Mahākāla the Hunter
Mahākāla was a hunter (vyādha) who killed deer and other creatures on the bank of the Śābhramatī river. He knew nothing of Śiva worship. By a series of actions he did without meaning to, he worshipped the Dhavaleśvara liṅga with his whole heart and called Śiva his master. Bhagavān Śiva later appeared before him and made him one of his gatekeepers at Kailāsa. His name Mahākāla means “great time” or “great death”.
Who he was
Mahākāla was a hunter of frightening look. He was fierce, carried a bow, had “the form of death”, and was huge and strong. He killed animals for a living and had no earlier link with Śiva or his worship. The Padma Mahā Purāṇa calls him greedy and a pāpakarmā (one who does acts of pāpa, or sin).
Worship without knowing
One day Mahākāla came to the bank of the Śābhramatī. By chance he found the Dhavaleśvara liṅga in its grove of tapas (austerity). The vaiśya Nandin had already decorated it beautifully in his morning pūjā (worship). Mahākāla embraced the liṅga and then went to the river.
He came back with bilva leaves in one hand and deer flesh in the other. His mouth was full of river water. Then he did these things:
- He scattered Nandin’s neatly placed flowers with his foot.
- He bathed the liṅga with the water from his mouth.
- He offered the bilva leaves with one hand.
- He offered the deer flesh with the other hand.
- He bowed down fully before the liṅga.
He said aloud: “From today you are my master and I am your devotee.” He knew no rules of worship, but he gave his whole heart. The Padma Mahā Purāṇa tells this as a true act of pūjā in Śiva’s eyes.
He comes again
The next day he came again and did the same worship in the same way. The vaiśya Nandin and his family priest were watching. They were so afraid of the hunter’s fierce look that they hid and stayed silent. They could not face him.
The loss and the offering of his head
Nandin then took the Dhavaleśvara liṅga to his own home to keep it safe. The next morning Mahākāla came to the grove and found the liṅga gone. He was struck with grief. It was the only object of his devotion, and he had come to see it as his master.
In this state he wounded his own body and decided to give up his life to Śiva. He raised his sword to cut off his own head as a last offering of devotion.
Bhagavān Śiva appears
Before the hunter could finish, Bhagavān Śiva appeared before him in person. Śiva was moved by the great sincerity of his love. Mahākāla was a man with no learning and no knowledge of ritual, yet his devotion was complete. Śiva honoured both Mahākāla and the vaiśya Nandin. He took them both into his service as gatekeepers (dvārapālas) at Kailāsa.
Sources
- Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Uttara Khaṇḍa, Chapter 151