In the Rigveda Mitra’s name was often associated with Varuna. One chapter (Sukta) in the Rigveda said that if Mitra and Varuna were prayed to, the result would be an abundance of rain. Mitra was also glorified as the god of night and as ruling the earth and sky, together…
There is no concept in Hindu religion, philosophy, and mythology that, when oversimplified, has led to more misunderstanding. The phrase “it is all illusion, maya” reflects this kind of usage. In fact the concept of maya is complex, and its meaning depends on the context; it is central to…
Maya built palaces for both devas (gods) and asuras (demons). But in some accounts he was the architect for the asuras, while Visvakarman was the builder for the gods (devas). His daughter, Mandodari, married Ravana.
There are many versions of the myth of Matsya in the Puranas, with many interesting paradoxes and twists in the story line. Even the names of principle characters change. But the essentials of the myth speak of an avatara of Vishnu coming down to earth at the end of…
The Maruts were said to be sons of Rudra, sons or brothers of Indra, sons of the ocean, and later sons of Kasiyapa-prajapati (a progenitor). In the Rigveda they were associated with Indra, god of war, and Vayu, god of wind. Perhaps they were storm gods; certainly they helped…
Markandeya had a miraculous birth and would never grow older than sixteen years old. His father was the sage Mrikandu, whose worship pleased Siva. Appearing with a boon, Siiva asked Mrikandu whether he wanted a son who Markandeya was destined to die at sixteen but Siva saved his devotee from…
Brahma created Marici, whose life remains clouded in some mystery. His greatness cannot be doubted, but some say that he was a Marut (one of a group of gods associated with Indra, thus gods of storms and battle). Others that he was a Prajapati (progenitor or grandfather), or even…
There are many different calculations about just how long a manvantara is—but all agree that it is in the millions of human years. A smaller figure sets the number of years at only 4,320,000, while a larger calculation came to 306,720,000 human years. Each day in the life of Brahma,…
In the Rigveda there were references to Father Manu, implying that he was either a creator or a progenitor of the human race. In the Satapatha Brahmana Manu was known as the first human, father of the race, first to kindle the sacrificial fire, and creator of the social order….
During the Vedic period priests intoned verses, some spontaneous but most carefully crafted according to the strict rules that made Sanskrit so precise and difficult to use. These mantras became formulas, which were memorized to make sure that no error was made in pronunciation, grammar, phrasing, accent, pitch, and…
The maid of Queen Kaikeyi was reborn from a previous lifetime as a gandharvi (heavenly musician). Manthara’s sins from that lifetime produced her condition as a hunchback in her birth as the queen’s maid and advisor. Manthara planted the idea in Kaikeyi’s mind to ask Dasaratha to send Sri Rama…
The Skanda Purana says that Mangala (Mars) was born of the sweat of (Siva, which was produced on his forehead when he heard the news that his wife Sati had committed suicide at Daksha’s sacrifice (Dakshayaga). The planet Mars is worshipped as a deity.
In her previous birth, Mandodari had been a celestial damsel (apsara) named Madhura. Madhura went to Kailasa to worship Siva, having observed a special vow, the Somavara vrata. When Madhura reached Kailasa, Parvati, Siva’s wife, was not there. Madhura worshipped and praised Siva. But they were attracted to each…
Mandakarni did austerities (tapas) in a pond for ten thousand years. Indra became fearful that Mandakarni’s tapas would be used to gain a boon that would upset the order of heaven, so he sent five celestial maidens (apsaras) to distract him. The five apsaras did distract Mandakarni. He built…
This title of child of mind was given to those who were born of the mind of Brahma, the creator. Lists of seven, nine, and ten are given. In most cases the manasa-putras are thought of as identical to the Prajapatis, the progenitors of all beings in each creation. The…
This story has interesting implications about karma and rebirth. A brahmin woman was mentioned in the Skanda Purana for her bad character and equally bad deeds. Consequently, she was reborn as a dog. But during that lifetime she was able to observe a vow of purification (Sukladvadashi vrata) and was…
Maitreyi was mentioned in the Vedas and Puranas as one of the wisest and most virtuous of women. Maitreyi was married to the great philosopher-sage Yajnavalkya. She was noted as being especially learned in the scriptures. In one of the Upanishads Maitreyi engaged her husband in one of Hindu…
This version of an episode involving King Nimi and the sage Vasishtha was given in the Devi Bhagavata. Nimi and Vasishtha had cursed each other, and the result for Vasishtha was that he was alive but had no body. Vasishtha went to Brahma for advice and was told to merge…
There was a time when the mountains could fly. When they came to earth, they caused injury and suffering. Humans prayed to Indra, and he cut off the mountains’ wings. The mythic tradition used Mainaka in a variety of ways without much regard to an actual location. Mainaka was the…
At the beginning of this creation, Kasiyapa-prajapati and Danu had two powerful sons who competed with the devas (gods), Rambha and Karambha. They practiced austerities (tapas) in order to defeat the gods, but in spite of this Karambha was killed by Indra. Rambha chose to use Brahma’s boon for…
On the celestial mountain were the nine heavenly cities of Brahma, Indra, Agni, Yama, Niritti, Varuna, Vayu, Kubera, and isana. The abode of Siva, Kailasa, was also placed on Mahameru in Saiva texts. According to the Mahabharata, Mahameru was the king of mountains.
Mahadeva means the great god. It is one of the many titles or epithets of Siva.
The Mahabharata is an epic of enormous proportions—a hundred thousand verses, making it arguably the largest such poem in existence. It has traditionally been said to have been dictated by the sage Vyasa to his divine scribe, Ganesa, who wrote it all down using his single tusk as the…
Many myths mention the use of magic directly. The myth of Bala, an asura (demon), mentioned that he knew and taught ninety-six kinds of magic to trouble the devas (divinities). Hanuman was said to practice the eight superhuman powers (ashtha siddhis). The asuras had a life-restoring magic (mritansanjivani) that they…
Madri was the second wife of King Pandu and was a mother of two of the five Pandava brothers. When she was lent a magical incantation by Kunti (the king’s first wife) that would allow her to have a child by any deity she focused on, Madri concentrated upon…
There is scholarly agreement that there was worship of the male generative organ in the Indus Valley civilization. Both archaeological remains and explicit references to “worshippers of the phallus” in the Rigveda support such an interpretation. However one interprets Siva’s origin—as from the Indus Valley, from tribal religion, within the…
In the Padma Purana Lilavati (charming) was a prostitute in the krita yuga (first age, also called satya yuga). She went to another town looking for better clients. She noticed devotees celebrating a festival at the temple. When she inquired, Lilavati learned that it was the celebration of the birthday…
In the Mahabharata Likhita and Sanlcha were brothers, with their asramas (hermitages) next to each other on the banks of the Bahuda River. One day Likhita was hungry and went over to his brother’s asrama and began eating his vegetables. Jsankha discovered the theft and took Likhita before the king….
In the Ramayana the story is told that Brahma gave Lanka to Kubera, god of wealth. Celestial architects Visvakarman and Maya together designed this celestial city and built it of gold. Its first location was on the top of Mount Trikuta, a peak of Mahameru (great Meru). However, in…
Lakshmi’s multiple importance in Hindu mythology cannot be captured in a few paragraphs. Three perspectives will demonstrate the breadth of her roles and the changes in the ways in which she was perceived. Linguistically and historically, Lakshmi in the Rigveda was a word of feminine gender that quantified good fortune…
Lakshmana was the younger half-brother of Rama by the third and youngest wife of King Dasiaratha of Ayodhya. But his affection for Rama was understood to have been the result of his previous lifetime—as an incarnation of Lord Vishnu’s serpent, the one who floated as his bed on the…
Kurukshetra simply means “the field of the Kurus.” The Kurus or Kauravas decended from Kuru, a king of the Lunar Dynasty. About eighty-five miles north-northeast of Delhi, Kurukshetra has been an important pilgrimage site (tirtha) for at least twenty centuries. References in the Mahabharata to a firealtar (vedi) of Brahma…
This is one of the richest myths in the Vishnu myth cycle. Its popularity makes it pan-Indian and not just sectarian, even though many versions attempt to prove the ultimacy of Vishnu and his supremacy over Siva. When it is seen as an origin myth, answering the question of…
Kunti was the aunt of Shri Krishna, mother of the five Pandavas and a sixth son Karna, and wife of King Pandu. Kunti was a heroine of the Mahabharata. As a child Kunti was given to a royal cousin, King Kuntibhoja, who was childless. She was given responsibility over…
Kumbhakarna appeared in the Ramayana in a line of rebirths that started in Brahma’s court in heaven (svarga). In that lifetime he had been Vijaya, one of a pair of twin doorkeepers who were cursed for not properly performing their duties. He was reborn as Hiranyakasiipu and killed by…
Kucela was a fellow student with Krishna of the sage Sandipani. They were close friends as students, but lost contact in the following years. Kucela could not provide for his large family, and all were on the verge of starvation. One day his wife sent Kucela to visit Krishna…
The myth of Kubja is embedded within that of Tilottama, an apsara. Kubja either gained liberation from her performance of auspicious rituals, especially the one known as the Magha bath, or was transformed into a beautiful woman by the embrace of Sri Krishna. Kubja was the rebirth of the…
Kubera has been interpreted to be a deva and, as such, the god of wealth. There were several versions of his parentage. In the Atharvaveda Kubera was chief of the spirits of darkness and son of Vaishravana. In the Mahabharata Kubera was son of the grandfather (prajapati) Pulastya, by his…
This is one of the richest Hindu myths. It is a creation myth and also a trickster myth, and it is nested in the Vishnu myth cycle as an avatara (incarnation) myth. It has versions that are pan-Indian and versions that are sectarian (those used to prove the supremacy and…
Six of the wives of the seven sages, known as the maharishis, were suspected of committing adultery with Agni and were cursed to become the Krittikas, star sisters of the Pleiades. Astrological symbolism resides in this myth, giving an idea of what was observable at that time in the heavens….
The Krishna myth cycle has been integrated in such a way that most Hindus do not know its real complexity. Some of its elements are very ancient, showing that many myths have come together to form modern versions. First, there was the Krishna myth of a divine king, possibly…
Ketu had two levels of appearance in Hindu mythology. Astronomically Ketu was a comet, as well as the descending node (waning) of the moon. Ketu’s mythological persona expanded from these associations. Ketu was one of the thirty-three children of Kasyapa and Danu, so that he was technically a danava…
A young Brahmani named Kauthumi, son of Hiranyanabha, challenged the royal priests of King Janaka in debate. But he lost his temper and killed one of them, thus committing brahmahatya (murder of a brahmin). He was cursed and became a leper that very day. After much suffering he followed…
Kasiyapa-Prajapati has a major role in creation. However, there were variations concerning his birth and his status. In the Mahabharata Kasiyapa was only the son of Marici, who was one of the six mind-born sons (manasa-putras) of Brahma. The Valmiki Ramayana added Kasiyapa as the seventh and youngest sons…
Karttikeya’s name derived from his having been raised by the six Krittikas, the name given to six of the seven wives of the seven maharishis. He was also named Skanda and Subrahmanya. Karttikeya appeared in the epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, as a son fathered by (Siva without being…
In the Mahabharata war Karna had a divine birth. His mother, Kunti, was the daughter of King Shurasena. As a girl Kunti was in charge of arrangement in the palace for religious rituals. During a period of four months when the sage Durvasa performed rituals for the king, Kunti…
Karma (or karman) is a concept that is central in Epic and Puranic mythology. The term itself comes from the verbal root, kri, meaning “to act, to do, to bring about.” In the Vedas, karma had referred to action performed in ritual and was associated with the logic of Vedic…
Kapila, the historical founder of the Samkhya school of philosophy (dars’ana), lived long enough before the Epics and Puranas only to have his name be coopted and given a set of myths. In the Puranas Kapila became a master yogi as well as a master magician. He was said to…
In the Rigveda Kanva was part of Kasiyapa’s family. His father was Medhatithi. Kanva became a teacher with many disciples at his ashrama (hermitage) on the Malini River in the Himalayas. He was credited with writing as many as fifty chapters of the first section (mandala) and the entire tenth…
Kandu appeared in the Vishnu Purana as the archetype of sages who lose their focus. He was called chief of the devajnas (ones who know the divine). His powerful austerities (tapas) caused Indra to worry that Kandu would become more powerful than himself, the king of the gods. So Indra…