Thousands of years ago, there was a great scholar among the gods in the Satya Yuga, named Brihaspati (Jupiter). He was appointed by Indra, the king of the gods, as his official deva guru(Chief Priest of gods). That was a time when the place of a guru was very important because the Vedic rituals were the most important aspect of people's life at that time. The gurus' had the knowledge to use methods and substances to influence his own life, the conditions around him, and the lives of others. A remnant of this ritualistic culture can still be seen in the southern part of India. Among them, the state of Kerala has more rituals and more sanctity than any part of the country.


Brihaspati's wife Tara

Brihaspati's wife's name was Tara. Tara means "Star." In ancient India like today, the place of woman in yagnya rituals was as important as that of a man. This arrangement ensured that like a man, the place of women was also the same. A man could not obtain blessings got in yagnya without his wife. Even a man without his wife could neither go to heaven nor attain salvation. All those rituals were set up in such a way that, society could not in any sense disregard women. Women today have less freedom than then. Unfortunately, with this freedom, they are losing many of the privileges that they had in that era. In those times, social norms, or what was referred to as "Dharma" ensured that a woman could not be used, abused, or neglected. Because a woman was a very important part of a man's life. The spiritual dimension was not possible for a man until his woman was next to him.

Let's go back to the story.


Tara Fell in Love with Soma (The Moon God)

Although Brihaspati was the guru of the gods, he needed Tara for whatever he did. Brihaspati did not dissociate Tara simply because he was only concerned about his rituals. They both did not share love affairs. One day, Tara saw Shukla Pakshya's Soma/Chandra (The Waxing Moon) from her window and fell in love with the Soma (the moon god). They both fell so much in their love that after some time, Tara left Brihaspati and went with Soma.

When Brihaspati came to know about this, he became furious because it was not just about losing his wife but losing his reputation, his pride, and his place in society. He could no longer enter Devakaloka (Heaven). He called Indra and said, "I want my wife back and you have to bring her back, otherwise I will not perform your rituals."

Indra intervenes in the matter and forces Tara to return. This was the first time that a woman was forced to stick to a certain family structure. When Indra said, "You have to come back to Guru Brihaspati" Tara replied, "No, my love is Soma, and I don't want to go back." Indra said, "In this situation, your feelings do not matter. At this time your Dharma is to be with Brihaspati. " At last Tara was brought back to from Soma despite not wanting.


Brihaspati's curse on Budha, the child of Tara and Soma

Brihaspati saw that Tara was pregnant. He wanted to know whose child it was. But Tara refused to speak. In this uproar from inside Tara's womb, the unborn child asks the question, "Whose child am I really?"

Seeing the wisdom of this child, Tara realized "I may refuse to tell my husband, I may refuse to tell the gods, but I cannot refuse to tell my unborn child."  Thinking this, Tara said, "This is Soma's child." Brihaspati was very angry that his wife was carrying the child of another person in her womb. He cursed the child and said, "You will become a Kimpurusha (Hermaphrodite). Neither will you become a man nor a woman." 

When that child was born, it was named Budha (God of Mercury). As he grew up, he told his mother, "What do I do?" Should I live as a woman or as a man? What is my Dharma? Should I become an ascetic or should I marry? Should I marry a man or a woman? "

Hearing her child's talk, Tara pointed to the sky and said, "Look. Just like in this entire universe, all these billions of stars, planets, nakshatras, different kinds of creatures that are neither men, nor women, nor gods nor demons, have room for them, so don't worry. For you too, there is room here. For you too, a life cycle must have been created. Life will come your way."

Listening to his mother he started practicing asceticism in the for

Meanwhile, when all this was happening at heaven, on earth King Satyavrata (Vaivasvata Manu) and his wife Shraddha were expecting their next child.

To be continued...