SHIVA'S MAKE UP!!
“Will you be putting on some of this, or then this, or this?” asked Nandi excitedly, as he barged in to Shiva’s chamber.
“What is all that?”asked Shiva.
“Oh, it’s different kinds of make-up for you, sent by some of your many admirers as a pre wedding gift, my Lord!” said Nandi happily, as he knelt forward and opened the first box to display some very fine powder that smelled like jasmine.
“What is that, Nandi? Is it some kind of lactum? A dried milk?” asked Shiva.
“Oh no, my Lord, no! It is the dust from a very remote and cool planet from a distant galaxy, brought for you in this equally ornate box made of walnut carvings from the oldest tree of that planet! Rahu has sent this for you. He says he carefully kept it for the last three hundred years as he waited for your wedding.”
“Haha!” Shiva laughed, visibly amused.
“This one here is the powder of the pollen dropped from the mysterious golden butterfly, which happens only once in the special constellation of the solar eclipse that occurs for an hour, to be followed immediately by a lunar eclipse. Though my astrology is not too strong, I would say this is also an extremely rare time. Lord Indra had Urvasi and Menaka especially collect and pack this for you.”
“Um hmm,” Shiva smiled.
“And this one, my Lord…” said Nandi even more excitedly.“Is actually from the dried up corals of the ocean, which are found, according to Varuna devata, in one dense, underwater forest known and accessible only to him. He says he has personally directed the fine grinding of this coral which is a perfect balance of silver and grey, giving a splendid hue of the moon.”
“And then, this…”
“Nandi!!” Shiva stopped Nandi by the tone of His voice.
“Nandi! What exactly are you doing? Why on earth will I be putting on makeup?”
“Because, after all, it is your wedding, my Lord! And you should look good, you know…”
“Ah, I have considered that,” said Shiva.“But why for the sake of Heaven, will I not use my normal bhasma? Bhasma makes for a great makeup, don’t you think?” said Shiva, as He turned and Nandi saw that He had already smeared Himself with ash.
Ash, which when seen on cremation grounds, would scare anyone, but for the few who were privileged to see it smeared adorningly across Shiva’s yogic face, it gave rise to virtual ecstasy.
Nandi remembered his privilege, as he felt the familiar ecstasy of seeing Shiva like this, rise once again.
“Make sure you do thank Varuna and Indra for these, but have them returned,” said Shiva. “And oh, by the way, Indra also sent Airavat, his elephant, as my ride for the wedding.”
“He what?”growled Nandi.
“Ah yes, I gave him the same answer,” said Shiva. “Why on earth would I not use my old bull for the special occasion? Thanks, but no thanks.” Shiva winked.
“So, that is why my dear Nandi, I always tell you, it’s not good to change too much, although a little change is inevitable,” said Shiva, putting His arm over Nandi’s shoulder and looking deeply into his eyes. “I know I am getting married and I shall have to usher in some change,” He continued.
“But by Kailash, some things, I shall never change!”
“What is all that?”asked Shiva.
“Oh, it’s different kinds of make-up for you, sent by some of your many admirers as a pre wedding gift, my Lord!” said Nandi happily, as he knelt forward and opened the first box to display some very fine powder that smelled like jasmine.
“What is that, Nandi? Is it some kind of lactum? A dried milk?” asked Shiva.
“Oh no, my Lord, no! It is the dust from a very remote and cool planet from a distant galaxy, brought for you in this equally ornate box made of walnut carvings from the oldest tree of that planet! Rahu has sent this for you. He says he carefully kept it for the last three hundred years as he waited for your wedding.”
“Haha!” Shiva laughed, visibly amused.
“This one here is the powder of the pollen dropped from the mysterious golden butterfly, which happens only once in the special constellation of the solar eclipse that occurs for an hour, to be followed immediately by a lunar eclipse. Though my astrology is not too strong, I would say this is also an extremely rare time. Lord Indra had Urvasi and Menaka especially collect and pack this for you.”
“Um hmm,” Shiva smiled.
“And this one, my Lord…” said Nandi even more excitedly.“Is actually from the dried up corals of the ocean, which are found, according to Varuna devata, in one dense, underwater forest known and accessible only to him. He says he has personally directed the fine grinding of this coral which is a perfect balance of silver and grey, giving a splendid hue of the moon.”
“And then, this…”
“Nandi!!” Shiva stopped Nandi by the tone of His voice.
“Nandi! What exactly are you doing? Why on earth will I be putting on makeup?”
“Because, after all, it is your wedding, my Lord! And you should look good, you know…”
“Ah, I have considered that,” said Shiva.“But why for the sake of Heaven, will I not use my normal bhasma? Bhasma makes for a great makeup, don’t you think?” said Shiva, as He turned and Nandi saw that He had already smeared Himself with ash.
Ash, which when seen on cremation grounds, would scare anyone, but for the few who were privileged to see it smeared adorningly across Shiva’s yogic face, it gave rise to virtual ecstasy.
Nandi remembered his privilege, as he felt the familiar ecstasy of seeing Shiva like this, rise once again.
“Make sure you do thank Varuna and Indra for these, but have them returned,” said Shiva. “And oh, by the way, Indra also sent Airavat, his elephant, as my ride for the wedding.”
“He what?”growled Nandi.
“Ah yes, I gave him the same answer,” said Shiva. “Why on earth would I not use my old bull for the special occasion? Thanks, but no thanks.” Shiva winked.
“So, that is why my dear Nandi, I always tell you, it’s not good to change too much, although a little change is inevitable,” said Shiva, putting His arm over Nandi’s shoulder and looking deeply into his eyes. “I know I am getting married and I shall have to usher in some change,” He continued.
“But by Kailash, some things, I shall never change!”
No comments:
Post a Comment