Devas may live in swarga, but they too are prone to loss of strength and death like any other creature.
It came to pass that the Devas grew weaker and weaker since the Daityas had managed to stop the offerings made to them by the people on earth. Narayan to whom Devas went complaining advised them to churn the ocean to produce amrit, a drop or two of which would restore each of them to their pristine health. The churning was a huge task, He warned, which they won’t be able to perform without seeking the help of their arch-rivals, the Daityas, who were after all, their half-brothers.
When Devas approached Daityas, the latter were quick to see the advantage of helping out their weakened adversaries. The issue settled amicably, they decided with Narayan’s counsel to use Mount Mandrachal as a churning spindle.The two parties exerted themselves to lift it and carry it to the shores of the ocean.The craggy mountain proved too heavy and bothersome for them to handle. They not only failed to do so, but hurt themselves grievously in the process. Some of them were even crushed to death. But one healing look of Narayan and they all turned as hale and hearty as ever. In the next instant, Narayan transported the hoard of Devas, Daityas and Mount Mandachal to the shores. Vasuki Naga agreed after a little persuasion to allow his body to be used as a churning rope.
The real problem arose then.As soon as they dipped the Mandrachal into the ocean, it started sinking down and down, pulling both the Devas and Daityas with it. Narayan then plunged into the deep. Assuming the form of a tortoise – Kashyap Avatar – He bore the immense burden on His back. If there were no firm base to support the spindle, there would not have been any churning.
Ancients Speak
Suman K Sharma
We come acrossfive elements in this story. One, the unruffled ocean, that holds in its womb fulfilment of the wildest of desires of devas and daityas; two,amrit, that both the contesting parties need, but cannot have until they exert themselves in opposite directions to churn the ocean; three, Mount Mandrachal, that is used as a churner; four the serpent Vasuki which makes it possible for the two parties to stir up the ocean; and five, Narayan, the be-all and end-all of the whole operation.
Rid of the metaphorical patina, the unruffled ocean can be interpreted as the statis in the society where one group is denying the other of its rightful share of sustenance, the amrit is the universal promise of advancement of one’s interests, Mount Mandrachal is the will to attain the objective, Vasuki is the force that is applied by either side to stir up the society and Narayan is the intelligentsia that lead the herd.
Did our ancestors foresee the turmoil that injustice in the society may bring to the modern world? Or, were they also confronted with the same issues that brought about great revolutions in the last two centuries? Closer home, we have the instance of the 1857 Freedom Movement.
The British had cast off their garb of traders and were out to grab the thrones of maharajas and nabobs. The Indian royalty in turn were concerned mainly to protect their own feudatories. Both the sides used the Indian peasantry as their force. But we lost to the Goras because our princes did not have a Narayan – someone who had the depth of perception to see the situation in its entirety and the charisma as well toput up a unified front again the alien usurpers. In the end, the Goras got all the power while the native feudal lords were left to regale in mere pomp and show.
At a personal level as well, there are times when we have to subject ourselves to a thorough churning. But while doing so, it is important to keep in mind the lessons of Samudra Manthan.
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