Places of historical significance varnished with mythology abound in this ancient land. From the hoary past to the present, there are plenty of examples, as symbols of our ancient culture and civilisations. Some of these have been corroded by time but many still exist as testimony to our wonderful past.

The state of Bihar is typically known for its troubled socio-political history of the recent past. But this is also a land of great historical wealth. Like many other places in India, here too history is interwoven with mythology. Not many people are aware of Bihar’s Mandar Hill.  Bihar was not only in the cross roads of culture but also a place of many religions.

Bodhgaya, in Bihar, was the crucible of Buddhism where Siddhartha (born BCE 563) attained his enlightenment and became the great seer of Buddhism. This new religion swept not only India, but also Sri Lanka, Tibet, Burma, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and other countries of Southeast Asia. Buddhism also gave us Nalanda, the great seat of learning.

Similarly, Jain religion originated in the BCE 7th-CE 5th century in the Ganga basin of Eastern India; some claim its origin was in present-day Bihar. Its first tirthankara (a saviour and spiritual leader) was Rishabhanatha. The world knows widely about Mahavira but he was the 24th and the last tirthankara.

Jains believe the 12th tirthankar Vasupujyanatha attained Nirvana on the Mandar hill which is in Bhagalpur district of Bihar. Mahavira is reported to have visited this hill and there is a Jain temple on the hill as well.  According to local belief, several centuries ago a large town once existed near Mandar Hill. This town had 88 water tanks, 53 roads and 52 markets. However, this town was buried under soil thereafter.

The famous Vikramshila University was also located nearby at Patharghatta where a large number of relics of its existence have been found. A copper statue of Budhha (71 ft high) was discovered in Sultan ganj in Bhagalpur district.

Bhagalpur district is famous for its silk industry and Mandar Hill is a great pilgrimage centre for Hindus and Jains. Mythology has it that this hill was used to churn the ocean of milk to extract amrit (nectar) by the Surs (Devtas) and Asuras (Demons), and thereby hangs a wonderful tale.

Mythology has it that Devta king Indra incurred the wrath of Durvasa seer for insulting a garland given to Durvasa by Lord Shiva who in turn presented it to Indra. Indra put it on the trunk of his elephant which threw it to the ground. This was an unforgiveable insult. Durvasa cursed Indra and also all the Devtas rendering them powerless and shorn of their fortunes. In their battles with the Asuras, the Devtas lost and the Asuras took control of the Universe.

The Devtas then sought the help of Lord Vishnu who advised them to treat the Asuras in a diplomatic manner. The Devtas were also informed that the Ocean of Milk has to be churned to extract nectar which will make the Devtas immortal and victorious in their fight with Asuras.

The churning of the ocean was a tremendous job. Mandar Hill was used as the churning rod and serpent king Vasuki became its churning rope. The Demons held Vasuki by the head and the Devtas by the tail. In the process of churning, the Demons suffered from the poisonous breath of Vasuki while the Devtas saved themselves by being at the tail side. When the churning began, Mandar hill began to sink. Lord Vishnu then took the form of a turtle and the hill was placed on his back.

In the churning process, many things came up from the ocean. One was Halahala, a terrible poison from the mouth of Vasuki which no one could withstand. The Devtas approached Lord Shiva who agreed to drink it. When he drank it, his wife Parvati held him by the throat and Lord Shiva could not swallow it. His neck turned blue earning him the sobriquet of neelkantha (blue throat).

The ocean also yielded 14 gems that were divided between Surs and Asuras. Three categories of goddesses also came out. Lakshmi, the goddess of fortune accepted Vishnu as her eternal consort; apsaras (divine nymphs) who chose the demigods and Varuni who accepted the Asuras. Three types of animals also emerged: Kamdhenu, a divine cow that fulfilled all wishes and gave milk, was given to the sages, Airavata and several other elephants were taken by Indra, Uchhaishravas, the divine 7-headed horse, given to Indra; Kaustubha, the most valuable ratna, taken by Vishnu, Parijat, the divine flower tree which never wilts or loses fragrance of its flowers taken to Indraloka by the Devtas; the Moon that Lord Shiva took to adorn his head; Dhanvantari, the Vaidya of the Devtas who came carrying the pot of nectar; besides items like a Conch which Vishnu took; an umbrella which Varun took, a pair of ear-rings which was given to Indra’s mother Aditi; the Kalpabriksha tree and nidra or sloth.

It seems the Asuras were not particularly interested in these trinkets.  The real fight ensued between Surs and Asuras over the nectar. Garuda, the great bird, then flew away with the nectar pot. Vishnu took the form of a beautiful damsel and took possession of the Amrit pot and mediated between the two warring groups.  She made the Asuras agree to first make Devtas drink the amrit and then to the asuras. But one asur, RahuKetu, quietly infiltrated the ranks of the devtas but was noticed. Vinshnu used his weapon, Sudarshan Chakra, and cut off the head. But since RahuKetu had already drank the nectar, it did not die but the head remained separated from the body, the head being called Rahu and the body Ketu and they became planets.

This story ends with Devatas drinking the amrit, becoming powerful and defeating the Asuras in the battles that followed and won back the universe.

There is another sub-story attached to this. It seems when the amrit was being carried away, the carrier stopped at four places on Earth where amrit was spilled. The four places are Ujjain, Trimbak (Nasik), Prayag (Allahabad) and Hardwar where Kumbh melas take place after every twelve years. Anyone who takes bath at these places during Kumbh Mela attains salvation.

Similar stories are there in other areas, like the European medieval story of the Holy Grail or the old Norwegian story of an immortal drink jointly prepared by gods and giants together, and the gods finally drinking it.

But let’s get back to Mandar hill. On the top of this hill there are a number of very old temples dedicated to Lord Vishnu. It has the unique image in black stone of Vishnu where he in his man-lion avatar but not depicted as tearing off Hiranyakashipu. At the foot of the hill there is a tank called Manohar Kund.

Mandar hill which represents both mythology and history is certainly a place worth visiting. In the next blog, I will write about Chinnamasta Temple.