STORY OF NEELKANTA-SHIVA AND HIS BLUE NECK

STORY OF NEELKANTA SHIVA AND HIS BLUE NECK 

There are various aspects of the appearance of Shiva is so wonderful to know about and has a lot of relevance to our real life. One of them is His throat turning blue as a result of consuming poison. There is a beautiful story behind it. 

Vishnu Purana

Here it goes. According to Vishnu Purana, Indra was cursed by Sage Durvasa for showing disrespect and as result He started losing his kingdom to demons. He then approached Vishnu, who advised him to seek the help of Demons in churning the Ocean of Milk (Ksheer Sagar) and in return the Devas and Demons can share the nectar(Amrit) emerging out of churning. The nectar can make one immortal & regain their lost power.

After the Demons agreed to this, the snake God Vasuki as rope, the mountain named Mandara as the churning stick was arranged. As the churning process began, Lord Vishnu, in the form of a tortoise, held Mandara from bottom to prevent it from sinking. While churning, the first thing that sprung out was the deadly Aalahaala venom.

lord shiva's Rescue

 It is said the denizens of the skies shook and trembled by the effect of the poison. Lord Shiva came and saved the world by swallowing the entire poison in one gulp. Parvati in her alarm to prevent the poison from harming her beloved presses his throat gently and the story goes on that the love of Parvathi immobilizes the poison in Shiva’s throat, leaving only the ominous blue tinge. He is called as Neelkantha, or “the blue-necked one”.

 As the churning process continued, many objects started coming out. To name a few, were Kamadhenu (the wish-fulfilling cow), Ucchaisrava (the white horse), Airavata(the white elephant), Kaustubh Mani (a rare diamond), Kalpavriksha(the wish-fulfilling tree), Lakshmi (Goddess of wealth) and so on. Finally, Dhanvantari (the divine physician) appeared with a vessel of Nectar (Amrit). Lord Vishnu appeared in the form of Mohini, strikingly beautiful women to serve the Nectar. By playing a trick, He distributed the Nectar to only the Devas and saved the world from the Demons.

Spiritual significance of the story of poison getting stuck in Shiva’s throat

It has a deep meaning. The poison spreads with speech. The mind gets agitated with speech. All fights happen because of harsh words and lack of right knowledge. Shiva is also called Neelkantha – which signifies when Shiva drinks poison, it doesn’t reach his whole body. There are several symbolisms to this.

 When one begins a great undertaking, it is known for obstacles and misgivings to come that threaten to derail the entire venture symbolized by the poison. Steadfastness, epitomized by Shiva, is needed to overcome these obstacles. 

One’s criticism is also many times deep-rooted and one tends to become judgemental and opinionated for long periods of times, about people and circumstances. Shiva with the Blue Neck symbolizes how our criticism needs to come from our throat, and not from our hearts.