10 Amazing Stories of Lord Vishnu

                   you must read #10

The other Gods winked at Indra knowing that his plan had worked well. The Asuras were feeling very happy that Indra had not got the upper hand. They laughed at Indra for being such a coward for not fighting…

However, their happiness was short-lived. After the churning started the Devas realized why Lord Vishnu had insisted on the Devas holding the tail.

Vasuki was the king of snakes and when he was pulled, he involuntarily spat out the venom in his mouth. The Asuras being near the mouth were badly burnt by the poison.

Bali seethed seeing the blisters and marks on the Asura’s hands. But there was nothing he could do. They had accepted to take the mouth and they were stuck with the choice.

After hours of churning, the first thing to emerge from the ocean was the poison Halaal. The Devas and the Asuras alike were stung by the poison. The Halaal mushroomed into a huge cloud threatening to engulf the whole world. If the poison was not removed, the whole world would be suffocated.

Indra fell on his knees followed by the other Devas, ‘Oh Shiva, please save us from this destruction. You are the only one who can save us.’ Indra muttered a small prayer, his eyes and throat stinging.

Shiva heard the prayers and came to their rescue immediately. He realized that if something was not done the Halahal would destroy the entire universe. He grabbed the entire poison in his palm and swallowed it in a gulp. He realized that he had put himself in danger, but that was the only way to save the universe.

Parvati who was beside Shiva stared horror-struck at what Shiva had done. ‘NO! What have you…?’

Realizing that she had only a few minutes to act, she immediately grasped Shiva’s throat and arrested the poison in his throat, so that the poison would neither come out nor affect Shiva in any way.

She breathed deeply when she realized that Shiva was alright. However, the poison’s effect was so bad that Shiva’s throat where the poison was stored, turned blue. Since that day, Shiva has been called as ‘Nilkanta’ which meant ‘blue throat’.

The Devas and the Asuras thanked Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati and with their blessings resumed the churning. Subsequently, the Kamadhenu cow, Ucchashravas horse, Kalpavriksha tree, etc. also came out of the ocean. These were shared by the Devas and the Asuras.

The next to come was the beautiful Goddess Lakshmi. She looked so beautiful that the Devas and the Asuras stopped churning and simply gazed at her.

Eager to get her attention, the Devas scrambled to get a chair for her to sit. The apsaras [dancing maidens] danced for the Goddess and in the end handed her a garland.

In those days, it was customary for a woman of marriageable age to choose her own husband. This was called as ‘swayamwara’.

To be continued…🙏🏻🙏🏻