Lord Shiva in Murthuveerappapuram

1. The birth of Lord Shiva

          Shiva is also referred to as Swayambhu (meaning ‘self-existing’) because he was not born from the womb of a woman. There is an interesting story behind the birth of Lord Shiva.

One day, Brahma and Vishnu were arguing about each other’s predominance and importance in the universe. As the debate was on, a mysterious pillar appeared in front of them. Both of them could not understand what the pillar was and wondered if there exists any other supreme power than them.

They decided to unravel the mystery of the mighty pillar. Lord Brahma transformed into a goose and flew upward to find the apex of the pillar while Lord Vishnu transformed into a boar and dug the ground to find the root.

However, they could find neither and came back to the place from where they started only to witness the emergence of Lord Shiva from the pillar. It made them accept the fact that Lord Shiva was the supreme power. It is one of the best stories of Lord Shiva.

2. Marriage of Shiva and Parvati

It is a story of divine love. The reincarnation of goddess Gauridevi as Parvati and her strong desire to marry Lord Shiva is an example of eternal love.

The ruler of Himalaya, Himavatha, and his wife Menaka were ardent followers of Lord Shiva and wished for a daughter who could marry the deity. For this, Menaka performs a three-day long penance to appease goddess Gauridevi, the first wife of Lord Shiva. The goddess promises Menaka to take birth as their daughter and jumps into the fire to be reincarnated as Parvati. This leaves Shiva heart-broken and he goes into a long penance to mourn the loss of his beloved wife.

One day, sage Narada visits the kingdom of Himavatha to see the baby and forecasts that she will marry Lord Shiva. As Parvati grows, she spends day and night praying for Shiva.

Appeased by Parvati’s devotion, Shiva decides to test her by disguising himself as a Brahmin. He tells her not to marry a person who is poor and devoid of a materialistic life. However, Parvati says firmly, “I would marry none other than Shiva.”

The pleasing answer makes Shiva come back to his original form and acknowledge the marriage proposal. Thus he gets back his wife in the form of Parvati. The story of their marriage is one of the most famous stories of Shiva.