Why is the poison that came out of Samudra Manthana called Halahalam and Kaalakootam?

Question

This question discusses how poison was the first thing that came out of Samudra Manthana. Shiva drank that poison to save everyone and is known as Neelakantha. The poison itself is called हलाहलं (Halahalam) or कालकूटं (KaalaKootam).

I heard that the word हलाहलं is mentioned in different forms in different texts.

Also, this wiki article describes (maybe not correctly) two of the meanings of KaalaKootam as 'black mass' or 'time puzzle'.

Why is the poison given these two names - हलाहलं and कालकूटं ? Is there any hidden symbolism behind it?

Maybe you can ask about the different pronunciations as well. — Surya, May 21 '16 at 11:31
I can give an interpretation though I don't know whether it is right - Halahala is that which makes the world cry out 'Hala Hala' in terror. — Surya, May 21 '16 at 11:33
Or maybe if you split it as Hala-Ahala then it can mean that which undoes the fabric (literally vowels) of the universe. — Surya, May 21 '16 at 11:34
I think Sagara Madanam is alluding to something. Many people provide different interpretations. See this answer on Quora. — The Destroyer, May 22 '16 at 02:01
@TheDestroyer Thats interesting. It can also be seen as the churning of the life of a person. — Amit Saxena, May 22 '16 at 06:58

score 4 · Answer 1 · answered Jun 07 '16 at 16:47

4

The Amarakosha gives the names Kalakuta and Halahala to the poison of the Nagas in Bhogivarga or The Section about Snakes.

The Amarapadavivrtti Commentary By Lingayasuri gives the following meanings:

Kalakoota:

Kalavarnasya Kootah Iti - The poison (fumes) that is black in colour
Kalam Yamam Api Kootayati Iti Va - That which burns even Yama, the god of Death

Halahalam:

Halati Vilikhati Jatharam Na Halati Cha - That which ploughs and twists the stomach while simultaneously straightening it (in short, torturing and re-torturing a person)

The Amarapadaparijata of Mallinatha says the following:

Halahalam:

Hrdaye Halahalam Mahad Visham - Halahala is a toxic poison to the heart (implying that it can cause instant death)

answered Jun 07 '16 at 16:47

Surya

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What are these two works, works on Nirukta or what? – Keshav Srinivasan Jun 08 '16 at 01:56
@Keshav Both are commentaries to Amarakosha the Sanskrit Lexicon. – Surya Jun 08 '16 at 02:33
So is the Amarakosha a work in the Nirukta genre or something else? – Keshav Srinivasan Jun 08 '16 at 02:47
@Keshav No the Amarakosha is the Sanskrit Thesaurus which is accepted by all Sanskrit scholars as the definitive thesaurus. – Surya Jul 22 '16 at 11:37

Why is the poison that came out of Samudra Manthana called Halahalam and Kaalakootam?

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