Stories for when you feel Feeling Stressed

When Draupadi completely surrendered to Krishna during her disrobing, he miraculously protected her with an endless sari. Complete surrender brings complete protection.

Five-year-old prince Dhruva, humiliated by his stepmother, performed intense austerities guided by sage Narada. His meditation with the mantra 'Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya' was so powerful that Vishnu appeared and granted him an eternal position as the Pole Star.

Destined to die at 16, young Markandeya clings to Shiva lingam as Yama approaches. Shiva emerges and defeats death itself, granting eternal youth. Devotion conquers destiny.

A physician in Vrindavan would write daily lists of his needs. Each day, Krishna would arrange exactly that much income. Complete surrender and trust in the divine providing daily sustenance.

Brahma created Shitala to address smallpox. Her lentils became infected with disease germs. When King Birat refused her full authority, she unleashed 75 types of pox. Only complete surrender healed his people - she is both cause and cure of epidemic disease.

Vishnu appears as a dwarf brahmin during Balis great sacrifice. Despite guru Shukracharyas warnings, Balis generosity compels him to grant Vamanas request for three steps of land. The dwarf assumes cosmic form covering earth and heaven in two strides, placing his third step on Balis head - rewarding his surrender by making him lord of the netherworld.

Gorakhnath demonstrated mastery over life and death multiple times. He once destroyed and then restored the two sons of Matsyendranath to prove a spiritual point. In another instance, a disciple who had taken the form of a stag was shot by King Bhartari. Gorakhnath simply cast earth upon the body, and the disciple returned to life.

When Lord Vamana asked for three steps of land, Bali agreed despite his guru's warning. Vamana covered heaven and earth in two steps. Bali offered his head for the third, and Vishnu granted him rulership of Sutala and promised to be his doorkeeper.

After Shiva burned Kamadeva to ashes, the disfigured god sought restoration at Kamakhya Peeth where Satis yoni had fallen. Through devoted worship of the Tantric goddess, Kamadeva regained his form and beauty.

A deer and a crow share a strong friendship until a cunning jackal manipulates them apart through deceit. The tale highlights the dangers of allowing outsiders to interfere in trusted relationships.

Krishna travels to Mathura for Kansa's wrestling tournament. He kills the mad elephant Kuvalayapida, defeats the champion wrestlers Chanura and Mushtika, and finally kills his uncle Kansa, fulfilling the prophecy that had haunted the tyrant since Krishna's birth. He frees his parents from prison and restores the rightful king.

When a forest fire surrounds Krishna and the cowherd boys with no escape, Krishna tells them to close their eyes. He then inhales the entire fire, swallowing the flames completely. When the boys open their eyes, the fire is gone as if it never existed.

On the autumn full moon, Krishna plays his flute and calls the gopis to the forest. He multiplies himself so each woman can dance with him personally. When pride enters their hearts, he vanishes, teaching them that divine love requires complete humility. The dance resumes when they learn to love without possessing.

After the Yadava clan destroys itself due to an old curse, Krishna wanders into the forest alone. A hunter named Jara, mistaking Krishna's foot for a deer, shoots him with an arrow. Krishna forgives the hunter, explaining this balances a karmic debt from his previous life as Rama. He departs his body peacefully, ending his earthly mission.

The fire god Agni needs to consume the Khandava forest to cure his divine indigestion, but Indra keeps extinguishing the flames. Agni gives Krishna and Arjuna divine weapons in exchange for their help. Together, they hold off Indra's attacks long enough for the forest to burn completely—a battle that establishes their legendary partnership.

Five-year-old Dhruva, humiliated by his stepmother and ignored by his father, enters the forest to find Vishnu through meditation. His six-month tapas is so intense that Vishnu appears. Transformed by the vision, Dhruva asks only to always remember God—and becomes the Pole Star, eternally fixed.

Shiva's eternal meditation on Mount Kailash represents the deepest dhyana yoga teaching: pure consciousness, witnessing all without being touched. When desire-god Kamadeva tries to disturb him, he's burned by Shiva's third eye—showing that awareness itself dissolves attachment.

Sage Patanjali systematized meditation in 196 sutras, defining yoga as 'cessation of mental fluctuations.' His eight-limbed path—from ethics through posture, breath, and concentration to absorption—provides a complete technology of consciousness still practiced worldwide after twenty-two centuries.

When Rama returns to Vaikuntha, Hanuman refuses to follow. He chooses to remain on earth wherever Rama's name is sung, protecting devotees and keeping the story alive. While others seek liberation, Hanuman seeks eternal service—because for true love, service is not burden but joy.

Ramakrishna taught: The cat catches her kitten with her teeth and they are not hurt; but when a mouse is so caught, it dies. This illustrated how Maya destroys ordinary beings trapped in worldly attachments, but gently carries true devotees who have surrendered to God. For them, even Maya becomes a nurturing mother rather than a destroyer.