Bhargava Markandeya (Sanskrit: मार्कण्डेयIAST: Mārkaṇḍeya) is an ancient rishi (sage) born in the clan of Bhrigu Rishi (Bhargava Brahmins Community). The Markandeya Purana especially, comprises a dialogue between Markandeya and a sage called Jaimini, and a number of chapters in the Bhagavata Purana are dedicated to his conversations and prayers.[1] He is also mentioned in the Mahabharata. Markandeya is venerated within all mainstream Hindu traditions.
Today, Markandeya Tirtha, where the sage Markandeya wrote the Markandeya Purana is situated on a trekking route to the Yamunotri Shrine in the Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand.[2]
One legend relates the story of how Shiva protected Markandeya from the clutches of death, personified as Yama.
The great sage Mrikandu rishi and his wife Marudmati worshipped Shiva and sought from him the boon of begetting a son. As a result, he was given the choice of either a righteous son, but with a short life on earth or a child of low intelligence but with a long life. Mrikandu rishi chose the former, and was blessed with Markandeya, an exemplary son, destined to die at the age of 12.
Markandeya grew up to be a great devotee of Shiva and on the day of his destined death he continued his worship of Shiva in his aniconic form of Shivalingam. The messengers of Yama, the god of death were unable to take away his life because of his great devotion and continual worship of Shiva. Yama then came in person to take away Markandeya's life, and sprung his noose around the young sage's neck. By accident or fate the noose mistakenly landed around the Shivalingam, and out of it, Shiva emerged in all his fury attacking Yama for his act of aggression. After defeating Yama in battle to the point of death, Shiva then revived him, under the condition that the devout youth would live forever. For this act, Shiva was thereafter also known as Kalantaka ("Ender of Death").
This event, it is said, took place on the bank of river Gomati in Kaithi, Varanasi. An ancient temple Markandeya Mahadeva Temple is made on this site. It's the place where river Ganga and river Gomati merge so being a Sangam area, its sacredness increases. Alternatively, another story states that this event happened in Kerala, at the site of Triprangode Siva Temple where the Markandeya ran up to the Shiva Linga at the temple to escape from Yama. A source also claims that this incident took place at the Parli Vaijnath Jyotirlinga in Beed district of Maharashtra.
As sourced from Sati Purana, a secret portion of Markandeya Purana, Goddess Parvati also gave him a boon to write a text on veera charitra (Brave character) on her, the text is famously known as Durga Saptashati, a valuable portion in Markandeya Purana.[3] The place is known as Yamkeshwar.
Though Shaivaites and many serials show this story of Shiva rescuing Markandeya, it is not found in any standard Puranas, including Shaivaite puranas. In fact, the Narasimha Purana has a clear story of the rescue of Markandeya from death by Lord Narayana. So, the story of Shiva rescuing Markandeya which is popularly heard has no puranic basis.
Eternal life
Another story which deals with Markandeya's long life gives an account of how he lived past the death of the previous world and watched it end through gaining knowledge from Lord Vishnu.[4]
Bhagavata Purana
Markandeya prays to Vishnu
A tale from the Bhagavata Purana states that once sage Markandeya visited Narayana rishi and asked him for a boon. Markandeya prayed to the sage Narayana to show him his illusory power or Maya since sages Nara-Narayana are incarnation of Supreme Lord Narayana. To fulfill his wish, Lord Vishnu appeared in the form of a child floating on a leaf, and declared to the sage that he was Time and Death. Sage Markandeya entered into his mouth and saved himself from the surging water. Inside the boy's stomach Markandeya discovered all the worlds, the seven regions and the seven oceans. The mountains and the kingdoms were all there. So were all living beings. Markandeya did not know what to make of all this. He started to pray to Lord Vishnu. No sooner had he started, than he came out of the boy's mouth. Lord Vishnu now appeared before him and blessed him. The sage spent a thousand years with Lord Vishnu. He composed the Bala Mukundashtakam at this moment.[5] He taught Bhishma duties of Yatis. When Bhishma was in the bed of arrows, Markandeya visited him along with other sages.[6]
Markandeya Purana
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (January 2022)
^Sati Purana | David Kinsely English translation | 2012 edition
^"Sage Markandeya – A Witness to the great Annihilation by P C K Prem". www.boloji.com. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
^Bhagavata Purana, Canto 12, Chapter 9: Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛiṣhi Sees the Illusory Potency of the Lord Narayana
^"The Mahabharata, Book 13: Anusasana Parva: Section XXVI". Internet Sacred Text Archive. from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
^. Archived from the original on 16 March 2008. Retrieved 18 October 2007.
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Hinduism, Chapter 1, pg 13
External links
The Markandeya Purana (English) by F. E. Pargiter; Online HTML
Markandeya Sastha Temple
Markandeya Temple Mumbai(Worli)
Markandeya obtained his boon of life here in Parali from Vaidyanatha
January 20, 2023
markandeya, 1935, tamil, film, film, other, uses, markanda, disambiguation, bhargava, sanskrit, कण, iast, mārkaṇḍeya, ancient, rishi, sage, born, clan, bhrigu, rishi, bhargava, brahmins, community, purana, especially, comprises, dialogue, between, sage, called. For the 1935 Tamil film see Markandeya film For other uses see Markanda disambiguation Bhargava Markandeya Sanskrit म र कण ड य IAST Markaṇḍeya is an ancient rishi sage born in the clan of Bhrigu Rishi Bhargava Brahmins Community The Markandeya Purana especially comprises a dialogue between Markandeya and a sage called Jaimini and a number of chapters in the Bhagavata Purana are dedicated to his conversations and prayers 1 He is also mentioned in the Mahabharata Markandeya is venerated within all mainstream Hindu traditions MarkandeyaMember of ChiranjiviShiva protects Markendeya from YamaAffiliationChiranjiviPersonal informationParentsSage Mrikanda father Sutapa mother Today Markandeya Tirtha where the sage Markandeya wrote the Markandeya Purana is situated on a trekking route to the Yamunotri Shrine in the Uttarkashi district Uttarakhand 2 Contents 1 Rescued by Kalantaka Shiva 1 1 Eternal life 2 Bhagavata Purana 3 Markandeya Purana 4 Films on Markandeya 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksRescued by Kalantaka Shiva EditMain article Kalantaka One legend relates the story of how Shiva protected Markandeya from the clutches of death personified as Yama The great sage Mrikandu rishi and his wife Marudmati worshipped Shiva and sought from him the boon of begetting a son As a result he was given the choice of either a righteous son but with a short life on earth or a child of low intelligence but with a long life Mrikandu rishi chose the former and was blessed with Markandeya an exemplary son destined to die at the age of 12 Markandeya grew up to be a great devotee of Shiva and on the day of his destined death he continued his worship of Shiva in his aniconic form of Shivalingam The messengers of Yama the god of death were unable to take away his life because of his great devotion and continual worship of Shiva Yama then came in person to take away Markandeya s life and sprung his noose around the young sage s neck By accident or fate the noose mistakenly landed around the Shivalingam and out of it Shiva emerged in all his fury attacking Yama for his act of aggression After defeating Yama in battle to the point of death Shiva then revived him under the condition that the devout youth would live forever For this act Shiva was thereafter also known as Kalantaka Ender of Death This event it is said took place on the bank of river Gomati in Kaithi Varanasi An ancient temple Markandeya Mahadeva Temple is made on this site It s the place where river Ganga and river Gomati merge so being a Sangam area its sacredness increases Alternatively another story states that this event happened in Kerala at the site of Triprangode Siva Temple where the Markandeya ran up to the Shiva Linga at the temple to escape from Yama A source also claims that this incident took place at the Parli Vaijnath Jyotirlinga in Beed district of Maharashtra As sourced from Sati Purana a secret portion of Markandeya Purana Goddess Parvati also gave him a boon to write a text on veera charitra Brave character on her the text is famously known as Durga Saptashati a valuable portion in Markandeya Purana 3 The place is known as Yamkeshwar Though Shaivaites and many serials show this story of Shiva rescuing Markandeya it is not found in any standard Puranas including Shaivaite puranas In fact the Narasimha Purana has a clear story of the rescue of Markandeya from death by Lord Narayana So the story of Shiva rescuing Markandeya which is popularly heard has no puranic basis Eternal life Edit Another story which deals with Markandeya s long life gives an account of how he lived past the death of the previous world and watched it end through gaining knowledge from Lord Vishnu 4 Bhagavata Purana Edit Markandeya prays to Vishnu A tale from the Bhagavata Purana states that once sage Markandeya visited Narayana rishi and asked him for a boon Markandeya prayed to the sage Narayana to show him his illusory power or Maya since sages Nara Narayana are incarnation of Supreme Lord Narayana To fulfill his wish Lord Vishnu appeared in the form of a child floating on a leaf and declared to the sage that he was Time and Death Sage Markandeya entered into his mouth and saved himself from the surging water Inside the boy s stomach Markandeya discovered all the worlds the seven regions and the seven oceans The mountains and the kingdoms were all there So were all living beings Markandeya did not know what to make of all this He started to pray to Lord Vishnu No sooner had he started than he came out of the boy s mouth Lord Vishnu now appeared before him and blessed him The sage spent a thousand years with Lord Vishnu He composed the Bala Mukundashtakam at this moment 5 He taught Bhishma duties of Yatis When Bhishma was in the bed of arrows Markandeya visited him along with other sages 6 Markandeya Purana EditThis section needs expansion You can help by adding to it January 2022 The Devi Mahatmya section of the Markandeya Purana is one of the most important texts of Shakti tradition 7 Films on Markandeya EditMarkandeya at IMDb 1922 Shri Markandeya Avtaar 1922 Markandeya 1935 Bhakta Markandeya 1938 Bhakta Markandeya 1956 Bhakta Dhruva Markandeya 1982 See also EditNarada Prahlada Four Kumaras Hindu calendar Saptarishi ChiranjivinsReferences Edit Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 12 Chapter 8 Markandeya s Prayers to Nara Narayana Rishi Archived 14 March 2008 at the Wayback Machine Yamunotri Temple Archived 31 July 2009 at the Wayback Machine Uttarkashi district website Sati Purana David Kinsely English translation 2012 edition Sage Markandeya A Witness to the great Annihilation by P C K Prem www boloji com Retrieved 14 January 2022 Bhagavata Purana Canto 12 Chapter 9 Markaṇḍeya Ṛiṣhi Sees the Illusory Potency of the Lord Narayana The Mahabharata Book 13 Anusasana Parva Section XXVI Internet Sacred Text Archive Archived from the original on 22 April 2021 Retrieved 16 January 2022 Biographies Sages Rushis And Saints at FreeIndia Archived from the original on 16 March 2008 Retrieved 18 October 2007 Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend ISBN 0 500 51088 1 by Anna Dallapiccola The Complete Idiot s Guide to Hinduism Chapter 1 pg 13External links EditThe Markandeya Purana English by F E Pargiter Online HTML Markandeya s Prayers from the Bhagavata Purana Markandeya Sastha Temple Markandeya Temple Mumbai Worli Markandeya obtained his boon of life here in Parali from Vaidyanatha Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Markandeya amp oldid 1131665074, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
