Skanda Shashti

Skanda Shashti
(Nov 10th to 15th 2007)

A very important God worshipped at Tiruvannamalai and throughout Tamil Nadu is Lord Murugan. During the Nine Nights of the Goddess (Navaratri), the three goddesses Kali (Parvatis fierce form), Lakshmi and Saraswati were involved in destroying the dark forces. Now, for the month of November, and especially concentrated during Skanda Shashti, the Six Days of Murugan (November 10-15, 2007), the God Murugan takes over and continues the fight with the demons. Also occurring during Skanda Shashti this year, is an auspicious planetary placement of Mars in Gemini which increases the energy of Murugan and the planet Mars.

Lord Murugan has always been concerned about the evolution of the planet and welfare of its people. Throughout time, Murugan has played a major role in educating humans about a higher, more Divine way of life. Murugan is the Lord of the Pleiades and also a warrior God, in that his energy is expressed in a military manner. He is associated with the planet Mars and the star Krittika (Alcyone) in Vedic astrology.

Murugan’s weapon and icon (i.e., the symbol most closely associated and connected to Murugan) is the Vel. The Vel is in the shape of an arrow. Lord Murugan also holds the secrets of the sacred sound "Om", which he revealed to Lord Siva in ancient times at Swami Malai, after a curse from a powerful Yogi had removed this knowledge from Lord Siva entirely. A large statue sits in Swami Malai depicting the moment in time when Murugan whispered the secrets of "Om" into Siva’s ear while sitting on his lap.