The Vayu Purana

Yoga Continued

The goddess Sarasvati appeared in this kalpa. (There is some confusion here. The Vayu Purana itself states that the varaha kalpa was the seventh kalpa and that the preceding kalpa was the padma kalpa. Yet these names do not occur in the above list. Very few Puranas give lists of the kalpas. In that sense, the Vayu Purana is an exception.) As you already know, in each dvapara yuga, a Vedavyasa is born. The Vayu Purana now lists the names of the twenty-eight Vedavyases who have been born so far. We will not reproduce this list, as many other Puranas also give it.Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva At the end of the last kalpa, there was a minor destruction and the world was flooded with water.

 Vishnu alone slept on this water, balanced on the hood of the great snake, Ananta. (Ananta’s story is given in other Puranas, like the Kalika Purana and the Vishnu Purana. He is also referred to as Shesha naga (snake) and was the son of Kadru and the sage Kashyapa. He obtained from Brahma the boon that he would hold up the earth on his thousand hoods.) While Vishnu was thus sleeping, a lotus sprouted from his navel. It was a huge lotus and extended for a hundred yojanas. And it shone with radiance. Vishnu began to play with the lotus. While Vishnu was thus playing, Brahma arrived. “Who are you and why are you sleeping on this water?” asked Brahma. “I am Vishnu and I am the lord of everything.” replied Vishnu. “But who are you and where are you going?” “How can you be the lord of everything?” asked Brahma. “I am the lord of everything that is in the universe. Everything that will be there in the universe is already there inside my stomach. If you don’t believe me, why don’t you enter my stomach and see for yourself?” Vishnu’s curiosity was stirred and he entered Brahma’s stomach. Inside the stomach he was greatly surprised to find all the worlds that would be there in the universe. The mountains and the oceans were all there. So were all the living beings who would be created. Visnu spent one thousand years inside Brahma’s stomach, marvelling at these wonders. But he could find neither the end nor the beginning of Brahma’s stomach. He finally made his exit through Brahma’s mouth. Vishnu told Brahma, “I bow down before you, you re indeed the lord of everything. There are many marvels that I saw inside your stomach, many are the worlds that are there. But I can also rival you. Why don’t you enter my stomach? I too can show you many worlds there.” Brahma entered Vishnu’s stomach and saw many worlds there, as Vishnu had promised. Brahma spent several years inside the stomach, but could find neither its end nor its beginning. Meanwhile, Vishnu had closed all the exits from his body and Brahma could find no way of coming out. He finally made his body very small and came out through Vishnu’s navel. He clambered up the stalk of the lotus and seated himself on the lotus. Since a lotus is called padma and yoni means birth-place, Brahma came to be known as Padmayoni. While all this was going on, Shiva arrived on the scene. He held a trident in his hand. Such was the speed of Shiva’s arrival that huge tidal waves were created in the water. Strong winds started to blow. “What is all this? Why are you shaking the lotus so and creating tidal waves?” Brahma asked Vishnu. “Who speaks from my navel?” said Vishnu. “Don’t you remember?” replied Brahma. “I am Brahama. You had entered my stomach and, thereafter I had entered your stomach. But you had closed all the exits, so that I had no way of getting out. In fact, I ought to be downright angry with you for treating me thus. I had to emerge through your navel and am now seated on the lotus.” “I am sorry,” said Vishnu. “I had not meant to insult you. I had only wished to play with you for a while. Let us now be friends. And as a token of your friendship, please grant me the boon that you will henceforth be known as my son.” “I agree,” replied Brahma. “At first, I thought that you were shaking the lotus and creating these tidal waves in the water. But now I see that there is another creature who is advancing towards us. His visage is terrible. He has ten arms and he holds a trident. Who is this demon?” Vishnu told Brahma that this was none other than Shiva, the destroyer, and that the two of them should pray to Shiva. But Brahma flatly refused to do this. He would not acknowledge Shiva as a superior. Vishnu’s persuasion however bore fruit and both Brahma and Vishnu started to pray to Shiva. “What can I do for you?” asked Shiva. “What boon do you desire?” “I am sorry that I doubted you,” replied Brahma. “Please forgive me. And as a token of your pardon, please grant me the boon that you will be born as my son.”  Shiva gladly granted this boon.Madhu and Kaitabha After Shiva had left, two brothers named Mahdu and Kaitabha appeared. They were demons. (The Vayu Purana does not tell us where these two demons came from. According to the Kalika Purana, they emerged from Vishnu’s ears while he slept. One of the demons wished to eat honey (madhu) as soon as he was born and thus came to be known as Madhu. The other demon looked like an insect (kita) and thus came to be known as Kaitabha.) Madhu and Kaitabha wrought havoc. They destroyed the petals of the lotus. Next, they tried to eat up Brahma himself. Vishnu had gone back to sleep again and Brahma wake him up. “Please rescue me from these demons,” Brahma told Vishnu. Vishnu created two beings from his mouth. These were kown as Vishnu (the two Vishnus cause some confusion) and Jishnu and Vishnu (the orignial one ) instructed them to destroy the demons. The being Vishnu killed Kaitabha and Jishnu killed Madhu. But it took a hundred years for the demons to be killed. The fat (meda) from the dead bodies of the demons formed the earth. That is the reason why the earth is known as medini.Rudra You will remember that Shiva had granted Brahma the boon that he would be born as Brahma’s son. To ensure that this indeed happened Brahma began to perform very difficult tapasya (meditation). But despite all this meditation, nothing happened. This failure greatly angered Brahma and he started to cry. As soon as these teardrops fell on the ground, poisonous snakes were born from the tears. This saddened Brahma even more, since unclean creatures had been born as a result of his tapasya. Brahama was so miserable that he fell down unconscious and died. As soon as Brahma died, eleven beings emerged from Brahma’s body. They started to cry as soon as they emerged. The word rud means to cry and these beings came to be known as the rudras. The rudras revived Brahma. (The more usual account, such as in the Vishnu Purana or the Padma Purana, is slightly different. There was no question of Brahma’s dying and only one being rudra was born. He began to cry as he did not have a name. Brahma accordingly gave the boy seven different names.) To return to the account of the Vayu Puranma, Brahma realized that Shiva had been born as his son in the form of these eleven rudras and was happy. After having given the above account, the Vayu Purana immediately contradicts itself. It now recounts the more usual story, as follows. Shiva had promised Brahman that he would be born as Brahma’s son. To achieve this aim, Brahma started to meditate. While he was meditating, a son suddenly apppreared on his lap and began to cry. “Why are you crying?” asked Brahma. “Because I do not have a name.” Replied the boy. “I will give you a name,” said Brahma. “Because you have cried, you will be known as as Rudra.” But the boy continued to cry and it turned out that he wanted a second name. This went on for seven times. Rudra was according given the names Bhava, Shiva Pashupati, Isha, Bhima, Urgra and Mahadeva. (These names differ slightly from the names given in the Vishnu Purana and th Padma.) “Where will I live?” asked Rudra. Brahma told him that in his eight different forms, he would live in the sun, the earth, the water, the fire, the air, the sky, the bodies of brahmanas and the moon. The Descendants of Bhrigu The sage Bhrigu married Khyati, Daksha’s daughter. Bhrigu and Khyati had two sons named Dhata and Vidhata. These two were gods. (Vidhata is also one of Brahma’s names.) Bhrigu and Kyati’s daughter was Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity. (Thereby hangs a tale, not recounted in the Vayu Purana. Lakshmi was cursed by the sage Durvasa that she would be immersed in the ocean. She emerged from the waters when the ocean was churned (samudra manthana).) Lakshmi was married to Vishnu. The descendants of the sage Bhrigu were known as the Bhargavas. One of these was the great sage Markandeya. The Vayu Purana also enumerates the descendants of the other sages.Daksha You will remember that Daksha’s daughter, Sati, was married to Shiva. Daksha was thus Shiva’s father-in-law. But, as a son-in-law. Shiva never showed Daksha adequate respect. Or so Daksha felt. For instance, Shiva never bowed down before Daksha. On one occasion, Daksha invited all his daughters to his house. The only one whom he did not invite was Sati, although Sati happened to be his eldest daughter. The reason behind Daksha’s not inviting Sati was his hatred of Shiva. Sati however went to visit her father, although she had not been invited. And once she was there, Daksha ignored her and paid her no attention. “Father, why are you treating me thus?” asked Sati. “I am, after all, your eldest daughter.” “That may be,” replied Daksha. “But consider your husband. He is far inferior to my other sons-in-law. All the others are great sages and show me respect. But your husband is a worthless fellow and is a perpetual thorn in my side. That is the reason I do not treat you with respect. Sati was aghast at these words. “My husband and I have not sinned,” she told her father. “Yet you have insulted us both. I owe this body to you, since you happen to be my father. But I no longer wish to possess a body that owes its origin to you. I shall therefore give up this body. When I am born again, I will be remarried to Shiva.” Having said this, Sati started to perform yoga. Such was the power ofher meditation that a fire emerged and burnt her physical body into ashes. Shiva learnt this tragic news and was furious. He came to Daksha’s house and told Daksha, “For this sin, you will be born on earth. That is my curse on you. As for the sages who are your other sons-in-law, they too are cursed. “I don’t care about your curses,” replied Daksa. “I will continue to defy you when I am born on earth. And I will instruct the sages that they are not to give you a share of the offerings that are made to gods at sacrifices.” Sati was reborn as Parvati, the daughter of Menaka (alternatively Mena) and Himavana (the Himalayas). She was remarried to Shiva. Bcause of Shiva’s curse, Daksa was born on earth. He was born as the son of Marisha and the ten Prachetas. (The Prachetas were brothers who became sages and subsequently married the same woman, Marisha.) Daksha decided to organize an ashvamedha yajna (horse sacrifice). But due to his earlier enmity with Shiva, Daksha did not invite Shiva to this sacrifice. The sacrifice was being held in the foothills of the Himalayas, on the banks of the holy river Ganga. All the gods and the sages had been invited to the sacrifice and went to the ceremony. The only exception was Shiva and his companions. There was a sage named Dadhicha (alternatively Dadhichi). He protested to Daksha that a sacrifice should not be held in Shiva’s absence. Such a sanctity. But Daksha would not listen to Dadhicha. The sage therefore stated that he would not take any further part in the yajna. Moreover, he assured Daksha that the sacrifice was doomed to be a failure. Shiva and Parvati were seated on Mount Kailasa and they noticed all the vimanas (space vehicles) travelling through the sky, the gods and their wives resplendently seated. “Where are all these gods going?” asked Parvati. “Daksha is performing a yajna and they are all going to attend the sacrifice.” replied Shiva. “Why have you not gone?” demanded Parvati. “It must be that you have not been invited. But how is that possible? How can there be a sacrifice without you having been invited? You are superior to all the other gods. Please do something to ensure that you do get your share of the offerings.” Shiva thereupon created a demon from his mouth. The demon’s name was Virabhadra. He had a thousand heads, a thousand arms and a thousand feet. Numerous were the weapons that he held in his hands. His fiery visage blazed like the sun itself and his form rose way up into the sky. Virabhadra bowed before Shiva and asked, “What are my orders?” “Go and destroy Daksha’s yajna,” was the reply. Virabhadra left for the sacrifice. He created several other demons who would aid him in the task of destruction. Parvati also created a goddess out of her own body to act as Virabhadra’s companion. This goddess was named Bhadrakali. This army trooped to Daksha’s house and proceeded to destroy everything there. The mountains shook and trembled with their roars. The gods and the sages who had come to attend the sacrifice did not known what could be done. They merely stood there and were thrashed. The offerings that had been piled up for the sacrifice were scattered here and there by Virabhadra and his companions. The scaffoldings that had been erected were smashed. Daksha tried to run away. But Virabhadra grabbed him and beheaded him with a slice of his sword. Brahma and the other gods started to pray to Virabhadra and his companions. “Who are you?’ they asked. “Whoever you are , please be pacified. Please listen to our prayers and spare us.” “Don’t pray to me,” replied Virabhadra. “I am merely an instrument of the great Shiva. If you must pray, pray to Shiva himself.” The gods and the sages started to pray to Shiva. Pleased by their prayers, Shiva appeared and set things right. He restored the surroundings to what they used to be before Virabhadra’s destruction began. Shiva also revived Daksha and Daksha too started to pray to him. Shiva obtained his due respect. (The account given above does occur in some other Puranas, but differes in its essential elements from the more common account. The more common account is, for example, given in the Bhagavata Purana. As per the common account, Daksha did not invite Shiva to a yajna that he was performing while Sati was still alive. Sati went uninvited to the ceremony and was there insulted by her father. Unable to bear these insults, she immolated herself. It was the news of Sati’s death that moved Shiva to destroy the ceremony. The destruction accordingly took place at the same time as Sati’s death and much before Parvati was reborn.)Georgraphy Svayambhuva Manu had two sons named Priyavrata and Uttanapda. Priyavarata had a hundred sons. Ten of these were named Agnidhra, Vapushmana, Medha, Medhatithi, Vibhu, Jyotishmana, Dyutimana, Havya, Savana and Sarva. (Most Puranas simply state that Priyavrata had ten sons. The names of the sons as per the other Puranas do not entirely agree with those given in the Vayu Purana.) When Priyavrata decided to retire to the forest, he divided up his kingdom amongst seven of his sons. Since Priyavrata had ruled over the entire earth, this is how the earth came to be divided into seven regions (dvipas). Agnidhra inherited Jambuvipa, Medhatithi Plakshadvipa, Vapushmana Shalmalidvipa, Jyotishmana Kushadvipa, Dyutimana Krounchadvipa, Havya Shakadvipa and Savana Pushkaradvipa. (The Vayu Purana does not tell us why Medha, Vibhu and Sarva did not receive any shares to the original kingdom. According to the Vishnu Purana, these three sons were not interested in ruling. They accordingly retired to the forest to meditate.) Agnidhra, the ruler of Jambudvipa, had nine sons. Their names were Nabhi, Kimpurusha, Hari, Ilavrita, Ramya, Harinmana, Kuru, Bhadrashva and Ketumala. (The sixth son is invariably referred to as Hiranmana, rather than Harinmana, in the other Puranas.) When it became time for Agnidhra to retire to the forest, he divided Jambudvipa amongst these nine sons. Nabhi inherited the region that lies to the south of the Himalayas. This is the region that subsequently came to be known as Bharatavarsha. (The word varsha signifies region.) Kimpurusha received Hemakutavarsha, Hari Naishadhvarsha, Ramya Nilavarsha, Harinmana Shvetavarsha, Bhadrashva Malyavanavarsha and Ketumala Gandhamadanavarsha. Ilvarita inherited the region around Mount Sumeru and Kuru the region to the north of Mount Shringavana. (This is a deviation from the names given in the other Puranas. The Vayu Purana tends to name the regions after the mountains that are in them. More commonly, the Puranas state the following. The regions came to be known after the names of the sons who inherited them. Thus Kimpurusha inherited Kimpurushavarsha, Hari Harivarsha, Ilavrita Ilavritavarsha, Ramya Ramyakavarsha, Hiranmana Hiranmanavarsha, Kuru Kuruvarsha, Bhadrashva Bhadrashvavarsha and Ketumala Ketumalavarsha.) To return to the Vayu Purana, Nabhi had a son named Rishabha and Rishabha’s son was Bharata. It was after Bharata that the region which Nabhi ruled over came to be known as Bharatavarsha. Mount Sumeru (Alternatively Meru) is in Jambudvipa. This has a very high altitude and gold can be found in abundance there. The eastern slope of the peak is white and is associated with brahmanas. The northern slope is red and is associated with kshatriyas. The southern slope is yellow and is associated with vaishyas. The western slope is greyish and is associated with shudras. You will remember that Brahma appeared from a lotus flower. Meru was formed out of the stalk of this flower. It is impossible to describe Mount Sumeru. The various sages who have attempted to describe it do not agree in their descriptions. This is because each sage saw, and thus described, only one part of the peak. The sage Atri described it as possessing a hundred angles; the sage Bhrigu maintained that it had a thousand angles; the sage Savarni thought it was octagonal; the sage Bhaguri’s description suggests that it had the shape of a quadrilatera; the sage Varshayani maintained that it was as shapeless as the ocean; the sage Kroushtuki described it as circular; and the sage Gargya said that it had the shape of a woman’s braided hair. It is only the great Brahma who can describe Mount Sumeru adequately. But it is known that there are many beautiful valleys in the region surrounding the peak. These valleys have ponds with limpid water and lotuses bloom in thousands in these ponds. There are also many places with bejewelled pillars and golden gates. There are landing strips where the vimanas (space vehicles) of the gods can descend. Apart from the places, there are several hermitages frequented by the sages. But most wonderous of all is Brahma’s famous assembly-hall, located atop Mount Sumeru. This assembly-hall is known as Manovati. The Vayu Purana now describes the mountans, rivers, ponds and valleys belonging to the different varshas. These we will gloss over and concentrate only on the description of Bharatavarsha. Bharatavarasha is bounded by the Himalayas to the north and by the ocean to the south. Bharatavarsha is divided into nine regions (dvipas). The names of these regions are Indradvipa, Kaserumana, Tamraparni, Gabhastimana, Nagadvipa, Soumya, Gandharva and Varuna. This adds up to eight . The ninth region is an island that is surrounded by the ocean on all sides. It is not very easy to travel from one region of Bharatavarsha to another. The transportation problems are enormous. The southern tip of Bharatavarsha is known as Kumarika (Cape Comorin or Kanyakumari). Beyond the boundaries of Bharatavarsha live the disbelievers (that is, those who disbelieve in the Vedas). To the east live the kiratas and to the west live the yavanas. Bharatavarsha proper is populated by brahmanas, kshatriyas, vaishyas and shudras. There are seven major mountain ranges in Bharatavarsha. These are known as Mahendra, Malaya, Sahya, Shaktimana, Riksha, Vindhya and Paripatra. There are several other minor ranges, amongst which are Mandara and Raviataka. Rivers abound in the region, owing their sources to the mountains. The rivers Ganga, Sindhu (Indus), Sarasvati, Shatadru (Sutlej), Chandrabhaga (Chenab), Yamuna, Sarayu, Iravati (Ravi), Vitasta, Vipasha (Beas), Devika, Kuhu, Gomati, Dhutapapa, Vahuda, Drishadvati, Koushiki, Tritiya, Gandaki, Nishchira, Ikshu and Lohita (Brahmaputra ) originate from the foothills of the Himalyas. The rivers Vedashruti, Vedavati, Vritraghni, Parnasha, Vandana, Satira, Mahati, Para, Charmanvati (Chambal), Vidisha, Vetravati, Shipra and Avanti originate out of the Paripatra range (This identifies the Paripatra as the Arvalli range.) The rivers Shona, Narmada, Mandakini, Dasharna, Chitrakuta, Tamasa, Pippala, Shroni, Karatoya, Pishachika, Nilotapa, Jambula, Valuvahini, Siteraja, Shuktimati, Makruna and Tridiva originate from the Riksha range. (This range thus seems to be the mountains around Chota Nagpur.) Tapi (Tapti), Payoshni, Nirvindhya, Bhadra, Nishadha, Venva, Vaitarani, Shitivahu, Kumudvati, Toya, Mahagouri, Durga and Antahshila are rives that owe their source in the Vindhya range. From the Sahya range there originate the rivers Godavari, Bhimarathi, Krishna, Veni, Vanjula, Tungabhadra, Suproyaga and Kaveri. (The Sahya range thus corresponds to the Western Ghats.) From the Malaya range originate the rivers Kritamala, Tamravarni, Pushapajati and Utpalavati. In the Mahendra range are found the sources of the rivers Trisama, Kratutulya, Ikshula, Tridiva, Langulini and Vamshadhara. The rivers Rishika, Sukumari, Mandaga, Mandavahini, Kupa and Palashini originate in the Shaktimana range.Astronomy The earth is made up of five elements (bhuta). These are earth, wind sky, water and energy. There are seven regions in the underworld (patala). These are known as atala, sutala, vitala, gabhastala, mahatala, shritala and patala. (Patala is thus both a specific region (loka) of the underworld, as well as a generic name for the underworld as a whole. The names of the seven regions of the underworld vary from Purana to Purana. For example, the name rasatala occurs in many texts.) The ground in atala is dark in colour; in sutala it is pale; vitala has ground that is red; in gabhastala the ground becomes yellow; in mahataka it is white; there are numerous stones and boulders in shritala; but in patala, the ground is laced with gold. Snakes and demons live in the underworld. Atala is ruled by the demon Namuchi; sutala by the demon Mahajambha; vitala by the demon Prahlada; gabhastala by the demon Kalanemi: mahatala by the demon Virochana; shritala by the demon Kesari; and patala by the demon Vali. The great snake Vasuki lives in shritala and the great snake Shesha lives in patala. (Vasuki is a king of the snakes (nagas). He was the son of Daksha’s daughter Kadru and the sage Kashyapa. Usually, Vasuki and Shesha are regarded as synonymous, the name Ananta also being used.) The eyes of the snake Shesha are like red lotuses. His complexion is white and he wears blue is thousand hoods glow with radiance. Just as ther are seven lokas which consitiute the neither regions, there are seven lokas which constitute the upper regions. The universe consists of fourteen lokas. The seven loka which form the upper regions are named bhuloka, bhuvarloka, svaroka, maharloka, janaloka, tapaloka and satyaloka. The smallest unit of time is a nimesha, the time it takes of the eyes to blink. Fifteen nimeshas constitute a kashtha, thirty kashitas are a kala, thirty kalas make a muhurta and there are thirty muhurtas in the space of one night and one day (ahoratra). The thirty muhurtas in a day are divided into ten units, each unit consisting of three muhurtas. The unit that corresponds to the time of sunrise is known as prata (dawn). The next unit is called sangava (forenoon). Forenoon is followed by madhyahna (noon). Next come aparahna (afternoon) and sayahna (evening). These five units made up of fifteen muhurtas, form the day. There is an equal number of muhurtas in the night. This should not be taken to mean that day and night are always equal. Sometimes the day is longer than the night and sometimes the night is longer than the day. Day and night are equal twice a year. These two occasions are the precise midpoints of early autumn (sharat) and spring (vasanta). Fifteen days make up one paksha (fornight) and there are two pakshas in every masa (month). Two masas form a ritu (season) and three ritus are called an ayana. There are therefore two ayanas in every varha (year). The months Magha, Falguna, Chaitra, Vaishakha, Jyaishtha and Ashada are referred to as uttarayana. Correspondiingly, the months Shravana, Bhadra, Ashvina, Kartika, Agrahayan and Pousha are referred to as dakshinayana. You will remember that Svayambhuva Manu had two sons named Uttanapada and Priyavrata. Priyavrata’s descendants have already been mentioned. Uttanapada had a son named Dhruva. Dhruva pleased Vishnu through his tapasya and obtained the boon that a place would be reserved for him in the sky. (The story of Dhruva’s tapasya is recounted in several Puranas, such as the Vishnu Purana.) Dhruva became the Pole Star. This is in the constellation of Shishumara (Ursa Minoris or the Little Bear). The moon, the sun, the planets and the stars, all revolve around Dhruva. The sun’s chariot is made of gold and is drawn by seven horses. These horses are named Gayatri, Trishtupa, Anushtupa, Jagati, Pamkti, Vrihati and Ushnika. There are twelve adityas. In each month, two adityas, two sages. Two gandharvas, two apsaras and two rakshasa (demons) ride on the sun’s chariot together with the sun. This is as follows. (i) The months Chaitra and Vaishakha – the adityas Dhata and Aryama; the sages Pulastya and Pulaha; the gandharvasTumburu and Narada; the apsaras Kratushthala and Ppunjikasthala; and the rakshasas Heti and Praheti. (ii) The months Jyaishtha and Ashada – the adityas Mitra and Varuna; the sages Atri and Vashishtha; the gandharvas Haha and Huhu; the apsaras Menaka and Sahajanya; and the rakshasas Pourusheya and Vadha. (iii) The months Shravana and Bhadra – the adityas Indra and Vivasvana; the sages Angira and Bhrigu; the gandharvas Vishvavasu and Ugrasena; the apsaras Promlacha and Nimlocha; and the rakshasa Vyaghra and Shveta. (iv) The months Ashvina and Kartika – the adityas Parjanaya and Pusha; the sages Bharadvaja and Goutama, the gandharvas Vishvavasu and Surabhi; the apsaras Vishvachi and Ghritachi; and the rakshasas Apa and Vata. (v) The months Agrahayana and Pousha – the adityas Amsha and Bhaga; the sages Kashyapa and Ritu; the gandharvas Chitrasena and Urnayu; the apsaras Urvashi and Viprachitti; and the rakshasas Vidyut and Sfurjja. (vi) The months Magha and Falguna – the adityas Tvashta and Jishnu; the sages Jamadagni and Vishvamitra; the gandharvas Dhritarashtra and Suryavarcha; the apsaras Tilottama and Rambha; and the rakshasas Brahmopeta and Yajnopeta. The moon’s chariot is drawn by ten horses. These horses are named Yayu, Trimana, Vrisha, Raji, Bala, Vasa, Turanya, Hamsa, Vyomi and Mriga. Budha’s (Mercy) chariot is drawn by eight horses; Shukra’s (Venus) by ten; Mangala’s (Mars) by eight; and Brihaspati’s (Jupiter) and Shani’s (Saturn) also by eight.Shiva’s Blue Throat Many years ago, in satya yuga, the sage Vashishtha met Kartikeya, the son of Shiva and Parvati. Having worshipped Kartikeya, the sage said, “Please tell me how Shiva’s throat came to be blue.” “I do know the answer and I will satisfy your curiosity,” replied Kartikeya. “I was once on Mount Kailasa, sleeping on my mother’s lap. I heard my mother, Parvati, asked my father how his throat came to blue. And I will relate to you Shiva’s reply. The gods and the demons once got together and decided to churn the ocean (samudra manthana). (The details of the samudra manthana story are not given in the Vayu Purana, but can be found in many Puranas, in addition tothe Ramayana and the Mahabharata.) The gods and the demons were desirous of obtaining the amrita (a life-giving drink) that was expected to emerge as a result of the churning of the ocean. But when the churning began, some terrible poison came out and the gods and the demons were despondent at the sight of this poison, since they thought that it would destroy them all. They therefore fled to Brahma for protection.