Jalandhara, The demonic son of Shivah

Born through Shiva’s third eye, raised by Varuna, and trained under Guru Shukra, Jalandhara became the most powerful demon who ruled over three realms. According to Srimad Bhagwat Purana, he was considered Shiva’s son, so what compelled God to kill his child? The answer lies in this story.

Jalandhara, the ruler of three realms, Image source- Medium

It all started when Indra, along with Brishaspati, went to meet Lord Shiva and they found a yogi resenting their path. Even after so many requests, he refused to leave their path, which enraged Indra. Indra became upset and began abusing and threatening him, but the yogi turned out to be none other than Shiva himself.

By this time, Indra had already crossed Shiva’s limit of tolerance and had awakened the destruction inside him. As a result, he opened his third eye, which had turned red with anger. He concentrated all his anger there and attacked Indra, nearly killing him. But after Brihaspati pleaded to him, he got back to his senses and diverted the rage into the depths of the ocean. Indra was saved, but a powerful demon was born.

Shiva was a very powerful God. His anger was very powerful and had potential. When all of his rages were combined, it personified into a creature as powerful, exasperated, and destructive as Shiva. The boy wailed terribly, which made Brahma desperate, and he inquired about the newly born boy. In one go, he got to know about the extraordinary abilities possessed by the boy. Thus, he predicted that this boy would rule the triloka (three realms), and nobody could defeat him except Mahadev.

As he was born and raised in Jala (water), he was named Jalandhara. He had shown immense rage and power since his childhood and was later trained under the master of Asuras, Shukra. As time passed, he grew up to be powerful and proud. He began to consider himself invincible when Brahma’s prediction came true and he finally conquered and ruled over the three realms by defeating the Devas clan (Gods). With this, he became more arrogant and ignorant, and boasting became his common attribute. But, once the trickster, Narada, arrived near Jalandhara, it made him jealous of the singing of the glory of the Devas.

He made him feel jealous by describing the mesmerizing beauty of Mount Kailash, the place where Shiva lives. The beautiful Kailash has everything to trap one’s soul. The blooming flowers spread their scent in the air and the cool breeze fills the surrounding area.

Moreover, he continued to describe the beauty of Goddess Parvati, making him regret not having the most beautiful wife in the world. Narada’s motive was achieved, and Jalandhara was desperate to get Parvati by defeating Shiva. This was the beginning of the ugly fight between the father and son.

Jalandhara rushed to send a message to Shiva in which he accused him of keeping such a beautiful wife even after being an ascetic. He disrespected him and humiliated him for his looks and work. He also mentioned that Shiva was not at all deserving of Parvati and hence he should surrender her to him. He raised questions about his ethics and principles, and he regarded him as a promise-breaker.

As a result, Shiva exploded with rage and war broke out between the two. However, defeating Jalandhara was a difficult task as he was a form of Shiva himself. It was also because of his pious wife, Vrinda, who prayed for her husband's victory, and because of her loyalty, she received a boon that as long as she was loyal to him, he would never lose a battle.

Jalandhar’s defeat had become so important that the devas were under tremendous pressure. Thus, they sent Vishnu to somehow break Vrinda’s prayer. Lord Vishnu disguised himself as Jalandhar and reached Vrinda. She was elated to see her husband victorious and woke from her prayer. She was unable to identify her husband, and her loyalty broke at the moment.

With this, the immortality of Jalandhar came to an end, and Lord Shiva pierced his Trisula into his chest. After his death, his soul left his body and dissolved into Shiva’s third eye. The entire triloka sighed with peace, but on the other hand, Vrinda wept inconsolably after learning about her husband's death and the deceit she had been subjected to. She sacrificed herself in the fire and cursed Lord Vishu so that his wife would face the same deceit and everyone would question her character. Vishnu accepted her curse, and this came true when Sita was kidnapped by Ravana in disguise.

This teaches us that anger and rage always give rise to destructive phenomena, and cheating and dishonesty can never give birth to something morally justified. It can definitely give us short-term relief and satisfaction. However, in the long run, it will put us in diplomatic and devastating situations. The trickery Lord Vishnu played surely gave the Devas the needed victory, but Vrinda’s curse gave Rama and Sita's love story a tragic end for sure.