The Samudra Manthan

This is a story from times ancient
When there existed Gods and demons.
Cursed by Durvasa, the great sage,
For the disrespect shown by Indradev,
The Gods lost their power and strength
And were defeated against the demons.
The wheel of Fortune moved in reverse.
The demon king Bali ruled the Universe.
The Gods then approached Lord Vishnu,
Praised Him and pleaded for a rescue.
Lord Vishnu in a gentle voice suggested
That as the demons had an advantage,
The Gods should adopt a friendly manner
To strategize and regain their powers.
He told them about the magical Amrita
That lay hidden in the ocean Kshira Sagar.
He asked them to churn the ocean.
And, so started the Samudra Manthan.
Without strength, the Gods were helpless.
So, they asked the Demons to assist.
The demon king Bali compromised
As the demons desired an eternal life.
Mandaranchal was the churning rod,
And Vasuki became the churning rope.
Lord Vishnu put Vasuki in a deep sleep
So he would not feel any suffering.
With demons at the head of the serpent,
And Gods at the tail, the churning began.
But as the mountain was put in the ocean,
Due to its weight, it started sinking.
Lord Vishnu then saved the day again.
As a Kurma, He balanced the mountain.
With this, the churning then commenced.
Many things came up from the ocean.
The Poison of Water, the Kamdhenu cow,
The Uchchaihshravas horse, Airavat,
The Kaustubhamani, the Kalpavriksha,
The Apsara Rambha, Goddess Lakshmi,
And in the form of a girl came Varuni,
The Parijat Tree, the powerful Shell
And Dhanvantari Vaidya, with the Amrita.
The powerful demons snatched the jar,
And then, they started a violent war.
Weakened, the Gods couldn’t fight.
They couldn’t get it even if they tried.
Then Lord Vishnu became Vishwamohini –
He became a woman of great beauty.
Mesmerized by Her, all the demons
Asked Her to come and join them.
She said that the Gods and the Demons
Were from one father descended,
And so, they were akin to brothers.
It was wrong to fight with each other.
On hearing these proverbial words,
The demons gave Her the Amrita jar
And agreed to let Her serve the nectar,
To distribute as She saw fit to all.
In different rows, She asked them to sit
And started to give the Gods a sip.
The demons, in a trance of sarcasm
Forgot about the Amrita from the ocean.
But there was one demon named Rahu
Who understood the plan of Lord Vishnu.
In disguise, he sat among the Gods
And received the Amrita in his mouth.
The Gods, Moon and Sun observed this
And to Lord Vishnu, called out his trick.
The Sudarshan Chakra was then used
To cut his neck by the great Lord Vishnu.
Due to the Amrita, the head and torso
Became the planets of Rahu and Ketu.
They are the ones that cause eclipses
Of the Sun and Moon due to hatred.
Well, Lord Vishnu then disappeared
Having given the Gods all the Amrita.
The enraged demons then fought,
But lost and had to concede Indralok.
Thus goes the story from the Puranas
A tale that imparts valuable lessons.
No matter how grave the situation,
With God’s Presence, good always wins.