Lord Shiva, was pleased with his prayers, absolved him and returned his divine powers. In order to seek forgiveness and please Lord Shiva, Pushpadant composed a stotra (song of praise) in which he elaborated at length upon Shiva's greatness as a prayer.
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He was shocked, but being a blessed devotee, he realized why that happened. This infuriated Lord Shiva and he punished Pushpadanta by taking away his divine powers. Pushpadanta was unaware of this and unknowingly stepped on the bilva leaves. Left with no ideas to solve this problem, the king spread bilva leaves or bilipatra (बिलीपत्र - AEGLE MARMELOS tree leaves, which are considered to be sacred offerings to Lord Shiva) in his garden. But Pushpadanta had divine powers to be invisible and hence, the king could not find the culprit. The King did all he could to address the issue. As a result, King Chitraratha was left with no flowers to complete his prayers to Lord Shiva. Every day he tried to stop himself, but failed and picked up the flowers. Pushpadanta was so awestruck by the beauty of the garden, that he could not control his emotions and picked up the flowers from the garden. The King used to offer flowers from his palatial garden as a symbol of his devotion to Lord Shiva. It was King Chitraratha's royal garden, who was also a devotee of Lord Shiva. Once he happened to see a beautiful garden adorned with charming flowers. Pushpadanta was also a devotee of Lord Shiva and a lover of flowers. Pushpadanta (literally, Flower-Teethed) was a divine musician of such standing, in the court of Lord Indra(King of the Gods). They are not necessarily spiritually realised, but are superior to humans.
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Along with the kinnar (nymphs), yaksha (archangels), apsara (celestial dancers) etc., gandharva are beings which are said to live in the skies and in the atmosphere, in contact with the higher plane: that of the Gods. Pushpadanta was a Gandharva(गांधर्व), a celestial musician. The famous and oft-repeated Sanskrit shloka Asiti girisamam., which means ‘ if an ocean is made the inkpot, the branch of the mythical Parijata tree made the pen and Goddess Saraswati (The Goddess of Knowledge) embarks to write the glory of Lord ( Shiva), it still will be impossible to comprehend the greatness of the Lord fully’ – is among the verses of this stotra. In the verses of the Stotram lie stories about various great acts of the Mahadeva. The thought behind the composition is ‘Enumerating the greatness of Shiva’, being a typical frame of devotion and dedication. 2 The Composition (Story of Pushpadanta).Over the years, Gurumayi Chidvilasananda has often led recitations of Shri Shiva Mahimnah Stotram in Siddha Yoga Ashrams and on her Teachings Visits around the world. Shri Shiva Mahimnah Stotram was recited as part of the Siddha Yoga Ashram Daily Schedule at its inception by Baba Muktananda in Shree Gurudev Ashram in 1967 and remains, today, an oft recited svadhyaya text on the Siddha Yoga path. People follow different paths, straight or crooked, considering one best or most appropriate for their temperament, but all paths lead to you, just as different rivers flow into the same ocean.” 1 “Different paths to realization are prescribed by the three Vedas by the Sankhya, Yoga, and Shaiva doctrines and by the Vaishnava shastras. Other verses are more philosophical, and exult Lord Shiva as the goal of meditation, as the all-pervasive source and sustenance of the Universe, as dwelling beyond the senses and the mind-in short, as the inner Self that is the goal of sadhana. Various verses sing Lord Shiva’s praises by referring to well-known stories that illustrate his unrivaled power over all that exists, as well as the boundless compassion and benevolence he shows to his devotees. To atone for his error, Pushpadanta composed and offered this magnificent stotram to Lord Shiva, who was so pleased by it that he instantly forgave any offense his devotee might have caused through carelessness.Īs one might expect from a celestial musician, the verses are composed in Sanskrit poetic meters that lend themselves to being sung in lyrical melodies.
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The legend says that Pushpadanta once offended Lord Shiva by unwittingly stepping on bilva leaves, which are used for worship of the Lord. The hymn is attributed to Pushpadanta, a gandharva, a celestial musician, who was a devotee of Lord Shiva. Throughout India, Shri Shiva Mahimnah Stotram or “Hymn to the Glory of Shiva” is one of the most well-known and beloved Sanskrit poems written in praise of Lord Shiva.