[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]
Re: REQUEST : statue of the God Siva coiled with Serpent
-
To: selah* <soma@amanda.dorsai.org>
-
Subject: Re: REQUEST : statue of the God Siva coiled with Serpent
-
From: Mani Varadarajan <mani@be.com>
-
Date: 04 Nov 1996 17:15:23 -0800
-
Cc: ghen@netcom.com
-
In-Reply-To: soma@amanda.dorsai.org's message of Mon, 4 Nov 1996 19:02:01 GMT
-
References: <ghenE0D0vE.FF4@netcom.com>
soma@amanda.dorsai.org (selah*) writes:
>
> I had seen a picture somewhere showing the God Siva with a Serpent coiled
> round Him but now I can't remember where I saw it. Would anyone know a
> book that this picture might be in. Also, I was wondering what the story
> is behind this and where the story is.
>
Siva is always depicted as having a serpent
around his neck. The story is as follows.
The devas and asuras were churning the ocean
in search of the nectar of immortality. However,
they were unprepared for some of the other things
that came out of the ocean. One of the first
that came out was hala-hala, a deadly poison
that began affecting the devas and asuras.
At the devas' and asuras' request, Siva drank all
the poison to alleviate their suffering. His consort
Parvati, however, was taken aback that he had decided
to do this. So she took a snake and tied it around his
neck to prevent the poison from going down his throat.
Siva's throat, full of poison, then took on a dark-bluish
color. This is why Siva is also called 'nIlakaNTha'.
Mani
