Stories on the background of the Diwali, or Deepavali, festival are manifold, and the celebration spans even across religions. For some, it's about Rama's return to Ayodhya. For others, it's about the killing of Narakasura. Many Hindus, especially in northern India, celebrate the birth of goddess Lakshmi with pompous festivities. For the Jains it marks the parinirvana of Tirthankar Mahavir, the last of their prophets, and for the Sikhs — how entertainingly typical — it's about their struggles and conquests.
A less known story is told in the Skanda-purana, the story of how Ardha-Narishvara, or the half-Shiva, half-Shakti deity, came to be. To become Shiva's half, the legend tells, Shakti undertook a 21-day austerity called Kedar-vrata, concluding with success and union on the Diwali day. A beautiful ancient temple of Ardha-Narishvara is found at Kedar Ghat in Varanasi, impregnated with some of the most intense energies I have ever experienced in a shrine.
21 comments:
Yeah, I read that in the Wikipedia too. The Wikipedia is the 6th Veda you know.
i would have loved to see Dewari in Benares.
Maybe next year;)
love and sunshine to you.
That case of Made in the USA condoms that you wanted me to send are in the mail. Should be there in about 10 days.
your favorite homey,
Ice Tea
Oh, I forgot to mention that I was able to get the "extra-small" condoms that you wanted me to send from the USA. So, have fun.
homey,
Ice Tea
Hey Ice, old homoey pathic!
How many times do I need to explain that I have neither asked for those condoms, nor am I interested in fiddling with your second-hand extra-small condoms. In fact, I wouldn't touch them with a ten foot pole, okay? Ick!
How many times need I tell you I have a black belt in Kaupina, and consequently have little need to start burning rubber. And should a pussy bug ever try grabbing a bite off the old man, da viryas magnissimo strikes back with vengeance.
So please keep your old rubbers, Ice mistah, and stop being mojo-envious already! Maybe try one of those TV-shop gadgets to get your gear up to snuff again?
Does that mean you aren't sending me the Opium you promised?
My China man was busted last month. Care for some good ketamine? Would get your mojo moving, too.
My mojo is already way above normal. I have to ice my nads down twice a day to keep balls from exploding. I have enough mojo for the both of us. Maybe it is all those expensive herbal extracts I have been taking for years. Mojo? Man I have got enough for both of us. Better check your testosterone levels and make sure your nads are doing their job.
What do you think about Patanjali's works? How about his Mahabhasya commentary on Panini's Ashtadhyayi. Second to Krishna-bhakti, I think it is the best yoga system. Om Namo Shivaya.
Love the Yoga-sutras. I've read some contemporary commentaries, and recently acquired from Varanasi a copy including Vyasa's and Shankara's commentaries. The latter is a new discovery, but appears to be an authentic work.
Panini is a bit out of my league, I've never been much into the nitty-gritty of Sanskrit even if I appreciate the obsession some of these grammarians had. I wonder whether the author of Mahabhashya is the same Patanjali to begin with.
My kinda Panini, more like it. Grabbed one at the Delhi airport the other day.
What is your favorite meat? Do your prefer Salami or ham?
hey big mouth ice tea
this was a nice article and some people expect some relative comments. go start your own blog!! sala would give you one slap for making these comments under this article
Nice article. It came straight from the Wikipedia. You don't have to know anything except copy and paste to write articles like this one. I just want to know what kind of meat Ananda likes on his Panini.
Would reading Encyclopaedia Britannica and writing a summary article be as despicable as reading Wikipedia?
Yeah, anyone with half a brain could summarize encyclopedia text. There are of course also many other sources from where one could collect such information.
The content of the blog entry itself seem just fine to me. I don't quite see what the problem is — should I have credited Wikipedia? Or in case of summarizing from other sources, should I have credited all those? Even if the same information is commonly available from multiple sources, and where you couldn't really even tell which one of them it's from? And for a quick two-para blog write-up?
I think it's just about whining. People just like to try to find something to complain about. I think it's an Internet disease of sorts, somesuch.
A quick look at the plurality of sources out there actually shows that the Wikipedia bit is most likely an uncredited piece of copy-paste... And I should be advertising this?
I think Ananda is setting himself for a return to ISKCON as a guru. Perhaps he wants to replace the ailing guru of ISKCON Mayapur? Yeah, I got Ananda pegged. He has designs on ISKCON and is brainstorming a takeover as the "self-effulgent" acharya come to save ISKCON from itself. I am behind you 100% Ananda.
Ananda, what do you think about the Chupacabras. This creature is real scary. What planet do you think he is from. You can see some video on YOUTUBE.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JN5YPsEelE
man, this Chupacabra is real scary.
I don't know, but the Chupacabra sorta reminds me of some of the people commenting on this blog, in some curious manner.
We need poetry !
Yes!! A poem about the Chupacrabra would be much appreciated.
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