Kaam Mohit Rishi and Devtaa

In my last Blog I mentioned that there were many great Rishi who had a desire to have family and sometimes they did "what not" to marry and have children. In Hindu religious literature Kaam (carnal desire) tops every other desire which can affect not even very great Muni and Yogee but also Devtaa. In the beginning there are some examples of Devtaa and later are the examples of Rishi....

(1) Brihaspati and Utathya
Maharshi Angiraa had three sons - Brihaspati, Utathya and Samvart. Dev Guru Brihaspati had two wives - Shubh and Taaraa. Utathya's wife's name was Mamataa. Once Brihaspati took Utathya's wife Mamataa. Mamataa was pregnant with Utathya's son at that time. As Brihaspati wanted to enter her, the child in the womb spoke - "Do not try to put another child here, there is no place for two." But Brihaspati did not listen to him and put his own child in Mamataa's womb. At this Utathya's child kicked him out and thus Brihaspati's son was born. Since Brihaspati's son was born by being kicked out, Brihaspati said - "Let him be cherished as Bharadwaaj." and cursed Utathya's son - "You be born in perpetual darkness." So Utathya's son was born blind and was thus named Deerghtamaa (Deergh means long, and Tamaa means darkness)


(2) Chandramaa and Brihaspati
This is the most known story of Devtaa's love story.  Dev Guru Brihaspati had three wives - Shubh, Taaraa and Mamataa. Once Chandramaa saw Taaraa and got attracted towards her. He abducted her. Brihaspati asked him to return his wife several times but he did not listen to him. Then Brahmaa Jee had to intervene and ask Chandramaa to return Taaraa to her husband Brihaspati. But at that time she was pregnant with Chandramaa's child. When the time came Taaraa gave birth to a shiny boy. Seeing the shiny child both Chandramaa and Brihaspati  claimed him as their own child. Brahmaa Jee asked Taaraa - "Whose child it is?" But Taaraa kept quiet. Then Brahmaa Jee took her in private and asked her whose child it was. She replied that it was Chandramaa's. Brahmaa Jee named him Budh as he was very intelligent and gave it to Chandramaa.

(3) Chandramaa's Son Abhimanyu
In Mahaabhaarat, Abhimanyu was Chandramaa's son. When Chandramaa's was asked to send his son to Prithvi to aid Krishn Avataar, first he plainly refused that he would not send his son to suffer there. Later when he was forced to do so, he sent him on the condition that his son would not stsy there for long. As he would complete his 16 years, he would come back to hi. Beside he would be such a warrior that he should be remembered till the Mahaabhaarat war will be remembered.

(4) Soorya's Son Karn and Indra's Son Arjun
Everybody knows about Karn and Arjun. How both Soorya Dev and Indra Dev were after one another to save their own son, that they did not hesitate even to kill each others son for that matter.

(5) Indra and Ahalyaa
This story is also very famous, as how Indra got attracted to Ahalyaa and got cursed. When Brahmaa Jee created Ahalyaa taking the parts of all beautiful things of the world, he himself got attracted to her and as she went around the Dev Sabhaa, to see her he created his four faces. Indra also got attracted to her but waited to whom Brahmaa will give her. Brahmaa Jee could not think of any so he gave her to Gautam Rishi because he had won his all Indriyaan. Ahalyaa started serving Muni and later Brahmaa Jee gave her to him permanently and married her to him.

But Indra did not forget her. He was still after her. Once he planned to deceive Gautam Rishi, he asked Moon to help him. The Moon agreed. He took the form of a cock and crowed before time. Gautam Rishi thought that it was morning so he went to Gangaa River to do his daily chores. After the Muni left, Indra came assuming the form of Gautam Rishi and enjoyed with Ahalyaa. Although Ahalyaa got surprised to see her husband back so early with complied with her husband's request. When Indra was going out, Muni had come back. She got frightened to see him and asked for his forgiveness as she was not aware of Indra's deceit. But Muni cursed bothe of them - Ahalyaa to be a stone, and Indra to have 1,000 vagina marks on his body. Ahalyaa was freed from the curse by Raam's touch and Indra pleased Shiv who changed those marks in eyes. From that day he came to be known as Sahstraaksh (with 1,000 eyes).

(6) Maharshi Paraashar
Muni Paraashar got attracted to Satyavatee, the daughter of Daashraaj, while crossing Yamunaa River in her boat. As result he produced a son from her named Krishn Dwaipaayan who was popularly known as Ved Vyaas. He was on an island. Pleased with her he bestowed her a boon of sweet fragrance also which came out of her body and used to spread miles together around her. Before meeting Sage Paraashar she used to smell like a fish. After that he went away.

(7) Maharshi Saubhari
Maharshi Saubhari was great Rishi. Although he did not get attracted seeing any woman, but he was attracted seeing the enjoyment of a male fish with his female fish and his children in the water where he was taking his bath. This attraction led to a desire in his heart to marry and have children; so he went to Raajaa Maandhaataa to ask for his any one daughter to marry him. Raajaa Maandhaataa had 50 daughters, but he could not marry anyone to him, because he was old, nor he could refuse him because of the fear of his curse, so he said to him - "I regard my daughters very much, so I respect their selection too. If anyone would agree to marry you I don't have any objection." Saubhari Rishi then asked him to send him in his inner apartments. He reluctantly sent him inside. When Saubhari Rishi went inside, he changed himself into an attractive youth. Seeing that youth, King's all daughters wanted to marry him.

In a little while he got the news from his servants that his all 50 daughters wanted to marry him. He got very surprised to hear this, but what he could do, so he married all of them to him. He lived with them in most luxurious ways. Later, when he had got hundreds of children and grandchildren he got Vairaagya and he went to forest, though his all wives also went with him.

(8) Maharshi Richeek
Another name comes is of Maharshi Richeek, father of Maharshi Jamadagni and the grandfather of Parashuraam, who got attracted to Satyavatee, Raajaa Gaadhi's daughter and Vishwaamitra's sister. Raajaa Gaadhi did not want to marry his daughter to Richeek Muni so he told him a condition that if the Muni wanted to marry his daughter, he had to bring 1,000 horses with one of their ears black and another one white. Richeek Rishi understood, so he went to Varun Dev and brought such horses and married Satyavatee.

(9) Maharshi Vishwaamitra
Everybody knows Maharshi Vishwaamitra that how he was lured by Menakaa Apsaraa to spend some time with her. When he was doing Tapasyaa to get the status of Brahmarshi, Indra sent Menakaa to disturb his Tap. She managed to stay with him for 10 years and produced a daughter from him named Shakuntalaa who was brought up by Kanva Rishi and he later married her to King Dushyant.

(10) Rishi Vibhaandak
Another name is of Rishi Vibhaandak, whose son was Rishi Rishyashring. Once he was engaged in Tapasyaa. One day as he was washing his face in waters that he saw Urvashee Apsaraa and his semen fell into the water. A she-deer who was drinking water from the river, drank it with water and gave birth to Rishi Rishyashring. In fact she was the daughter of a Devtaa and was cursed to be born as a she-deer on Prithvi. On asking when she would be freed from the curse, Brahmaa Jee said - "You will be free from this curse when you will give birth to a child of a Rishi." Rishi Vibhaandak was so fond of his son Rishyashring that he did not allow him to mix with the world for long time. Later King Rompaad got him somehow in his kingdom to have rains and then married his daughter Shaantaa to him. Later he got four sons - Raam, Lakshman, Bharat and Shatrughn, for King Dasharath.

(11) Maharshi Ved Vyaas
We don't hear anything about the marriage of Ved Vyaas, still he had four well-known sons - Dhritraashtra and Paandu from Vichitraveerya's widows, Vidur from their maid, and Shuk Dev Jee. Although he produced the first three sons for somebody else, still he used to take care of them time to time.  Shuk Dev was his own son. According to Bhaagvat Puraan, when Shuk Dev Jee set off to go to forest, Vyaas Jee ran after him calling him - "Shuk Dev, My Son, Where are you going?" This is son's love (or should it be called Moh?)

These are some stories of Devtaa and Rishi who either wanted to marry to fulfill their desire or to have children and loved them dearly.

Sushma Gupta
www.sushmajee.com