Garuda and Indra then arrived in the land of the Nagas. He called out to the Nagas and asked them to come and see the pot of nectar. He also asked the Nagas to free his mother. Happily the Nagas freed his mother from slavery.
Garuda asked the Nagas to have a bath and come and said the nectar would be in the bed of kusha grass. When the nagas left, Indra took the pot of nectar and left.
When the Nagas came back, they could not see the nectar and realized that they had been tricked. Thinking that some drops would have spilled on the grass, they started licking the grass, and the sharp grass cut their tongue into, which is why now Nagas have a forked tongue.
As the nectar had been kept on the bed of Kusha grass, this grass became holy and became an essential part of all worships.
Garuda asked the Nagas to have a bath and come and said the nectar would be in the bed of kusha grass. When the nagas left, Indra took the pot of nectar and left.
When the Nagas came back, they could not see the nectar and realized that they had been tricked. Thinking that some drops would have spilled on the grass, they started licking the grass, and the sharp grass cut their tongue into, which is why now Nagas have a forked tongue.
As the nectar had been kept on the bed of Kusha grass, this grass became holy and became an essential part of all worships.
Kusha Grass ?? Durba ghaas ??
ReplyDeleteKusha and Durba are both used in worship. Durba (or dubbo as they call it in bengali) can be readily plucked from the nearby field. Kusha grows near water.
ReplyDeleteThere is a nice article here about Kusha (or Darbha as its called in some places) http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Tiruchirapalli/darbha-grass-a-natural-preservative/article7000098.ece