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Vacancies – Positions open – Deva or Asura?

We have all heard innumerable stories about the Devas or Suras and their arch-rivals Asuras. The story of their enmity has often taken heights and has been showcased by multiple high grossing Hollywood as well as Bollywood movies. Do you know that there are positions available amongst the Suras and Asuras equally if you are interested?

Many of us might recall the Sura and Asura are both brothers from the same father – Maharishi Kashyap but different mothers – Diti and Aditi. Due to their constant strife for power they are both assigned different homes – the sky (Heaven or Swarga) and underground (Patala), We have always visualized the Suras as the nice looking heroes who are always struggling to keep ugly looking, wrong doing Asuras at bay from capturing their abode.

Let's take a slightly distorted view and consider them equal and then understand them both!

  • Both Devatas and Asuras are the offspring of the same maharishi.
  • They are both the creatures of the same God – Lord Brahma
  • They both fight for the same Lakshmi

However, there are a few differences as well –

  • The Devatas strive to maintain their abode in Swarga, they never venture out of their territory. The Asuras on the other hand, do not consider the territory to be the binding factor. They are always looking to increase their territory.
  • The Devatas always strive to keep the Lakshmi, while the Asuras always strive to get Lakshmi.
  • The Devatas represent stagnation while the Asuras represent growth. 
  • It is almost always seen that the killing of Asuras liberates or makes Lakshmi, while a downfall of Devata brings sadness
  • Thefight amongst them is vertical – Up vs Down

So are the Asuras evil? Remember, "Evil" means absence of God. But we know, that the God is omnipresent and omniscient and nothing exists if God I not present!

So are Asuras evil? Nope. They are what the Devas are not. They represent the industriousness, relentlessness, hard work, ambition and growth. The only thing they lack is adherence to Dharma. For them the growth is their dharma. Throughout their quest for Lakshmi, they do not care for Saraswati – the goddess of knowledge. In little times, when they do care for Saraswati, it is to get Lakshmi and forget Saraswati later. Hence this phenomenon is referred to as VidyaLakshmi.

Remember the good Asuras who created legend for all of us – Prahalad (son of Hiranyakashyap) and his descendents – Virochan, Bali. Virochana – Prahlada's son followed the path of dharma and believed that his salvation would come if he helped others in their desires. Vishnu desires his neck and Virochana gives it away by beheading himself. Bali, his son, is no different! Bali gave away his entire empire to "Vaman Deva" – an incarnation of Vishnu only to live in Patala (Underground). What we do not realize is that the growing size of the Vamana avatara of Vishnu represents the growing form of the human desires.

Like it or not, the story says that there were good Asuras and there were bad Suras too. Being industrious and hardworking, the Asuras kept creating Lakshmi. Lakshmi on the other hand, came to being when the underground was mined or worked upon or killing of Asuras – choose what you like.

Probably, this is the reason why God likes them too. But the God creates a delicate balance for the nature to survive!

None of them bad! They both have good qualities. Choose what you are and when!
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