| Sages,Rushis & Saints |
 |
| Biographies of Great Indians & Hindus |
AGASTHYA |
|
| A Great
Seer Who Stabilized the Earth Lord Ishwara's marriage! And the marriage was to be celebrated on the Himalayas, the home of the bride Parvathi. Agasthya, too, was invited. All the gods, rakshasas and other superhuman beings assembled there. All the monarchs and emperors of the earth and the great rishis were there, too. All of a sudden the earth began to wobble. The world moved from side to side like a swing. The mountains began sinking, the oceans were in a turmoil. Everybody thought that the end of the world had come. The gods sought refuge in Ishwara, "0 Lord of Lords, save us from this peril." Lord Ishwara calmly said, "You have come to see the marriage of Parvathi. All of you are in one place. So the weight of the entire world rests on the Himalayas in the north. There must be something at the southern end to balance I this weight. Then the earth will regain stability and calm will return. Agasthya alone can do this, none else." He called the great sage Agasthya, and said, "You have to go to the south at once. By the power of your tapas (meditation and prayer) bring back the world to its normal state." Agasthya was very sad. He had come with great devotion to witness the pomp and splendor of the marriage of Uma and Maheshwara. But alas, he could not be there for that auspicious occasion. Maheshwara understood the sadness of Agasthya. He said, "0 Sage, duty comes first. Be the means of doing well to the world. You want to see our marriage, do you not? Whenever you think of us Parvathi and I will appear before you. Do not be troubled, go." Agasthya was supremely happy at the gracious words of Maheshwara; he bowed to Parvathi and Parameshwara and left the place. So Agasthya went to the south. He sat on the top of a mountain to perform tapas. By his holy power he made the earth stable again. The marriage of Parvathi and Parameshwara was celebrated with great pomp and splendor. The whole world rejoiced and praised Agasthya. |
|
