36 - Juggernaut

Summary

The podcast 'Stories from India' narrates the mythical tale of Lord Krishna's heart, which, after his death, turned into a divine blue stone. The stone, bound to a log, drifted from the Arabian Sea to Odisha's shores, where it brought miracles to a group of unfortunate tourists. The local village began to worship it, but a king's curiosity led to its disappearance. The story continues with the king building a temple around the log and an old carpenter's attempt to carve divine idols from it, which remain unfinished to this day, reflecting the tale's themes of curiosity, reverence, and the divine.

Takeaways

• 🎵 The podcast 'Stories from India' explores myths, legends, and folk tales from India, hosted by Narad Monei, a mythological character with eternal life and knowledge of the past, present, and future.
• 🌊 In a previous episode, Narad Monei corrected a mistake about Mount Kailasa's location, clarifying it is in the Kash range, not the Himalayas.
• 🐀 The episode discusses the story behind the Rath Yatra, a festival that usually takes place on a Tuesday, emphasizing the importance of curiosity and the consequences of meddling with divine matters.
• 🌊 The story begins with Lord Krishna's death and his instructions to his brother Balaram, who bound Krishna's heart to a log of wood and set it adrift in the Arabian Sea.
• 🌊 The log, with Krishna's heart, eventually becomes a brilliant blue stone after drifting across the ocean for millennia, landing on a beach in Odisha, near Puri.
• 🌦️ A group of tourists from a nearby village, who had a terrible day due to a thunderstorm and other mishaps, discovered the log and the blue stone on the beach.
• 🌈 The moment the village chief picked up the stone, miraculous changes occurred: the rain stopped, the sun came out, and nature seemed to celebrate.
• 🏺 The villagers decided to worship the stone, keeping it in a secret location to avoid it being taken away by anyone who knew of its power.
• 👑 The king eventually learned about the stone and sent a spy to find it. The spy married the village chief's daughter and tricked the chief into revealing the stone's location.
• 🌳 The king built a temple around the log when he couldn't possess the stone, which is known today as the Jagannath Temple in Puri.
• 🛠️ A carpenter was hired to carve the log into idols, but he vanished after the king's curiosity led him to interrupt the carpenter's work, leaving unfinished idols that are now worshipped.

Q & A

What is the main theme of the podcast 'Stories from India'?

The podcast 'Stories from India' focuses on discussing myths, legends, and folk tales from India.

Who is the host of the podcast 'Stories from India'?

The host of the podcast is Narad Mone, a mythological character with the gift of eternal life and knowledge of the past, present, and future.

What is the significance of Mount Kyash in the context of the podcast episode?

Mount Kyash is mentioned as a correction in the podcast; it is not in the Himalayas but in the Kash range, which lies beyond the Himalayas.

What is the story behind the Rat Yatra explored in the episode?

The story behind the Rat Yatra involves Lord Krishna's heart, which was bound to a log of wood and set adrift in the Arabian Sea, eventually becoming a divine blue stone after many years.

Why did Lord Krishna instruct his brother Balram to bind his heart to a log of wood?

Lord Krishna left specific instructions for Balram to bind his heart to a log of wood and set it adrift in the Arabian Sea as part of his funeral rites.

How did the divine heart of Lord Krishna transform over time?

The divine heart of Lord Krishna transformed into a brilliant blue-colored stone after being bound to a log and exposed to the ocean for thousands of years.

What miraculous event occurred when the village chief picked up the blue stone from the log?

When the village chief picked up the blue stone, the rain stopped, the sun came out, a rainbow appeared, birds sang, dolphins jumped, and coconuts fell from the trees, indicating the divine nature of the stone.

Why did the villagers decide to worship the blue stone?

The villagers decided to worship the blue stone because of the miraculous change in weather and the stone's divine nature when it was discovered.

What is the significance of the mustard seeds in the story of the spy and the village chief's daughter?

The mustard seeds were used by the spy to mark the path to the stone, allowing him to lead the king and his army to its location later.

What did the king do with the log of wood after the divine stone vanished?

The king built a big temple around the log of wood, known today as the Jagat Temple in Puri, after the divine stone vanished.

Why do the idols at the Jagat Temple appear unfinished?

The idols at the Jagat Temple appear unfinished because the carpenter, who was carving them from the log, vanished before completing the work, leaving behind four idols of Krishna, Balram, and Subhadra.

What is the connection between the English word 'juggernaut' and the Rat Yatra festival?

The English word 'juggernaut' originated from the Rat Yatra festival, which begins at the Jagat Temple, reflecting the immense size and impact of the festival.

Why is the Rat Yatra festival unique in terms of its tradition?

The Rat Yatra festival is unique because it involves a king sweeping the path of the Chariot with a golden broom, symbolizing the gap between being a God and a mere King, and the idols of the deities temporarily leave the temple during the procession.