Once a poor hunter set out for a hunt.he wandered the whole forest but didn’t found a single prey .Tired & Hungry, he came near a pond in the forest and for the purpose of hunting he climbed a “bel” tree (sacred to Shiva). Sitting on a branch he waited for a hunt. But since the leaves obstructed his vision, he began to pluck a few leaves, which by chance fell on a Swayabhu Shiva Linga (“pindi”), which happened to be hidden in the green forest under that tree. Then a herd of deer came to drink water. The hunter took aim at a hind (female deer). But as she noticed the movement of the hunter, she cried out, “Please, wait a moment, before you shoot let me go home and meet my young ones for the last time. Afterwards you may take my life at your pleasure.”
The hunter gave the hind permission to go home, and re-mained sitting on the tree waiting for her to return. Waiting the whole night he was forced to observe fast.
Near by the forest there was a hermitage of a sage who was chanting the “Om Namaha Shivaya” Mantra.The hunter listenend the chanting whole night carefully and unknowingly water from his pot was poured drop by drop on the Shiva Linga under the Billi tree.
On the Shiva Linga he had inadvertently offered the “bel” leaves. With his mouth he uttered the name of Shiva, thus he fulfilled the conditions needed for the observance of the Maha Shiva Ratra vow. So without knowing how, his heart was changed and he was filled with sentiments of mercy.Before dawn the mother deer came back with the entire herd. “Now you may take my life at your pleasure” she said.
Seeing the hind’s honesty the hunter’s heart was further softened, and he completely gave up his thought of killing the hind. Shankar was so pleased that immediately making all of them sit in a plane he took them to heaven. Both the hind and the hunter can be seen at night in the sky among the stars in the constellation of Orion (“Mrugshirsh nakshatra”).
Shiva the “Great God” blessed the poor hunter to become the commander of all Rudra Gans God Veera Bhadra and born as Chakravarthy King Vikramaditya in his next birth on Earth .
