4. The gods once began to churn the ocean in the hope of obtaining divine nectar. The mountain Mandara was their churning-stick, the primeval tortoise the pivot on which the stick rested and turned, and the serpent Vasuki was the churning-rope. As they churned, at first, great and splendid things came up. But suddenly something black rose up and darkened the whole universe. It was a mass of poison, deadly alike to gods and men. In terror of destruction, the gods and demons called on Siva. He came, drank the poison, and saved them all. That which was enough to destroy the universe could only stain his throat with a bluish colour. That is why Siva is often called the "poison-necked" or "blue-throated" god. There is a link here, small but real, with the Christian teaching of God as ready to suffer for the sake of humbler beings.

SAMBANDAR AND HIS HYMNS

Click to enlarge
SAMBANDAR

I