Shiva's Pastimes

Brahma said

Having given his daughter to Hara by the norms, Daksha gave her a dowry of various things and many riches to brahmanas, extremely happy. Vishnu, with Kamala, he who has Garuda on his banner, rose and approached Shambhu and said with joined hands: "Lord of the gods, Mahadeva, ocean of compassion, father of the universe, Sati is the mother of everything. In your play you always take avataras for the welfare of the virtuous and to chastise the crooked; so say the eternal shrutis. Hara, she is dark blue like gentle collyrium, and with Dakshayani's radiance you have become even more resplendent. You are the opposite of Padma and me. Protect gods, humans and the virtuous with Sati. Shambhu, let everything be auspicious for those in samsara. Lord of beings, if anyone looks at her, or hears of her, with eyes of desire, my request is that you kill that person." Parameshvara laughed. The all-knowing one told Madhusudana it would be so. Hari went to his abode, and I stayed. Keeping the matter secret I arranged the festivities. I approached Sati and had all the grihya-sutra practices performed and the prescribed fire rites observed in detail. By my instructions as preceptor and those of the brahmanas, Shiva and Shivaa happily circled the fire. There were great festivities, singing, dancing and music.

Then something extraordinary happened, and I will tell you. Shambhu's maya cannot be understood; it confounds the universe, gods, asuras, humans and all things moving and unmoving. I had earlier wished to delude Shambhu by deceit, and now in his play Shankara deluded me. If a person tries to harm another it is he who is harmed; so it is held that a man should not harm another. As Sati circled the fire, her two feet showed below her garment and I saw them. Desire overcame my mind and I looked at her limbs. Confounded by Shiva's maya, the more eagerly I looked at Sati's beautiful limbs the more desire afflicted me. With my heart overwhelmed I wished to see her face, but ashamed before Shambhu she did not show it, and I could not see it for her bashfulness. I thought of a way, and in my affliction thought of strong smoke. I flung heaps of wet kindling into the fire; with little ghee and a lot of wet wood, swirls of smoke arose and covered every direction, and there was darkness around the altar. Parameshvara Mahesha plays in many ways; suffering from the smoke he covered his eyes with his hands. At that I lifted her garment and looked at Sati's face. I was suffering desire inside, looked again and again, lost control of myself, and my senses whirled. As I looked, my semen quickly oozed out. Four drops like snowflakes fell on the ground. I was silent but suddenly scared and astounded, and covered the semen so that nobody would see. But with his divine sight Bhagavan Shambhu knew, and enraged that the semen had come out he said:

Rudra said

Why have you done this reprehensible and contemptible sin? At the time of my marriage you looked at my beloved's face with eyes of desire. You thought Shankara would never know. Vidhatri, nothing in the three worlds is unknown to me. How could this stay secret? Foolish one, as oil is in sesame seeds, I am in everything in the three worlds, moving and unmoving.

Brahma said

He loved Vishnu, and saying this he remembered Vishnu's words. To kill Brahma, Shankara raised his trident. When Shambhu raised it, Marichi and the others cried out in lamentation. Shankara blazed and the gods and all the sages, afraid, praised him: "Divine Mahadeva, you are affectionate to those who seek refuge, lord of protectors. Maheshvara, save Brahma and show him compassion. You are held to be the father of the universe and Sati the mother. Lord of gods, Hari, Brahma and all the rest are your servants. Your pastimes are extraordinary, your maya wonderful; except for your devotee, everyone is confounded by it." Maheshvara was still enraged. The anxious gods and sages praised him in many ways. Frightened, Daksha came quickly before the lord of beings, raised his hands and said, "Don't. Please don't." Maheshvara glanced at Daksha, remembered Hari's words and answered harshly: "Prajapati, I pledged to do what my devotee Vishnu asked. He said, 'Lord, anyone who looks at Sati with eyes of desire must be killed by you.' Those words cannot be falsified and I must kill Vidhatri. Why did Brahma look at Sati with desire? He has also committed a crime by releasing his semen. So I must kill him." Mahesha said this in wrath, and everyone, gods, sages and humans, trembled, with great cries of lament everywhere. I had wanted to delude him and was myself confounded.

Vishnu, whom Mahesha loves and who judges well what must be done, bowed to Rudra and praised him in many hymns, as a devotee Shankara cherishes. He stepped quickly in front and held him back with these words: "Lord of beings, do not kill Vidhatri. He is the maker of the universe and has come to you for shelter, and you are kind to those who do. I am among your most loved devotees, called their king; hear what is in my mind and be gracious to me. There is a weightier reason too. The four-faced one was brought forth to create beings, and if the creator is slain there will be none like him. The three of us are Shiva's own forms, and at your command each of us performs creation, preservation or dissolution again and again. If he is killed, who will do your work? Lord of dissolution, spare the creator. It was he, for your sake, who found the way for Shivaa to be born as Daksha's daughter Sati." Mahesha heard the plea and, firm in his vows, answered loudly so that everyone could hear: "Vishnu, husband of Rama, I love you as I love my life. My son, do not hinder me from killing this wretch. I will keep the very pledge you asked of me. The four-faced one has sinned gravely and is wicked, and I will kill him. I shall create every being, moving and still, myself, or else make another creator out of my own energy. Brahma must die for my pledge to hold. I will make another creator! Do not stop me."

Achyuta smiled to himself at Girisha's words and held him back again: "You are Purusha, and it is fitting that you keep your word. But think, Isha: no one can slay his own self. The three of us are portions of your atman, not other than you; we share one form and are not separate. Consider the truth of that." Shambhu listened to his great favourite and, to draw out his teaching, answered: "Vishnu, lord of my devotees, how can Vidhatri be part of my atman? He stands plainly before us as someone different." He spoke so in front of everyone in order to instruct. The one with Garuda on his banner replied, to please Mahadeva: "Sadashiva, Brahma is not other than you, nor you than him, nor I than you, Parameshvara. You know everything, yet you wish to hear it from my mouth. On your command I will speak; let the gods and sages hear Shiva's tattva and hold it in mind. We three are but small parts of the one blazing whole. Who are you, who am I, who is Brahma? You are the paramatman. We are three separate parts for the sake of creation, preservation and destruction. Contemplating yourself within your own atman, in play, you took these forms. The brahman is one, and we three are its parts with qualities, as one body has a head, a neck and other members. Hara, we three are the limbs of Isha. You are the dazzling radiance in your own abode, ancient, hidden, unmanifest, infinite in form and eternal, beyond any high-sounding epithet. All of this is Shiva." Mahadeva was extremely pleased by these words and did not kill me.