SKANDA

also called Karttikeya, Kumara, or Subrahmanya, Hindu god of war and the first-born son of Siva (Shiva). The many legends giving the circumstances of his birth are often at variance with one another. One account is given by Kalidasa (4th and 5th centuries AD) in his epic poem Kumarasambhava (The Birth of the War God). The versions all generally agree that the gods wished for Skanda to be born in order to destroy the demon Taraka, who had been granted a boon that he could only be killed by a son of Siva. Siva, however, was lost in meditation and was not attracted to Parvati until struck by an arrow from the bow of Kama, the god of love. After the many years of abstinence Siva's seed was so strong that the gods feared the result, and some accounts say it was deposited into the fire (from which comes the name Skanda, in Sanskrit: Spurt of Semen). One tradition has it that Skanda was reared by, or was even the son of, the Krttikas, six wives of rsis who as stars make up the Pleiades, hence the name Karttikeya (Son of Krttikas). He developed his six faces to drink the milk of his six nurses. His relationship with Parvati is also acknowledged, and he is often depicted in painting and sculpture as a six-headed child held by his mother, Parvati, and accompanied by his brother Ganesa. He is called Kumara (Sankskrit: Youth, Boy) because he is generally considered to have never married and in Yoga represents the power of chastity. He has enormous strength and leads the army of the gods. When he planted his spear in the earth, none could budge it save the god Vishnu, and then mountains and rivers shook. In South India, where the god originated as Murugan before merging with the North Indian Skanda, he has a large following under the name Subrahmanya (dear to the Brahmanas); his temples or shrines are found in every village, no matter how small. Skanda is often represented in sculpture with either six heads or one, holding a spear or bow and arrows, and either riding on or accompanied by his mount, the peacock.