Nandikeshwar

Nandi idol at Shri Sai Temple at Dapoli, Maharashtra.
Courtesy: Shri Sainath Maharaj Trust Dapoli

Sri Nandikeshwara or Nandi is a very important deity, since he is the only witness to the creation of the Universe and all beings therein through Shiva-Shakthi. So praying to him will bestow us with spiritual knowledge, and enhance our receptiveness of the Lord's grace. Nandi is also the embodiment of intuition and instinct. That is why it is said that we should look at Lord Shiva from in between Nandi's horns. That way, we can perceive and receive the Lord's grace by maximizing our instinctive and intuitive abilities. 

An idol of Nandi is commonly seen at all Shiva temples facing Lord Shiva, signifying constant and silent conversation with the Lord. He is regarded as the Lord's mount, is the foremost of the Ganas (followers of Shiva), and is a gatekeeper at the Lord's door. He is most often depicted as a Divine Bull, and sometimes as having a human body with a Bull's face. There are temples in India solely dedicated to Nandi. Devotees are often seen whispering their wishes in Nandi's ears, since it is believed that all sincere & pure wishes conveyed to him will be granted. According to shaiva siddhanta Nandi is the chief Guru of 18 siddha munis. The word Nandi is derived from sanskrit word which means happy or joyous person.

Mythological Legend 

To obtain the nectar of immortality Devas and Asuras performed the churning of the ocean using Mount Mandara for a churning rod, perched on Maha Vishnu in the form of the Kurma (Tortoise) Avatar for stability; and the serpent Vasuki for a churning rope. The asuras pulled the head-end of Vasuki, and the Devas took the tail-end. Several cosmic forces and divine objects emerged from the ocean. 

During the process, Vasuki - the King of the serpents emitted out the deadly poison Hala-Hala, which represents the remaining karmic residuals of all living beings in the past creation and dissolution cycle, and which would have wiped out all earthly creations, and threatened the very existence of all divinities. Lord Shiva came to the rescue, along with Nandi. Lord Shiva collected the poison in the palm of his hand, drank it, and held it in his throat. Hence, he is also known as Neelakantha (one with a blue throat). At that time, Nandi observed some poison spilling out of Lord Shiva's mouth, and immediately drank it to prevent it from harming others. The Devas and Asuras were at once concerned if Nandi could survive the poison. Lord Shiva assured them that Nandi was so steeped in devotion towards him, that he had access to all of Lord Shiva's powers and his complete protection. 

According to another legend Sage Shilada meditated on Lord Indra and did a severe tapasya to have a child with immortality. Indra advised him to pray to Lord Shiva to get the boon. After a long period of tapasya the body of the sage was eaten away by termites. Lord Shiva gave darshan to the sage and restored him to his old form. He gave him the boon to have a child with immortality. Shilada performed a yagnya for getting a child. From the yagnya a child appeared clad in the armor made of diamonds. After some years the deities Mitra and Varuna informed the sage that the boy would have a short life. Worried by the message of the deities Sage Shilada did tapas to please Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva blessed the child and declared that he would be worshipped along with him and will be his mount. There are other instances in the purana where Nandi is mentioned. In almost all the Shiva temples Nandi is located in front of Shiva Linga. Some puranas mention Nandi as the chief of Shiva’s army. Spiritually, Nandi represents an individual jiva (soul) and the message that the jiva should always be focused on Atman (Paramatma).

Some of the famous temples of Nandi are 1) Brahadiswara temple in Tamil Nadu. Chamundi hills in Mysore. Rameshwaram temple and Nandi temple at Khajuraho.

Ardhanarishwara

Source: wikipedia

Ardhanarishwara is one of the manifestations of Lord Shiva. Literally it means the lord who is half male and half female. The legend behind this form of Lord Shiva has its reference in several puranas and the epic Mahabharata. In almost all the major puranas there is the mention of Ardhanarishwara. The kshetra-purana in Tamil narrates the event that led to this manifestation. Once, all the sages and munis gathered at Kailash to pay their respects to Lord Shiva and Parvati. Sage Bhringi, who had vowed to worship only Lord Shiva, ignored Parvati. Enraged by this sage's behavior Parvati cursed Bhringi Rishi to become only a skeleton losing all his flesh and blood. On seeing this condition of sage Lord Shiva blessed him with a third leg so that he could stand erect. Parvati who felt defeated performed severe tapasya to please Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva granted her the boon of uniting with him so that Bhringi Rishi will be compelled to worship her along with Lord Shiva in the form of Ardhanarishwara. But the sage assumed the form of bumblebee and circumambulated only the male half of idol by drilling the hole in idol of the deity. Amazed by the devotion of the sage Parvati reconciled with the sage and blessed him. 

In the Kalika purana, Gauri is set to have suspected Lord Shiva of infidelity when she saw her own reflection in the breast of Lord Shiva. A conjugal dispute erupted and was resolved quickly. Parvati expressed a wish to fuse with Lord Shiva. Accepting her request Lord Shiva fused with Parvati to form Ardhanarishwar. In Shiva Purana the legend states that Brahma created Prajapatis who were all males so they were unable to create. Brahma approached Lord Shiva for help. Lord Shiva appeared as Ardhanarishwara at the request of Lord Brahma and a number of female beings were created to Ardhanarishwara for the creation to progress.

The idol of Shiva in Ardhanarishwara form is found in almost all Shiva temples in South India and South East Asia. The main temple is at Thiruchengode in Namakkal disctrict in Tamil Nadu and also in Rishivandiam near Kallakurichi in Tamil Nadu.

Navaratri

Navaratri festival is dedicated to Goddess “Durga”. During this festival, Devi is worshiped in 9 different forms. This festival generally lasts for 9 nights and 10 days. Sometimes it may last for 9 to 11 days. Last day i.e. 10th day (generally, but this time as per tithi it is 11th day) is celebrated as Dasera. This festival is celebrated all over India, Nepal and wherever Hindus reside in the world. There are 5 different Navaratris mentioned in Puranas. Of these, Sharad Navaratri is the most popular one and also known as Maha-Navaratri. 

1. Shakambari Navaratri (Paush Navaratri) – This is celebrated in the month of Paush. It begins on Paush-sukla Ashtami and ends on Paush Pournima. Paush Shukla Ashtami is also known as “Banada Ashtami”. Shakambari Devi is an incarnation of Devi Bhagawati. She took this incarnation to feed the sages and all living beings during the great famine. Presently this is celebrated in Karnataka, Andhra, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and West Bengal.
2. Vasant Navaratri – This is spread over 9 days during which Shakti is worshiped. It is observed in the month of Chaitra Shukla Paksha. The beginning of Vasant Navaratri also marks the beginning of Lunar calendar Vikrami Samvatsar. This Navaratri is also known as Chaitra Navaratri as it occurs in month of Chaitra.
3. Aashadha Navaratri – It is also known as Gupt Navaratri. It is a 9 day festival dedicated to Goddess Varaahi. Generally this is performed by sadhakas. It involves tantrik rituals for Satkarma (good deeds).
4. Sharad Navaratri – This is commonly known as Maha Navaratri and celebrated all over the world by Hindus. It is considered to be most important. It begins on Shukla Pratipada in month of Ashwin and may last 9/10/11 days according to Tithi.
5. Maagh Navaratri – It’s a Gupt (गुप्त) Navratri celebrated mostly in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. It is celebrated during the Shukla Paksha in the month of Maagh. It is generally observed for getting protection from evil forces, danger, injury and destruction etc. It is observed by the sadhakas for obtaining Riddhi & Siddhi.

In South India during Sharad Navaratri the first 3 days Devi is worshiped as Durga, next 3 days as Laxmi & last 3 days as Saraswati and 10th day is known as Vijayadashami.

Below is table that lists different offerings on each day of Navaratri

Day	Devi	Navratri Color	Devi’s Pooja name	Flower	Specialty of day	Naivedya
Day 1	Durga	Grey	Maheshwari/ Koumari	Jasmine (Mogra)/ Bilva	Madhu-Kaitabh Samhar	Fruits
Day 2	Durga	Orange	Trimurtini	Jasmine (Chameli)/ Tulsi		Mango & Tamarind rice
Day 3	Durga	White	Varahi/ Kalyani	Champak/ Sweet majoram (Murwa)	Mahishasur Vadh	Sweet Pongal
Day 4	Laxmi	Red	Mahalaxmi / Rohini	Pink Jasmine (Gulabi Chameli)	Mahalaxmi Avatar	Curd Rice
Day 5	Laxmi	Royal Blue	Vaishnavi/ Kalika	Fragrant flowers	Shumbh-Nishumbh meet Devi	Pongal (Rice with Toor daal, black pepper & salt)
Day 6	Laxmi	Yellow	Indrani/ Chandika	Parijat, Saffron flower	Chandika Avatar	Orange & Coconut rice; Pomegranate
Day 7	Sarswati	Green	Mahasaraswati/ Shambhavi	Jaswanti, Ketaki, Tamba flower	Maheshwari Avatar	Lemon rice
Day 8	Sarswati	Peacock Green	Narasimhi	Champa, Henna flower	Sarswati Avatar	Kheer made of rice, milk & sugar
Day 9	Sarswati	Purple	Subhadra/ Chamundi	Lotus, Dawana	Tripursundari Avatar	Sweet Pongal
Day 10	Mahishasur Mardini	-	Ambika	-	-	-

Mostly in North India during the Navaratri 2016, the pooja will be performed as given below.

Day 1 – Shailputri Pooja

Day 2 – Chandra Darshan

Day 3 – Bramhacharini Pooja

Day 4 – Chandraghanta Pooja

Day 5 – Kushmanda Pooja

Day 6 – Skandamata Pooja

Day 7 – Katyayani Pooja (Saraswati avaahan)

Day 8 – Kalaratri Pooja

Day 9 – Saraswati Pooja, Durga Ashtami, Mahagauri Pooja

Day 10 – Mahanavami Pooja

Day 11 – Vijayadashami Pooja

Veerabhadrar

Lord Veerabhadra is one of the Shiva Ganas. He is considered to be leader of Shiva Ganas. Shiva Ganas along with Bhoot Ganas are the attendants of Lord Shiva. Nandi is Shiva’s primary Gana as well as his mount (vaahan). They are supposed to be residing in Chothonic and Liminal locations such as cemeteries, burial grounds and cremation grounds. They also attend Lord Shiva at Kailash Parvat.

Lord Veerabhadra is also referred as Veerabhadra Swamy. He originated from the lock of hair thrown on the ground by Lord Shiva on hearing the death of his wife Sati (Dakshayani) by self immolation at the yagna of Daksha. Rudra kali was born along with Veerabhadra who also helped in the destruction of yaagshala and Daksha by assuming the form of Bhadrakali. Thus Veerabhadra is the manifestation of Lord Shiva’s anger i.e. we can say human form of Shiva’s anger. Eventually Veerabhadra destroyed Daksha’s yagnya and some devas along with him. The destruction of Daksha-yagnya led to the formation of shakti peethas.

Kottiyoor in north Kerala is considered to be the place where Daksha yagnya was performed. It is a hilly region which is very attractive. A 27 day huge religious pilgrimage is held at this place in memory of the immolation of Sati Devi. The rites and rituals for this ceremony were classified by Shankaracharya.

Veerabhadra is worshiped mainly by the Veerashaiva cult, Lingayats, Pancha acharyas from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. A temple dedicated to him is situated near Rishikesh in Uttar kashi. The notable temples of Veerabhadra are located at 1) Jejuri in Maharashtra 2) Vettanviduthi at Pudukottai district in Tamil Nadu 3) Vilanguppam at Mittur village in Vellore district in Tamil Nadu 4) Aghora Veerabhadra Swamy temple at Hanumanthapuram in Chengalpeth district of Tamil Nadu 5) Swetharanyeswarar temple at Thiruvenkadu in Tamil Nadu (this is one of the Navagraha sthalas notable for Budha) 6) Pasumbalur near Perambalur district in Tamil Nadu.

The worship of Veerabhadra is also found in Malaysia as well as Ceylon.

Lingothbhavar

Lingothbhavar is one of the twenty-five manifestations of Lord Shiva, hence it is an iconic representation of Lord Shiva. The idol of Lingothbhavar can be found in first precinct around the sanctum (gabhara) wall, exactly behind the Shiva-Linga. This iconic representation is presumed to have taken place from the Shiva-linga. Lingothbavar always faces the west.

The legend of Lingothbhavar is as follows.

Lord Shiva had appeared as a column of fire in front of Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma to settle the dispute between the two. 

Shiva-linga is presumed to be representation of cosmic form of column of fire. Shiva appeared out of this column of fire with 1000 arms and legs with Sun, Moon and Fire as his three eyes, wearing hide of elephant, bearing the Trishul in his hand and settled the dispute with an explanation that the two were born out of Him and that the three were then separated out into three different aspects of divinity. This episode was supposed to have taken place at present Arunachaleshwar temple complex in Thiruvallamalai in Tamilnadu. It is believed that after the incident Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma devotedly prayed to Lord Shiva to remain at the foot of the hill, in the form of Linga. This is where Arunachaleshewar temple is located.

This episode relating to Lingothbavar form of Shiva can be found in Shiva-Puran as well as Puranik verses of Shaiva-saint APPAR in 17th century.

Another Shaiva-saint SAMBANDAR refers to this form of Shiva as the nature of light which could not be comprehended by Brahma and Vishnu.

Dakshinamurty

This manifestation of Lord Shiva represents him in his aspect as an universal teacher. The idol of Dakshinamurty is found in almost all Shiva temples in Tamil Nadu. The only jyotirlinga which is depicted as Dakshinamurty is at Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga. Most of the idols of Dakshinamurty are found as Lord Shiva seated on a deer skin throne and surrounded by munis. He is worshiped as god of wisdom. According to puranas, anyone who is unable to get a Guru can consider and worship Dakshinamurty as his guru. If they are worthy they will be blessed with a self realized guru later. Dakshinamurty literally means one who is facing south i.e. direction of death or change. In almost all Shiva temples the idol of Dakshinamurty is installed facing south on the southern pradakshina  path around the sanctum-sanctorum. Shiva’s idol as Dakshinamurty has the following iconograhic representation. Shiva is depicted as seating on deer skin throne, surrounded by sages with his right foot on the mythical Apasmara (a demon personifying ignorance) and his left foot folded on the lap. There are other representations also known as Gnyan Dakshinamurty, Yoga Dakshinamurty, Veena Dakshinamurty, Rishabharudha Dakshinamurty etc. The fifth day of the week representing planet Jupiter is also the day of Dakshinamurty hence the planet is also known as Guru and the day is known as Guruwar. Hence there is a special puja on Thursdays for Dakshinamurty in many Shiva temples. Some of the famous temples of Dakshinamurty are 

1. Mahakaleshwar of Ujjain
2. Shiva Temple of Alangudi, Tamilnadu (which is one of the Navagraha temples)
3. Mahadev temple at Ettumanoor in Kerala
4. Pragya Dakshinamurty at Theni in Western Tamilnadu
5. Thiruvotriyur near Chennai. Here Dakshinamurty idol faces the north and the place is known as Vada Gurusthalam (north place)

Vakratunda - first incarnation of Lord Vinayak

या अवतारात वक्रतुंड उपासना करून ब्रह्मदेवाने सृष्टी निर्माण करण्याचे सामर्थ्य  कसे मिळवले याची कथा आहे. हा अवतार हा या आद्यदेवतेचा म्हणजेच श्री गणेशाचा पहिला अवतार आहे. 

याचे स्वरूप - रक्तवर्ण अंगकांती, हत्तीचे तोंड व सर्वांगी शेंदूर चर्चिलेली अशी चतुर्भुज सगुण मूर्ती आहे. 

सृष्टीमध्ये एकदा महाप्रलय झाला. सर्व ब्रह्मांड जलमय झाले. फक्त शिल्लक राहिले ते चराचरात व्यापून राहिलेले शुद्ध चैतन्य. तोच परमात्मा अथवा परमेश्वर. 

अशा या परमेश्वराला पुन्हा सृष्टी निर्माण करण्याची इच्छा झाली. त्याने आपल्या मायेने सत्व, रज आणि तम असे तीन गुण निर्माण केले. सत्वापासून ब्रह्मदेव निर्माण झाला. रजापासून श्रीविष्णू प्रकट झाला. तमापासून शिव-शंकर प्रकट झाला.  याच परमेश्वराच्या इच्छेने ब्रह्मदेवाला ज्ञानप्राप्ती झाली. सृष्टी पुन्हा निर्माण करण्याचे कार्य ब्रह्मदेवाला सांगून परमेश्वर अंतर्धान पावला. 

त्या ईश्वराच्या इच्छेनुसार ब्रह्मदेवाने पुन्हा सृष्टी निर्माण करण्याचे कार्य सुरु केले. कार्यारंभ सुरु केल्यावर त्यात भयंकर विघ्ने निर्माण होण्यास सुरुवात झाली. त्या सृष्टीनिर्मितीच्या कामात अडथळा निर्माण करू लागली. ब्रह्मदेवाचे सृष्टी निर्मितीचे काम पुढे सरकेनाच. कोणी ब्रह्मदेवाचा हात ओढू लागले. तर कोणी त्याची शेंडी खेचून त्यास दुःख देऊ लागले. कुणी मेघांच्या गडगडाटासारखे भयंकर गर्जना करू लागले. कुणी प्रत्यक्ष डोळ्यांना दिसत तर कुणी गुप्तपणे वार करत.  ब्रह्मदेव अतिशय भयभीत झाला.  संकट निवारण करण्यासाठी त्याने अनेक उपाय केले. पण व्यर्थ! या संकंटांपुढे त्याचे काहीही चालेना. त्याच्या सृष्टी निर्मितीचे काम पुढे सरकेना. परमेश्वर अंतर्धान पावला होता. हे दुःख सांगावे कुणाला हे ब्रह्मदेवाला समजेना. 

अखेर ब्रह्मदेवाने अतिशय गोड शब्दात परमात्म्याची करूणा भाकली. त्याची प्रार्थना करून ब्रह्मदेव म्हणाला "हे परमेश्वरा, तुझ्या आज्ञेने मी सृष्टी निर्माण करण्यास प्रारंभ केला खरा, पण हे कार्य करण्यात अत्यंत अडथळे येत आहेत. दुष्ट शक्ती नाना संकटे आणून माझ्या कार्यात विघ्ने आणत आहेत. त्यांच्या पुढे माझे वेदमंत्रही कुंठित झाले आहेत. ही विघ्ने निवारण्यास मी खरोखरच असमर्थ आहे. आणि म्हणूनच हे परमात्म्या, मी तुला अनन्य शरण आलो आहे." 

ब्रह्मदेवाची स्तुती ऐकून विनायक संतुष्ट झाला आणि सगुणरूपाने प्रकट झाला. त्याने ब्रह्मदेवाला "ॐ नमो वक्रतुंडाय" हा जप करण्यास सांगितले. त्याने सांगितले "हा मंत्र जपल्यास तुझे इच्छित कार्य पूर्ण होईल. वक्रतुंडाच्या कृपेने तुझे कार्य निर्विघ्न पार पडेल." असे अभयवचन देऊन विनायक अंतर्धान  पावला. विनायकाने दिलेल्या वराने ब्रह्मदेव आनंदित होऊन तपश्चर्येला बसला. एकाग्र मनाने दिवसरात्र त्याने वक्रतुंड मंत्राचा जप चालू केला. बारा वर्षे तपश्चर्या केल्यावर त्याच्या तपश्चर्येने प्रसन्न होऊन वक्रतुंड विनायक महाकाय रूपाने प्रकट झाला. रक्तासारखी लाल अंगकांती, क्रूर नेत्र, सोंड आणि संपूर्ण तोंडावर शेंदूर चर्चिलेला, असा तो कोटीसूर्याहूनही तेजस्वी असा विनायक प्रकट झाला. त्याच्या दिव्य तेजाने सर्व त्रैलोक्य भरून गेले. ब्रह्मदेव भारावून गेला. हात जोडून उभा राहिला. वक्रतुंडाने आशीर्वाद दिला "तू तुझे सृष्टी निर्मितीचे कार्य सुरु कर. जी विघ्ने येतील त्यांचा मी संहार करीन." हे ऐकून ब्रह्मदेवास आनंद झाला. त्याक्षणी विनायक अंतर्धान पावला. 

मग ब्रह्मदेवाने वक्रतुंडास स्मरून सत्व, रज आणि तम या तीन गुणांनी युक्त अशी सृष्टी निर्माण करण्यास सुरुवात केली. प्रथम वृक्ष, लता वेली निर्माण केल्या. झरे, नद्या, तलाव निर्माण केले. तऱ्हेतऱ्हेचे पक्षी, सरपटणारे प्राणी, किडे, जीव जंतू निर्माण केले. लहान मोठे तऱ्हेतऱ्हेचे अनेक पशु निर्माण केले. पण त्याच्या मनाचे समाधान झाले नाही. त्याला स्वतःच्या बुद्धीने काम करणारा, स्वतःच्या विचाराने चालणारा, आत्मकल्याणासाठी प्रयत्न करणारा प्राणी निर्माण करायचा होता. मग वक्रतुंडाला स्मरून महत् प्रयासाने त्याने हा मनुष्य प्राणी निर्माण केला. तो निर्माण करूनच ब्रह्मदेवाला समाधान झाले. म्हणूनच मनुष्य जन्म दुर्लभ आहे असे व्यासांनी लिहून ठेवले आहे. जेव्हा पाप आणि पुण्य समसमान होते तेव्हाच मनुष्यदेह लाभतो. म्हणूनच मनुष्याने आत्मकल्याणासाठी वक्रतुंडाची नेहमी भक्ती करावी. त्याचे सतत नामस्मरण करावे. 

वक्रतुंड हा दयाळू आहे. भक्तांचा कैवारी आहे. विघ्नविनाशक असा हा वक्रतुंड भक्तांची संकटे दूर करतो. त्यांचा उद्धार करतो. म्हणून "श्री वक्रतुंडाय नमः" हा जप सतत करून वक्रतुंडाला स्मरावे. त्यातच मनुष्याचे कल्याण आहे. 

स्कंद पुराणातील वक्रतुंड चरितामृताचा हा गोड प्रथम अध्याय समाप्त.