The Family of Shiva
Ganesha, Kartikeya, Ayyappa, the ganas, Nandi. The most loved stories in Hindu childhood, never just cute because each one carries a teaching. The family of Kailasa.
Lessons in this chapter
- Ganesha: Born of the Mother Alone — The son made from turmeric paste
- Gajamukha: The Beheading and the Elephant Head — Identity beyond the body
- Buddhi: Ganesha's Race and the Moon's Curse — Wisdom over speed, and why we avert the Ganesh Chaturthi moon
- Skanda: The Warrior Son with Six Faces — Born of Shiva's fire, nursed by six Krittikas
- Tarakasura Vadha: Devasena and Valli — The spear, the victory, two marriages
- Ayyappa: Son of Shiva and Mohini — The forest god of Sabarimala
- Ganas: Kailasa's Court and the Eleventh Rudra — Why Shiva's court has no caste, and Hanuman's secret
- Nandi: The One Who Waits — Shilada's tapas and the bull at the threshold