Baba Balaknath – Reincarnation of Lord Kartikeya

Location:- Around 45 kms away from “Hamirpur” near the border of Hamirpur and Bilaspur districts of Himachal Pradesh, India.

Baba Balak Nath or Sidh Baba Balak Nath is a Hindu deity worshipped in the northern Indian states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. His shrine is known as “Deotsidh”.

Baba Balak Nath is believed to be a reincarnation of Lord Kartikeya, son of Lord Shiva & Goddess Parvati, born in Satya-Yuga to annihilate demon Tarkasur. 

Birth Story of Baba Balak Nath as Sidh-Purush:-

The most common story concerning Baba Balak Nath’s birth as a’ Sidh-Purusha’ is linked to Lord Shiva’s Amar Katha. It is said that Lord Shiva was sharing the Amar Katha with Goddess Parwati in the cave of Amarnath, and Goddess Parvati fell asleep. In the cave, there was a kid-parrot who was listening to the entire story and making ‘yes’ noises (“hmm..”). When the narration was done, Lord Shiva discovered Goddess Parwati sleeping, and he realized that the story had been heard by someone else. He was furious and hurled his Trishul at the kid-parrot. Trishul pursued the kid-parrot as he attempted to flee for his life. Rishi Vyas’ wife was yawning in the background. Through her mouth, the kid-parrot made its way into her stomach. The Trishul came to a halt because killing a woman was considered unreligious. When Lord Shiva learned of this, he went to Rishi Vyas and told him about his dilemma. Rishi Vyas advised him to stay put and wait for the kid-parrot to emerge, at which point he could kill him. Lord Shiva remained motionless for a long time, but the kid-parrot did not emerge. The universe became disorganized when Lord Shiva stood there. The Lords then gathered around Sage Narada and asked him to plead Lord Shiva to preserve the world. Then Narada approached Lord Shiva and pleaded with him to let go of his rage because the child had already heard the Amar Katha mantra.

As a result, he had become immortal, and no one could kill him now. When Lord Shiva heard this, he told the kid-parrot to come out, and the kid-parrot asked for a blessing in return. Lord Shiva agreed, and the kid-parrot begged that as he matured into a man, any other child born at the same period would be endowed with unlimited knowledge and immortality. As Lord Shiva approved this, a divine baby sprang from the mouth of Rishi Vyas’ wife. He prayed to Lord Shiva for his blessings, and he received them. Later, this heavenly baby was called Sukhdev Muni. Nau Nath and Chaurasi Sidh were two other renowned kids born at that time. Baba Balak Nath was one among them.

Credits:

1. Feaured Image By Gita Press Gorakhpur – https://archive.org/details/ShrimadBhagavataMahapuranaGitaPressGorakhpur, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=66760043