Do you know Yoga is a byproduct of Shiva-Parvati's lovestory?

- Kirti Tarang Pande

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Originally published on Daily Bhaskar

In his Sanskrit epic poem ‘Kumar Sambhav’, dramatist Kalidas writes;

“Tatha Vitham Prempatishtadarsh”

Love like Parvati & husband like Shiva, these are both beyond our reach.

Kalidas wasn’t being verbose here, in Hindu mythology it is believed that in Kailash Parvat, Shiva & Parvati began the ecstatic dance of mystic love, ‘I’, ‘you’, ‘he’, ‘she’, ‘we’, all these distinctions stop existing.

This mystic dance is Yoga that creates the divine union. After all the classic definition of Yoga says:

“Yujyate anena iti yogah”

One that joins is yoga.

That’s what I am sharing with you today, the mythological story of the cosmic union of Shiva & Parvati?

However, like every story of Hindu mythology, this one has a back story.

Let’s ruffle the pages of another Indian epic, Gita, for this-

To elucidate the concept of ‘detached action’ to Arjuna, Krishna gives example of Shiva as the Param Yogi- he has reached a state that’s beyond Karmic cycle. He has the ability to destroy entire shristi (the universe) without taking any negative karma upon him.

That’s where Krishna opens a love-window through which we can peep into Shiva’s love story; which can be summed up in two sentences:

It was Shiva’s love for Sati that made him a Yogi. It was Shiva’s love for Parvati that made him the Adi-Guru of Yoga.

That’s why in yogic tradition it is believed that if one worships only Shiva & ignores Shakti, the person remains confined in the trappings of maya- the illusion of subject-object duality.

To overcome this hurdle, ancient sages recommend Bhakti Yoga Marg- a path of complete surrender to Shiva & Shakti.

In the incarnation of Sati, Shakti was married to Shiva.

Shiva has emerged from cosmic sound. He took the form of an ascetic. And then, one day he falls in love with Sati. This love, however we try to describe, the description sounds lacking. How can we describe something that’s beyond our experiential field? So, let’s call this love an ocean, whose depth we know not of & move on.

In an unforeseen way, Sati dies (that’s another story, let’s touch it another day). This death tore off Shiva. He became a madman, choosing annihilation. But how does one slay something that was never born? So, the universe bore the brunt of Shiva’s grief, in the form of destruction.

Even that couldn’t liberate him from his grief. So Shiva embraced silence and turned within. It led to a miraculous expansion in Shiva from which Yoga was born.

Thus, Yoga was Shiva’s internal journey of transforming grief into a permanent state of ecstasy.

This closes Chapter one of Shiva’s love story.

Let’s jump to the page where Parvati, another incarnation of Shakti, touched Shiva through her tapas.

On the night of their union Shiva taught Parvati 84 yogic asanas before taking her as his consort into Tantra.

That night out of his love of Parvati, Shiva became the Adi-Guru of Yoga & Parvati became his first student.

This is the reason why, when we take Deeksha of Yoga in Vedic Parampara, the first teaching that we receive from our Guru is this Mangal Sholka:

“Shri Adinath Namastu Tasmay Yenopdishta Hathyogvidya|

Vibhrajate Prannatrajyogmarodumichoradhirohireev||”

Meaning: Salutations to Shiva who’s instructor of Hathayoga vidya to Parvati which shines bright like a ladder for one desirous to climb to the heights of the most excellent Rajayoga.

Shiva’s teachings to Parvati bear such intimacy & indulgence that if you read the sholkas, it will create innumerable bubbles of love in your heart. Each sholka starts with ‘O the Resplendent one’, ‘O the Beautiful one’, ‘O the Graceful one’.

Shiva was so smitten by Parvati that he never bothered to share this Yogic knowledge with anyone else. Parvati, however, the symbol of feminine nurturing energy, couldn’t bear the idea of being in a state of permanent ecstasy when there was so much misery in the three worlds.

So she asked Shiva, cajoled Shiva into teaching Yoga to us mortals. He had no interest in doing so.

Parvati, the cosmic mother, was too resilient to give up. One day, she approached this topic as a woman, when Shiva was with her as a man, and said that she understands why Shiva is reluctant to teach. It’s too difficult. He can’t do it.

The reverse psychology worked! Shiva took Sapt rishis as his first batch of disciples. Through Sapt Rishis came a lineage of 18 siddhas. These 18 siddhas imparted the divine knowledge to us earthlings.

Disclaimer: Stories from Hindu mythology are metaphors depicting Cosmic Reality beyond experiential existence. They should not be approached with a mind that’s caged in human limitations.  

References: Kumar Sambhav, Devi Bhagwat, Shiv Mahapuran, Hath Yoga Pradipika, Gita