Indian Mythology

Navratri festival

Maa Durga It is believed that Goddess Durga on her 10 day journey around the earth removes all evil. Thus navratri festival is very auspicious for hindu devotees. Devi has taken avatar to kill the king of asuras, Mahishasura. She killed the most fearsome demon Mahishasura along with others. May Goddess Durga destroy all evil around […]

Curses on Arjuna (Mahabharata – Indian mythology)

Curses on Arjuna Mahabharata is full of incidents of curses, yet when curses are mentioned with reference to Mahabharata in Indian mythology, we would normally associate Karna, but Arjuna also had some curses. But this can be argued that though these have been curses, Arjuna was able to use them to his and Pandava’s advantage.

gandhari-mahabharat-indian-mythology

Seven little known facts from the Mahabharata (2)

Yudhishthira’s Chariot in Mahabharata war Yudhishthira has never lied in life save for one incident. Due to this, his chariot always floated a few inches above the ground. At the Mahabharat War, he told a half lie that “aswathama hatha kunjara” which led to Drona’s demise. As a result of this, his feet and chariot,

Dashavatara – Indian mythology

Dashavatara Dashavatar is ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu. In Indian mythology, Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh (Shiv) are symbols of creator, saviour and destroyer. Whenever there is a decline of religion and a rise of irreligion, Vishnu incarnates himself to protect the good, to destroy the wicked, and to re-establish religious principles. The famous ten incarnations of

Vidura

The story of Vidura There is one character in Mahabharata, who could have made the ideal king. But as fate would have it, he was born to a maid. This wise person was none other than Vidura, whose foresight have saved Pandavas from dying prematurely. Vidura was half-brother to the kings Dhritarashtra and Pandu. He

Ekalavya gurudakshina to his teacher

Teacher and disciple – Drona and Ekalavya Indian culture gives tremendous importance to Guru or the teacher. In Indian culture, Guru or a teacher is greater than father. Here is an Indian story of Ekalavya who epitomises the role of a shishya, or pupil. In Mahabharata, Ekalavya is introduced as a young boy who wanted

Sandipani and Krishna

Gurudakshina – offering to teacher

Gurudakshina – importance of teacher Teacher or Guru is given tremendous importance in Indian culture, The Guru or  teacher is greater than father in Indian culture. Though there are numerous incidents available depicting pupils who have sacrificed for their Gurus, many people do not know that Krishna was one such pupil who went to great

King Yayati

The story of Yayati and Puru   Devayani and Sharmishtha Sukracharya, was respected by Asura king Vrishaparva greatly respected Sukracharya as he knew the secret of Mritasanjivani, a drug that brings the dead back to life. Devayani was Sukracharya’s only daughter and spoiled by her father’s indulgence. One morning, Sharmishtha, the princess of Asura’s and

Ghatotkacha – rescuer of Pandavas (Mahabharata)

Ghatotkacha – rescuer of Pandavas A very important character in Mahabharata, because his death has ensured that a threat to Arjuna’s life was removed. A brave warrior, who fought bravely to bring Karna to use his special weapon on Ghatotkacha. Pandava’s sons, Abhimanyu and Ghatotkacha have virtually ensured that their fathers won the battle of

Arjuna and Babruvahana

Babruvahana and Arjuna There is an interesting side story in Mahabharata about Babhruvahana who was even more skilled to his father, Arjuna. He succesfully stopped the Pandavas quest of performing Ashwamedha. This story may be treated as similar to Luv Kush stopping Rama from performing Ashwamedha yagya. Here is the detailed story of Babruvahana. Birth