What is Rudraksha?
Rudraksha in Indian Mythology is said to be the tears of Lord Shiva, which have solidified over the Kailash Mountains. These tears were the tears of joy, containment, happiness, and wellness. The word Rudraksha is made up of 2 words, Rudra meaning Shiva, and Aksha (Ashru) meaning Tears. It is also said that when Lord Shiva cried, the tears rolled down his cheeks and solidified as seeds, thereby giving birth to the tree of Rudraksha.
History of Rudraksha
There is a verse by Lord Krishna in Harivamsha Parva, Verse 2.74 that states:
“Oh Lord Rudra, you are the one who cries, who makes others cry, and who can remove the cries of the others.”
This translates to the fact that when Lord Shiva cries, he is the reason to make others cry or land in pain. Also, he is the one who can cure the pain of those who have landed in pain and agony.
Origin of Rudraksha
There are 2 different stories in two different places with the mentions of Lord Shiva crying.
The first story is with reference to Shiv Mahapurana where the wife of Lord Shiva, Sati stepped into an open fire of Havan Yagya, thereby, ending her life in the ordeal. Lord Shiva carried Sati on his shoulders and furiously danced over mother earth. In order to soothe Lord Shiva’s anger and pain, Lord Vishnu commanded his Sudarshan Chakra (The War-Quoit with 108 serrated edges) to cut the holy body of Devi Sati into 51 pieces. Due to this, Lord Shiva voluntarily sat on Kailash Parvat (Kailash Mountain) and closed his eyes to meditate and forget all his pains. Also, he wanted to meditate and feel the worldly pleasures so that there is a complete surprise and nothing will be left to know before it has already happened. Post meditation, when Lord Shiva opened his eyes, he led down tears of joy, calmness, satisfaction, and worship. These tears of Lord Shiva solidified and were therefore called Rudraksha.
The second story is a little vague and was printed in Agni Press’s article The Earth- Illumination- Trumpet of Divinity’s Home, Part I, in 1995. It speaks about how Brahma, the Lord who created the World, and Vishnu, the Lord who is the administrator of the World, met Shiva, the Lord who is the destroyer of the World. Several incidents took place where the life of Brahma was in danger and Shiva aided to the save. In due course, Brahma was cursed. He had to swallow Shiva and then commit suicide. Post this; Vishnu revived Shiva out from the mouth of Brahma thereby reviving Brahma. When Shiva came out from the mouth of Brahma as his son, he started to cry relentlessly. The reason cited was that while Shiva was taking a human incarnation, he was also entering into the world of ignorance. This made Brahma name Shiva as Rudra, or, the one who cries relentlessly. Since Shiva was also the destroyer of the agony of the world, Vishnu blessed the tears of Shiva to cure the pain points of the world. Thus, the tears solidified and fell in the form of beads named Rudraksha.
A Rudraksha Mala Specimen[/caption]
There are many other stories that say that Rudra is a distorted word of Raudra, meaning angry. Shiva was given the power of destruction of the World. This made him an angry figure. Thus Shiva is the god of anger and hence the name Raudra, which became Rudra. Also, there are stories where Shiva had to perform certain actions in heavy anger, and to cool down his anger, he used to vent out tears from his eyes on Kailash Mountains. These teardrops fled out heated from his eyes but solidified in due course due to the cold in the mountain ranges. Some of these stories could not trace a valid authenticated source and some others were adaptations of the stories that find a place in the manuscripts. However, all of these stories have proved how Rudraksha Beads are one step closer to prosperity and happiness.
Who should wear Rudraksha?
Rudraksha Beads can be worn by any person based upon their Sun sign (Zodiac sign) or the nature of problems they want to find a solution for. Also, Rudraksha beads can be worn in general for a better, healthy, and fit lifestyle.
For more information on the types of Rudraksha to be worn, click here to know the type of Rudraksha that suits your needs.
Also, in case you are not sure of your Zodiac sign, click here to get your Kundli designed by the experts.
Types of Rudraksha Beads
Generally, Rudraksha is available in two origins: Indonesian origin and Nepali Origin. Generally, the Indonesian origin Rudraksha beads are light-toned, smaller beads and have less visible cuts (clefts/ mukhis) at the face as compared to Nepali origin Rudraksha beads. There is just one exception to this where Indonesian Japa Rudraksha have proper visible Mukhs to the beads and the Indonesian Java Rudraksha Beads where the clefts (Mukhis) are smoothly carved providing a slightly thorny surface with visible lines though not etched deeply.
Let us look at the 21 categories of Rudraksha.
Every bead of Rudraksha has a different number of faces. They might range from 1 faced (Ek Mukhi) to 21 faced (Ikkis Mukhi). There are also some special types of Rudraksha like the Sawar Rudraksha, Gauri Shankar Rudraksha, Garbha Gauri Rudraksha, Ganesha Rudraksha, and Trijuti Rudraksha. Rudraksha of both origins, Indonesian and Nepali, have the same 21 categories and additional other categories with different appearances. For more details on each of the types and categories of Rudraksha, tune into the following blogs for each piece:
One Mukhi (Ek Mukhi) Rudraksha
Two Mukhi (Do Mukhi) Rudraksha
For further blogs on 3-21 Mukhi Rudraksha and all other above mentioned special types of Rudraksha beads and other Rudraksha ornaments, stay tuned.
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