Stories of the Brahma Purana Part-XII

**Story of Nageshvara**

In the ancient city of Pratishthana, King Shurasena and Queen, after many efforts, were blessed with a son. However, to their astonishment and distress, their son was born in the form of a snake. Determined to keep this a secret, they raised the snake prince in utmost secrecy, not revealing his true nature even to their ministers and priests.

As the snake prince grew, a miraculous development occurred; he began to speak like a human despite his serpentine form. King Shurasena recognized the need for his son's education and arranged for him to receive instruction in the Vedas. Once educated, the snake prince, named Nageshvara, expressed his concern to his father. He feared the consequences of remaining unmarried and childless, believing it would lead to his damnation.

Despite his unconventional form, Nageshvara insisted on getting married. He proposed various methods, including kidnapping a princess for marriage, as he couldn't imagine a princess willingly marrying a snake.

King Shurasena, not disclosing the true nature of his son, decided it was time to find a suitable bride for Nageshvara. He summoned his ministers and entrusted them with the task of arranging his son's marriage, declaring Nageshvara as his heir-apparent and expressing his intention to retire to the forest.

One of the aged ministers suggested a match with Princess Bhogavati, the beautiful daughter of King Vijaya in the eastern part of the kingdom. King Vijaya had eight sons and one daughter, and he agreed to the proposal brought by the minister, which stated that Bhogavati would be married to Nageshvara's sword due to private reasons preventing Nageshvara's physical presence.

The marriage ceremony took place without Nageshvara's personal attendance. However, after the marriage, Nageshvara's mother sent a maid to reveal the truth about Nageshvara's form to Bhogavati and observe her reaction. The maid informed Bhogavati that her husband was a god with the appearance of a snake.

Remarkably, Bhogavati accepted this revelation with grace and gratitude, believing herself fortunate to be married to a divine being, regardless of his form. She displayed unwavering devotion and faith.

When Nageshvara and Bhogavati met, they both experienced a profound sense of recognition. They recalled their previous lives - Nageshvara had been a snake companion of Lord Shiva, and Bhogavati had been his wife. They remembered an incident where they both laughed at a joke made by Parvati, which had displeased Shiva and led to Nageshvara's curse to be born on Earth as a snake.

Now that they remembered their past, they knew that bathing in the sacred Goutami Ganga River would end Nageshvara's curse. As they immersed themselves in the holy waters, Nageshvara underwent a miraculous transformation, regaining a handsome and divine form. Bhogavati and Nageshvara, reunited and blessed, ruled over Pratishthana after King Shurasena's death.

Upon their deaths, Nageshvara and Bhogavati returned to the divine abode of Kailasa to live with Lord Shiva. Grateful for the divine intervention that had brought them together and granted Nageshvara his true form, they built a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva on the banks of the Goutami Ganga. This temple became renowned as a sacred tirtha known as Nagatirtha, where devotees worshiped Lord Shiva and celebrated the love story of Nageshvara and Bhogavati, reminding all of the power of devotion and divine grace.

**Story of Brahma's heads**

In ancient times, a fierce war raged between the gods and the demons, resulting in the gods' defeat. Seeking guidance, the gods turned to Lord Brahma, who advised them to pray to Lord Shiva for assistance. Responding to their plea, Shiva engaged in battle with the demons and succeeded in driving them out of heaven and Mount Sumeru.

During this intense battle, the exertion caused Shiva to sweat, and wherever his sweatdrops fell upon the ground, fearsome ogresses known as matris emerged. These matris actively joined the fight against the demons, relentlessly pursuing them into the underworld. The gods, led by Brahma, awaited the matris on the banks of the river Goutami Ganga, which later became known as Pratishthana. Upon the matris' return to Earth, they settled along the Goutami Ganga, creating a sacred tirtha known as matritirtha.

However, an unusual predicament arose when Brahma's fifth head, shaped like a donkey's head, started encouraging the demons to return and continue the battle. This contradiction puzzled the gods, who turned to Lord Vishnu for a solution. Vishnu explained that cutting off Brahma's fifth head would resolve the issue but cautioned that the severed head, when falling to Earth, would bring destruction. He advised the gods to seek Shiva's guidance.

Upon the gods' request, Shiva agreed to sever Brahma's fifth head. However, the problem of where to place the severed head remained. Both the earth and the ocean refused to bear it. As a solution, Shiva chose to bear the head himself. The place where Shiva severed Brahma's fifth head became known as rudratirtha.

Following this incident, Brahma retained only four heads and was known as Chaturmukha (meaning "four-faced"). A temple dedicated to Brahma was constructed on the banks of the Goutami Ganga, becoming a sacred place called brahmatirtha. Interestingly, visiting this temple granted pardon for the sin of killing a brahmana (a priest or learned person). 

**Story of the hunter**

In a tranquil forest, there lived a sage named Veda who devoted his days to praying to Lord Shiva. His prayers were a daily ritual that extended until the afternoon. After completing his prayers, Veda would visit nearby villages to beg for alms, a humble and customary practice of sustenance for many ascetics.

Simultaneously, in the same forest, a hunter by the name of Bhilla followed his daily routine of hunting in the afternoons. Following his hunts, Bhilla would approach a sacred linga (image) of Lord Shiva and offer whatever game he had captured as an offering to the deity. In the process, he often moved aside Veda's offerings to place his own. Remarkably, Lord Shiva was deeply moved by Bhilla's sincere offerings and eagerly awaited them each day.

Veda, however, remained unaware of Bhilla's daily offerings. He noticed that his own offerings were frequently disturbed, and a portion of meat was left beside them. Since these events occurred during Veda's absence while begging for alms, he was puzzled and decided to wait in concealment to catch the mysterious offender.

On the day Veda hid to observe, Bhilla arrived as usual to present his offerings to Lord Shiva. Astonishingly, Lord Shiva appeared before Bhilla and inquired about his tardiness, expressing eagerness for his arrival. Witnessing this divine interaction, Veda was baffled and disheartened. He approached Lord Shiva and voiced his frustration, questioning why the hunter received divine attention when he, Veda, had been performing austerities for years without such divine encounters. Veda even threatened to break the linga with a stone.

In response, Lord Shiva calmly invited Veda to proceed with his actions, but requested that he wait until the following day.

The following day, Veda returned to the linga to present his offerings, and to his surprise, he found traces of blood on top of the deity's linga. Veda meticulously cleaned away the bloodstains and continued his prayers.

Shortly after, Bhilla arrived to make his offerings and also discovered traces of blood on the linga. Troubled, he believed that his actions had inadvertently caused this bloodshed and began punishing himself by piercing his own body repeatedly with a sharp arrow as an act of penance.

Lord Shiva appeared before both Veda and Bhilla and elucidated the profound difference between their approaches. Veda had been engaged in ritualistic offerings, while Bhilla had offered his very soul with true devotion. The bloodstains were symbolic of Bhilla's profound sacrifice and unwavering devotion, which had touched the heart of Lord Shiva.

In acknowledgment of Bhilla's sincere devotion, the place where he used to pray to Lord Shiva became a revered tirtha known as Bhillatirtha.