Ganesh Chaturthi - Story of the Syamantaka gem The story behind this story... Ganesha Chaturthi (or Vinayak Chaturthi or Vinayak Chaviti) is a major festival in India. It is celebrated with great pomp, austerity, love and sincerity. The festival also was a rallying point for the Indians against the British rule. Among the different aspects of the festival, there is a saying that on the Ganesh Chaturthi day, one should not see the moon, else one will face false allegations in the coming year. The story behind that belief is set in Indian mythology (Sadly, that is what the ancient, powerful and insightful Indian metaphors have been labelled as) and is very interesting. The story also provides a solution as to how one can redeem oneself of that ‘curse’. The story outlined below is read out at every Hindu home in India during Ganesha Chaturthi. The lessons and insights in the story are profound for all. Like all other Hindu mythological stories, this story too is metaphorical and is used as a mode to communicate many lessons of life. I have taken a few liberties and made use of my poetic/ dramatic license in picturing dialogues for the story. Whenever I am asked to narrate this story on Ganesha Chaturthi, this is how I do it! The spirit has been retained nevertheless. Lord Krishna is downcast... One day, the celestial wandering sage, Narada, arrived at the kingdom of Ugrasena where Lord Krishna was staying. With the intent of having a Darshan of his Lord, he entered the sanctum. Whichever room the Lord decides to reside becomes the sanctum sanctorum right? When he went in, to his great shock, he found the Lord of the universe in a downcast mood! Approaching him, Narada asked, Lord! What is it that is bothering you so much that the eternal smile on your face seems to have faded away? Share it with this humble servant of yours... Krishna looked up at Narada and A weak smile broke out on his face. What shall I say Narada? The events of the past few days have been intriguing and perplexing at the same time. I do not seem to understand what is happening. Oh my god! Lord, if you speak in this manner in spite of being omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient, then what should be the fate of ordinary people? Please divulge what happened. I know that this is all part of your drama but I would like to play my role to perfection. The Lord of the Universe seemed forlorn and downcast... The Lord of the Universe seemed forlorn and downcast... Krishnas story When Narada implored him thus, Krishna began his elaborate response. You definitely are familiar with the name Satrajit. He is a nobleman in one of our subsidiary kingdoms. More importantly, he is an ardent devotee of Surya, the Sun God. Pleased with his devotion and worship, Surya appeared before him and presented him with the unmatched Syamantaka gem. “Ah! That gem which multiplies wealth and provides the owner with several measures of gold daily?” “Exactly the same Narada! The brilliance of the jewel is such that on one occasion, when Satrajit came to visit me at Mathura, people mistook him for the Sun God, Surya!” “They cannot be blamed my Lord”, said Narada, “when often, the celestials do come down on earth to meet you.” “Ah yes Narada! See, today the celestial sage has come to meet me.” “Do not pull my legs Krishna. It is my privilege to be in your presence today. Please continue your narrative.” “The jewel was producing about 170 pounds of gold every day. Besides that, it is learned from Vedic literature that in whatever part of the world this jewel is worshiped there is no possibility of famine. I felt that such a gem should be owned by the monarch so that the whole world could benefit. I made that request to him. But Satrajit refused and installed the jewel in a personal temple to be worshiped by brahmanas (priests) whom he engaged for this purpose.” Narada could not contain himself. He said, “This is an instance of a less intelligent person worshiping the creation instead of the creator. Satrajit missed a golden opportunity. Instead of offering everything to the divine, he chose to go against the divine for the sake of worldly riches.” Krishna agreed and said, “He was very proud of the gem. Not only did he wear and flaunt it around, he also made his younger brother Prasena to flaunt it around his neck. One day, Prasena decided to wear the gem when he went hunting. Unfortunately, a big lion attacked him, killing both him and the horse on which he was riding, and took away the jewel to his cave. This lion thought it was its lucky day when it saw a bear nearby. The arrogance that the gem offered made the lion attack this bear who was none other than Jambavan. Jamabavan, the mighty wrestler bear-king, easily killed that lion and took the jewel away to his cave.” At this point, Narada interrupted, “You mean our dear Jambavan? The great devotee who helped you in your previous avatar (incarnation) as Lord Rama in the war against the wicked Ravana?” “The very same Narada. Since he is a great devotee of the Lord, he did not care much for the gem as such. He only wanted to present it to his baby son as a toy. And that is what he did. In the meanwhile, news that Prasena is missing spread like wildfire and Satrajit began to propagate the gossip that I killed Prasena to steal the Syamantaka gem!” “Hari Hari! What a sin! Casting aspersions on anyone without proper investigation is a sin. What then to say about doing such a thing against the Lord himself!”, said a shocked Narada. “Well Narada. There is a secret about this world. As far as God is concerned, if you are good, it is enough. But as far as the world is concerned, along with being good, you must appear good as well. Thus, I decided to set out in search of the Syamantaka gem. It was not only to clear the allegations but also to transform the heart of Satrajit. I set out with a band of soldiers. Soon I came upon Prasena’s corpse. The pug marks nearby led me to the lion’s carcass. Following the prints from there, I reached the cave of Jambavan where I saw his little son playing with the gem. His eldest daughter too was there and thinking of me as an intruder, she let out a shriek.” “My Lord! Jambavan is very attached to his daughter. Her shriek must have angered him?” “Indeed it did. He instantly believed that an intruder was home and came charging towards me.” “Krishna! Did he not recognize you as his dear Lord Rama? How could he charge on you?” “Ah! That is the point Narada. Attachment and anger blind a person. Even though Jambavan had loyally served me during the Rama Avatar, he was blind to my reality. But even that is a part of the Masterplan Narada...” The two mighty warriors lock in combat... The two mighty warriors lock in combat... “Am now confused”, said Narada, “ as to how this could be part of the Masterplan.” “After the victorious war against Ravana, I, in my Rama form, was conferring boons to all the monkeys, bears and other creatures that had helped me in my war effort. At that time, Jambavan expressed a strange desire. He said that he wanted a wrestling match with me! I told him that my circumstances at that time did not permit me to wrestle a bear. But I promised him that I would certainly fulfill his wish.” “What planning! So you wrestled Jambavan then?” “Yes! For 28 days non-stop,without break for food, water or rest at the end of which Jambavan was completely fatigued. He knew that only his Lord Rama has the capacity to beat him in wrestling and so, he immediately fell at my feet to seek pardon. I told him that I was just fulfilling his own desire.” Narada quipped in, “Many times, we desire so many things from God. When we look back at those desires, we feel so foolish. It is best to leave everything to the Lord. Surrender to God with the feeling that whatever happens is for the best.” “He wanted me to accept the hand of his daughter, Jambavati, in marriage and I blessed him as per his desire again. I returned to the kingdom and when Satrajit came to know of the truth, he was ashamed of what he had done. He gave the gem to me to hand it over to the monarch, Ugrasena. ‘Let it be used for world benefit’ he said. He too offered his daughter, Satyabhama, in marriage to me as a token of his repentance and respect.” Jambavan offers his daughter Jambavati to Lord Krishna. Jambavan offers his daughter Jambavati to Lord Krishna. The Ganesha connection... “So now, the gem is with emperor Ugrasena.” “Yes Narada. Whatever one has, one must utilize it for world benefit. That is why we are taught to always pray Samastha Lokaha Sukhino Bhavantu.” “All is well that ends well my Lord! Why then are you still dejected?” “Narada, I am feeling a bit low wondering why all this had to happen in the first place...” “Another of your Divine dramas? I shall play along my Lord. Don’t you know the story of Lord Ganesha and the moon?” “Tell me about it Narada...” “As you wish Krishna. On the 4th day of the Bhadrapad month, Lord Ganesha was returning to his abode on his vehicle, the mouse. He had been fed well by his devotees. Seeing this sight of the huge Lord on a tiny mouse, the moon in the sky began to laugh aloud. He was vain about his splendor and beauty and thus he laughed. Little did he know that all his splendor was only a ‘reflection’ of the Sun God. In order to teach the vain moon a lesson, Lord Ganesha cursed that no light ever fall on him again. Thus, the moon had no light and disappeared from the skies.” “Be it the moon or any other being, if he/she forgets that source, they get plunged into the darkness of ignorance. What happened next Narada?” “The moon repented and sought pardon from Lord Ganesha. All the other beings of the world too pleaded on his behalf to Ganesha and the Lord acceded. However, once a curse is pronounced, it cannot be taken back, even by God. It can only be modified. Thus we are advised to be careful about our speech in everyday life. Lord Ganesha modified the curse and said that the moon would undergo regular waxing and waning to remind him to be humble. He also added that anyone seeing him on the 4th day (Chaturthi) of the Bhadrapada month would face blame and unjust criticism.” Lord Ganesha curses the vain moon... Lord Ganesha curses the vain moon... The phases of the moon are believed to be due the curse of Lord Ganesha The phases of the moon are believed to be due the curse of Lord Ganesha Krishnas redeeming boon to all mankind “Oh! Now I remember”, exclaimed Krishna, “I happened to see the faint reflection of the moon in a pot of milk on precisely the same day you mention. Do you think that would have caused this kind of baseless allegations?” “Definitely my Lord. When you take a human form, you choose to adhere to all the Dharma of mortals. Just imagine, if you had to face such a daunting task because of seeing the reflection of the moon, what will be the plight of mortals who commit this mistake.” At this, Lord Krishna granted a boon to all mankind, “Narada, hereby I state this. Anyone, who hears the story of how I redeemed myself of the curse after seeing the moon on Ganesha Chaturthi day, will be freed of the curse themselves.” And now that you have read this story, you are all “moon-sight” proofed! :)
Posted on: Fri, 29 Aug 2014 13:41:12 +0000
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