Halahala

Halāhala (Sanskrit हलाहल), also called Kālakūṭa (Sanskrit कालकूट, meaning "poison of death"), is a poison from Hindu mythology. It emerged during the churning of the Ocean of Milk by the devas and asuras, who were seeking amrita, the nectar of immortality. Fourteen ratnas, or treasures, were recovered from this event and divided between the two groups. However, before amrita could form, Halāhala appeared and began harming both sides. Its lethal fumes caused the devas and asuras to collapse from asphyxiation. They sought help from Brahma, who directed them to Shiva. Both groups went to Mount Kailash and prayed to Shiva for aid.

Shiva chose to consume the entire poison. His wife, the goddess Parvati, grew alarmed and gripped his neck with both hands to stop the poison from reaching his stomach. This act earned Shiva the epithet Viṣakaṇṭha, meaning "the one who held poison in his neck." The poison turned his throat blue, giving him the name Nīlakaṇṭha, "the one with a blue throat."

Other versions of the legend exist. In one variation, a small portion of the poison was given to Shiva, turning his throat blue, while the rest was collected in a golden vessel and digested by Vayu. Yet another version states that Shiva drank the kālakūṭa poison of the snake Vasuki, the second king of the nāgas. Vasuki was a familiar of Shiva, whom Shiva blessed and often draped around his neck. The gods had used Vasuki, stretched out stiffly, as the tool to turn the mountain during the churning of the Ocean of Milk.

In Persian, the term Halāhil (Persian: هلاهل) appears in classical literature and lexicography for an exceptionally powerful and lethal poison. It came to be used more generally for deadly or highly potent poisons. According to the Persian Dehkhoda Dictionary, citing the Burhān-e Qāṭeʿ, halāhil was described as a poison so deadly that no antidote could cure it and that it could kill within a short time. Another source quoted by Dehkhoda, Baḥr al-Jawāhir, identifies it as a kind of aconite (Persian: bīš) said to be so poisonous that even its vapour or scent could be fatal. Some traditional lexicographical sources associate the name with a geographical locality.