Arishtha was the servant of Kamsa and was sent to Gokula in the form of an ox to kill Sri Krishna. The ox terrified the cowherds (gopis) as it tore up the hills and mountains around Vrindarvin. The youth Krishna faced and killed the ox, throwing it an incredible distance. As he died, Arishtha appeared in his asura form.

Arishta is one of the mothers of all beings. She gave birth to the four gandharvas (the celestial singers: Haha, Huhu, Atibahu, and Tumburu) and the thirteen apsaras (celestial maidens).

The arayanna were described as having a heavenly abode on Manasasaras, one of the Himalayas. Ara denoted royalty. The swans did not like rain, so they came to earth when it rained in their heavenly abode and returned as soon as rain began on earth. Their parentage was traced to KasSyapa by his wife Tamra through her daughter Dhritarashthri. Valmiki’s Ramayana stated that this line­age alone gave the swan its divinity (devatva). Swans were at first black and white, according to a myth in the Uttara Ramayana, but pure white … Continue reading →

Her story was a warning to kings who abused their power, who did not live by the rules of civility, or who harmed the family of a brahmin. A haughty young king named Danda ruled a large kingdom that extended to the Himalayas. One day on a hunting expedition King Danda saw Ara, daughter of the great sage, Maharishi Sukra. In his lust he raped the young brahmin girl. Ara told her father, and he advised her to practice austerities (tapas). This must have been for purification, for it was … Continue reading →

Once SSiva and Parvati were playing in the woods in the form of monkeys. Par- vati became pregnant. The fetus was given to Vayu, the wind god. Vayu gave it in turn to Anjana who was doing austerities (tapas) at that time in order to obtain a son. Thus, Kunjara, the monkey chieftain, and Anjana gave birth to Hanuman. In her previous birth Anjana was a goddess named Punjikastala (also known as Managarva). She was born as a she-monkey, Anjana, as a result of a curse. She was redeemed from … Continue reading →

Mandavya was a sage who was doing penance at his hermitage (ashram) when sev­eral thieves ran past being chased by the king’s men. The thieves left the stolen property near Mandavya and ran away. The king’s men found Mandavya with the stolen property and took him before the king. Since he did not answer the ques­tions put to him, Mandavya was condemned to death—along with the thieves, who were finally caught. They were all pierced through with a trident. The thieves died, but Mandavya stayed alive. After some time SSiva … Continue reading →

Angiras appeared in many roles, some contradictory. The Rigveda called him the first of the fire-gods. As such he was a mediator between gods and men. At times he appeared as a maharishi, a composer of many Rigvedic hymns to the gods. He was also a prajapati, or progenitor of humankind. As such his origin or lineage was important, at least for later mythology. He was said to be born from the mind of Brahma, as were five other sages: Marici, Atri, Pulastya, Pulaha, and Kratu. There was a quite … Continue reading →