shiva tandava

Tandava story

The son of sage Vishrawas and the demon princess Kaikesi, known as Dashaanana, the ten headed one, was once flying over the great Himalaya mountains in his airborne chariot, Pushpaka. The aircraft could be willed to move in any direction as chosen by its rider. The young and proud Dashaanana tested its capabilities by willing it to ascend higher and higher, much above the tallest mountain peaks, and he was delighted as the vehicle obeyed his mind and continually rose. Abruptly, however, the motion of Pushpaka was stalled. The aircraft would move neither upward nor forward. It was as though an invisible barrier held it from going ahead.

Dashaanana willed the chariot to descend at the foot of the mountain beyond which his plane refused to travel and he alighted to examine what prevented its further motion. He beheld a large lake, north of which was the mountain. Moving closer, the ten headed one observed some activity around the mountain. At its base was a gate, attended to by a strange looking being. He could not make out from the distance what being it was and he mockingly called out to it saying, "Monkey! Tell me why my chariot is not able to cross this mountain aerially. What holds it back?"

His callousness and ignorance angered the gatekeeper, who was actually a bull called Nandi. "Foolish raakshasa! For your slight of monkeys, may your lands be burnt by one. This is Kailasa, the abode of the Great Lord Siva. Do you not know of Him, ignorant as you are? There is nothing above Him in this world and, therefore, your silly vehicle cannot cross His abode. Turn back and return to where you came from, demon."

Dashaanana laughed out loud. "Of course I know Siva. I worship Him. But even He cannot stop me from traveling over this world, my own world. Does He not know I am Dashaanana, the ten headed? Does He not know that I am the ruler of the world? The gods all bow down to me and do my bidding. Surely Siva must acknowledge my superiority too. Instead, He chooses to block my path. Let me uproot this very mountain on which He dwells."

Dashaanana pushed Nandi away and dug his hands into the snow at the base of the mountain. Reaching for the roots of the mountain, with an enormous groan, the ten headed raakshasa lifted up that entire mountain. He pushed it up and heaved it on his great shoulders, much to the shock of Nandi. The demon was mindful to manage a smirk on his face, despite the enormous effort it took him to bear the weight of the whole mountain.

Atop the mountain, Siva and His consort, Parvati, felt a quake and Parvati expressed Her fright to Siva. The Destroyer smiled reassuringly at Her and pressed the surface of the mountain down with His big toe. Just that small pressure from the Great God, Mahadeva, pinned the mountain back down, crushing Dashaanana's arms beneath it. The demon let out a terrifying howl of pain- a howl that was magnified by the mountains, as though each peak relayed his agony with increased intensity. It appeared as though his cry echoed across the whole world, wringing the hearts of all its inhabitants. He tugged hard but was unable to release his arms from beneath the crushing weight of Mount Kailasa. He cried in pain and with eyes filled with tears of pain and desperation, looked beseechingly at Nandi. A few more of Siva's attendants had gathered to see what was happening. They all advised Dashaanana to sing hymns in praise of Siva to appease Him.

The mighty raakshasa inhaled deeply, as though gathering all his pain, and when he released his breath, he began singing. In that abject state of pain, Dashaanana composed powerful, moving hymns, in waves of resounding beauty.

"Lord with forest thick matted hair,

With graceful snakes as throat garlands,

Thump thump thump beats Your drum,

Dance Taandava to grant us grace,

Lord with river from Your thick hair,

With brightest fires on Your brow,

And a crescent moon on Your head,

I bow deeply down to Thee,

Lord of the mountain's daughter Parvati,

With an ever compassionate eye,

In whose control these worlds all are,

My mind seeks You everywhere,

Lord who burnt even Manmathan,

With one arrow razed the Tri Puras

Destroyer of the demon Andhaka,

Release me from bonds of the world,

Lord who destroys destruction

With sweetness destroys all evil

Controlling even mighty Yama

I pray to Thee and sing Thy name,

Lord who is eternally felicitous,

With equal love for one and all,

Folding hands above my heads I come,

When, Guru Siva, will I be at peace?"

And Siva appeared.

"Rise, o Dashaanana! Be freed from the weight you foolishly ventured to bear. Rise, o ten headed one, rise!"

Dashaanana found his hands released from the pinning burden of the Mountain. He fell at Siva's feet. "Pardon my arrogance, Mahadeva, for I am yet a fool."

"Your devotion in the face of adversity is worthy of the highest praise, ten headed one. May you be known henceforth as Raavana. He of the terrible cry. Rise, Raavana and behold your reward."

The Destroyer produced a long, thin, curved sword, forged of brilliant, white metal.

"This is My Chandrahaasa blade. I gift it to you in acknowledgement of your faith in Me. Be warned that it is not to touch the ground at any time, nor used on an enemy unjustly. Should it, and it shall return to Me immediately. Use it well."

Raavana accepted the Chandrahaasa- literally, moon smile- blade and touched it to his forehead as a mark of respect. He bowed again to Siva, and the God disappeared.

The hymns composed by Raavana are known collectively as the Siva Taandava Stotram, with each line comprising of sixteen syllables.

This was the story of Dashaanana the ten headed being given the name Raavana by the Destroyer Himself. I shall be back soon with another story to tell. The story of the fulfillment of Sati's promise to Siva...