Ghuśmā
Ghuśmā, also called Kusuma, was the younger sister of Sudeha and the second wife of the brāhmaṇa Sudharmā. Each day she made one hundred and one pārthiva liṅgas (liṅgas of earth) and put them into a lake. This brought her the blessing of Bhagavān Śiva and a son. Her elder sister Sudeha was full of jealousy. She killed the son and threw his body into the same lake. Ghuśmā went on with her pūjā as before. She found her son alive in the lake. When Bhagavān Śiva appeared and offered to punish Sudeha, Ghuśmā asked him to forgive her sister. Her kindness and steady devotion led Bhagavān Śiva to settle at that place for ever as Ghuśmeśvara, the twelfth and last Jyotirliṅga.
Background
Ghuśmā was the younger sister of Sudeha. Sudeha was married to the brāhmaṇa Sudharmā, but she had no child after many years. She decided to find a second wife for her husband, and she chose her own sister Ghuśmā. So Ghuśmā came into Sudharmā’s house as the junior wife. This was a gift from Sudeha, and also the seed of later trouble. The Śiva Purāṇa tells this in the Koṭi Rudra Saṃhitā, Chapter 32.
The daily practice
Ghuśmā was a devoted bhakta (devotee) of Bhagavān Śiva, with great discipline. Her practice was exact and large:
- Each day she made one hundred and one pārthiva liṅgas from earth.
- She did pūjā to each one with sincere devotion and the proper upacāras (offerings).
- She put all one hundred and one liṅgas into the same lake near the āśrama (hermitage).
She kept this up every day for years.
The blessing and its result
Bhagavān Śiva blessed Ghuśmā with a son. The boy grew well and was married. The household was happy: Ghuśmā, Sudharmā and the whole family. This happiness became the cause of Sudeha’s deadly jealousy. Sudeha had arranged the marriage of her sister to her husband herself. Yet Ghuśmā’s good fortune was the one thing Sudeha could not bear. The Śiva Purāṇa tells this in the Koṭi Rudra Saṃhitā, Chapter 32.
The killing and Ghuśmā’s response
Sudeha killed Ghuśmā’s son and threw his body into the lake of the pārthiva liṅgas. The next morning Ghuśmā heard of it and was shocked. Then she went to the lake as usual and did her one hundred and one pārthiva liṅga pūjā as usual. Her pūjā did not stop and did not lessen, and she did not ask for revenge. She simply went on with what she had always done. In the lake she found her son alive. The Śiva Purāṇa tells this in the Koṭi Rudra Saṃhitā, Chapter 33.
Forgiving Sudeha
Bhagavān Śiva appeared and offered to destroy Sudeha for her crime. Ghuśmā would not allow it. She spoke up for her sister fully. She knew what Sudeha had done, and she forgave her without holding anything back. Because of this forgiveness, Bhagavān Śiva made his home at this place as Ghuśmeśvara.
Three marks of her devotion
- Steady practice: one hundred and one pārthiva liṅgas every day for years, without a break or any lessening.
- Unbroken devotion in the deepest grief: she kept up her pūjā the morning after her son was killed.
- Great compassion: she forgave the killer and pleaded for her when Bhagavān Śiva himself offered to punish.
Sources
- Śiva Purāṇa, Koṭi Rudra Saṃhitā, Chapters 32–33