Shri Shirdi Sai Speaks-24th April/ Shiv Puran/ Wishing you and your loved ones a blissful Akshaya Tritiya |
| Posted: 24 Apr 2012 12:28 AM PDT Om Sai Ram ! Om Namaha Shivaya! If for some reason you are not able to see the below pictures or You wish to have access to all the previous Shirdi Sai speaks mails - go to http://debu7370.blogspot.com/ .And if any of you would like to receive these messages directly to your mailbox everyday-- For everything else related to Shri Shirdi Saibaba - Click Here  Since about more than a month we all have been graced with the blissful darshan of the sacred shivlings around the world. But all this seems a little incomplete to me without the knowledge of the holy Shiv Puran. So how about we all start reading this sacred book together..And hopefully before I head to Kailash- we all will be blessed with the wonderful stories which are related to our creator. However, " The Shiva Purana has twenty-four thousand shlokas which are divided into six samhitas or sections." But I will not be posting any of the shlokas in these mails. I will be posting the most simplest version of the Shiv Puran with the blissful pictures of various temples as we go along- , so that it is easily understood by all of us and can also be shared with our children and grandchildren.May Lord Shiva bless us all in this journey of going one step closer to His Lotus feet . And last but not the least, My Humble Pranams to this Holy book along with all the Gods and Godesses .. I have a kind request to all of you who read these mails that if you ever get lucky and are able to visit any of the sacred temples in reality- Plz do offer my Humble Pranams at these temples and thank the lord on my behalf for making us all feel his presence and His leelas around us.. Sai bhakt, Deepa H Now, Lets start reading this very sacred Shiv Puran by Saying Om Shree Ganeshaya Namaha Incase You have missed the previous mail /chapter of Shiv Puran - Here is the link Incase you have missed the previous mails of our sacred journey of paying respects to the shivlings around the world go to... http://debu7370.blogspot.com/search/label/Shivlings%20around%20the%20world  In Yesterdays Mail- Lord Shiva preached Daksha in the following way- "The person who has the right knowledge (gyani) is the supreme among all human beings. An action which is performed in one's ignorance and jealousy does not liberate a man from his world bondages. " O Daksha then accomplished his yagya singing the praise of lord Shiva. Sati - the daughter of Daksha was reborn as Gauri- the daughter of Himalaya and Maina. By her tremendous penance she again had lord Shiva as her husband.  Shiv Puran Narada requests lord Brahma to shed light on the birth of Maina and Himalaya. Brahmaji Said- "After relinquishing her body, Sati - the daughter of Daksha attained to the abode of Shiva. In her next birth she was born to Maina - the wife of Himalaya and was known as Parvati. Maina had done great service to Sati in her previous life considering as her own daughter. For this reason she was blessed and got Parvati as her daughter. Parvati did tremendous penance and got lord Shiva as her husband." Continuing with his story Brahmaji said- "Once Himalaya - the king of the mountains, decided to marry with the desire of expanding his lineage. The deities came to know about his desire and so they went to the Pitras and requested them to give their daughter - Maina, so that Himalaya could marry her. The Pitras agreed at this proposal. Thus Maina got married wih Himalaya. After the marriage ceremony the deities returned back to their respective abodes. Maina gets Liberated from the Curse Daksha had Sixty daughters, 'Swadha' was one of them and was married to the Pitras. In due course of time three daughters were born to them - Maina, Dhanya and Kalawati. Once all the three of them went to Swetadweepa to have a darshan of lord Vishnu. Right then, sages like Sanak, Sanadan etc arrived there. Everybody present there stood up in reverence, but Maina, Dhanya and Kalawati could not identify who they were and hence they remained sitting. Not only that, they did not even make any salutations to them. The sages became angry and cursed them to be born as humans in their next birth. Maina, Dhanya and Kalawati became very afraid and requested to be pardoned. Sages Sanak feeling pity on them told that Maina would become the wife of Himalaya, in her next birth and give birth to Parvati, Similarly Dhanya would be married to king Janak and Sita would be born to them, similarly Kalawati would be married to Vrishbhan and Radha would be born to them. Sage Sanak also told them, that in this way all three of them would attain to the heaven.  Brahmaji told Narad that after getting married with Maina, Himalaya enjoyed a happy married life for a long time. Once, lord Vishnu paid a visit to his place, accompanied by all the deities. Himalaya was very pleased by his arrival. After making salutations, he asked for the purpose of their visit. The deities revealed to them that very soon the incarnation of Sati - Parvati is going to take birth. "Therefore, O Himalaya! be prepared for that glorious occasion." Said the deities. Himalaya was very pleased at this news. The deities started invocating Uma. Goddess Uma Consoles the Deities Being pleased by the invocation made by the deities Goddess Uma assured the deities about her arrival in this world. She told that her incarnation would take place in the house of Himalaya and by the virtues of her tremendous penance she would get lord Shiva as her husband. She also told the deities that she was satisfied by the service of Maina, done to her in the previous life. After being assured the deities went back satisfied. Himalaya and Maina commenced their penance with the objective of getting Uma as their daughter. Maina did a tremendous penance which lasted for twenty-seven years. Goddess uma became very pleased by her penance. She appeared before her and asked her to demand anything she wished for. Maina expressed her desire of having one hundred valiant sons and a daughter, who would be worshipped by the people in all the three world. Goddess Uma blessed her by saying Tathastu. Maina narrated this incident to her husband Himalaya. He became very pleased. In due course of time one hundred sons were born t o Maina. One of the sons was Mainak who possessed supreme qualities. Due to some reasons, Indra had severed the wings of Mainak's ninety-nine brothers, but by taking the refuge of ocean, Mainak was able to survive the assault of Indra's Vajra. [Tomorrow will continue with the sacred Shiv Puran abt the birth of Parvati]  Today – April 24, 2012 – is the third day of the Shukla Paksha of Vaishakh month (third day of the waxing phase of moon) and is observed as Akshaya Tritiya also known as Akha Trij or Akha Teej. Special prayers are offered on the day to Ganesha, Goddess Lakshmi and Sri Krishna. Parashuram Jayanti is also observed today. The word Akshaya means 'that which never diminishes' and the day is ideal for beginning new ventures as it is believed that all investments on this day appreciates. The day is also ideal for performing charity and auspicious deeds. Annadanam of food donation on the day is considered highly meritorious.  In the most famous story associated Akshaya Tritiya, Kuchela, a poor Brahmin and schoolmate of Sri Krishna, visited Krishna with the intention of asking some financial favor. Kuchela, also known as Sudama, carried with him handful of poha or aval (beaten rice). On reaching, the palace of Krishna at Dwarka, Kuchela was ashamed to give the 'poha' to Krishna. But the ever playful Krishna noticed the small bag in the hand of his schoolmate and soon grabbed it and ate a handful of 'poha'. Kuchela could not believe his eyes, Krishna, the king, eating his poha. It is said 'Athiti Devo Bhava' (Guest are equal to God) and Krishna treated Kuchela like a God. The poor Brahmin was so overwhelmed by the love shown by Krishna that he forgot to ask for financial help and returned home empty handed. On reaching his village Sudama could not find his old hut. Instead his hut was replaced by a palace. His wife and children were wearing good clothes and everything that was old and worn out was replaced with new. It didn't take long for Kuchela to realize that all this was the 'leela' of the ever-smiling Sri Krishna. The day Kuchela met Sri Krishna was hence observed as Akshaya Tritiya. Another legend happened in the Mahabharata. While the Pandavas were in exile, Sri Krishna presented them with an Akshaya Patra – a bowl which gives unlimited amount of food. It is believed that Krishna had presented it on a Trithiya day. Therefore it is believed that all investments on the day will only increase in value. The day is also the birthday of Lord Parashuram, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. According to the Puranas, the day also marks the beginning to Treta Yuga. On this day, Veda Vyasa began the composition of the Mahabharata.  Today, talk about Akshaya Tritiya and the first thing that comes to the mind is Gold – not Kuchela and Sri Krishna. Akshaya Tritiya is the day when Sri Krishna proved to the world that what matters is Bhakti or Devotion. Not rituals, not costly pujas, not austerities not torturing the body but steadfast devotion is what makes the difference. The sweat and stone filled beaten rice (aval or poha) of Kuchela turned to gold because of devotion. Today we don't remember Kuchela and Sri Krishna, but clearly remembers the gold. Gold is worshipped not God. What a clever marketing executive of a jewelry shop executed a decade ago became a craze and today Akshaya Tritiya has become a day to buy anything and everything from gold to safety pin. Ardha (wealth) is an important aspect in Hinduism But Ardha (wealth) is only one among the purushartha – aims of life. There is also Dharma, Ardha, Kama, and Moksha. Even when dealing with religious scriptures we are choosy, we twist them according to our mindset like Ardha and Kama is okay but not Dharma and Moksha. In fact, our seers had cleverly placed Dharma first because when Dharma is followed there will be balance in Kama and Ardha. When Dharma is practiced there is no hoarding and there is Dhanam (donating). Akshaya Tritiya also gives importance to Dhanam. Sanatana Dharma teaches to prosper by giving. Puranas and epics clearly mention about the importance of alms giving, donating, Anna dhanam (donating food) on the day. But we never see advertisement about this aspect of Akshaya Tritiya. All advertisement talks about buying and hoarding. If possible do not fall for the advertisements and fake teachings. Cleverly invest in what is necessary for you and for that you don't need an Akshaya Tritiya day. Tomorrow don't coming running to God saying You cheated me. God do not cheat anyone it is your ignorance that cheats you.  |
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