The 90’s born will be able to relate well with this topic. Talking about some of those epic movies in olden times, you might have watched Rishi’s & sages cursing (Shraap) people or some ancient characters in the Hindu Puranas.
Each of those movies had a typical dialogue delivery which said, “I Curse You” and as the story would proceed, the curse would show its effect on the related person. Hindu Dharma keeps a staunch belief in Curses even today. A Curse is said to be affected only when it comes from a purest of a person or a soul.
It forms part of many cultures around the world, from Greek and Roman curses to Celtic curses, African American voodoo to the Mediterranean evil eye curse, from German hexing to the Indian “shraap”. While Hindu religion is not unique in its repertoire of curses, there are enough meritorious instances that deserve recall and mention. Here are some of the most famous curses in Hinduism…
Bhrigu Acharya’s Curse on Vishnu
The Matsya Purana tells a story about the perpetual wars between devas and asuras. The devas would always end up beating the asuras. Humiliated, Shukra Acharya- guru of the asuras, decided to approach Shiva to obtain the mritasanjeevani stotra- mantra to make asuras immortal. He, meanwhile, asked the asuras to take refuge at the ashram of his father Bhrigu. The devas found the absence of Shukra Acharya a most opportune time to attack the asuras once again.
However, Bhrigu himself being away, the Asuras sought his wife’s help. Using her powers, she rendered Indra immobile. Indra, in turn, appealed to Lord Vishnu to get rid of her. Vishnu obliged by severing her head with his sudarshana chakra. When Sage Bhrigu saw what had happened to his wife, he cursed that Vishnu be born on earth several times and suffer the pains of worldly life. Hence, Vishnu took birth on Earth in the form of 24 Avatars.
Yudhistira’s Curse to every woman which started from his mother Kunti..
After the battle of Kurukshetra, Yudhishtira performs the funeral rites for all loved ones, including Karna. But he is deeply hurt that Kunti did not reveal to him earlier that Karna was his brother. The depressed prince, in turn, cursed that no woman, henceforth, would be able to keep any secrets. Adding to our surprise, Woman cannot survive with secrets in their tummies has become a universal truth now!
A deadly curse to Ravana’s Lust..
Many of us have wondered why the Lanka King never dared to touch Sita. For those of you who have wondered why Ravana was fearful of Sita, it was because of a curse that he faced. He was cursed by his daughter-in-law Rambha for touching her forcefully, she cursed him that if he ever tried to touch a woman without her consent, all his ten heads would explode instantly. So did have a strong reason to be in limits, didn’t he?
Urvashi’s Shraap to Arjuna..
Krishna had sent Arjuna to Indra for his training in warfare. Meanwhile, in Devlok, one of the most beautiful apsara “Urvashi” fell in love with Arjuna. However, he refused her proposal. As it was considered Adharma to reject a “passionate” woman, Urvashi had all rights to curse him.
She was aware that Arjuna would have to face Agyatwas (lead a anonymous life for a year), thus faking false anger at being rejected, she cursed him to become a eunuch for a year. In fact, that way, she helped him maintain his anonymity.
Sage Durvasa’s Curse on Shakuntala
According to “Abhingyana Shakuntalam”,the most famous curse of Durvasa Muni was the one he inflicted on Shakuntala, because, lost in her daydreams about her lover King Dushyanth, she forgot to receive the muni with the respect due to a guest. The sage cursed her that because of her inhospitality, the person in her dreams would forget her.
When a distraught Shakuntala pleaded with him, the sage reduced the intensity of the curse by suggesting that her lover would remember her once she showed him his ring. What follows in the intervening period is the legend of Shakuntala, such is the life-changing power of a mere curse.
Pandu cursed by Rishi Kindama..
An ace archer, Pandu made an unusual mistake while hunting a deer in the forest. He hit one rishi and his wife instead of deer. While Pandu went near them, it was Rishi Kindama taking his last breath cursed Pandu:
“If you even think of sex while approaching a woman, you will die then and there”. In fact, Kindama and his wife were being intimate when shot them. Later on, when Pandu was thinking of getting intimate with his second wife Madri, he died of the curse.
Source: Detechter.com
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