Samudra Manthana:Story of the Quest for Immortality
The Suras (Gods/good) and Asuras (Anti-god/evil) must work together to obtain the precious nectar of immortality, Amrita; in a process called Samudra Manthana or Churning of the Ocean.
(Samudra-Ocean; Manthana-churning, stirring)
The story is a story of human perseverance and the power of the human mind. It shows how devotion and doing the right thing can help you achieve your goals. It explores themes of how doing the best you can will lead you to the ultimate price – liberation and immortality.
This story has inspired hindu pilgrimages like the famous Kumbh Mela.
The Beginning of a Crisis
Indra was given a garland by the great sage Durvasa. Indra carelessly flung the garland on his elephant, Airavata, the garland slipped off the elephant’s head and fell to the ground. Airavata trampled on it. Durvasa took this as a grave insult and in his anger he cursed all the gods to lose their power. They would no longer be immortal!
Vishnu’s Strategy–Immortality
The gods go to Vishnu for help!
Vishnu devises a plan to restore the gods’ strength: the churning of the Kshira Sagara, or the Ocean of Milk, to obtain Amrita. However, the gods could not achieve this monumental feat alone, they needed help. Vishnu told the gods to team up with the Asuras for the Samudra Manthana. He said that sometimes when facing difficult situations, one has to work with the enemy!
Vishnu warned the gods not to be scared of the poison nor be greedy for the nice objects or be angry when the Asuras demand for the objects. He made it clear that while both the gods and the Asuras will contribute, only the gods will have access to the Amrita.
Thus begins the process of Samudra Manthana, a grueling and complex task that required not just physical strength but also tested mental endurance.
Getting Ready To Churn
The gods and Asuras set to work, but the challenges are immense. They need a couple of things to start with:
- A massive plunger to stir the massive ocean – Mount Mandara would be used as the plunger. But it was nearly impossible to transport because of how big it was! Vishnu placed the mountain on the back of Garuda, the mighty eagle, who transported it to the ocean.
- A rope to turn the mountain. Vasuki, the king of serpents, was chosen as the rope. The gods and asuras wound Vasuki around the mountain and held onto a side. At first, the Asuras hold onto the tail end but they feel that holding the tail end was insulting so they insist on holding Vasuki’s head, Vishnu reaily agrees.
Samudra Manthana Begins, Vishnu Helps
First, all sorts of herbs, grass, creepers and plants were flung into the Kshira Sagara (Ocean of Milk).
The gods and asuras start to pull, the mountain started to turn but soon with no support to hold it in place, it sank into the water. Everyone was disheartened. Again, Vishnu came to their rescue. In order to remove the obstacle, Vishnu took the form of Kurma or the Tortoise, got into the water and held up the mountain on his back, which was as wide as a giant island.
The Gods and Asuras continued to churn.
All throughout the process, Vishnu supported them in different forms:
- He helped them increase their strength and energy by enhancing their individual qualities.
- He supported the mountain from above by holding on to it with his hands.
He did everything to help the Gods, Asuras and Naga to succeed.
Yet Another Hiccup!
The gods and asuras were beginning to make progress with the churning, but soon they faced yet another hiccup.
The Naga Vasuki was a giant, magnificent serpent, he had one thousand eyes and mouths and because of his efforts, fire and smoke started to come out of his mouth. The fumes irritated the gods and asuras, making them tired and unable to perform well.
Yet again, Vishnu came to their rescue. He made it rain, which helped clear the smoke and helped the gods and asuras to go back to churning the ocean vigorously.
Shiva Drinks the Poison Kalakuta
One of the first things to come out of the ocean during the churning was the deadly poison Kalakuta. The poison gushed out of the ocean and spread everywhere, threatening to destroy the world.
The people went to Kailasa, and asked Shiva for help. Shiva saw how much everyone was suffering, the people had come to him seeking freedom from fear and to be saved. He was compassionate towards their situation, he didn’t hesitate to help the people. He consulted with his consort, Sati, after which, he scooped the poison up in the palm of his hands, brought it to his mouth and drank it. The poison reacted, making his throat blue, which he wore like a badge of honor, like an ornament that celebrated his virtues.
When Shiva was drinking the poison, a tiny bit of it trickled down his palm. Various creatures like scorpions, poisonous snakes, reptiles and plants consumed it.
With the threat of the poison gone, the gods and asuras continued to churn.
Treasures of Samudra Manthana
Soon, the divine cow Surabhi appeared from the ocean. The rishis (learned men) accepted this as they could use the milk from the cow to produce ghee to use for performing rites.
Next, A white horse appeared. This horse was named Ucchaishrava. King Bali took it.
Then came the elephant Airavata, which was taken by Indra.
Eight more elephants appeared. These were called Diggajas and they stood guard in eight different directions.
Two jewels named Koustubha and Padmaraga appeared. Vishnu took them and wore them on his chest.
Next, the all-giving tree Parijata appeared, and the gods took it.
Apsaras appeared next and they too went to the gods.
The extremely beautiful and graceful Lakshmi, the goddess of prosperity appeared. Everyone wanted her and they tried to woo her with all kinds of riches, but she refused them all because she believed that they were lacking in one way or another.
Lakshmi chose Vishnu because not only did he have all the good qualities, he also did not desire her. He had no greed. Vishnu accepted her and placed her in his chest. She brought good fortune to all the gods and the gods celebrated.
The asuras were less than happy. So when the goddess of wine, Varuni, appeared next, they accepted her.
The Asuras Get The Amrita!
And finally, the moment they were all waiting for.
Dhanvantari, the originator of Ayurveda came out of the ocean. He was a handsome young man, dressed in rich clothes and jewelry, and with a pot in his hands. Unfortunately for the gods, the Asuras were quicker and they snatched the pot away from Dhanvantari’s hands.
The Asuras were now in possession of Amrita, the nectar that would give them the power of immortality. Disappointed and disheartened, the gods turned to Vishnu. Vishnu told them not to worry. Vishnu decided to use the power of illusion or Maya against the Asuras.
Pretty soon, not only were there disagreement between the gods and the asuras about how the amrita should be shared, there was conflict between the asuras themselves.
- The gods tried to reason with the asuras that since the amrita was obtained as a result of everyone’s effort all parties involved deserved a share in it. However, the Asuras were greedy and they did not want to share.
- There was a lot of infighting amongst the Asuras as the stronger Asuras did not want to share the amrita with the weaker Asuras.
Vishnu as Mohini Takes Amrita From Asuras
Vishnu took the form of a beautiful woman, named Mohini.
Mohini was extremely attractive and when the gods and asuras saw her they could not take their eyes off of her. The Asuras chatted with her, they were completely charmed and bewitched by her. After some friendly banter, the Asuras decided that the beautiful Mohini would be the best person to distribute the amrita, because it must be fate that brought her to them when they were in the middle of a fight with their own people.
At first, Mohini teasingly warned them that they shouldn’t trust her, the Asuras laughed thinking she was joking and insisted that she must do it. So, Mohini told them she would do it but only if they accept her decision without complaints, the asuras agreed. Mohini graciously accepted the precious pot of amrita from them.
Mohini, kept the Asuras distracted by continuing to charm them. She instructed the gods and asuras to sit in separate rows. She fed the Asuras sweet words whilst feeding the gods amrita. Before the Asuras could realize what was happening, Mohini distributed the amrita to the gods.
The Asuras got none of the amritha. But because they had promised Mohini that they would accept her decision, and because they did not want to fight a woman whom they had so much affection and respect for, they said nothing and quietly accepted their fate.
Asura Steals Amrita, Gets Decapitated, Becomes Rahu
The sun god and moon god were watching as Mohini distributed the amrita and to their amazement, they saw an Asura named Svarbhanu disguise himself like a god and sit in the god’s row.
Mohini, unaware of this deception, served him the amrita along with the other gods.
Just as Svarbhanu began to drink the amrita, the sun god and moon god alerted the other gods about the deception. Vishnu immediately whipped out his chakra and sent it spinning towards Svarbhanu, chopping his head right off his body.
Interestingly, because Svarbhanu had started to consume the amrita, his head became immortal, his body however, wasn’t touched by the amrita and it died. Brahma gave him the status of a shadow planet.
Even as a planet, he held on to his grudge against the moon and sun for ratting him out and he attacked them every chance he got in the form of eclipses. He was the only asura who got to consume the amrita, even if it was just a little.
(In vedic astrology Rahu is a shadow planet. It is the north node or the point of intersection where the moon and earth’s paths intersect)
The End.
This is how only the gods received the power of immortality.
The gods and asuras had the same objective and they followed the same path or way to reach that objective, in the end however, only the gods, who were guided by Vishnu, obtained the fruits of their labor. The Asuras, blinded by their greed, intolerance and infighting, were left with nothing.
This is the story of Samudra Manthana.
References:
The Bhagavata Purana 2, translated by Bibek Debroy, Penguin Random House India.