Subramanyam Shashti 1950
Margashirsha Shukla Shashti: Lord Kartikeya's victory over Tarakasura and Surapadman
Sunrise: 07:46:39 AM.
Sunset: 05:06:11 PM.
About Subramanyam Shashti
Subramanyam Shashti
From the Skanda Purana
The asura Taraka had won great power through penance, and Brahma had said that he would be killed by an infant. When Taraka heard the heavenly bards singing the praise of the young Kumara, who is Subramanya, he remembered those words and grew afraid. His ministers laughed. "What fear can we have from an infant?" they said. The war drums were beaten, and huge armies of asuras gathered.
At first the asuras drove back the gods with mountains and iron weapons, until Indra rallied them, pointing to Skanda as their protector. Taraka himself swept through the gods with ease. Vishnu warned them that he could not be overcome before sunset.
Taraka mocked Kumara for being a child. Kumara answered that even small things can be mighty, and with his spear, his shakti, he shattered Taraka's chariot and destroyed great numbers of asuras. Yet when Vishnu urged him to strike Taraka down, Kumara held back. "My arm will not throw the shakti to kill a devotee of Rudra," he said. Vishnu replied that a true devotee of Rudra is merciful, and Taraka, who tormented every living being, was no true devotee.
Taraka broke Shiva's own chariot and defeated the gods one after another. As the sun drew near to setting, a voice from the sky spoke to Kumara: if he felt the sin of such a killing, he could wash it away by repenting and installing a linga of Shiva. Kumara embraced Vishnu, and together they turned on Taraka.
Then a shining goddess, Taraka's own Shakti, came out of him. She said she had been won by great penance, but now the store of his good deeds was used up, and she left him. Taraka lost all his strength. Kumara hurled his shakti, saying, "By the power of this truth, let this Daitya be destroyed." It pierced Taraka's heart and came back to Kumara's hand, and Taraka fell dead.
The whole universe rejoiced, and gentle breezes blew. Kumara's shakti then pierced the Krauncha mountain and killed the asura Bana who was hiding there, and the gods celebrated with music and dance.
Another story
This is the story told at the Kukke Subramanya temple in Karnataka, which the temple tradition places in the Skanda Purana.
After defeating Taraka and the other asuras, Subramanya came to Kumara Parvata, the hill above Kukke, and there he married Devasena, the daughter of Indra.
At the same place, the great serpent Vasuki, a devotee of Shiva, was doing long penance in the caves to escape the attacks of Garuda. As Shiva willed, Subramanya appeared before Vasuki and gave him his protection, and promised to stay there with him forever. That is why, at Kukke, Subramanya is worshipped in the form of a serpent.
रुद्रस्य सूनुं सुरलोकनाथं ब्रह्मण्यदेवं शरणं प्रपद्ये ॥ 1 ॥
जाज्वल्यमानं सुरवृन्दवन्द्यं कुमार धारातट मन्दिरस्थम् ।
कन्दर्परूपं कमनीयगात्रं ब्रह्मण्यदेवं शरणं प्रपद्ये ॥ 2 ॥
द्विषड्भुजं द्वादशदिव्यनेत्रं त्रयीतनुं शूलमसी [शूलमसिं] दधानम् ।
शेषावतारं कमनीयरूपं ब्रह्मण्यदेवं शरणं प्रपद्ये ॥ 3 ॥
सुरारिघोराहवशोभमानं सुरोत्तमं शक्तिधरं कुमारम् ।
सुधार शक्त्यायुध शोभिहस्तं ब्रह्मण्यदेवं शरणं प्रपद्ये ॥ 4 ॥
इष्टार्थसिद्धिप्रदमीशपुत्रं इष्टान्नदं [मिष्टान्नदं] भूसुरकामधेनुम् ।
गङ्गोद्भवं सर्वजनानुकूलं ब्रह्मण्यदेवं शरणं प्रपद्ये ॥ 5 ॥
यः श्लोकपञ्चमिदं [श्लोकपञ्चकमिदं] पठतीह भक्त्या
ब्रह्मण्यदेव विनिवेशित मानसः सन् ।
प्राप्नोति भोगमखिलं भुवि यद्यदिष्टम्
अन्ते स गच्छति मुदा गुहसाम्यमेव ॥
rudrasya sūnuṃ suralokanāthaṃ brahmaṇyadevaṃ śaraṇaṃ prapadye || 1 ||
jājvalyamānaṃ suravṛndavandyaṃ kumāra dhārātaṭa mandirastham |
kandarparūpaṃ kamanīyagātraṃ brahmaṇyadevaṃ śaraṇaṃ prapadye || 2 ||
dviṣaḍbhujaṃ dvādaśadivyanetraṃ trayītanuṃ śūlamasī [śūlamasiṃ] dadhānam |
śeṣāvatāraṃ kamanīyarūpaṃ brahmaṇyadevaṃ śaraṇaṃ prapadye || 3 ||
surārighorāhavaśobhamānaṃ surottamaṃ śaktidharaṃ kumāram |
sudhāra śaktyāyudha śobhihastaṃ brahmaṇyadevaṃ śaraṇaṃ prapadye || 4 ||
iṣṭārthasiddhipradamīśaputraṃ iṣṭānnadaṃ [miṣṭānnadaṃ] bhūsurakāmadhenum |
gaṅgodbhavaṃ sarvajanānukūlaṃ brahmaṇyadevaṃ śaraṇaṃ prapadye || 5 ||
yaḥ ślokapañcamidaṃ [ślokapañcakamidaṃ] paṭhatīha bhaktyā
brahmaṇyadeva viniveśita mānasaḥ san |
prāpnoti bhogamakhilaṃ bhuvi yadyadiṣṭam
ante sa gacchati mudā guhasāmyameva ||
भवाप्पित्तप्लुष्टानमितकरुणाजीवनवशात् ।
अवन्तं भक्तानामुदयकरमम्भोधर इति
प्रमोदादावासं व्यतनुत मयूरोऽस्य सविधे ॥ 1 ॥
सुब्रह्मण्यो यो भवेज्ज्ञानशक्त्या
सिद्धं तस्मिन्देवसेनापतित्वम् ।
इत्थं शक्तिं देवसेनापतित्वं
सुब्रह्मण्यो बिभ्रदेष व्यनक्ति ॥ 2 ॥
पक्षोऽनिर्वचनीयो दक्षिण इति धियमशेषजनतायाः ।
जनयति बर्ही दक्षिणनिर्वचनायोग्यपक्षयुक्तोऽयम् ॥ 3 ॥
यः पक्षमनिर्वचनं याति समवलम्ब्य दृश्यते तेन ।
ब्रह्म परात्परममलं सुब्रह्मण्याभिधं परं ज्योतिः ॥ 4 ॥
षण्मुखं हसन्मुखं सुखाम्बुराशिखेलनं
सन्मुनीन्द्रसेव्यमानपादपङ्कजं सदा ।
मन्मथादिशत्रुवर्गनाशकं कृपाम्बुधिं
मन्महे मुदा हृदि प्रपन्नकल्पभूरुहम् ॥ 5 ॥
इति जगद्गुरु शृङ्गेरीपीठाधिप श्रीचन्द्रशेखरभारती श्रीपादैः विरचिता श्रीषण्मुखपञ्चरत्नस्तुतिः
bhavāppittapluṣṭānamitakaruṇājīvanavaśāt |
avantaṃ bhaktānāmudayakaramambhodhara iti
pramodādāvāsaṃ vyatanuta mayūro'sya savidhe || 1 ||
subrahmaṇyo yo bhavejjñānaśaktyā
siddhaṃ tasmindevasenāpatitvam |
itthaṃ śaktiṃ devasenāpatitvaṃ
subrahmaṇyo bibhradeṣa vyanakti || 2 ||
pakṣo'nirvacanīyo dakṣiṇa iti dhiyamaśeṣajanatāyāḥ |
janayati barhī dakṣiṇanirvacanāyogyapakṣayukto'yam || 3 ||
yaḥ pakṣamanirvacanaṃ yāti samavalambya dṛśyate tena |
brahma parātparamamalaṃ subrahmaṇyābhidhaṃ paraṃ jyotiḥ || 4 ||
ṣaṇmukhaṃ hasanmukhaṃ sukhāmburāśikhelanaṃ
sanmunīndrasevyamānapādapaṅkajaṃ sadā |
manmathādiśatruvargaṇāśakaṃ kṛpāmbudhiṃ
manmahe mudā hṛdi prapannakalpabhūruham || 5 ||
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