Monday, January 4, 2010

                               THE STORY OF KUMBH


KUMBH is the one of the most important occasion in the HINDUSTAN. The thousands of saints who remain involved in the meditation for years together in Jungles or Hills come down to take bath on the occasion of KUMBH. It is believed that it is very sacred to take bath in the holy rivers where the KUMBH MELA is taking place. It is also believed that by taking bath on this occasion the human can wash away all its sins. The KUMBH MELA is organized at 4 places in INDIA at the interval of 12 years between the two KUMBS. The 4 places in INDIA are HARIDWAR, UJJAIN, ALLAHABAD and NASIK.

The story behind organizing the KUMBH is that once the King of DEVTAS GOD INDER was moving on His elephant and in the way He met the RISHI DURVASA and as a blessing and gift the RISHI DURVASA gave a garland to GOD INDER. The GOD INDER put that garland on the elephant and that irritate the elephant and due to irritation the elephant threw that garland on the ground. When the RISHI DURVASA saw that the garland is thrown on the earth he gave a SHRAP to the GOD INDER and deprived all the DEVTAS of their strength and power etc.

When the demons came to know about this then they attacked the heaven and pull the DEVTAS out of the heaven and the king of the demons BALI become the king of the UNIVERSE means heaven, earth and PATAAL. Then the DEVTAS went to the GOD VISHNU and requested Him to help them. Then the GOD VISHNU with the help of LORD SHIV organized a meeting between the demons and the DEVTAS and they both decided to do the SAGAN MANTHAN (charring of the sea) to get the holy liquid AMRIT to get the immortality. They make the MANDHRACHAL hill as the rod and VASUKI NAAG as the rope. They put that hill in the sea and wound that with the VASUKI NAAG as the rope and starting rotating that one by one from their side like blowing out butter from the milk. After some time the hill started sinking and then to help that out the GOD VISHNU became a turtle and took the hill on His skin in the bottom of the sea.

Then the HALAHAL the most dangerous poison came out first. That poison was so dangerous that they all feared that poison may not destroy the life in the Universe and they all run to the LORD SHIV to help them. The LORD SHIV after listening to their request just to save life on the earth swallowed that poison but in the mean time the DEVI PARVATI wife of LORD SHIV who was standing there press the neck of the LORD SHIV so that the poison could not enter the stomach of the LORD SHIV and remain stored in the throat of the LORD SHIV and HIS throat become blue for ever and from that day the LORD SHIV is also known as the NEEL KANTH.

Then 12 more things including the DEVI LAXMI, KAMDHENU COW, ERAVAT ELEPHANT, KALP VRIKSH, WINE etc came out and the last among those 13 things in total was the AMRIT the divine liquid which gives the immortality. When the AMRIT came out in a KUMBH (pitcher) then the DEVTA and demons started fighting to drink the AMRIT and they fought for their 12 days and night which are equivalent to the 12 years on the earth.

At last the GOD VISHNU with His power convert Him into a very beautiful woman named MOHINI and the demons forget every thing due to her beauty and started running after her. Then the MOHINI took that pitcher of AMRIT from them and asked them to sit in the line and promised to give AMRIT to all of them. She started giving AMRIT to the DEVTAS first because it was feared that if the demons become immortal then they will be doing atrocities on the others. It was planned that the AMRIT will be given to the DEVTAS only. When the MOHINI was giving AMRIT to the DEVTAS and it was just going to finish then one of the demon known as the RAHU came to know about their trick and warned the demons as a result the MOHINI gave the pitcher to the JAYANT the son of GOD INDER and JAYANT by taking a shape of bird flew towards the heaven but in the mean time four drops of that AMRIT fall down on the earth at HARIDWAR, UJJAIN, ALLAHABAD and NASIK. Then the DEVTAS become immortal and defeated the demons in the war and the demons went back to their place PATAAL.

From that day the KUMBH MELA is organized at these cities one by one after 12 years gap and it is believed that who so ever took bath in these rivers on the dates of KUMBH that person washed away all his/her sins. These MELAS are heavily crowded and the 13 major AKHARAS (groups) of SADHUS (saints) took the bath one by one according to their turn and then the general public can take the bath.