Kanda Sasti Festival at Tiruchendur – One of the Significant Places for The Celebration!

Kanda Shasti or Skanda Sashti is a six days worship of Lord Skanda that falls in the month of Aippasi that is October/November. The event generally begins one day after Diwali. So this year the celebration will begin on 15th November and end up on 20th November. The Skanda Shasti is associated with the Tamil culture that depicts the triumph of their Lord Muruga over the demons.

 

Lord Muruga is also known as Kartikey, the Son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. He is also known as the God of War because he was created solely for the purpose of defeating the immorality that was taking place in heaven. The demons like Tarakasura, Surapadma, Simhamukha all forced the Devas to leave heaven. Only the birth of Lord Muruga released heaven, and all Devas could get their positions again.

 

The celebration takes place in several Muruga temples in South India. Tirupparankunram, Tiruchendur, two of the six “Padai Veedu,” are one of the temples where the celebration happens on a grand level. 

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Surasamharam at Tiruchendur

 

Tiruchendur is a town in Tamil Nadu where devotees from all over the Tamil Nadu gather to witness the event that is known as Surasamharam. Surasamharam is the last day of the six days that is rejoiced in the evening. It is about presenting the Lord Muruga with all his weapons and the demons outside on the ground.

 

The show goes on depicting the battle between Lord Muruga and the demon kings. At last, the head of the demons is smeared using the Vel of the Lord. The show goes on by the Seashore, which makes this entire scenery even more enjoyable where every person feels the peak of devotion, and they all lose themselves as one.

 

Skanda is considered to be an ancient deity of the Tamil community whose description can be found in Mahabharatha, Shiva Purana, and in Kalidasa's Kumara Sambhavam. Even some stone engravings and coins show Lord Skanda’s existence that was in records from 1st cent. to 5th cent CE.

 

The Story of Lord Muruga’s Birth

 

The death of demon kings was the reason for the incarnation of Lord Muruga. Once upon a time, three demon kings with their military attacked heaven, and they forced the Devas to leave the place. This put all the Devas in immense agony, and they went to the creator of the world, Lord Brahma.

 

Lord Brahma then said that only the spark of Lord Shiva has the power to defeat the evil force. But the complexity was that Lord Shiva was in deep Samadhi, and no one dared to disturb Shiva to end up getting punished.

 

Then on Brahma’s suggestion, they approached Parvati and stated the whole scenario of how Demons tormented them in heaven. Then further Parvati and Kama (the God of love), they decided to interrupt Shiva’s meditation. The Kama came forward to distract Lord Shiva, and as a result, Shiva was disturbed from his Samadhi. Upon opening their eyes, Lord Shiva destroyed the Kama, but the efforts did pay.

 

Due to the utter anger of Lord Shiva, the sparks of his seed were fiery that no one could bear those. They were then accepted by Lord Agni and then received by the Ganges. The Ganges then threw them into Sara Vana that was the forest of arrow-like grass. From here, Saravanabhava was born that was then known as Skanda and Kartikey. 

 

Skanda was first born as six babies who were raised by six mothers of the constellation of Krittikai. When Parvati approached these kids, she then turned them into one with six faces and one body. Today in every temple, Lord Muruga is depicted having six heads and one body, and in some temples, he has just one head and one body.

 

Upon converting into one, Lord Muruga was also known as the most handsome God ever created. He was appointed as the General of God's army and was known as the God of War.

 

Upon the creation and before going to fight the demons, he received his weaponry from his mother and several other Devas. Vel was the most powerful weapon that Goddess Parvati bestowed him with. With Vel he was able to behead the demon kings during the six days war and finished all of them on the sixth day.

 

That is why devotees in the region of Tamil Nadu and other places in South India observe fast for six days. The major celebration can be witnessed in the temple of Tiruchendur and Tiruparankundram.

Read more : https://www.astroved.com/us/specials/skanda-shashti