Story Of Lord Shiva and THE BURNING OF Kama Deva

Story Of Lord Shiva and THE BURNING OF Kama Deva

The great poet cum saint Kalidasa created a beautiful work is known as Kumarasambhavam. In that, there is a portion known as Kamadahanam (the burning of Kama) which tells us the story of how the Kama deva (Indian Cupid) was burnt to ashes by Lord Shiva. But the one 44 and the only reason behind this situation was a demon called Tarakasura.

 Tarakasura, a great Shiva Devotee, through penance pleased Brahma. He demanded immortality, which Brahma refused to give him such boon, reiterating the fact that one who is born has to die. Brahma asked Tarakasura to ask for any other boon. He then asked for his death in the hands of the son of Shiva only. Without even thinking, Brahma blessed him with such boon. 

After getting the boon, Tarakasura was overwhelmed with joy, because Shiva didn’t have a son and Him being disturbed by the death of Sati, He engaged himself with the most severe of penances. The demon intelligently attained near-immortality. He started creating havoc in heaven and earth. The devas, rishis and common men were imprisoned and tortured.

 Looking at this mess all around, Brahma and Vishnu needed Shiva’s son to be born. They also needed to get Shiva and Parvati married. Parvati was reborn to Himavan (the king of mountains) and from a very young age, she was particular about marrying to Shiva. 

Brahma visited Parvati and advised her to meditate on the Linga Swaroopam of Shiva. Parvati sincerely without any break continued to worship, by regularly visiting Kailasha and served the meditating lord (Shiva) along with her friends. 

But her worship and devotion was completely unnoticed by the Lord. All the surviving devas had to come up with a plan in alliance with Brahma and Vishnu, to bring an end to the demon. Their only hope was to get Lord Shiva to break his vow of celibacy and produce a child.

 This task was really difficult to achieve given that there was no greater ascetic in creation who could rival the dedication of Lord Shiva in his meditations. Bound on all sides, the Gods turned to Kama Dev. They prayed to him to use his powers on Lord Shiva. 

The petrified Kama Dev refused to comply initially, but for the sake of all that was holy and suffering under the tyranny of Tarakasura, he accepted the task. Kama Dev (also known as manmatha) armed himself with his sugarcane bow adorned with a string of bees, his five beautiful arrows, each tipped with a flower that can control a particular human sense, and accompanied by Vasantha, the goddess of Spring, he entered into the holy premises of Kailasha.

 With every step Vasantha took, the icy hills blossomed with sweet-smelling flowers and shrubs. Bees and birds flitted around, singing merry tunes. Spring was in the air at Kailasha. And with that hopefully, love too. Parvathi was there, at the foot of the steps leading unto Parameshwara’s seat. She was as usual, deeply engrossed in the worship of her lord. Taking a careful view of the settings, Kama Dev went into action. 

He selected a suitable place to hide behind and shoot his arrows from. Making himself comfortable, but still sweating profusely in the icy winds of Kailasha, Kama Dev took aim. Slowly and steadily, he fitted his very first arrow onto his bow and let it fly at Shiva. Disturbed by the arrow, Shiva came out of his deep meditation and furiously looking around for the cause of such disturbance. 

He looked straight at Kama Dev’s hiding place. He opened His third eye and burned down Kama Dev into ashes. And then He went back to his perpetual state of unlimited bliss. The devas realized that how can something(lust) which is created by Shiva can affect Him. 

The only way to get His attention is by being sincerely and patiently devoted and worship with purity in one’s heart. Together with the devas, Rathi(wife of Kama Dev), too prayed to Shiva. Pleased by the prayers of Devas, He opened his eyes and looked at the devas with grace and love. 

The Devas asked for forgiving them especially Kama Dev who tried to help them on their request. But since Shiva felt that a sin is a sin even if it was intended for the good. Thus, He brings back Kama Dev to life under one condition that, he will be visible only to his wife , Rathi, and to the rest of the world he will be invisible for all the yugas. The Devas also mentioned about the tremors created by Tarakasura. The demon is blessed to be killed only by His son. 

Shiva and Parvati need to get married very soon in order to save the Bhuloka and Devloka. Also Parvati wanted to marry Shiva, for which she was doing severe penance until He opened His eyes. Agreed to this proposal, Shiva and Parvati gets married.

 Soon their son, Skanda was born. And then after he grew up, he killed Tarakasura and released the devas from his captivity. It is believed that since then the Kama Dev in the form of formless and silent being still walks around inducing love among the couples.

 Thirukurukkai near Mayiladuthurai is dedicated to the event of Kama Dahanam and enshrines Shiva in his Kamari form. Since this is one of the places where the the anger of Shiva was experienced, it too features as one of the Ashta Veeratta Sthalas. Situated by the Pazhavaru river, the 2.5-hectare temple is presided over by Veerateshwarar, also variously known as Kaamaanga  Naasan (The destroyer of Kaama’s form), Yogeshwara (the one in eternal yoga) etc.

 The river is said to have been formed from the tears of joy that Shiva shed in his state of meditation and as such is known as Gnyana Theertham. The Ambal is also known by the name Gnaanambigai (the granter of Knowledge). It is said that a rishi named Dheergabahu (the long-armed one) visited the place and through his yogic powers brought the Ganges down to bathe the Lord. 

This was his regular custom at all the Shivasthalas. However, at Kurunkai, when he was engaged in his meditation, his arms shrunk to their normal size. The rishi upon realising this was in great joy and praised the lord of the place. Since his arms (kai in Tamil) had shrunk (Kurum) at the kshetra, it came to be known as Thirukurunkai. Another legend states that since Shiva was meditating under the Kurunkai tree, the place came to be known as Thirukurunkai and gradually distorted into Thirukurukkai. 

An interesting difference from the other Veeratta temples are the fact that there is no bronze image that glorifies the Kamari aspect of the lord. However, to make up for this, about a quarter kilometre away from the temple is a garden with a sort of pit at the centre. While the garden by itself is covered with lush plants and red mud, the pit contains white powdery textured sands. These are believed to be the ashes of Kama. 

 Some people even claim that it has the distinct odour of Vibhuthi or the sacred ash. Devotees who come to Thirukurukkai, take a bit of the ash as prasad from the temple. The temple itself is very old and is adorned with a lot of beautiful statues on the gopurams and the walls. 

The linga has a stunning lotus carved into the aavudayar and is an exquisitely beautiful one. The temple also had idols of Manmatha and Rathi, which are offered regular worship. The sthala vriksha is Kodukkai and the theertham is Pashupathi theertham along with Pazhavaru. 

The temple celebrates its main festival in the month of Maasi (February-March) and is known as the Kama Dahana Thiruvizha. The destruction of Kama is enacted on Maasi Magham (the full moon in Maasi), with the festival concluding two days later. The festival of Thiruvadhirai in Margazhi and the Paksha Pradhoshams are also observed with utter faith and devotion.

Thirukurukkai is known to be a pilgrimage place for those who seek to conquer lust and gain mental strength. It is also considered to be an ideal place to be initiated in the studies of yoga and meditation.