There are several stories in Northern India about Diwali, but the Southern folklore is very different. One thing which is common in every part of the country is that Diwali is a celebration of “good over evil”.
The Southern folklore comes from Andhra Pradesh. It is about the demon king Narakasura and the celebration of Naraka Chaturdashi. According to mythology, it is the day that Lord Krishna killed a demon called Narakasura. This day is celebrated one day before main Deewali as Choti Deewali.
Origins of Narakasura
The name Narakasura is significant because it reminds of the human conditioning “Naraka”. “Nara” is one about the earth or plane. He was also the son of Bhudevi, the mother goddess or the earth goddess, and Vishnu’s boar avatar Varaha. Narakasura had the nature of the demon through the association with the Banasura. He was powerful and made people suffer throughout his reign.
Narakasura was the king of Pragjyotishpur which was a place in Andhra Pradesh. Narakasura was so powerful that he started terrorizing people to get pleasure. His greed and ego increased day after day, which pushed the people towards poverty.
He was ambitious and wanted to take control over the kingdoms nearby. He brought all the kingdoms on earth under his crown and imprisoned sixteen thousand princesses from the kingdoms he defeated. After conquering the earth, he was all set to take over heaven and cause trouble in the “Swarga”.
Lord Brahma’s Boon
To take over the Swarglok he has to become immortal so that he can defeat any Devas which come in his way. He wanted to get a boon of immortality from the God Brahma. He started his penance and prayed to Lord Brahma, standing on one foot. Impressed by his effort Lord Brahma came to earth to offer Narakasura blessings.
Narakasura asked from Lord Brahma that he wished to be immortal, to which Lord Brahma refused. After taking a moment to decide, Narakasura again asked for a boon that he can only die at the hands of his mother. He was granted this Vardan. After granting this boon Lord Brahma disappeared, and Narakasura was satisfied with the thought that no mother would kill her child, so he is immortal.
March to Swargalok
With his new powers, Narakasura marched along with his army towards the “Swarglok” attacking the Indradev, no Devta was able to defeat him, and they fled. Narakasura kept conquering whatever came his way, and no one was able to kill him. Narakasura captured the Apsaras in the Indralok and to insult Devraj Indra he also took his mother Aditi’s earrings.
Mother Aditi was very upset and wanted to get justice for the insult. Indradeva was very scared after being defeated by Narakasura. So he went rushing to Lord Vishnu. He asked for help from Lord Vishnu to which Lord Vishnu replied that he should seek help from Krishna who is His incarnation on earth.
Satyabhama – The Incarnation of Mother Earth
Indra dev came down to earth to meet Lord Vishu’s incarnation Lord Krishna who at that time was spending quality time with his wife, Satyabhama. Indra dev told the entire story to Satyabhama and Lord Krishna. According to some tales it is also said that Satyabhama was a relative of Indra Dev’s mother Aditi and Aditi asked for help from Satyabhama.
After listening to the story, Satyabhama was infuriated and wanted to kill Narakasura. Krishna, along with other devas, knew that Satyabhama was the reincarnation of the Mother Goddess Bhudevi. According to the boon only she was capable of killing Narakasura. At that point in time, Satyabhama was not aware of any such thing, but she was so angry that all she could think of was to defeat Narakasura.
Satyabhama Accompanied Krishna
The tale of Narakasura is famous in South India. Many people do not know this, but Satyabhama was the one who killed Narakasura. Krishna who was aware of the reincarnation of Bhudevi as Satyabhama wanted to take her to the battlefield. But it was unusual for a woman to wage war. Especially when she is married.
Krishna teased Satyabhama by questioning her abilities on the grounds of her being a woman. Krishna said that how will Satyabhama kill an asura when she is a delicate woman.
Satyabhama was annoyed because Krishna met Satyabhama on the battlefield. The questions on her ability made her feel insulted. To this, Satyabhama vowed that she would fight the demons on the battleground and kill the demon king Narakasura. Krishna went to the battlefield along with Satyabhama where Krishna fought demons. Still, when the time came, he started pretending to get defeated by the demon King Narakasura and fainted on the ground.
Satyabahama Slains Narakasura
Watching this from a distance Satyabhama was filled with anger. She got off her chariot and started shooting arrows at Narakasura. Her arrows pierced his chest, and he fell on the ground while dying he realized Satyabhama was the reincarnation of her own mother, Bhudevi.
At this point, even Satyabhama realized who she was, and her eyes were flooded with tears that she had killed her son. Lord Krishna wiped off her tears and declared that she had killed her son to destroy evil and provide justice to Indra Dev’s mother, Aditi. He said that this day had marked the victory of “Good over the Evil”, so this day will be celebrated as Diwali. Narakasura was the personification of evil and was killed on this day by Lord Krishna and his wife Satyabhama.
Celebration of Naraka Chaturdashi
Lord Krishna declared that this day would be remembered as Naraka Chaturdashi. After killing the demon King, Krishna helped the sixteen thousand princesses to return to their kingdoms but rejected by families they had no other choice but to seek help from Krishna again. All the sixteen thousand princesses asked him to marry them so that they can get respect in society.
Krishna married all the sixteen thousand princesses and gave them respect in his kingdom. This is the story from where the popular notion that Lord Krishna had sixteen thousand wives comes into being. This story is prevalent in South India. There are several other stories related to Deewali in other parts of India. Diwali still remains the most important festival in the country.