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Part 1: The Destruction of Tripura: Dharma, Devotion, and Divine Justice Oṁ Śāntiḥ Śāntiḥ. Oṁ Śrī Gaṇeśāya Namaḥ. Bhakratuṇḍa Mahākāya Sūryakoṭi Samaprabha Nirvighnaṁ Kurume Deva Sarvakāryeṣu Sarvadā. Oṁ Śrī Sarasvatī Namaḥ. Sarasvatī Namastubhyaṁ Varade Kāmarūpiṇī Vidyārambhaṁ Karīṣyāmi Siddhirbhavatu Me Sadā. Oṁ Śrī Gurubhyo Namaḥ. Guru Brahma, Guru Viṣṇu, Gurudevai Maheśvara, Guru Sākṣāt, Parabrahma, Tasmai Śrī Gurave Namaḥ. Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinaḥ, Sarve Santu Nirāmayāḥ, Sarve Bhadrāṇi Paśyantu, Mā Kaścid Duḥkhabhāg Bhavet. Om Asato Mā Sadgamaya, Tamaso Mā Jyotirgamaya. Mṛtyormā Amṛtaṃ Gamaya. Oṃ Śāntiḥ Śāntiḥ... Oṃ saha nāvavatu saha nau bhunaktu saha vīryaṃ karavāvahai tejasvi nāvadhītamastu mā vidviṣāvahai Oṃ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ... I welcome all of you, whether in this hall, watching through television, or around this ashram, once again to this Śiva Purāṇa session. Please accept greetings from Ācārya Rajan Śarma. We have a wonderful session today from the Pañcama Yuddha Khaṇḍa of the Rudra Saṁhitā. Here, we will receive knowledge and moral stories from the Śiva Purāṇa about how Śiva Mahādeva killed the Tripura Asura Daitya, how they lost their divinity, how they deviated, and the reason behind the demons of Tripura—the three puras. I will explain in detail today about Tripura, Bṛhaspati's act, and many interesting stories. You are welcome once more to this session. In today's fifth Yuddha Khaṇḍa of the Śiva Purāṇa, we will discuss the importance of Tripurāsura Dānava and his death, why Lord Viṣṇu destroyed his religion, how we can benefit from this in our lives, and how we can make our spiritual and all other activities, as well as this life itself, free. We will talk about this. Jai Boliye Bhagvān Vole Bābā kī, Gaṇeś Bhagvān kī, Śiva Purāṇ kī, Satguru Mahārāj kī, Brahmā Viṣṇu Maheśvarī kī, Har Har Mahādev, Har Har Mahādev, Har Har Mahādev. Here in the Pañcama Yuddha Khaṇḍa of the Śiva Purāṇa, we have already stated that whenever there is a problem of religion in the world, God creates a new form, a new method, and then re-establishes dharma. This is our practice. So, what is the demonic element? To hurt others, to find fault in others, and to commit sins—that is the demonic element. And what is the human and divine element? To respect those who are in trouble and to save them. What is to be saved? That is the divine element. This is repeated in the holy scriptures. That is why it is said: never see the fault of others and never increase the fault of others. Par doṣa nija guṇa govindara de. Par doṣa nija guṇa govindara de. Dono na dekho dono patan kara de. Dono na dekho dono patan kara de. To give pain to others and to increase the fault of others—both of these are dangerous. Both can cause downfall. This is the basis of today's Śiva Purāṇa; this is the basis of today's Saṁhitā. So, what you have to do is live with dharma and be free. Today we will start with this. Jai Bholē Bholā Bābā Kī! In this wonderful session of the Pañcama Yuddha Khaṇḍa, I will explain how Gaṇeśjī helps Mahādeva in every effort, and also in the creation of Brahmā and Viṣṇu, as we have talked about before. After the demon Tāraka was killed, his three sons—Tārakākṣa, Vidyunmālī, and Kamalākṣa—performed proper meditation. When they meditated, they asked Brahmā for a boon. Brahmā asked them what they wanted. They replied that they did not want material pleasures like wealth or beauty; they wanted something eternal: to live forever. Brahmā said that was not possible and asked them to alter their demand. Then Tārakākṣa, Vidyunmālī, and Kamalākṣa asked for three different towns: one of gold, one of silver, and one of strong iron (bajra). God has blessed us with a life of gold, wealth, and abundance. But Lord Brahmā said this is against nature; they could not be immortal. However, if they wished, they could ask for a long life through some method and for such a difficult condition for their death that no one could kill them easily. After that, they said they needed three puras. They requested that no one should be able to kill them or destroy Tripura; the towns should stay in the sky and be invisible to the world, moving between Bhūtala, Rasātala, and Vāyumaṇḍala. Only once in a year would the three puras align, and if someone could kill them at that precise moment, they would die; otherwise, they would not. Brahmā said, "Tathāstu." The three demons demanded three towns of different metals. When they asked, Brahmā, pleased with their meditation, said, "Okay, well done. I bless you, Tathāstu." Whatever you want is done. But you must keep in mind not to misuse your power. They asked, "Well, Brahmājī, we asked for three puras that will be invisible: one in space, one on earth, and one in the clouds." Those three towns would merge only once, specifically when the Abhijit Nakṣatra appears. Among the 27 constellations, when the Abhijit Nakṣatra comes, the three puras align. Only at that time, if someone shoots, will our three towns be destroyed; otherwise, they will not. This was the blessing. When they received the blessing, Brahmā ordered Viśvakarmā, the divine architect, to build Tripura. The three demons were Śiva bhaktas. At that time, there were many temples in the towns, and they always followed the rules and respected Śiva. Śiva was very happy with them. They had luxurious things in Tripura: gold, silver, and iron. The demon Māyā also entered the three towns and protected the demons' existence and prosperity. When they entered with their families and started their beautiful life, they eventually revealed their true demonic nature. They came to earth to disturb the divine energy, the gods and goddesses, and all beings in the world. No one was safe. They thought Mahādeva was their iṣṭadevatā and that he would not kill them. Without Mahādeva, no one could destroy Tripura. As long as Mahādeva was happy, Indra, Brahmā, or Viṣṇu could do nothing. Mahādeva was always happy, as he was their friend, having already blessed them, and they always worshipped him. This was the daityas' trick. The Tripurasura daityas—Tārakākṣa, Vidyunmālī, and Kamalākṣa—started to go to the heavens and challenged Indra. Indra was defeated because they were very brave, powerful, and nearly immortal. They captured Svarga, the heaven, and threatened other divine gods and goddesses, controlling the entire Triloka. The devatās were upset and thought this was because of Brahmā's blessing. But what was Brahmā's great penance? He went to the Khaṇḍāra of Meru mountain and performed amazing penance, which is why he became Brahmā. When Brahmā said "Praṇipat," he gave all this inheritance to Tripura. Using the power of Drupada, they defeated Indra and took over heaven. In the world, all the sages, saints, and Mahāpuruṣas were tormented. All the deities were harmed. Their wish was that all enemies should be destroyed and that they should never die. But when Tripura aligned with the Abhijit Nakṣatra, if someone tried to kill them then, Tripura would be destroyed. With this position and power, the Dānava attacked all the gods and challenged Brahmā, causing chaos everywhere. But Lord Śiva was a friend of Dharma. He who worships and takes refuge in Him does not die. This is the nature of our religion. At that time, Lord Śiva was not afraid, and no one could kill him. That is why Tripura was created in all three worlds. This is a very old story in the Śiva Purāṇa, also written in other Purāṇas. The purpose is that when evil increases, the sāttvika element is disturbed and no sāttvikness comes. When sāttvikness does not come, you do not come close to God, and good thoughts do not enter the mind. When good thoughts do not come, others start doing bad things. Here, the demons were doing the same. The Devatās became very unhappy and started praising Brahmā. Brahmā said, "I can’t do anything. You go and pray to Mahādeva. Mahādeva can destroy Tripura." The Devatās went to Kailāśa Parvata. Jai Bhole Bhola Baba Ki Jai. All the divine gods and goddesses pleaded with Brahmā: "Oh Brahmā, look at this. You blessed them, but now the three worlds are captured by the demons. We cannot perform our divine rituals, activities, or sādhanās. We have lost our heaven and our place. What can we do? Can you please create an idea and bless us so we can regain our heavens and our place?" Brahmā said, "Well, I cannot do anything. I am the one who blessed them. I have to bless if somebody comes. But this time, you have one idea: you can go and request Mahādeva." All of them—gods, goddesses, Brahmā, and Viṣṇu—went to Kailāsa and requested Mahādeva, the Devadideva, the great person: "Without your mercy, nothing will happen. Whatever is happening is by your will. Please give us shelter and rescue us. You need to kill the three demons; they are doing notorious things around the world." Mahādeva was meditating. They tried to appease him for a long time until he opened his eyes. He said, "Well, Brahmā told one thing. What he told is: you should not betray your friends, no matter the situation. If somebody trusts you, you must not betray them. That is a great sin." Brahmā once said this, and there is a Vedic statement as well: if somebody trusts you, you never ever hurt the person; that is a great sin. If you betray friends, there is no path for regression or realization. There is no realization for mitra droha. This is the Vedic statement and Brahmā's word. Mahādeva reminded Brahmā: "Oh Brahmā, you once told the universe that if somebody betrays friends, dearest ones, close ones, that is a great sin. But now all the demons are my mitra because they worship me, honor me, and have built temples inside Tripura. They always worship Śiva, are adorable, and always seek my blessings. So how can I go and kill them? I am in a dilemma. I know you are on the right track, and your demand is good, but what if you were in my place?" Mahādeva said this, and at that time, all the Devagaṇas requested Viṣṇu: "Oh Viṣṇu, what can happen to us, and what can we do?" Śiva, Viṣṇu, Sūrya, Gaṇeś—everyone deliberated. Śiva gave them an idea. It is mentioned that no matter who your friend is, if you do good, you will receive good. If you betray somebody, others will betray you. If you give something good, you will receive the same. There is a story: A man always wanted to give a gift when somebody died in his town. He did not have time to attend the funeral ceremony, so he always sent an umbrella because, during a funeral, people need to go on hot or rainy days. If he gave an umbrella, all the funeral members could use it. He never attended but always sent an umbrella, saying, "From my side, this is an umbrella for the funeral members." One day, he died. After his death, no one attended his funeral. Everyone sent an umbrella. Because of that, the umbrellas could not arrange the funeral. That means whatever you give, that happens. No matter your reach or strength, sometimes you need to go personally, to show your presence and emotion. Personal emotion is very important. If you have friends or family members, always give assurance that you are there. Without you, they may feel vulnerable. If you create distance slowly, the person will become used to living alone or without dependency on you, and there will be no feeling of your existence or relationship. This is also worship, sādhanā. Practicing chanting and maintaining spirituality is like this: once you are awake, you are still connecting, saying, "Oh, I’m here with you." While you meditate, do yoga, read scriptures, and engage in spiritual practice—early morning, afternoon, or evening—you are saying, "Oh God, I seek realization." When you get this realization, you are close to God, connecting every time, so you are not far away. This reminds and renews your devotion, always elevating you. The Rakṣasas used to wear the Tripuṇḍra and worship the Śivaliṅga with daily ārādhanā, so they became friends of Lord Śiva. How can we stop for a friend? Lord Śiva said, "O Viṣṇu, O Brahmā, you yourselves said that there is no friend or enemy in the Vedabhāgya. So how can I act in this Dharma Śaṅkaṭ? You tell me." Then the Devatās said, "You can find a solution." There is a story: A rich man in a town had no time to go to the śmaśāna ghaṭ. Whenever someone died, he used to send an umbrella because, in the sun and rain, the umbrella was useful for going to the cremation ground. One day, he also died. But after his death, to perform his last rites and saṁskāras, no one came. Everyone sent an umbrella because he used to send an umbrella all the time. So instead of people, he received umbrellas. Whatever you do in this world, you get back. If you give love, you get love; if you give a smile, you get a smile. When you respect someone, you get respect. If you make someone cry, give sorrow, you will also get sorrow. There is no one else to make sorrow in the world; it is only you. You are the cause of your sorrow and happiness. That is why it is said: it is only you. Poverty is also your reason. As Vivekananda Swamījī and others said: love the poor, but be grateful to the poor. Poverty has given you as much time as wealth has. For wealth, it is 24 hours; for poverty, it is 24 hours. If someone is born poor, it is not a sin. But if he dies poor, then he has some weakness because God has given him time, grace, and all opportunities. He was not at fault in being born poor, but when he died poor, he was at fault. So, what is the reason? If we do something, God has given everything for you. Use this good time. In this Purāṇa, Śivjī's story, the Amṛta Bāṇī, gives us this instruction. So, keep listening. Whatever you are doing is for yourself. If you are poor, that is because of you. If you are rich, that is because of you. You are the cause. Whatever you ask of the universe will come. It is said that you have 24 hours. The richest people also have 24 hours. Mahātmās also have 24 hours in a day. There is no difference from Brahmā; He has given the same to all. That is why one philosopher said: if you are born poor, that is not your fault. But if you die in poverty, that is your fault. God has given you equally—everyone has 24 hours, knowledge, a brain, hands, everything. So it is your choice. Destiny is not a matter of chance; it is a matter of choice. You can create, and that is the opportunity given. Here, Brahmā is also asking Śiva: "Oh Śiva, this is because of the daityas' bad karma. They need to face the results, the consequences." That is why something must be done. Obviously, no one is free from bad karma. So Śiva said, "Well, in that case, what can we do? We need to get help from Viṣṇu, who is tricky. To maintain order, he always needs to use tricks. He is the doer, Brahmā kartā. Brahmā and Śiva predate Viṣṇu. So what can we do?" Viṣṇu had an idea. He said that as long as all the demons pray to Śiva, Śiva will not kill them, and he should not—that is dharma. So we need to do something. They must become dharma-less. If they become nasty, stop praying to Śiva, develop demonic minds and negative thoughts, and involve themselves in tāmasika activities, then Śiva can kill them. That is why we need to make that trick. Viṣṇu created an idea. At that time, he disguised himself and went to Tripurāsura. Slowly, he influenced every demon's mind to stop worshipping Śiva. Look at this: sometimes God's līlā also comes. If you do not feel devotion, meditation, or spiritual practice, that might also be a test. From God, if you are very strong, dedication needs to continue. Sometimes God also tests. Sometimes demons come and block. For the demons, their sādhanā was not that strong; they were just doing selfish sādhanā. It was not selfless sādhanā for liberation or to merge with Brahman. What was the practice of the Daitya? It was not to unite with Brahma. It was self-reliant dharma for self-preservation. To destroy that dharma, Viṣṇu went to Tripura. That is why, when we go to any temple of Bhagavān, we should not go just to ask or get. Go to express gratitude for what you have received. Think about how much you have asked from childhood: for good education, a good marriage, a good child, a good job, a good house, a good job for your child. When you ask for so many things, you get shocked. If someone comes in front of you and asks for something, what will you do? Will you slap him? You are an example of a child. That is why devotion needs to be selfless, free—not for fulfilling material gain. It should not be for material pleasures. It needs to be ultimately attentive devotion. If you read the Rāmāyaṇa, Hanumānjī asked for devotion to Rāma and Sītā. Devotion is forever. When Sītā and Rāma gave a beautiful diamond necklace to Hanumān, he started to bite it. Everyone was surprised. This was a beautiful, awesome, expensive gift. How could he bite it like an animal? He replied, "I bite this to see if Rāma and Sītā are inside it or not. If there is no Rāma-Sītā, I do not want it." He bit every part and found no Rāma-Sītā, so he threw it away. Everyone said, "Rāma and Sītā should not be in other places." He said, "Well, if you have devotion, there will be God. Look at this." He tore open his chest, and inside were Rāma and Sītā. You might see such posters in the market: in Hanumān's chest, there are Rāma and Sītā. That means God is everywhere, in every spot and every material. Always see everyone with this vision: in everyone, there is God. Part 2: The Essence of Devotion and the Tale of Tripura It is always said that God is present everywhere in all forms. Remember it as Hanumān-ji demonstrated in the Rāmāyaṇa through an ultimate display of devotion. When Sītā and Rāma gave him a beautiful diamond necklace, what did he begin to do? He started to bite it, to cut it with his teeth. Everyone was surprised and asked why he was cutting it. He said, "In this diamond necklace, if there is a picture of Rāma and Sītā, if it contains their feeling and presence, then I will wear it. Otherwise, this expensive diamond necklace has no meaning for me." Since the images were not inside, he broke the necklace. When asked further, he said, "It does not happen that way everywhere. Look inside my chest." And he tore open his chest. In this way, the story speaks about devotion. There are two types of devotion: Sākām and Niṣkām. Sākām is for fulfilling certain ideas, desires, or selfish things. Niṣkām means it does not matter; you need nothing. Your duty is to perform devotion. Whether you receive something or are left empty-handed, whether it comes now, tomorrow, or after many lives—it does not matter for a true devotee. It is continuous, like our duty, our performance as human beings. We came here, and we are practicing. Whether we attain liberation or not, whether we must wait many lives, it is irrelevant. Perhaps we will be liberated tomorrow morning; that is fine. Therefore, always have patience. There was a time when people maintained their life and existence through attachment and by worshiping Śiva. But when Viṣṇu appeared, they stopped. Slowly, they changed. They lost the mind to worship, pray, or perform devotion. They even wanted to destroy the Śiva temples. Gradually, the deities began to destroy the temples, and they stopped caring about religion. By the play of God’s grace, they stopped going to the Śivālaya and stopped worshipping Lord Śiva. Gradually, whatever was there was lost; religion was lost. The women who followed their husband’s religion also broke away and were attracted to others. Husbands and wives became Parāyaṇa (adrift). Even a brahmacārī was attracted. Thus, religion was destroyed. What does the Śiva Purāṇa say? Whoever does this in his life also destroys his religion. Merely going to the temple or on pilgrimage does not bring religion. Husband Parāyaṇa, wife Parāyaṇa—what is this? It is to bind God and for everyone to see the form of God. Whatever you get in life, consider it as the form of God and offer Him a smile, give Him a bow. Then your dharma improves. These two words were also said by Vyāsa: If you hurt another, it becomes unethical. No matter how large a tilak you wear, no matter how fast you go on pilgrimage, if you hurt another, it becomes unethical. Here too, slowly, all the women in Tripura developed a different mindset. They no longer had that pativratā dharma—the spirituality, purity towards the husband, respect for the husband. The men also lost interest in their wives and developed negative feelings. They engaged in adultery and negative acts, thus finishing their dharma. Slowly, Tripura became adharmī Tripura. At that time, all the people went back to Mahādeva: "Oh Mahādeva, look at this. You said before they were dharmic, spiritual people and you could not kill them. Now look, they have destroyed the Śivaliṅgas and Śivālayas, and they are practicing impurity. There is no more dharma now. They are still torturing divine energy, God and Goddess. What can you do now?" Śiva did not reply. They went to Pārvatī and requested her, for if you cannot convince somebody, try to convince his partner; he will listen more from her. So all the Devatās went to Pārvatī’s place. Pārvatī became happy and came to convince Śiva: "Oh Mahādeva, I would like to ask one thing. You need to be convinced. You need to be ready to kill Tripura, for the Tripura-vāsī Dānavas are very dangerous." When the Devatās prayed to Mahādeva and he said nothing, they went with Pārvatī. Pārvatī said, "Hey Devī, hey Mātā, you are going to protect." The mother is protection; she is also the parent of this universe. She cannot see someone in misery, so she accepted. Pārvatī said, "Okay, I will go." In a house, if someone is not believing... there was a thing in Hitler’s case also. He was so strong; in all his history, he never listened to anyone, but he used to listen to his girlfriend. Sometimes the partner is important. Here too, Pārvatī requested, and Mahādeva happily said, "Well, Pārvatī, if you say that, I cannot say no. That’s fine. I am ready. Tell me what you want." Mahādeva was ready to fight. A great meeting (baitak) was held with Mahādeva and the Devatās, for Tripura was amazingly brave and had amazing blessings. Their town was invisible. Can you imagine that? It could be invisible. Nowadays, many planets are being discovered one after another, and for some planets, they are still guessing if there is alien life. In the same way, there was Tripura—perhaps some planets or something at that time. Mahādeva said, "Well, you said... I am the king of all the divine, Deva. But to kill Tripura is not a joke or a small job; it is a great obligation. Tripura has three cities: one of gold, one of iron (bajra), and one of silver. They must be destroyed with one arrow, in one nimeṣa (moment), and at a particular time—when the Abhijit Nakṣatra comes. At that time, the cities will be weak, and I can shoot. But I do not have a vehicle. I need to stand in space. Do you have a chariot? A divine chariot?" There was no chariot with them. In the meeting, they decided, "Well, we can arrange something special for you." The sun was ready, the moon was ready, the earth was ready, all the mountains were ready, all of saṃsāra was ready—all the months, nakṣatras, weeks, days, lunars. The whole universe was ready. Everyone offered something to Mahādeva. The sun, moon, and stars all said, "Okay, Paramatmā, we are ready for your alokic ratha." For the victory of good over negative energy from time to time, if you have good energy, they are ready. If you have not developed that energy, then our mind always goes downstairs, like water. Water falls down; wherever it falls, it wants to go down due to gravitation. Similarly, our negativity always wants to pull us down and does not allow us to grow. In this divine chariot, the sun and moon became the wheels—the right and left wheels. All the nakṣatras (constellations) became the belt of the wheel. All the great mountains became the bones, the chariot’s pillars. They made one divine, wonderful, powerful chariot for Śiva. The Nāga, Vāsuki Nāga, and the earth were also ready. All the Devatās helped. The fire god sat on Mahādeva’s trident, on the tips of the arrows. Whenever there is a struggle to fight, good people support the good, righteous people support the righteous. Bad people want to go far away from everything. The sun, moon, and earth became two pillars, forming a wonderful, amazing chariot. All the divine gods and goddesses were there. In the story of the ocean churning (Samudra Manthana), similarly, all divine gods were ready: Mandarācala Parvata was ready, Vāsuki Nāga became the rope, Brahmā monitored, the tortoise held balance, and they obtained nectar. For divinity and good purpose, you need help. You need blessings for everything—for success, happiness, spiritual success. For spiritual success, you need blessings from Sarasvatī; for protection, from Gaṇeśa; for career success, from Lakṣmī and Kubera; for health, from Dhanvantarī. You need blessings from God and Gurus. We need blessings from everywhere; we cannot ignore any element of this universe. Each and every element is important. In this universe, we cannot destroy even a single speck of dust. It has existence; you cannot destroy it. It may change form, but cannot be destroyed. Similarly, you need help. That is why wherever you go, you salute and honor everything. You need help no matter what. Mahādeva took the chariot into space, but it was still not enough. He said, "Still, there is some dharma. I still cannot fight with them." All gods and goddesses were upset again. They thought, "What can we do?" Mahādeva was the only hope. He said, "It is not that we are not strong enough, but our chariot and preparation are not quite ready." At that time, all the Devatās started to cry. They were upset. Then Mahādeva asked them, "There is one solution. All of you need to become an animal. You need to bring the feelings of an animal—wholeheartedly, without mercy. They can attack. Act like an animal." At that time, you will have nothing—no mercy, no kindness. Some animals have mercy, but in that situation, wise and patient things cannot be done. For example, if you go to surgery for your parents and you panic, you cannot perform the surgery on your own family because you need to be without sympathy or empathy. Similarly, Mahādeva said, "You need to act like an animal; otherwise, you will have kindness, for in Tripura there are many demons, women, children, and elderly people. I cannot see that. We have mercy and kindness." Mahādeva said, "If you need to be ek paśu (one animal), then I can help you." Jai bhule bhule bābā kī? Jai! Jai bhule bhule bābā kī? Jai! Jai!... At that time, everyone needed to think like an animal. All gods and goddesses started to think about that animal. They did not change their form, but their vision. Mahādeva also became Paśupati. That is why Mahādeva is called Paśupati. From that day, his name is Paśupati. The day he drank the poison, he became Nīlakaṇṭha. Similarly, from the time he converted himself to kill Tārakāsura, the Tripura Daitya, he needed that power. From that day, he is famous as Pāśupatināth. The temple of Pāśupatināth is in Nepal. If you get a chance, go to Kathmandu. There is Pāśupatināth. In front of the temple, there are big animals. In Pāśupatināth, you can see many monkeys, animals, and deer wandering freely on the streets. Humans, cars, pedestrians, and monkeys all walk together. If you carry a bag, a monkey might snatch it. They give food, and there is freedom for everyone—deer, animals, bulls, human beings. Everyone has freedom there. That is Pāśupati, Pāśupatināth. Why did Pāśupatināth start there? After the war of the Mahābhārata, when the Pāṇḍavas and Kauravas finished their fight, the Pāṇḍavas felt regret. "We won the war, but we have sin because we killed many people. We were untruthful. Let us seek regret and forgiveness. We can get forgiveness only from Mahādeva." They came to ask Mahādeva. Mahādeva said, "If they come, I need to forgive them. If I forgive them, I must take their sin. Better to disappear." Mahādeva disappeared. He went to graze grass near Kedārnāth mountain, disguised as a bull among cows, roaming in the Kailāśa region. The Pāṇḍavas were clever; they meditated. "Where is Mahādeva? He disappeared suddenly." They meditated and saw he was with a cow, disguised as a bull in Kedārnāth. They went there with great effort and trekking. When they reached, they wondered, "How can we grab Mahādeva?" Bhīma had a good idea. He was strong and brave. He stood in a brave posture and made a gate of himself. Every cow, after grazing, returns the same route. He became a big gate with his legs. A weaver (cow) would go under his leg. If Mahādeva came, he would grab him. That was his trick. Mahādeva is Dev; he would not go under. They would recognize him. At godhūli samaya (evening when cows return, creating dust—go means cow, dhūli means dust), the cows came back. Bhīma made a big door with his thigh. Every cow passed under, but Mahādeva was inside. He was tricked. "What am I going to do?" He did not want to cross under the leg. He made a small hole in the earth to disappear. Bhīmasena found out. "There is Mahādeva! Grab him!" They grabbed his shoulder, and Mahādeva disappeared from there. That is why they established the statue of Mahādeva’s shoulder at Kedārnāth. The temple looks like a bull’s shoulder. From that day, it is said Mahādeva disappeared. They gave up their journey to find him. But Mahādeva went underground to Nepal, Pāśupatināth, and appeared on the bank of the Bāgmatī River. Many cows went there and were milking. That jyotirliṅga has been there since. We always go to meditate at Pāśupatināth. There is also Kailāsa, Māyādevā’s place, and Bhagavatī is wonderful. There is the Slish Mantak Forest where Pārvatī and Śiva once played. People go there to feel the vibration. Similarly, there are 13 Śiva liṅgas; one is in Nepal, the rest in the world. It is also the gateway to Kailāśa mountain. If you go to Tibet, Kailāśa, many have been there; it was the gateway. Mahādeva established himself there. But here, as Paśupati, from the day he started to pursue vṛtti (conduct), he became Paśupati—the controller of all paśu (animals, beings). All Devatās became animals, and Mahādeva is the controller. When we have Paśubhṛti (animal qualities), only Mahādeva can control. For anything in this world—cheating, murder, rape, theft, betrayal—that is animal quality. Śiva quality is transcendental: helping others, kindness, purity. As said in many Purāṇas—Śiva Purāṇa, Kārttikeya Purāṇa, Gaṇeśa Purāṇa—Mahādeva said, "I am Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Maheśa in different names." I have to work for your body. Your hand is your hand, leg is leg, head is different, but as a whole, you are one. Similarly, there is Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśa—three Devas, all in one and one in all. Śiva has different energies; sometimes he works as Viṣṇu, sometimes as Brahmā. He needs to fulfill the duty and obligation of this universe. He accepts that he can help everyone in different forms according to the demand of the situation, yuga, and era. There are many kalpas; in any kalpa, era, or time, Mahādeva acts according to demand. That is why you sometimes feel, "I am the doer, I did this," but better not to remember those things. If you read the Bhagavad Gītā, you can find the inner meaning. When Arjuna was confused and his mind unstable, Kṛṣṇa gave much instruction—knowledge, ideas, Sāṅkhya Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Brahma Vidyā. But Arjuna was still not convinced. Finally, Kṛṣṇa showed his form of the universe. Arjuna said, "This is the suggestion of war." At that time, he was doing war but did not want to fight. It was a war between mind and body. When he was confirmed, he said, "The war is finished. I am ready. You are just the doer. Somebody is playing, acting. You are only the character; somebody is making you the reason. Just be a mediator, perform your duty, whatever he orders. Do not feel attached to the result; do not worry. Worry about your action and duty, not the fruit or outcomes." Thus teaches the Bhagavad-gītā. Now we have a song, a vibrational bhajan. We will clap and chant. Then we will continue with the Amṛtamayā Kathā. Rādhā Sabhī Avatāra Paranahī Pāve, Rādhā Sabhī Avatāra Paranahī Pāve. Sata Gurujī Sadeva Ocharana Kodiana Karonita Pūjā Vedaro Hridayako Kodiana Karonita Pūjā. Muma jala prabhu nirajaya, Nirajaya karamaka bandha jīvo kofasaya. Viyāvarāmaka bandha jīvo koṭasaya Medāro charaṇa koḍhyāna karonita pūjā Medāro hṛdaya koḍhyāna karonita pūjā Prāga tabāye guru deva paramahupakārī. Praga tabaye guru deva paramahupakārī. When the time comes, everything happens. We have only three more days. We started a couple of days ago; today, tomorrow, and the 18th is the final day. Normally, the tradition of Purāṇa is to start early in the morning after sunrise and finish after sunset—continuous listening for seven days. But in the Kumbh Melā, in the traditional way, it is not suitable. We have many things to do. The rule is: once you start, you finish completely. This is also a top meditation in this Kali Yuga. You start and, until you finish, you keep listening and staying. Every year, in many places, they arrange Śiva Purāṇa. It does not mean they do not know it, but it irrigates your plant of devotion, activating your energy. The story may repeat, but you re-energize. That is why we stay and sit. Thousands of times people listen and still find new things, new activities. Part 3: The Essence of Purity and the Story of Tripura That is why. Sipuran always helps us to maintain purity, to refrain from blame, and not to follow the demonic quality within us. No matter what situation arises, just maintain your purity and be yourself. There is a story attached to this, which you may already know. A boy was traveling with his father on a train. Looking out the window, he saw the trees moving. He shouted to his father, "Oh, dad, look at this! The tree is passing by. The tree is running!" He did not realize the train was moving; he thought the trees were passing. He kept shouting, "Look, the house is running!" and "The pole is running!" in his excitement. His father simply smiled. The passengers grew annoyed and said, "Your son has some difficulties, I think. You need to take him to the hospital. Something is wrong with his mind." The father smiled and replied, "I did take him to the hospital. This is the first day he has regained his eyesight. He was blind from birth." So please, do not say anything. We often judge people just by what we see from the outside, not knowing their inner story. The inside might be different; the truth is different. What we see may not be the truth. When we judge and act upon it, that is the demonic quality. Similarly, when the demonic quality arises within us, we may not feel we are being unkind, yet in our thoughts, actions, and words, we hurt others. This is nothing new. We speak of Tripurā, Daintya, Tārakāsura, Maya, Hiraṇyakaśipu, Hiraṇyakṣa, and Kumbhakarṇa. They, too, possessed a little bit of godly quality. The majority of quality is divine, and here too, in the case of Tārakāsura, Śiva did not wish to kill him, but it became necessary. Still, he had a godly heart. In God's heart, you cannot kill, you cannot give. Sometimes, to punish someone, you need to be strong. That is why he became animal-hearted. For all, God is also like this. He ordered, as the Hindi proverb says, "Bhūt ke pāõ nahīṁ, bhūt ko laṭṭhī se māro." If there is a ghost, you need to kick it. It will not listen if you keep talking. You need to deal with a ghost by kicking it. In the same way, Mahādeva must also be ready, and all his wrath is prepared. One day, the Abhijit Nakṣatra arrived. It was a massive chariot, and all the demons were crying "trahimam, trahimam" (save me, save me) in fear. At that moment, all the Tripura were visible for just a moment in the Abhijit Nakṣatra. What does this mean astronomically? When all 27 nakṣatra constellations finish their cycle, then Abhijit comes. Abhijit arrives for a specific time; it is a border between cycles, and at that time, energy becomes difficult. That is why many people born under Abhijit Nakṣatra undertake fasting and spiritual activities. This happens in the universe. This is not about those times or another story; this is a story about the present situation as well. The Abhijit Nakṣatra came. He meditated and asked Brahmā for a boon, but he forgot one thing: to pray to Gaṇeśa. He was ready, but Gaṇeśa's vehicle, the rat, went and dug into the mountain, causing the chariot to go down. Everyone was upset. "Oh, what happened? This is amazing. This is not supposed to happen. Everyone is helping. What happened?" They came back again and thought, "Well, this is not the auspicious time." They had started well, but they forgot one thing. Pārvatī said one thing: you are supposed to worship Gaṇeśa first before starting. Gaṇeśa was not involved, and that is why he was upset. He sent the rat. The rat dug a hole in the ground, and the chariot's tire got stuck. That is why even a small rat can destroy many things. So then they waited for the next moment, the second opportunity. In the second opportunity, properly, they asked Gaṇeśa, "Well, Gaṇeśa, now you also have to go with us." They brought Gaṇeśa and worshipped him. Even though Gaṇeśa is the son of Śiva, still, everyone worships him. This means that no matter what you do, do not do it in panic or in a rush. Just meditate. Bring that energy. Give thanks to the universe before starting. In any kathā or pūjā, anything started, they ask the universe, "Oh, thanks, universe, please allow me." That gives you reassurance. In the same way, in traveling or doing anything, we wait for a specific time. This practice is not as common now, but before beginning anything, you just need to ask the universe, "Well, give me." The universe will give or not, but automatically you will gain some confidence. Okay, I asked somebody. Psychologically, mentally, physically, and emotionally, you will be ready. That is when you are ready for everything. When you have good confidence and inner strength, then comes the outer foundation. Then you feel strong: "Okay, I can do it." In the same way here, Śiva came back and worshipped. When all were taking the chariot, what happened was that the chariot's wheel was cut off by the rat. Śiva had made such a big chariot to kill the Daitya. The moon and sun were made as wheels, and all the Vāsuki Nāg and Devadhī Deva were singing in the chariot. But they forgot to worship Gaṇeśa. After that, Lord Gaṇeśa sent a mouse. The mouse dug the ground and caused his chariot to go down; the chariot's tire sank. Something bad happened, and everyone came back. Pārvatījī said that you had forgotten to worship Lord Gaṇeśa, so worship Gaṇeśa, and then everything will be fine. Before doing any good deed, do not forget Lord Gaṇeśa. Do not forget. What is the scientific reason for that? When you worship this earth, a Devadhī Dev, when you close your eyes and move forward for a second before doing work, then this Brahman, this Alokic power, comes into your mind. Then you get courage and confidence, and then you can do the work. Jai Bholē Gaṇeś Bhagavān Kī Jai. So now this time we chant Oṁ Gaṁ Gaṇapataye for a while. That is also a vibrational word. Let us worship Gaṇeśa for our auspiciousness in this prayer, in this trip, in this retreat, and whatever you are doing in your home or wherever you are, for your auspiciousness this time. Namaha Oṁ Gaṅgādapatāya Namaha... Oṁ Gaṁ Gaṇapataya Namaha... God bless you. Oṁ Gaṁ Gaṇapataye Namaḥ. Jai Bholī Gaṇapati Mahārāj Kī Jai. Brahmā Viṣṇu Maheśvara Kī Jai. Gaṇapati Mahārāj Kī Jai. Then Gaṇeśa is ready, and with the blessings of Gaṇeśa, all the divine gods and goddesses are prepared. The chariots, Gaṇapati Bhagavān, also went along. All the Devādideva also went along. And that chariot, what is it now? It will not go down now because along with it is the blessing of Gaṇeśa Jī. Whatever work you do, the blessing of Gaṇeśa Jī is with you. Lord Śiva, along with Lord Gaṇeśa, has worshipped Lord Gaṇeśa. That is why in Brahma Purvaan and Ganesha Purvaan, Lord Ganesha is also called Brahma. That is why in good deeds, for your good deeds, you must also keep this in mind. So here is a story: you should not have any selfishness in religion. When there is selfishness, then you forget. At one time, a guest came to Bhairaṅgya. He thought that this house, wife, children, animals, agriculture—everything is a trap. He decided to become a sādhu, so he went to become a sādhu. While becoming a sādhu, he did dhyāna, dharma, and became a great Mahātmā. After becoming a Mahātma, he came near the village, made a hut, and started doing dhyāna. The villagers were very happy to see the Mahātma. As soon as they were happy, they took a small glass of milk and went to him. "If we feed the Mahātma in the company, then it will be a religion." So in the morning and evening, the farmers used to go and give milk to the Mahātmā. But later, what happened is that the farmer felt pity. "He gives Mahatma milk. Why not? We give the cow." So he donated a cow, a cow with milk. Then he brought the Mahatma and asked what to serve. The Mahatma said, "You brought a cow. Then what will you do? The cow should have someone to milk it." Then he said, "Okay, we will keep someone to milk it." So they kept a woman. Gradually, what happened is the cow was milked. Later, the Mahātmā was washing the clothes of the child on the riverbank, and villagers asked, "What happened?" The Mahatma said, "Now again, the life of the householder has started because with the same girl I had a relationship again. So it is like this: as long as you have devotion—when you don't have devotion—then all kinds of opportunities keep coming in your life." To avoid those opportunities, what is it? It is complete dharma. So wherever we may be, be a householder or a sage, to fulfill your own dharma, this is what God has taught us. So, here is the story that they are preparing to go to Tarkāsura. But again, that story attached here: there was a saint, a sādhu, a very dedicated person. He started to meditate in a nearby village, and he always worshiped God. At that time, the villagers went and asked—always, obviously—"Oh, the sadhu, oh, the god, you are the Lord. You came to our village. How can we serve you? What's your service? How can we help you?" He said, "I don't need any help. Just the Paramātmā is giving us." But what happened is, people started to bring rice or some food and many things. He didn't have much space to store things or a refrigerator. He used to keep everything in one corner, and after that, mice started to come. Obviously, with a lot of fruit and vegetables to eat, mice started coming. The villager asked Swāmījī, "What do you need?" Swāmījī said, "Well, there are a lot of rats now, so how can we control them? Better we bring a cat." The villager found a cat and gave it to Swāmījī. For two or three days, the cat hunted the rats, but later on, it was starving. There was no cat food, and it started to cry, "Meow, meow..." At that time, again, the villager came and asked, "Swāmījī, what would you like?" "Well, there is a cat. The cat is starving. Maybe bring milk for him regularly." So the villager started to bring a glass of milk morning and evening. Later on, the villager started, "Oh, Swāmījī, it's a very difficult thing. So I think it is better we donate you a cow, a milking cow. So you give milk and feed the cat." They brought one beautiful cow. Swāmījī needed to meditate, but he needed to milk the cow, feed the cow, and do everything. Then again, a villager came and asked, "What? Do you like? Do you have any problem?" He said, "Well, everything is all right, but I cannot give time for meditation. Milking the cow, looking after the cow, giving food—it's a very hard task. Do you have someone that can look after it?" They said, "Well, the man is not that much active; ladies are active, so better we send someone to look after the cow." They sent one lady from the village to look after the cow and give food, and Swāmījī was also serving. After a long time, the villager also didn't go. One day, Swāmījī was washing the children's clothes on the riverbank. "Swāmījī, what? What happened?" Then they said, "Well, what happened? I again started the degree, the gṛhastha. I have one child there, so that again comes here." So they had a baby, meaning Swāmījī had a baby, and he started the gṛhastha life. That is why if you don't have dedication towards anything, that moment-to-moment, minute-to-minute, a cross-sex comes from God. So we say one thing, but our energy, that sensational desire, comes and other things. In the same way, that is in devotion. The continuation of that devotion, conscious and conscious minds always find out again whatever happened. The conscious finds out; the conscious mind is always careful. A lot, a lotness, is devotional life. And Gaṇeśa is the alertness. He reminded, so Mahādev forgot, every god and goddess forgot, but he was alert. That's why he sent the rat, and that comes in as a śubha. That's why it is said that maybe in Europe also, if you are doing something and a glass is broken, or a message, or in India there are so many things: if a cat crosses the road, or something happens, if a crow is making a sound, they are all taken as the aśubha, an inauspicious sign. In the same way, when the rat went there, that was inauspicious. "Chuiye gaya, to chuiye ne kyā hai ki asubta dekhāyā. Mahādev kā rat ko girā diyā. Jamīn ko khodā usne, to Mahādev ko rat girā diyā." That happened before. Later, when Gaṇeś Jī went, everything was fine. So what happened? He shot the arrow, the triśūla. That was the Pāśupatāstra. What is it? Paśupatāstra. When he became Paśupati, all gods and goddesses became animals. At that time, he got the Paśupatāstra, meaning the animal weapons—divine animal weapons given by Brahmā. At the tip of the Pāśupatākṣya, there is a trident, Triśūla, and the fire god resided there. When Mahādeva shot, at that exact time, it was the Abhijit Nakṣatra, the Abhijit constellation. He shot, and all the fire god went into Tripura and started to burn all the puras. All the puras started to be destroyed. Everyone was running here and there, but at that time, what happened is Tārakākṣa came to know, "Oh, Mahādeva is shooting." He came to his senses, came and asked Mahādeva, "Oh Mahādeva, are you going to kill us? Three of us, we were your devotees. What are you doing here?" That was not the plan; that was the destiny, the līlā. Then all the dānavas, all the civil gunners, all those people died. But the divine Tārakākṣa worshipped Mahādev. "Oh, the Maharṣi, please do one favor. There are kids as well, children and elderly people. Can you do a favor for them?" Mahādeva also made a trick, okay? So they would burn quickly, and other demons would burn slowly. In that way, that is what happened, and finally, all of Tripura was finished. This is the story. Then they established the dharma rājya. After the Daintya were completely destroyed, the state of Dharma was established. Again and again, in every yuga, it happens that when the destruction of dharma happens, then Bhagavān Ādi somehow or the other establishes dharma. So, Vidyunmālī, Tārakākṣa, and Kamalākṣa, the three Dāityas of Tripura, were destroyed. This chapter 9-10, this Yuddha Khaṇḍa, is over. This is the story of the three chapters—that's why it took a bit long. Even not three, it's four chapters, and now that it's still not in date, but one session is finished. It is a 10. Here, Mahādeva established the dharma rājya, then God and God is happy. Indra went back to paradise, and all are happy at this moment. Again, Mahādev went to Kailāś, and Gaṇeś and all Devādidev went to their own places. Everyone is reciting the victory of Mahādev Bhagavān. Bhulejī kī Jai, Bhule Bābā kī Jai, Paśupatināth kī Jai, Paśupatināth kī Jai. Jai Umapatī kī Jai. Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya. Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya. Śivāya... Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya... So this is the end of the tenth chapter of Rudra Saṁhitā. Now let's see how the devil, who was a demon, was born from the womb of Lord Śiva and how God made him a deity. This is a very big story. Because of this, how Lord Śiva becomes happy, we go there. So now we are going to start. Śiva has many sons and daughters in the Purāṇas; there are differences in different Purāṇas. We talk about Skanda, Kārttikeya, and the goddess, but now in Śiva Purāṇas, in Rudra Saṁhitā, it talks about Śambhu, Mahādeva, and Pārvatī. They have another son; his name is Andakāra, Andakāsura. What is it? Andhakāsura: andha means blind, asura means rākṣasa, a blind demon. How did it happen? Can Śiva and Pārvatī also create a blind demon? This is an interesting story. So from the lap of Bhagavān Śiva and Pārvatī, a blind rākṣasa was born—a blind demon. How was he born from the lap of God? This is a wonderful story here too. From God's lap, a blind one? God made him the husband of Gaṇeśa. God is the God of God. God does not use good things in the right way, so bad things come. God Śiva and Lord Śiva were innocent. He also had a dark soul. One day, they went to a holy place called Bhūṭāl to worship Lord Śiva and Pārvatī. When they went to worship Lord Śiva and Pārvatī, they did penance and worshiped Lord Śiva and Pārvatī. But at that time, Pārvatī closed Lord Śiva's eyes while playing. When Lord Śiva closed his eyes, he saw a blind child born from his sweat. The blind child became blind. The child was born blind. The child was born blind. The child was born blind. So here is the story in this session. Sanat Kumāra is asking Bhāṣyajī, who is the writer of this scripture, of this divine Mahāśivapurāṇa. He is asking, "Oh, the divine Bhāṣyajī, how come the blind son came, the blind demon came from the god and goddess, Śiva and Pārvatī?" And why did it happen? Once, Pārvatī and Mahādeva went to one place to meditate, to stay, to live separately, like they wanted to go on a retreat. It's like a retreat. They went, and they played, and they found out so many things. Mahādev was meditating; Pārvatī was going here and there. Pārvatī found some glitters, some precious stones—coral and diamond, so many things. At that time, she picked up one coral and the diamond, and she was playing. She was walking around, and it went into Mahādev's eyes, blocking them. For a couple of days, Mahādev was blind. At that time, from his sweat, a blind child came. So, they were on a retreat, but they had a child. What are you going to do on a retreat? They were finding difficulties, and thought it better not to bring him to Kailāsa. Anyway, they didn't have a mother-in-law and father-in-law. Mahādeva is svayambhū. But they still had those difficulties. Later on, they found out, "Well, what are you doing here?" Pārvatī says, like, "Well, we have to do some trick." At the same time, there are two demons, as I mentioned before: Kumbhakarṇa, Hiraṇyakaśipu, and Rāvaṇa. They all are because of a curse. They were the Śivagaṇa. When Nārada was cursed by Kumbhakarṇa and Śivagaṇḍa, Nārada's face was shown in the mirror, and he got angry and cursed Nārada. Due to this, he had to become a demon for three lifetimes. After three births, you will be free. That's why Rāvaṇa and Kumbhakarṇa died with the help of Nārāyaṇa. But before that, Hiraṇyākṣa and Hiraṇyakaśipu were two brothers. At that time, Hiraṇyākṣa went to the jungle. When Śrī Pārvatī's blind son was born, Hiraṇyakṣa had no son. He went there to meditate for a son. Now, what happens? So there were demons named Hiraṇyākṣa, Hiraṇyakaśipu, Kumbhakarṇa, and Rāvaṇa. Viṣṇu told that at the time when Nārada cursed Śiva's gaṇa, "Well, you have to go, you have to disguise as a demon. But after three generations, three incarnations, you will have liberation. I will come as a human being, as Rāma. And from my hand, when you are killed, at that time you will be liberated." That's why Rāvaṇa and Kumbhakarṇa finally took the name of Rāma and were liberated. "Kyā hai? Kī ākhirī ched meṁ karo, to koī bhī āpko mil jāyegā. Dharmayukta hokar jāye, jāye dharmayukta hokar jāye, hokar mukta." So, what is it that even they, being righteous, remained? And Rāvaṇa and Kumbhakarṇa liberated because of the blessings of Rāma. But here, Hiraṇyākṣa and Hiraṇyakaśipu were the brother demons. Hiraṇyakaśipu was meditating in that jungle. And Pārvatī gave birth to a blind baby. What was going to happen? Parvati was wondering what was going to happen. At that time, Hiraṇyakaśipu was meditating to Śiva. "Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya, Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya, Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya." Hiraṇyakaśipu was meditating in the jungle. And Śiva asked, "What would you like to ask? What would you like to know? Why are you meditating? I'm happy, and I'll bless you." Hiraṇyākṣa asked, "Well, I need a boy. I'm meditating for a son; I don't have any son." Without a son, you know, that is here in the Sanātana also, that to continue your generation, you need children. That's why children will pay off the loan debt, pitṛṛṇa. So that's why Hiraṇyākṣa was meditating. "Hiraṇyākṣa did tapasyā for putra prāpti ke liye. Jab putra prāpti ke liye Hiraṇyākṣa tapasyā kar rahā thā, to usī samay meṁ kyā ho gayā? Kī Pārvatī ko man meṁ ā gayā, kī hamāre bete ko ham kyõ nahīṁ de diṅge?" At that time, Pārvatī thought, "Well, this is a good opportunity. He is seeking a son, and we have the son here. We don't want to take him." Part 4: The Science of Conception and the Story of Hiraṇyakaśipu He is a demon, and he is also a demon. He asks, "Son, I think it’s a good idea, compatibility." So he went in front of Hiraṇyākṣa, and Hiraṇyākṣa said, "Well, you don’t need to worry. We have a ready-made gift here. We have a son here. He is blind, but he is very, very powerful. He is similar to you, so we will bless him, and he will help you. Let’s keep this one." Then Hiraṇyākṣa accepted, "Well, this is a beautiful gift for me forever." He took that under his care, and from that day one, the duck converted to on the car, Surah under Kia. Thapayale Devata Thapagwan Sri Parvati ke kokse janma hone wala, jab Hiranyakse ko mila, to on the car Surah ho gaya. So before handing over, he was of divine quality, and after that, what happened is the demon quality manifested. That’s why on the car, Surah, his name was from that day. Why did that happen? Behind this, there is a great science. Why does Śiva have blind eyes and the blind games? If you read in the Mahābhārata, how come there is a Dhṛtarāṣṭra who is blind? Why is Vidura active? Why is Pāṇḍu that pale, pale colored? You have read that story. When Vyāsa, the Mahārāṇī ordered that, "We don’t have any son," Bedbasa was the only alternative. They sent the two widow queens to the Bedbasa. When they were in a room, the two queens were scared and one became blind. That’s why, after that, the child she bore was blind. The other queen, fearful upon looking at the Bedbias—he had a long beard—thought, "How can I accept my husband is dead? But just for the sake of the baby, I have to go with the Bedbias." That was the order from the queen. She was shaking, and that’s why the boy came like a rogī, with disease. But there was a servant, and she went. She didn’t have any fear, and she accepted the Bedbash. That’s why Bīḍur came. Bīḍur is one of the beautiful, wise men. That’s why it is said that at the time of conception, whatever mood or mind comes in you, that sort of baby comes. That’s the science. Here, Mahādev is blind, and that means also that from sweating, the baby came. That means the mind was not stable; that was blindness. That’s how a blind son comes. In Vedic astrology or Vedic Muhūrta, there is a calculation, a theory of the baby conceiving calendar. How do you calculate? You might have to take advantage if you still need to use that in your life. There is a muhūrta calculation. How can we find out the optimal baby? The calendar name is "Optimal Baby." If you plant anything in an auspicious time, it comes auspiciously. If you plant fruits, any plant or crops in time, then comes timely fruits. If you plant untimely, without season, that will not come fitfully. The third one was happy. That’s why Dhṛtarāṣṭra became blind. The second one became a patient, and the third one became very intelligent. That’s why there are three stages. When a child is born, just like a man, he becomes a child. Similarly, Śiva had closed his eyes. So, blindness was created. There is a great science. In our time, to get a son, it is said that you meditate before going to bed, you meditate before entering the home, so auspiciousness is maintained, and that will produce the auspiciousness. Whatever you have got will come as a seed, and the seed needs to be always blessed. Here, Andakasur and Hiranyakas, they both became very brave, and they started to attack again. The same thing, they started to attack the demons and the gods. And the small demons also started, and they attacked the paradise as well. Jai Bholi Bhagwan, Bhagwan Vishnu Ki, Brahma Vishnu Maheshwari Ki Jai. So, Hiraṇyakṣa got the baby, and that was a trick. Fully, he got it. He turned into Śiva’s son, and that’s why Umā Putra. Later on, the story ends with the Andhaka Asura also becoming the Gaṇādhipati. He is also worshiped by God. But that will go a longer story that covers three chapters; this story is. In the Śiva Purāṇa, it says, in one verse, so many things it is saying that, "Oh Śiva, you are good, you are great, and you are the father of Gaṇeśa," and like this. In one, the ten verses are just appraising and praising Śiva. And another ten verses are just when he opened his eyes and they stand there. Parvati was there. It’s a very long, long story. Keep reading. That’s what I’m trying to summarize as much as possible, trying to bring the nectar from it. Later on, what happens is Hiraṇyākṣa started to meditate. The Hiraṇyākṣa also started to meditate. And, oh, the divine God, please, I’m meditating. They started to meditate. In the meantime, he got the blessings, "Well, you will be a very powerful person, and you will be blessed. One day, you will have the power that you can be an adorable god one day. You will have the Gaṇādhipati, another Gaṇeśa." Look at this, that’s why Gaṇādhipati means, like, it’s not the only one Gaṇeśa who is the leader of the gaṇa. So, who is the team member? He also gets the blessings here on the kaṣāya also, but even now, we’re not reaching there, just summarizing only. In one state, what happened is, there is a great demon, and brother Hiraṇyakaśipu’s brother was Hiraṇyakaśipu. He started meditating. While meditating, Brahmā got happy. The nature of the demon is that he asks for birth for immortality. Jai Bhali Brahma Viṣṇu Maheśvara. Jai. So what does he do for immortality? He asks for birth. So Hiraṇyakaśipu also did a lot of penance. While doing penance, Brahmā became happy. By calling Brahma as Praṇipāt, Brahma also said, "Tell me, son, child, what do you want?" So Brahma said, and Hiraṇyakaśipu said, "I want the same thing. Lord, if I become immortal, there is no burden of immortality till today. You ask, 'What do you want?'" So when Brahma said, Hiraṇyakasibu said, "I want the same boon." So Hiraṇyakasipu was a tricky demon. He was meditating. It is said that he meditated for almost 90 years. How long will they live? For 90 years, he meditated. That’s why Brahmā became so happy, even 96 years later on. For 96 years, he didn’t contribute, meditate in his long, long journey in meditation. Brahmā became so happy, and Brahmā came and said, "What do you want?" He said, "Praṇipat Brahmā, my salutation to my lord. Then, I want one thing: that I want to live forever, and no one can defeat me. I can be—please bless me to be an ever-powerful person." The demon’s nature is always that, you can guess what they ask. And Brahmā, you already guessed that what he will say. Yes, Brahmā will say, "No, no, eternal. Please ask something different." Yeah, obviously he did the same thing, and he asked, "Then, well, if that’s the case, then no one can kill me. No human, no demon, no god can kill me, not in a daytime, not in a night time, not in water, not in space, not in the ground, in the land. So if that is the case, that I can live forever." So he asked Brahmā, and Brahmā said, "He just remembers Viṣṇu," because Viṣṇu always has a trick, so there is always some loopholes, they are clues. So, okay, all right then. So, I remember Viṣṇu now. "You are blessed. No one can kill you, either in water, or in space, or on land. No human being, no god, and no demon can kill you." Then, when he became very brave, can you guess what he started to do? The same thing. He attacks the divinity. He attacks Indra. He attacks all the Devalayas, Ṛṣi-Munis, and Agyaśālas. He started doing that. When Hiraṇyakaśipu met him, that neither in water, nor in earth, nor in air, nor in sky, nor with humans, nor with anyone, then he thought, okay, I am immortal now. So, what did he do to become immortal? When he gets the strength, he fights a lot. And what happens in the time of fighting? Then, later, he loses. So no matter whatever trick you do for the difficulties, it finally comes to a stage. One day, you know, everyone says that sometimes Indians are tricky. There is one story that I just heard a couple of times, I love to tell that. One day, Einstein came to India, and he was sitting on the train. How tricky they are, just saying. Einstein and one very poor but witty man was sitting there in front of Einstein, and then the man asks, "Well, who are you?" He said, "I am Einstein, the scientist. And who are you?" "I’m nothing, just a hoarder. I have a normal farm here. I don’t know, I’m an illiterate person." While Einstein was just watching here and there, he asked, he thought like, "Oh, well, Einstein, it’s a long journey, you know, we need to do something to pass the time." Einstein was also curious. Well, all right then. So, do you want to play cards or something? No, no... no cards. Just we want to take a bet, you know that? Just we want to keep bait and quiz, quiz competition, okay? All right. And, and say, "All right, farmer, what? He doesn’t know anything anyway. I will be the winner anyway." All right, he said. And the farmer, tricky. Well, if he went to play the quiz, but we need to find out the prize as well. Okay, we need to keep the prize and all, right? What prize? What will the winner get? He said, "Well, you are the scientist. If you don’t know the answer, you need to pay five thousand dollars, and if I answer and if I can’t answer, then fifty dollars only, because I’m lame and illiterate. You are a scientist, so if you lose, if you don’t know any answer, then you will pay five thousand to me. And if I don’t know, then I’ll pay fifty rupees to you and answer. All right? He doesn’t know anything anyway, that I will be the winner." Later on, he started, "Who is first?" He said, "No, I am first because I don’t know. I’m the illiterate person." He said, "Well, the Einstein, do you know the guy? He went to Mount Everest. From Mountain Rest, he flew to the moon, and from the moon, he came to India, and again he went to the moon. And do you know the name of that?" Einstein started to Google, asking anyone and everyone, and he didn’t find it. Up to now, he never heard that story. He never heard that sort of invention, and he said, "No, I don’t know that. I couldn’t find." Then give five thousand dollars, and I understand hardly give that. Maybe the travel check he didn’t, that converted exchange money he gave to the Indian. And he asked, "Well, then, you tell me, what’s the answer?" Well, "I don’t know. I’m the elite person. Take fifty dollars, so I know I lose. Okay, take fifty dollars." So I told you before that if I lose, I’ll give you fifty. If you lose, you will have to pay five thousand, so then trickfully, on that, how much? Four thousand and nine hundred fifty dollars. So that, that you need to be careful. Better don’t, don’t be involved in a quiz anywhere else here. So that was the thing, but anyway, that’s for trick. You can do anything, that means trick. Can you defeat a scientist or a lone person, anyone? But truth, truth is truth, cannot, because that was not a real question. Real truth, in any way, the demons also, what did they do? They always try to find the trick, but finally that fails. That’s why always the truth is the winner. But the truth cannot afford anyone; only a few people can afford that. That’s why you cannot expect honesty and truth from everyone, only from a few. Few people can afford truth and honesty, so people are empty. That’s why only the divine qualities we have got can win. Here also, Hiraṇyakaśipu became a very powerful demon. He was against Viṣṇu. He was against God, and then wherever he goes in the town, if anyone says, "Hari Om Tat Sat," then he stops them. "Don’t say Hari Om Tat Sat." Hiraṇya Kaśyapu. Om Tat Sat. He used to say that. Hari Om Tat Sat means Hari means truth. Om Tat Sat. Tat means that. Sat means true. Only Hari is true. Hari Om Tat Sat. But he doesn’t like to listen to that. He always said, "Hiraṇyakaśipu, Om Tat Sat." Say that. So he forcefully tells everyone, everywhere he goes, so he makes that people, everyone. There was one old lady, and she was meditating and always chanting, "Hari Om Tat Sat, Hari Om Tat Sat,..." Hari Om Tat Sat. We can chant with her as well. Hari Om Tat Sat. The lady was meditating. What was there in the kingdom of Hiraṇyakaśipu that no one was allowed to say Hari Om Tat Sat? He used to say, "Hiraṇyakaśipu, Tat Sat," to everyone. Because he was against God. So if anyone was taking the name of Hari, he used to go and kill them. He used to attack them. He used to say, "Say my name. Say Hiraṇyakaśipu. Say, 'Hiranyakasivi Jai.'" He used to say that, right? So there was an old woman in this village. She was chanting the name of Hari. She went and said to Hiraṇyakaśipu. Who are you? Then the old lady got scared and closed the shop. Why are you saying "Hari Om Tat Sat"? There was a clay pot in the pot. To make the pot, they put fire in the pot. She put the fire, but in the middle of the container, there were two cats in the pot. The fire got burnt, and Hari Om Tat Sat was saying to save the cats. So Hiraṇyakaswami came and asked him why he was chanting, because he was trying to save the cat. He said that if he kept on saying "Hiraṇyakaswami," the cat would not die, and he would kill him. So he gave the answer. So when he was chanting "Hari Om Tat Sat," the hidden worship went. And who is this lady chanting the Hari name? Why are you not taking my name in my kingdom? He told her, and she was scared and said, "Well, Mahārāj said, 'I have to save two little baby cats.'" Why do you have to save? Because you know, in India, when they make the container, the ghaṛā, at that time, they first make the clay, they make the clay pot, and after making the raw clay pot, they need to make a fire. They need to make bone with the hay. And in the middle of the cave plot, they do the firing, hundreds of clay pots together. And in the middle of the cave plot, there are two baby cats, and she didn’t know. When she set fire, she found out in the middle of the pot there are two baby cats, and she wants to save them because the fire is already going. And she just wanted to take Hari’s name to save them: "Hari Om Tat Sat, oh God, please save the two baby cats." She was chanting. And then Hiraṇinne Kasubī went, "Why are you chanting?" And she told, "Well, mistakenly I set fire to all these clay pots. But in the middle of the pot, there are two baby cats. They are playing from one container to another container. They are jumping on each other. And there is a very poor cat I need to save. Please don’t tell that. After saving these two cats, I might take your name." And he said, "Well, it cannot be possible. Take my name." So she said, "Well, Hari can help, and after that, I will take your name." And he didn’t, because he was afraid. If two baby cats are not alive after you are chanting, then I will kill you. Then she was in fear, but still she was keeping Hari Om chanting, Hari Om chanting. But the fire went around, and the baby was playing there, playing there. And later on, the fire went off, and two boys came and rescued him. So, at that time, Hari protected him. And Hiraṇyakaśipu again became angry with Hari. Oh, he is powerful. How come he is powerful? And he started to destroy all the temples, Hari’s temple in his place, in his kingdom. So, Hiraṇyakaśipu started to destroy all temples of civilization everywhere. But in the meantime, he had gotten one beautiful devotee son. Sometimes demons have also got divine sons, like Bibi’s son. Bibi’s son came from Lanka. He is from the demons’ kingdom, but Bibi’s son helped Ram. In the same way, Hiraṇyakaśipu’s son also helped the divine energy, the Divine God. What is his name? Do you know? Prahlāda. So, everyone is genius. So, Prahlāda. That’s why his name is Bhaktapralāta, so Bhaktapralāta, and he always used to ask his dad, "Well, Dad, is it not possible? There is God everywhere." But he said, "No, because no one can kill me, no one from this universe. We were from water, we were from land, or from the sky, space. Neither god nor human being nor demons, that no one can kill me, so I don’t need to fear. I am the brave, I am the supreme." So he was telling and kept telling, but he has the divine devotee have got faith? Always now, one day you need to die. We overcome this universe. They must need to go, die. There’s no eternity anymore. Who born? Who would take? Both the death also comes together, both. And death is like a two side of anything, so we are making a journey from birth to death. That’s why everything that happens, but people still don’t want to listen. They know that death is there, obviously, but they don’t want to listen. They don’t want to realize that. Jai Boli Bhagavān Śaṅkar Kī, Jai Boli Śiva Bābā Kī, Jai Boli Bholā Bābā Kī, Jai. So when Śiva comes, then if you are sleeping also, "Jai, Jai," that comes. So Shiva comes and awakes. Shiva awakes. Shiva is awakening from your unconsciousness. That’s why in Purāṇa kathā also, when you invite Shiva, Shiva awakes you. Do you need some more invitation to Shiva? Many? Some of you? Okay. Jai Bhole Bhule Bābā kī? Jai. Śiva Bābā kī? Jaya. Brahmā Viṣṇu Maheśvara kī? Jai. Okay. Still, some of you need more Shiva. Anyway. So still your subconscious mind will listen as you are doing yoga nidrā as well. So, and Śivajī and Bhūle Bābājī, when they come, the purity comes. The God, when comes the purity, comes here also. The Hiraṇyakaśipu was, uh, Hiraṇyakaśipu had got the son, Bhakta Prahlāda, and Bhakta Prahlāda, meditating all the time, inviting the godly energy, and that energy is helping everyone. One day, what happened is he was going here and there and wondering what he could do. Then, what happened is that the god came one day, but Hiraṇyakaśipu threatened, and that started the war. And that war, that’s a big war. Hiraṇyakaśipu defeated the gods, and they remembered the blessings, what blessings he got. Then they needed to trick him, and he tried so many times to kill him. You can listen to that long story, that why Holikā came. Bhaktapralād was held by Holikā. Holikā is free from the fire, but that could not be happening, so there’s a long story. But the Śiva Purāṇa tells something different that doesn’t go towards the Holikā. The Śiva Purāṇa gives the shortcut story. Only the Viṣṇu Purāṇa and the Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa talk about that Holikā long story, and the Śiva Purāṇa, there is only that one day, the Narasiṃha avatāra comes, but before that, Hiraṇyakaśipu destroys all those Sanat Kumāras, all the divine gods, and they think that he is the omnipresent and Hari is not the universal god. Hiraṇyakaśipu is the universal god. So always that ego. Hiraṇyakaśipu is our ego. Ego is very hard to go. Ego is very hard to go. That’s why now it is time to go. So that’s why ego is very hard to go. That’s why meditate, and when you meditate, when you realize that spirituality, divinity, that always happens. But it says that when you have a strong faith, obviously that will go. This story, then one day the bhakta Pralat invites, and that invites, and it has got a very shortcut story here. Before finishing today’s session, I’ll finish this. And that time, the hermit Kaśyapa went to the challenge to divine God, and God is... but one day, while he was meditating, that bhakta Pralāda... that he’s disturbed to Bhaktapralāda and forced to say that except that Hiraṇyakaśipu is the only one supreme master. And then one day, while he was meditating, Hiraṇyakaśipu comes to disturb him. At that time, from that unknown... Actually, it doesn’t say "pole." Some other Purāṇa says "from the pole," "from the pillar," but it says, like, from an unknown place, one image comes. That image is neither god, nor human being, nor demon. With the tiger face, with the long, long nails, he came. And he starts to fight with the Irina Kashibu, and slowly he grabs and places it on his thigh, on his lap. It’s not on the lap, not in the sky, not in the lap, not in—sorry—not in the water. And he started to kill the heredity, and that was evening time, yeah. Not in night, not in a day, so that is in the middle of the night and day, dawn, evening time. And here, the deity died, and after that, what happened? The Bhaktapralat became the king of the place and dharma. So, after that, when the Narasiṁha Avatāra came, he killed Hiraṇyakaśipu. He kept him alive, neither in water nor in soil. He killed him by becoming the avatar of Narasiṁha. And he made Bhaktapralāta the king. After that, Dharmarājya was established. Jai Bhole Bhaktapralat Kī! This story, Hiraṇyakaśipu, is chapter 43 in Rudra Saṁhitā. And in the Hiraṇyakaśipu history, yesterday we talked about Gaṇeśa’s two wives. In many places, it is saying that Siddhi and Buddhi are Gaṇeśa’s wives, and in some of the places, it is saying Riddhi and Siddhi as well. But in any names you call that. Is the prospection and purity, and so obviously we have got that one, two days, and two and a half days. Now you can utilize your time. If you have any confusion, I’m ready to help you, and always that obviously is that the day and night are the two rats, they are cutting our life, so day and night, day and night. Similarly, the breathings, every breathing, are saying that you are very close, you are very close to that date, you are very close. The breathings are telling, so wherever you are, whatever you are, that no matter. That we are in the long journey of this life. Life means that life doesn’t end from the death of our physical body, but the karma, whatever we do, that is the best thing in Tīrthasthāna. And now this is the Kumbh Melā time. Wherever you are, please utilize the best of your time. And give more for the devotion. We might have a lot of burden and responsibility, obligations when you’re back at home or some other time. So it is best for you to do more sādhanā. And this is the best time to be a pure yogī.