Stories 8
Mohini and the demon who burned himself
A demon wins from Shiva the power to destroy whoever he touches on the head and turns on the giver; Vishnu, as Mohini or as a young brahmachari, tricks him into testing the boon on himself.
Mohini, the self-burning demon and the birth of Ayyappa
Vishnu as the enchantress Mohini dances a demon into touching his own head, and in Kerala tradition bears Shiva's son Ayyappa; the full record is I-4 in the interactions file.
Shiva under Kali's feet
Bengal's Kali stands on a corpse-like Shiva: without Shakti he is shava, a body; a Howrah folk dance plays the scene.
The Puranas played till dawn
Coastal Karnataka's Yakshagana restages epic and Puranic episodes as night-long prasangas; Bhasmasura and Mohini is one of its favourites.
The dance at Tillai and the contest with Kali
Two sages, the serpent Patanjali and the tiger-footed Vyaghrapada, ask to see Shiva's dance.
The demon who could burn with a touch
A demon worships Shiva with terrible austerities, offering pieces of his own body.
The longest night: Arudra and Thiruvathira
In Margazhi, when the full moon stands with the Thiruvathirai star, the year's longest night is kept for Shiva.
Why the night of Shiva is kept
A hunter named Gurudruha, or Lubdhaka, is caught in the forest by night and climbs a bilva tree to wait for game.