Sati and Daksha's Yagya

Prajapati Daksha was a son of Brahma and a very powerful king. He had a daughter, Sati, who had loved Shiv since childhood. Sati performed hard tapasya, and Shiv accepted her as his wife. The two lived happily on Mount Kailash.

But Daksha disliked Shiv. He felt that Shiv, smeared in ash, wandering cremation grounds and living with ghostly ganas, was not fit to be his son-in-law. Once, at an assembly in Prayag, everyone stood up when Daksha entered, but Shiv remained seated in meditation. Daksha took this as an insult and nursed a grudge.

To take revenge, Daksha held a grand yagya at Kankhal. All the devas, sages and kings were invited, except Shiv and Sati. When Sati saw the devas travelling through the sky in their finery, she longed to go to her father's home.

Shiv explained: going uninvited is not right; you will be insulted there. But Sati thought, it is my father's house, why do I need an invitation? She went to the yagya with Nandi and a few ganas. There her father would not even speak to her properly, and no share of the offerings had been set aside for Shiv.

When Daksha insulted Shiv in front of everyone, Sati could not bear it. She said: I do not want a body that is tied to someone who insults Shiv. Through the fire of yoga, she gave up her body. The whole assembly was stunned, and cries of grief rose across the yagya hall.