Gokarṇa Śiva Caturdaśī Māhātmya

Caturdaśī, the fourteenth day of each half of the lunar month, is one of the most sacred days for Bhagavān Śiva. Gokarṇa is one of the greatest Śiva kshetras (holy places). When pūjā at Gokarṇa falls on Caturdaśī, the merit is said to be beyond measure.

The Brahmottara Khaṇḍa of the Skanda Purāṇa teaches this Caturdaśī Māhātmya (glory of Caturdaśī) through two stories that follow one another. In the first, a cāṇḍālī (a woman of the lowest outcaste group) named Sumitra offered bilva leaves at Gokarṇa on Caturdaśī by chance and was taken to Śivaloka, the world of Śiva. In the second, a dog that happened to be near a Śiva pūjā on Caturdaśī was reborn as a king named Vimardhana. The lesson of both is that the Caturdaśī at Gokarṇa works no matter who the person is, what they know, or what they intend.

The Gokarṇa Kshetra

Gokarṇa is one of the famous Śiva kshetras of the tradition, holy as a place of pūjā to the Śiva liṅga. The name means “cow’s ear” (go = cow, karṇa = ear), and it is connected with the sacred landscape of the place. Pilgrimage to Gokarṇa and pūjā at its Śiva shrine on Caturdaśī is especially holy.

The Caturdaśī Tithi

The Caturdaśī (fourteenth day) of both the kṛshṇa paksha (dark fortnight) and the śukla paksha (bright fortnight) is held to be especially sacred to Śiva. The Caturdaśī of the dark fortnight in the month of Māgha is Mahāśivarātrī, the great night of Śiva. Yet every Caturdaśī shares in this holiness to some degree. The bilva leaf is Śiva’s favourite offering on this day.

The Stories

Sumitra the Cāṇḍālī at Gokarṇa

Sumitra had once been a brāhmaṇa girl, but through her past karma she was reborn as a cāṇḍālī. On Śiva Caturdaśī she was wandering near Gokarṇa and, without much thought, placed some bilva leaves on the Śiva liṅga. When she died, the messengers of Yama (the ruler of death) came for her. But Śiva’s own messengers also came, and they won. They said that her bilva offering at Gokarṇa on Caturdaśī was a cause of liberation that could not be undone. She was taken to Parameśvara Loka, the world of Śiva.

Vimardhana: Reborn Because a Dog Was Near a Pūjā

In a past life, a dog was simply present near a Śiva Caturdaśī pūjā that was being performed. Just being close to it gave enough merit for that being to be reborn as Vimardhana, a Kirāta king. Later he remembered his past life and told the story to his queen, Kumudvatī.

The Core Teaching

The Caturdaśī at Gokarṇa works as a spiritual force with no conditions. The Purāṇa’s reasoning is clear:

If a cāṇḍālī who offered bilva by chance on Caturdaśī at Gokarṇa was taken to Śivaloka, what more needs to be said about a person who keeps Caturdaśī knowingly and with devotion?

If a dog that was merely near a Caturdaśī pūjā gained a royal human birth, what more needs to be said about a devotee who performs the pūjā properly?

These extreme cases are the teaching itself. The power of the tithi (lunar day), the power of the kshetra, and the holiness of bilva, Śiva’s beloved leaf, join together into an upward pull toward Śiva that cannot be resisted.

The Gokarṇa Caturdaśī Māhātmya is one of several teachings in the Brahmottara Khaṇḍa about sacred days and holy places. Others include the Pradosha (Trayodaśī) Māhātmya, the Somavāra vrata (Monday vow), and the Umā-Maheśvara vrata.

Sources

Skanda Mahāpurāṇa, Brahma Khaṇḍa, Dharmāraṇya Khaṇḍa, Uttarārdha, Chapters 2–4