Meaning
and Significance
‘Murugu’
means ‘beauty’; hence ‘Murugan’ means
‘Beautiful one’. Where there is beauty, love shines;
where there is love, truth sparkles. When we seek the Truth,
we get liberated.
It is said that Lord Muruga taught the Indian language Tamil
to Saint Agasthiar. Lord Muruga Himself sat as the leader
for the academy of poets (Tamil Sangam) in Madurai (Tamil
Nadu) and the language flourished as a result. Accordingly,
He is called the God of Tamil.
It is written in Kanda Puranam that Saint Vasistha has said
that if one worships Lord Muruga on Friday and fasts on
that day, all his wishes will get fulfilled. Lord Muruga
was brought up by Karthigai maids. By worshipping Him on
the Karthigai star day and observing a fast, one’s
problems will be removed and one will be liberated. This
was a wish granted by Lord Shiva Himself to the Karthigai
maids.
History
of Lord Muruga’s birth
God, Who does not have a beginning or an end, takes an incarnation
(avatar) to destroy the evildoers and to save His devotees.
The following is about the avatar of Lord Muruga.
Goddess Parvati did penance and married Lord Shiva. Lord
Shiva and Goddess Parvati’s marriage is said to be
knowledge and grace joined together to give Bliss, i.e.,
Lord Muruga. All the deities went to Lord Shiva and pleaded
Him to do something as they could not tolerate the demon
Soorapadman’s cruelty. Lord Shiva took a form along
with six faces (i.e., Sathyojatham, Vamadevam, Thathpurusham,
Eesanam, Aghoram and Atho).
From the third eye of each face, a fire spark came out.
Lord Shiva asked Vayudevan (God of wind) and Agnidevan (God
of fire) to take the six fire sparks to the Ganges River.
Later Ganga (the Name of the Ganges River deity) took them
to Sarvana pond. The six fire sparks became six beautiful
babies on six red lotus flowers. When Goddess Parvati hugged
them together, they joined to become one form with six faces,
twelve hands and was named Skandan (another name for Lord
Muruga). Six ladies called Karthigai maids took care of
Him. Hence, He was also called Karthigeyan. His other names
include Kumaran, Mayilvaganan, Kaangeyan, Velayuthan, Gugan,
Swaminathan, Subramanian, Saravanabavan, Vishagan, Devasenapathy,
Vallimanallan, Soorasankaran, etc.
He performed several divine acts (leelas) when He was young.
When Soorapadman’s cruelty went to an extreme, Lord
Shiva thought it was time for his destruction. He gave the
eleven Rudras eleven weapons, and Parvathi gave the Vel
weapon to Lord Muruga for the war. The Vel, or sacred spear,
is the most powerful weapon in Lord Muruga's armory.
Lord Muruga stayed in Thiruchendur with His army. He fought
for ten days and destroyed Soorapadman and his brothers.
Soorapadman had such a big ego that he did not want to surrender
to the Lord. He took the form of a big mango tree. Lord
Muruga’s spear split the tree and one part became a
peacock and the other became a cock. Lord Muruga took the
peacock as His vehicle and the cock as His flag. Soorpadman
was so cruel and had such a big ego, yet he still reached
such a good state -- to always be beside the Lord. Imagine
what kind of state Lord Muruga's devotees would get!
About
Lord Muruga (in brief)
Name
: Murugan
Birth Place : Saravana pond
Date of birth: Vaishaka month, Vishaga star
Father : Lord Shiva
Mother : Goddess Parvati
Brothers : Lord Ganapati and Lord Ayyappan
Wives : Valli, Devayani
Weapon : Shakti vel (spear)
Vehicle : Peacock
Flag : Cock
Aim of Incarnation : Destroying evil and saving Devotees
Place he resides : Devotees heart
