In Hinduism, Karttikeya (also Murugan, Subramaniam, Skanda) is either a son of Agni and Svaha or Ganga, or Shiva and Parvati. This confusion arises from an interesting myth. Shiva decided to create a magical spark, which would give birth to a deity. This spark was so bright and luminous that only Agni, god of Fire, could carry it. Agni deposited the spark, according to Shiva's directions, in the Ganga river. Ganga then nourished the spark, causing a living being, Karttikeya, to spring from it. Karttikeya is the god of masculinity, war and leader of the armies of the gods.
The festival of Thaipusam, celebrated by Tamil communities worldwide, commemorates both Karttikeya's birthday and the day he was given a vel (lance) by his mother Parvati in order to vanquish the evil demon Soorapadam.
In art, he is depicted as having six heads, twelve arms and twelve legs. He rides a peacock and wields a bow and arrow in battle.
