Timeless - Collection of Indian Short Stories

CHURNING OF THE OCEANS

It was the time when Devas ruled Indra Lok in the skies, and Asuras ruled Patal Lok beneath the feet.

Indra Lok was brimming with prosperity and wealth. Indra, the king of the Devas, had become blinded with arrogance and vain.

So much so that, when the revered Sage Durvasa visited his abode with a garland of flowers, Indra placed the garland over his elephant, who dropped it to the ground and trampled on it with his feet.

The Sage burst with anger, at the disrespectful and mocking behavior of the King.

'Pompous King," he bellowed, "all this opulence underserved by you shall disappear in the oceans!"

Cursing Indra, he stormed out.

Indra laughed, but soon enough all the wealth, prosperity and pleasures from Indra Lok disappeared into the ocean of milk, the Kshira Sagar, leaving the Devas weak and vulnerable.

The Asuras, taking advantage of the curse, began fighting wars with the Devas, attempting to capture Indra Lok.

The Devas, exasperated with their current condition, visited the great Lord Vishnu. They prayed that he help them with a remedy to bring back what was theirs and free them from their miseries.

The great Lord informed them that the only solution to their predicament, was to churn the oceans and bring out the elixir, the Amrit, which would end all their woes. But since this was an arduous task they would need to befriend the Asuras and seek their help.

Lord Vishnu however, promised that the Amrit would only be distributed amongst the Devas.

The Devas, though humiliated with the solution, did not have any reason to oppose. They called upon the Asuras, requesting their help to churn the oceans. The Asuras demanded that if they churned the oceans, they should get a part of the Amrit too, to which the Devas reluctantly agreed.

As per Lord Vishnu's directions, the laborious task of Samudra Manthan, that is churning of the oceans, was initiated. The Devas and Asuras proceeded to carry the enormous mountain Mandar towards Kshira Sagar, to place it as the churning rod. However, due to its weight, they gave up midway, requesting the King of birds, Garuda, to carry it on his wings for the rest of the way.

Vasuki, the King of snakes, was promised a part of the sweet Amrit too, and hence he agreed to be the rope that would be used to rotate the mountain.

The Devas and Asuras thus stood near the head and tail of Vasuki respectively, to begin churning the oceans.

The whole world waited as this was the first time the Devas and Asuras would work in tandem, towards a common goal.

Just before beginning to churn, the Asuras began to complain, and argue about why they were given to hold the grand snake's tail. The Devas complied, exchanging positions with the Asuras, holding the great serpent's tail instead, while the Asuras held its head.

The churning began, and continued for a great amount of time, that couldn't be measured.

However, with the passage of time, the mountain slipped inside the ocean, bit by bit. The Devas and Asuras stopped to churn, ruminating over this new affair.

They prayed again to Lord Vishnu, who took birth on earth in the Avatar of a Tortoise, Kurma.

The Lord then placed the huge mountain over his back, carrying its weight. As the churning continued, the Lord described the feeling as being scratched lightly on his back.

After some churning, poisonous fumes began to emanate from the nostrils of the Serpent, entering the bodies of the Asuras, causing them to question their reason for asking to hold the great snake's head.