bow in his Parshurama, Rama and Krishna avatars. Before returning back to his holy abode, Vishnu, in the form of Krishna, left the bow in the possession of Varuna, the god of oceans.

In ancient times the sound of the conch signified the beginning of a war. Vishnu’s conch, Panchajanya is a symbolic way of portraying his role as the preserver of the universe. God steps into battlefields again and again, in different avatars to save humanity.

Kaustubh Mani is a sacred precious gemstone that is embedded in the necklace worn by Vishnu. The gemstone is said to be as beautiful as an exotic lotus and as radiant as the sun. 

Chandra

The moon God Chandra appeared as one of the precious ratnas and took refuge in the matted hair of Shiva. His father-in-law, Prajapati Daksha once cursed him for not being a good husband to his daughters. Due to the curse, Chandra lost his powers and his body started withering. After extensive prayers, Shiva came to the deity’s rescue and wore him as an ornament in his hair to neutralize the curse. However, Chandra still waxes and wanes as a result of that curse.

Lakshmi and Alakshmi

Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth, prosperity and fortune. She is one of the three supreme goddesses, with Saraswati and Parvati. She emerged from the cosmic ocean draped in her red and gold saree while seated on a grand lotus with smaller lotuses in her hands. After a long time of separation, the goddess was finally reunited with her consort, Lord Vishnu. Her return brought back the riches of the devas, giving Devaloka its earlier splendour.

The arrival of Lakshmi was followed by her counterpart and elder sister, Alakshmi, who had unkempt hair and was draped in a single white cloth. She is the goddess of misfortune, poverty and misery and is said to visit houses filled with ego, pride, selfishness, and envy. Unlike her sister Lakshmi, who likes sweet food, Alakshmi has an appetite for hot, sour and pungent food. So, many Hindu households often hang lemon and chillies at their doorstep to satisfy the appetite of the goddess of misfortune.   

Dhanvantri

Dhanvantri, the physician of the gods, appeared from the turbulent ocean carrying the pot of Amrita. Dhanvantri was responsible for teaching the ancient knowledge of medical science, Ayurveda, to mortals. Brahma created Ayurveda, before he created mankind, but the vast knowledge of medical science was difficult for mortals to understand. So, Dhanvantri split the original text into eight divisions and taught his disciples.

Amrita

As soon as Dhanvantri appeared with the pot of Amrit, the Asuras snatched the pot and planned to consume the entire pot of elixir. Vishnu devised a plan and took the form of an enchanting woman, Mohini. Mohini used her charm to lure the asuras out of hiding and used the opportunity to take the pot back to the Devas. While the devas were consuming the elixir to regain their divine strength back, one of the asuras, Rahuketu disguised himself as a deva to taste the Amrit. However, he was discovered just as he was pouring the liquid into his mouth. Vishnu instantly hurled the Sudarshan Chakra and beheaded Rahuketu but the amrita had already reached the asura’s throat. Rahuketu’s head and body were flung on opposite sides of the universe and became Rahu and Ketu.

By Shivam Pathania

Ancient Indian scholars extensively studied the stars and other celestial bodies in the never-ending spatial sky. This thorough study of astronomy and astrology eventually created the Jyotish Shastra which explained how the Navagraha, literally meaning the nine planets, influence the lives of the earth dwellers. Though not all members of the Navagraha are planets; Surya, the sun is a star; Chandra, the moon is the natural satellite of Earth; Rahu and Ketu are lunar nodes that are responsible for eclipses of the sun and moon. 

Surya

Surya, the God of the Sun is considered to be the leader amongst the Navagraha. Rightly so, as the other members of the celestial group revolve around Surya. The son of sage Kashyapa and Aditi is a prominent figure in Hinduism and is often considered on the same level as Indra in the hierarchy of the Devas. The God is often represented with four arms, out of which two hold lotuses, one holds a staff and another one has a chakra. The sun god is depicted seated on a chariot pulled by 7 horses, which is a symbolic way of representing the splitting of white sunlight into seven colours of the VIBGYOR spectrum. The day designated to Surya is Sunday, called Ravivaar in Hindi which literally translates to ‘Sun’s day’. The colour associated with the sun god is orange and gold, and to evoke the blessings of Surya one is asked to pray to the god by offering water to the deity by pouring it from a vessel. Surya as a Navagraha embodies qualities such as leadership, ego, strength, authority and vitality of a person. 

Chandra

Chandra is the moon god, and since Hinduism follows a Lunar Calendar, Chandra has always remained an important deity in the religion. The son of sage Atri and Anusuya was married to twenty-seven daughters of Prajapati Daksha who are all named after constellations. Chandra was biased towards Rohini and did not spend equal time with his other consorts and so the displeased women complained about their husband’s unfair treatment to their father, Daksha. The furious father, cursed his son-in-law, that he would lose his powers and his body would slowly wither away. The dying deity prayed to Lord Shiva who blessed the moon god with a boon which in a way balanced the effects of the curse. This established the waxing and waning of the moon, according to which, the moon waxes for 15 days, where it decreases in size and completely vanishes on the new moon day, and it wanes for the next 15 days, where it increases in size and regains its full powers on the full moon day. The lunar deity is never depicted with a full body, symbolising his waxing and waning and his chariot is said to be pulled by antelopes. Monday is the day associated with Chandra, and one must offer white or silver coloured articles and wear white to please the celestial god. The moon is said to embody thinking, stability and fertility.

Mangal

Mangal, is the astrological ruler of the red planet, Mars. The theme of colour red is reflected in Mangal’s iconography, as he is often depicted to have red skin. Just like Kartikeya, the Hindu god of war, Mangal is also affiliated with war, battlefield and weaponry which is reflected in his visual depictions as he is shown armed with multiple weapons like a sword, a mace and a spear. The red-hued deity was said to be born when Lord Vishnu, in his Varaha avatar rescued Goddess Bhoomi, the personification of Earth, after asura Hiranyaksha had submerged the planet in the cosmic ocean. But in some stories the deity’s father is Shiva. One of the stories in Shiva Purana describes Mangal to be born from the sacred surface of the Earth, which had absorbed divine drops of sweat of Shiva. Mangal’s vahana is a ram and the deity is said to have an astrological influence on skills of hands, handling of equipment, anger and strength. Articles like wheat, red cloth, red flowers, copper and sandalwood are offered to the deity during prayers. Tuesday or Mangalvaar is the day associated with the celestial deity.

Budh

Budh, is the Navagraha deity that rules the planet which is closest to the sun in the solar system, Mercury. The Navgraha member’s mother, Tara was married to Brihaspati, but the biological father of Budh is Chandra. Learning about the parentage of Budh, a humiliated and angry Brihaspati cursed the unborn child to be neither a male nor female. And hence Budh was born as a gender-neutral person. Budh’s iconography often depicts the deity with green skin and holding a mace, a shield and a sword in three of his four arms. The ambiguous gender identity of the green-skinned deity, is also in a way reflected in their choice of vahana. Budh rides a Yaali, which is a chimera like beast composed out of the parts of an elephant, lion, horse and sometimes a bird. The theme of fluidity and ambiguity is also maintained with Budh’s consort, Ila, a gender-fluid goddess, who transitioned into a man from a woman and vice-a-versa after every month. Together, they had a son called Pururavas, who came to be known as the first king of Chandravanshis, the lunar dynasty of kings. Budh, as a Navagraha, influences intellect, communication, humour and reasoning, and Wednesday, or Budhwar is the day allocated to the deity. One is advised to offer articles like, green cloth and moong lentils to please the astrological deity.

Brihaspati

The sage Brihaspati is the Navagraha deity representing the giant planet Jupiter. He is a wise god who is considered to be the lord of sacred speech. Due to his immense wisdom, he was appointed as the mentor of all the devas and thus he is also known as Guru Brihaspati. Hence Thursday is called both Brihaspativaar and Guruvaar which is the day associated with the deity. Indra, the king of devas, had once disrespected Guru Brihaspati, and the teacher abandoned his title as the mentor of the devas, which was then temporarily taken by the sage Vishwaroopa, but eventually, Indra ended up beheading his new guru in a fit of rage. The son of sage Angiras is often depicted with a glorious golden complexion with four arms, carrying a lotus, kamandalu, and rosary. The celestial god is said to embody qualities like spirituality, wisdom, dignity, morality, and luck. The golden complexioned god is offered articles that are yellow in colour, like gram pulse or flour, yellow flowers and turmeric.

Shukra

Shukra or Shukracharya, is the deity of the planet Venus. The learned Navagraha member, plays the similar role of a mentor, like his fellow Navagraha, Brihaspati, the teacher of Devas, but unlike him, Shukracharya serves as a mentor to the asuras, the arch-nemesis of the devas. The celestial deity was an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva, and performed harsh penance to please the god of destruction. Shiva appeared before Shukracharya and rewarded him with the Mrita Sanjeevani Vidya mantra which allowed Shukracharya to revive anyone from the dead. This boon gave an upper hand to the asuras, as Brihaspati, the teacher of devas lacked the knowledge of Mrita Sanjeevani Vidya, and thus the asuras were able to defeat devas. Mahabali, an asura, and the grandchild of Prahalad was able to take over the three worlds under the guidance of his teacher, Shukra. The scholarly sage is depicted with four arms, carrying a staff, rosary, and a golden pot. Friday or Shukravaar is the planetary day of the deity, and the colour white is associated with him. Articles like rice, ghee, camphor, curd, sugar are offered to the deity.  Shukra embodies qualities like, material desires, relationships, creativity, aesthetics and healing.

Shani

Shani, is the Hindu god of justice and the ruler of the planet Saturn. The powerful god keeps a record of karmic deeds of humans and passes his judgements upon them during their lifetime, unlike his brother, Yama, who makes his judgement only after the human has passed away. Due to his mother Chhaya’s intense penance and his father, Surya’s harsh sunlight, Shani was born with a charcoal black complexion. Upon seeing the newborn, Surya, who was bright and radiant, was bewildered as the pitch black child had no resemblance to him. The newborn Shani sensed his father’s doubt and cast an evil eye on his father, which caused Surya to go under eclipse. This evil eye is known as Shani Drishti, which brings bad luck to anyone who falls under his direct vision. Due to this, the devotees must not offer their prayers by standing directly in front of Shani’s idol. His idols are often depicted with four arms in which he carries, a mace, a trident, a bow and an arrow. The deity is said to have a crow or a vulture as his mode of aerial transportation. Saturday or Shanivaar is the day associated with the celestial god of judgement. One is advised to offer black iron nails, black lentils and black clothes to Shani. Devotees of Lord Hanuman are also protected from Shani’s evil eye as Shani had given this boon to Hanuman when he released Shani from the captivity of Ravana.

Rahu

Rahu and Ketu unlike other Navagraha members do not rule upon a physical planet. They are chhaya graha, which means shadow planets, and hence are responsible for eclipses of the sun and moon. The two shadow planets were once a single entity. Svarbhanu, an asura, who aspired to become invincible, disguised himself as a deva to consume the nectar of immortality. Surya and Chandra due to their celestial light were able to identify the imposter among them and informed Mohini, the female form of Lord Vishnu. By the time Mohini used her Sudarshan Chakra to behead the asura, Svarbhanu had already consumed the nectar, thus making him immortal. Due to this the decapitated head and the body came to be known as two different entities called Rahu and Ketu, respectively.

Rahu is the decapitated head of the asura, Svarbhanu, and it represents the northern lunar node. Rahu is responsible for the eclipse of the sun, which was once interrupted by a young Hanuman, who wanted to consume the sun, thinking the bright flaming ball was a giant fruit. The Navagraha is depicted without a body, mounted on his vahana, a black lion. Since the deity lacks a body people believe that the influence of this deity causes undue harm. People donate mustard, saffron, sesame, lead and coal to appease Rahu.

Ketu

Ketu is the headless body of the asura, Svarbhanu, and it represents the southern lunar node. Ketu is responsible for the eclipse of the moon, where the deity is said to completely swallow the lunar celestial body. The Navagraha is depicted without a head, with fours arms and a serpent’s tail instead of legs, mounted on his vahana, a vulture. His name ‘Ketu’, means a comet, and his serpent tail is a symbolic representation of a comet’s tail. People believe Ketu represents amorality, violence, detachment, confusion, mindlessness, and impulsivity. To avoid the ill effects of the celestial god people donate saffron, sesame, lead and sugar and offer food to a black and white coloured dog.