O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Once, the demigods and demons forged an agreement to cooperatively churn the ocean of milk in order to attain the nectar of immortality. When the beautiful Mohini-murti incarnation appeared, however, She cheated the demons and delivered the nectar to the demigods. A great fight on the shore of the milk ocean ensued. Later, when Lord Siva saw Mohini-murti, even he was overcome by Her charm despite the presence of Parvati, his chaste wife.
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O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Once, the demigods and demons forged an agreement to cooperatively churn the ocean of milk in order to attain the nectar of immortality. When the beautiful Mohini-murti incarnation appeared, however, She cheated the demons and delivered the nectar to the demigods. A great fight on the shore of the milk ocean ensued. Later, when Lord Siva saw Mohini-murti, even he was overcome by Her charm despite the presence of Parvati, his chaste wife.
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Churning the Milk Ocean
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Churning the Milk Ocean
Chapter 6, 7, 8
When Ksirodakasayi Vishnu appeared, the demigods offered words of praise, stunned by the splendour of His effulgence. The Lord advised the demigods to forge a truce with the demons so they could cooperatively churn the milk ocean, from which many fascinating things would emerge. Most importantly, the nectar of immortality would be produced which would safeguard the demigods from any further problems.
The demigods thus approached Bali Maharaja, the king of demons, and everyone agreed to the proposal. They travelled to the ocean carrying Mandara mountain (as the churning rod) and the snake, Vasuki (as the rope). When they became fatigued and injured due to the sheer weight of the mountain, the Lord appeared to revive them and help transport it over.
Upon arrival, they began churning the ocean, but after some time the churning rod began sinking. To rescue the joint operation, the Lord incarnated as a tortoise named Kurma to stabilise the mountain on His back. During the churning, a deadly poison was produced which posed a threat to everyone. The Prajapatis appealed to Lord Siva, who performed the most benevolent act of consuming that poison for the protection of everyone assembled. Great personalities voluntarily accept suffering, simply to relieve the suffering of others.
The churning continued and other items appeared – a surabhi cow, a horse named Uccaihsrava, Airavata and other elephants, a gem known as Kaustubha, a parijata flower and the Apsaras, the most beautiful women in the universe. When Laksmidevi appeared, she was honoured for being the source of prosperity, abundance and grace. Since all living entities have some imperfections, she couldn’t identify an appropriate husband. The goddess of fortune eventually selected Lord Vishnu to be her master, and He offered Her an eternal place at His chest. When Varuni, the goddess of drinking, was generated, Lord Vishnu ordered the demons to accept her.
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Demigods and Demons Fight
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Demigods and Demons Fight
Chapter 10, 11
After the Lord returned to His abode, the disgruntled demons again declared war on the demigods. Headed by Bali Maharaja, they fought with renewed strength and conjured up a variety of perilous illusions. Baffled, the demigods again took shelter of the Lord, who began personally killing the demons, inspiring the demigods to fight with renewed energy.
Though on the demoniac side, Bali Maharaja, an authority on pure devotion, rebuked the demigods with spotless philosophy. Indra acknowledged his points, and fought on with greater determination. The god of heavens battled Jambhasura and his relatives, including Namuci, whom he eventually killed with a special weapon of foam. After an epic trial of arms, the demons were practically annihilated.
Taking instruction from Lord Brahma, Narada stopped the demigods from killing any more demons. The demigods returned to their abodes, while the surviving demons, along with Bali Maharaja, approached Sukracarya and were mystically revived by his yogic power.
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Land of the Gods
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Land of the Gods
“Here is proof of the omnipotence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is above everyone. There are two classes of living entities - the demons and the demigods - and the Supreme Personality of Godhead is above them both. The demons believe in the “chance” theory of creation, whereas the demigods believe in creation by the hand of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The omnipotence of the Supreme Lord is proved here, for simply with one hand He lifted Mandara Mountain, the demigods and the demons, placed them on the back of Garuda and brought them to the ocean of milk. Now, the demigods, the devotees, would immediately accept this incident, knowing that the Lord can lift anything, however heavy it might be. But although demons were also carried along with the demigods, demons, upon hearing of this incident, would say that it is mythological.” (SB 8.6.38)
This section of Srimad-Bhagavatam contains a multitude of different personalities: The Supreme Lord, a flurry of incarnations, powerful demigods, aggressive demons, and a variety of other living entities. Their interactions and conversations help us to gain clarity on the universal hierarchy that exists.
Before allowing a doctor to operate on us, we present various enquiries and conduct rigorous research. Prior to attending an educational institution, we typically investigate its track record and question its suitability. When buying a used car, we’ll ask a reliable mechanic to do some key checks beforehand. So when it comes to divine worship, the most crucial decision in our entire life, it makes sense to clarify our understanding before we surrender. Unfortunately, many people don’t. Under the misconception that “all is one,” multitudes of people begin to worship personalities as divine without any substantial basis whatsoever. The task of identifying the Supreme is made even more difficult by dubious family traditions passed down through generations, and a mishmash of so-called gurus teaching their own concocted philosophies. Add to this confusion a mind-boggling range of deities, and you have a potent formula to baffle the uninformed observer.
The Srimad-Bhagavatam, through various pastimes, thus clarifies the distinction between God, His incarnations, the demigods and general living entities. When knowledge is received through an authentic line of saintly, self-realised teachers, one gains an accurate understanding. In matters of divine worship, our convictions must be set on the firm foundation of genuine spiritual preceptors (guru), saintly authorities (sadhu) and authentic scriptures (sastra).
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Demigods (Devata)
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Land of the Gods
Demigods (Devata)
Since Krishna is busily engaged in loving pastimes with His pure devotees, He doesn’t personally supervise the workings of the material cosmos. To this end, He has subordinate controllers (demigods) whom He empowers to manage various departments of universal affairs. Pleased by their devotion and good qualities, Krishna rewards them with these responsible posts. Indra controls the rain, Vayu controls the air, Varuna the water, Vivasvan the sun, and so on. These demigods are undoubtedly powerful living beings, but they are nonetheless subordinate to Krishna: “Lord Krishna alone is the supreme controller, and all others are His servants. They dance as He makes them do so” (CC Adi 5.142) .
Although Lord Krishna can expand Himself into unlimited forms that possess His full potency, the demigods are not such expansions. Rather, the demigods, although undoubtedly powerful, belong to the category of the infinitesimal living entities, called jivas .
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God (Bhagavan)
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Land of the Gods
God (Bhagavan)
The Srimad-Bhagavatam’s paribhasa-sutra , which reveals the purpose and essential contents of the scripture, unequivocally establishes Krishna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead: “All of the above-mentioned incarnations are either plenary portions or portions of the plenary portions of the Lord, but Lord Sri Krishna is the original Personality of Godhead. All of them appear on planets whenever there is a disturbance created by the atheists. The Lord incarnates to protect the theists.” (SB 1.3.28)
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Incarnations (Avatara)
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Land of the Gods
Incarnations (Avatara)
One candle may be used to light many other candles, and each may burn with equal intensity, but that first candle always remains the original source. This is the analogy that Lord Brahma uses to explain Krishna, the original candle, and His incarnations, the subsequent candles. Incarnations of the Lord perform various functions. Often they appear to reinstate peace in the universe and create spiritual resurgence (yuga-avataras) . Other incarnations oversee aspects of material creation and maintenance (purusa-avataras) . Some incarnations of the Lord respond to the desires of the devotees and perform beautiful pastimes which enchant the living entities (lila-avataras) .
Note: in the category of incarnations there are some personalities who are not directly God. Saktyavesa-avataras , for example, are known as divinely empowered incarnations, but are often ordinary souls (jivas) who perform superhuman acts. Brahma, who is known as a guna-avatara , is actually a post taken up by an ordinary living entity (except in special circumstances). Thus, although incarnations in the strictest sense refer to the various manifestations of the Supreme Lord, Krishna, they also sometimes include living entities.
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Vedic, Vaisnava and Gaudiya
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Land of the Gods
Vedic, Vaisnava and Gaudiya
Due to the varieties of worship prescribed within the ‘Vedic house’ we find an array of practitioners who have a different focus of worship. In the modern world, the historical identifier ‘Hinduism,’ is used as an umbrella term to group together all such practitioners under one banner. Ironically, the word Hindu is itself a misnomer. It’s not mentioned anywhere in the Bhagavad-gita (the principle scripture for Hindus) or any other Vedic scripture for that matter. For conventional usage ( vyavaharika ) we may employ the term, but in the ultimate sense ( paramarthika ), followers of the Bhagavad-gita would avoid such an identifier.
Under the umbrella term of Hinduism, we have worshippers of the Goddess ( saktas ), worshippers of Siva ( saivites ), worshippers of Vishnu or Krishna ( vaisnavas ) and followers of advaita-vada , which propounds the impersonal oneness of everything ( smartas ). Despite their diverse ideologies, they all reference the Bhagavad-gita as a common book of wisdom.
Under the Vaisnava lineage, we also find four principle groups. The Vaisnava lineages descend from Laksmi, Brahma, Siva and the Four Kumaras. From these sources we find the broad traditions of the Sri sampradaya , Gaudiya sampradaya and Pusti Marg sampradaya prominent even today. Amongst all such Vaisnava lines, the Srimad-Bhagavatam, which illuminates the glories of Sri Krishna, is accepted as common.
The Gaudiya lineage, which is connected to the Brahma-Madhva sampradaya , stems from Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the 15th Century incarnation of Sri Krishna. When Krishna appeared as Sri Chaitanya, He communicated the most confidential understandings, offered the simplest means of realising such truths, and made it accessible and open to every person without any distinction. In fact, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu took two essential principles from each of the Vaisnava sampradayas , and combined and synthesised all the various teachings. In the last 500 years, various groups have emerged to represent this tradition. The most prominent is ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness), which has spread to every major town and city in the world. All Gaudiyas accept Chaitanya-Charitamrita, the authoritative biography written by Krishnadasa Kaviraja Goswami, as a common literature.
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Why do People Worship Demigods?
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Land of the Gods
Why do People Worship Demigods?
People often misunderstand the Vedic school to be a polytheistic tradition. The path of sanatana-dharma , however, is a strictly monotheistic path, though it offers a poly-cultural approach. The Vedic teachers were aware that the majority of people would not simply be searching for selfless connection with the one Supreme God, but would also have many other ‘not-so-spiritual’ desires during their sojourn in this world. Thus, different types of worship are recommended so that one can step onto the ‘spiritual ladder’ while simultaneously pursuing their material aspirations.
For example, some scriptures recommend worship of various demigods to attain wealth, health and prosperity. Such worship and practice, over a period of time, will bring the practitioner to a more refined and pure sense of spirituality, where they completely divorce themselves from worldly pursuits. They eventually arrive at the point of desiring a relationship and reciprocation with the one Supreme God.
Therefore, although strictly monotheistic, the Vedic tradition does recommend different types of worship. Unfortunately, people nowadays misinterpret all such worship to be on an equal level, asserting, quite erroneously, that all paths lead to the same destination. Other people become confused and frustrated by seeing so many varied recommendations of worship, feeling it to be contradictory and unclear. Thus, we must understand the various scriptures and their different injunctions in context of the entire body of knowledge. Only with such broad vision and integrative understanding, can one fully appreciate the ingenuity of the multi-level spirituality offered in the Vedic theology.
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Why is Demigod Worship Unintelligent?
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Land of the Gods
Why is Demigod Worship Unintelligent?
Firstly, such worshippers are often unaware that Krishna is the ultimate rewarder and controller, and the demigods are simply His agents. They fail to realise that the demigods are powerful because they are empowered by Krishna. Secondly, worshipping demigods for material things is limited and temporary. Imagine a little child, who, if offered a fluffy doll or a cheque for a million dollars, takes the furry toy, not realising that with a million dollars he could have countless playthings.
Thus, Krishna declares in no uncertain terms: “Men of small intelligence worship the demigods, and their fruits are limited and temporary. Those who worship the demigods go to the planets of the demigods, but My devotees reach My supreme abode.” ( BG 7.23 )
By worshipping Krishna, one automatically worships all other deities. We can’t water every leaf of a tree or offer food to every cell in the body. When we pour water on the root or supply food to the stomach, however, the complete tree or the entire body is satisfied. The Vedic scriptures tell us there are 33 million gods. How is it possible to satisfy them individually? We can’t even think of all those gods, what to speak of surrender to them. To separately worship each of those gods within the course of a year, we’d need to worship thousands of them every day!
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Prayers at the Milk Ocean
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Prayers at the Milk Ocean
Chapter 5
Sukadeva Goswami continued to describe the Manus – fifth was Raivata and sixth was Chaksusa. During Chaksusa Manu, the churning of the milk ocean (samudra-manthan) took place, and the Lord incarnated as the gigantic tortoise, Kurma. When Maharaja Pariksit requested further details about this incident, Sukadeva Goswami narrated the history.
Once, Durvasa Muni encountered Indra riding on his elephant and offered the demigod a garland he was wearing. Indra disrespected that garland and carelessly placed it on his elephant’s trunk, who ended up trampling all over it. Durvasa was outraged by his attitude and cursed the demigods to lose their influence and power. They were subsequently defeated in battle by the demons, and had no choice but to approach Brahma for help. The engineer of the universe took them to the shore of the milk ocean, where he began reciting a series of beautiful prayers to invoke the mercy of Lord Vishnu.
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Siva and Mohini-Murti
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
Siva and Mohini-Murti
Chapter 12
Having heard about Mohini-murti, Lord Siva journeyed to see the Lord. He first offered a series of heartfelt prayers, and then expressed his desire to behold the beautiful form of Mohini-murti. The Lord disappeared, and Siva began looking all around. Then, in a nearby forest, the Lord reappeared in the captivating form of Mohini-murti. Siva was spellbound by Her beauty and became oblivious to everything and everyone around him! He chased the beautiful form and attempted to embrace Her, though She quickly slipped away from his grip.
The Lord thus demonstrated His transcendental potency, and especially the beauty of the fair sex. Later, by the grace of the Lord, Siva became aware of what had transpired and was able to restrain himself.
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The Nectar and Mohini-Murti
O - Ocean of Milk (5-12)
The Nectar and Mohini-Murti
Chapter 8, 9
Then Dhanvantari appeared, carrying a jug of nectar. This was the moment everyone had been waiting for! The demons snatched it in a flash and ran away, but then began quarrelling about how to divide it. Meanwhile, the disheartened demigods approached Vishnu in great anxiety seeing that the plan had backfired.
To save the day, the Lord incarnated as the beautiful, exquisite, charming Mohini-murti. She became the mediator amongst the arguing demons, who all agreed to hand over the pot to Her. Disarmed by Her beauty, the captivated demons allowed her to administer the nectar to the demigods without any protest whatsoever. The only exception was the demon Rahu, who sat in line with the demigods and received some of the nectar. Though the Lord decapitated him, he remained alive due to the nectar he had drunk.
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— S.B. Keshava Swami, Book Bhagavata