THE STORY OF ORIGIN OF MARS AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE IN OUR LIVES

Once upon a time when Andhak Asura was given his drishti (vision) by Shiva after he had repented and learnt from his mistakes, he approached Shiva and Parvati to stay in Mount Kailash. On learning this Indra got in-secured and asked one of the devotees of Shiva to ask Shiva to teach him (devotee), the dance of Tandav for the benefit of the world. The aim of Indra was that with this Tandav, the energy produced will kill Andhak. However, the dance of Shiva and Parvati produced a child who was named Lohitang representing one whose ang i.e. limbs were as solid as Loh (iron). Subsequently, Andhak asked for this child for the benefit of Asuras and was blessed with it. But on return to Asur loka, Andhak’s mind got corrupted by collective conscience of Asur Loka and he began filling the mind of Lohitang with negativity against Devas and Tridev especially Shiva for which Andhak played many wicked games to invoke hatred for Shiva in the mind of Lohitang. Despite the fact that initially Lohtang was reluctant in learning the art of weaponry and combat as being part of Shiva, he had a spiritual bent of mind, Andhak pushed him to learn it by killing himself in the hands of Shiva. This finally invoked hatred in the mind of Lohitang against Shiva and the feeling of revenge.

*** It is Lohitang only which was subsequently named as Mangal (Mars in English) by Shiva. In simple scientific terms, mars represent voltage which generates movement and it is movement only which creates anything thereby moving our life to provide learnings. At spiritual level, Mars facilitates movement in the hard disc of Maya (illusionary world) that we all are sitting in. Thus Mars is essential for furtherance of life and evolution of the soul even though initially it creates struggles. 

This story is going on in our life all the time. We all start from a single source (the beginning of life is triggered by Mars) but because of collective conscience we begin losing the connection with the higher world and get totally absorbed in Asuric activity of over indulgence (Remember that in our body the lower chakras needed for sex, food and indulgence represent Asura loka and are essential for survival but the problem comes when they forget to work in coordination with upper chakras which represent Deva loka in our body. Hence initially we tend to spend Mars (i.e. energy) only in Asuric activity). So, Mars is essential for progression of life but the problem comes when due to overindulgence in Asuric activities, we lose connection with divine (higher chakras) and start considering our sufferings as Gods doing and blame him/her for the chaos not realizing that God gave us Mars to enter a timeline (in Maya) to enjoy life and not cause destruction (self and collective). However, this is also true that it is only through Mars that the soul learns to differentiate between good and bad through the experience of sufferings and bliss. The arrival of Andhak in Kailash and birth and movement of Mars towards Asura loka is also an ongoing phenomenon in us when due to our sufferings and penance, we go inwards and then move out with more strength and strategy (facilitated by part of Shiva i.e. Mars). And then when we fail again, we again move back to Kailash.

Story of Mars is incomplete without the mention of Shankhchoor who was an Asura that decided to help Lohitang in the battle against Devas including Tridev as like Lohitang, he too used to hate Devas. In one of his previous lifetimes Shankhchoor was a childhood friend and devotee of Lord Krishna by the name of Sudama (Sridama) who was very poor. In that lifetime he was cursed to be born as an Asura due to inflated ego due to which he had not even allowed Radha (the lover of Krishna) to meet Krishna. In this life as an Asura, he was married to Tulsi, another devotee of Lord Vishnu who ensures that her husband wears a rosary of holy basil seeds as this gave protection to Shankhchoor’s life even though Shankhchoor dismisses it as a mere superstition but wears it out of sheer respect for her wife. However, when Shankhchoor decides to go to war against Devas and Tridev, he is challenged by Vishnu to remove that rosary post which he is killed by Shiva.

Here Shankhchoor represents a person who is strong but also high on ego (pitta in Ayurvedic terms). So loud on pitta that his voice itself can crush even a conch (Shankh). His previous lifetime represents that conscience which had learnt other virtues of Krishna but refused to understand and appreciate love due to inflated ego (which is what poverty of Sudama meant) because of which he had to be born as an Asura. The aim of his next life was to get rid of that ego too which he did when he was killed by Lord Shiva (as low Pitta/inward looking kills ego). On hearing this, Tulsi, the wife of Shankhchoor cursed lord Vishnu to become a stone (pashan) though subsequently she repents when she learns that this was for the liberation of her husband. Basically, the stone state represents the death/stillness of VPK (Vishnu) that suspends life thereby liberating one from the lower realms.

Story of Mars also mentions of an Asura called Nigus who was a great devotee of Shiva to the extent of obsession. So much so that he swallowed Lord Vishnu (during his sleeping state during chaturmass when Lord Vishnu is supposed to feed the Asura loka). The sole Aim of Nigus in doing so  was to make Shiva, the strongest of all the Gods (tridev). This act of Nigus was provoked by Mars as Mars knew the intricate connection between Tridev (which Nigus didn’t know) and by swallowing Vishnu, Mars wanted to weaken Trideva. Here, Nigus represents that Asuric conscience inside us who is obsessed with knowledge (Shiva who represents the highly condensed dot of knowledge) and whose aim is go to inwards to collect knowledge. However, such a conscience doesn’t realize that knowledge alone will not help if it is not regulated and continuously practiced (representing the energy of Lord Vishnu- who regulates and administers the world outside and inside us). Its only then can one’s Brahma (brahmand/Universe)  expand which is one of the Tridev apart from Shiva and Vishnu. In other words, one’s focus should be on all Tridevas and its foolishness to consider one superior to another.