Diti
Encyclopedia
In Hinduism
, Diti is an earth goddess and mother of the Maruts
with Rudra
. She is also the mother of the Daitya
s with the sage Kashyapa. She wanted to have a son who would be more powerful than Indra
(who had killed her previous children) and so she practiced magic
and kept herself pregnant for one year. Indra used a thunder
bolt to splinter the fetus into many pieces, the Maruts
. She is also Aditi
's sister. Diti is the daughter of Daksha-Prajapati one of the grandfather's of creation, a son of Brahma, the god of ritual skill and a king. Her mother was Veerni. She is among one of the sixty daughters of Daksha. She is one of the thirteen wives of Kashyapa, another prajapati and a great sage. She has many demon sons and daughters. Her two most famous sons were the rebirths of Vishnu's gatekeepers Jaya and Vijaya who failed to keep their dharma. They were Hiranyaksha who was slain by Vishnu's varaha avatara and Hiranyakashipu who was slain by Vishnu's man-lion, narasimha avatara. She also had a daughter named Holika who was killed by her own powers. Diti is usually mean and cruel to Kashyapa and Aditi. She is always obsessed with trying to raise the power of demons to its peak. She also hates Aditi's sons who are the gods.
Though Kashyapa had acceded to her request, He had asked her to wait for an hour as it was then the time when Shiva
and his retinue of ghosts and spirits moved about; which was considered inauspicious and unsuited. However; Diti; shaken by the passion of love and lust, couldn't wait and she seized kashyapa by his garments, which was a sign of immodesty. Since Diti's mind was impure; tainted by lust, she would give birth to two unworthy sons who would violate all the ethics (Dharma
) and follow the path of Adharma
. When Diti felt sorry, Kashyapa consoled her by saying that they would be slain by Lord Vishnu himself and thus be blessed by the Lord's contact in the end. Also; one of her four grandsons by her first son, would be a great devotee of Vishnu
and also the noblest man (He is Prahlada
). In this way, Jaya and Vijaya were born on this earth to Diti as Hiranyakashipu
and Hiranyaksha
. In Section 67, Adi Parava of Mahabharata
, it is stated that king Sisupala, the powerful ruler of Chedi
s, was also an incarnation of Hiranyakasipu, the son of Diti.
Besides great Asura Hiranyakashipu, some other more famous sons of Diti are also mentioned in Adiparava, Mahabharata
, as follows:
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
, Diti is an earth goddess and mother of the Maruts
Maruts
In Hinduism the Marutas , also known as the Marutagana and sometimes identified with Rudras, are storm deities and sons of Rudra and Diti and attendants of Indra. The number of Maruts varies from two to sixty . They are very violent and aggressive, described as armed with golden weapons i.e...
with Rudra
Rudra
' is a Rigvedic God, associated with wind or storm, and the hunt. The name has been translated as "The Roarer", or "The Howler"....
. She is also the mother of the Daitya
Daitya
In Hinduism, the Daityas are a clan or race or Asura as are the Danavas. Daityas were the children of Diti and the sage Kashyapa. They were a race of giants who fought against the Devas because they were jealous of their Deva half-brothers...
s with the sage Kashyapa. She wanted to have a son who would be more powerful than Indra
Indra
' or is the King of the demi-gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hindu mythology. He is also the God of War, Storms, and Rainfall.Indra is one of the chief deities in the Rigveda...
(who had killed her previous children) and so she practiced magic
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
and kept herself pregnant for one year. Indra used a thunder
Thunder
Thunder is the sound made by lightning. Depending on the nature of the lightning and distance of the listener, thunder can range from a sharp, loud crack to a long, low rumble . The sudden increase in pressure and temperature from lightning produces rapid expansion of the air surrounding and within...
bolt to splinter the fetus into many pieces, the Maruts
Maruts
In Hinduism the Marutas , also known as the Marutagana and sometimes identified with Rudras, are storm deities and sons of Rudra and Diti and attendants of Indra. The number of Maruts varies from two to sixty . They are very violent and aggressive, described as armed with golden weapons i.e...
. She is also Aditi
Aditi
Aditi in Sanskrit, an ancient Indian language. In the Vedas Aditi is mother of the gods from whose cosmic matrix the heavenly bodies were born...
's sister. Diti is the daughter of Daksha-Prajapati one of the grandfather's of creation, a son of Brahma, the god of ritual skill and a king. Her mother was Veerni. She is among one of the sixty daughters of Daksha. She is one of the thirteen wives of Kashyapa, another prajapati and a great sage. She has many demon sons and daughters. Her two most famous sons were the rebirths of Vishnu's gatekeepers Jaya and Vijaya who failed to keep their dharma. They were Hiranyaksha who was slain by Vishnu's varaha avatara and Hiranyakashipu who was slain by Vishnu's man-lion, narasimha avatara. She also had a daughter named Holika who was killed by her own powers. Diti is usually mean and cruel to Kashyapa and Aditi. She is always obsessed with trying to raise the power of demons to its peak. She also hates Aditi's sons who are the gods.
Birth of Diti's children
Seeing Aditi's cowives being blessed with children; Diti too was eager to have a son. So, she had asked Kashyapa for company.Though Kashyapa had acceded to her request, He had asked her to wait for an hour as it was then the time when Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
and his retinue of ghosts and spirits moved about; which was considered inauspicious and unsuited. However; Diti; shaken by the passion of love and lust, couldn't wait and she seized kashyapa by his garments, which was a sign of immodesty. Since Diti's mind was impure; tainted by lust, she would give birth to two unworthy sons who would violate all the ethics (Dharma
Dharma
Dharma means Law or Natural Law and is a concept of central importance in Indian philosophy and religion. In the context of Hinduism, it refers to one's personal obligations, calling and duties, and a Hindu's dharma is affected by the person's age, caste, class, occupation, and gender...
) and follow the path of Adharma
Adharma
Adharma is the Sanskrit antonym of Dharma. It means 'that which is not in accord with the law' - referring to both the human written law and the divinely given law of nature. Connotations include unnaturalness, wrongness, evil, immorality, wickedness, or vice....
. When Diti felt sorry, Kashyapa consoled her by saying that they would be slain by Lord Vishnu himself and thus be blessed by the Lord's contact in the end. Also; one of her four grandsons by her first son, would be a great devotee of Vishnu
Vishnu
Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
and also the noblest man (He is Prahlada
Prahlada
Prahlada is a character from the Puranic texts of Hinduism, wherein he is famed for his exclusive devotion to Vishnu, despite attempts in the story by his father, Hiranyakashipu, to turn him to the contrary...
). In this way, Jaya and Vijaya were born on this earth to Diti as Hiranyakashipu
Hiranyakashipu
Hiranyakashipu [golden-haired] is an Asura from the Puranic scriptures of Hinduism. The Puranas describe Hiranyakashipu as an Asura. His younger brother, Hiranyaksha was slain by Varaha, one of the Avatars of Vishnu and angered by this, Hiranyakashipu decided to gain magical powers by performing...
and Hiranyaksha
Hiranyaksha
In Hinduism, Hiranyaksha [golden-eyed] was an Asura of pre-ancient India and the son of Diti and Kashyapa. He was slain by the god Vishnu after he took the Earth to the bottom of what has been described as the "Cosmic Ocean". His name in Sanskrit literally means "Goldeneye"...
. In Section 67, Adi Parava of Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
, it is stated that king Sisupala, the powerful ruler of Chedi
Chedi Kingdom
Chedi kingdom was one among the many kingdoms ruled during early periods by Paurava kings and later by Yaduvanshi Rajput kings in the central and western India. It falls roughly in the Bundelkhand division of Madhya Pradesh regions to the south of river Yamuna and along river Betwa or Vetravati...
s, was also an incarnation of Hiranyakasipu, the son of Diti.
Besides great Asura Hiranyakashipu, some other more famous sons of Diti are also mentioned in Adiparava, Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
, as follows:
- Sivi: A great Asura, known among the sons of Diti, became on earth the famous monarch Druma;
- Aswa: That great Asura, son of Diti, known as Aswa (Asva), became on earth the monarchMonarchA monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
AshokaAshokaAshok Maurya or Ashoka , popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was an Indian emperor of the Maurya Dynasty who ruled almost all of the Indian subcontinent from ca. 269 BC to 232 BC. One of India's greatest emperors, Ashoka reigned over most of present-day India after a number of military conquests...
of exceeding energy and invincible in battle. - Aswapati: Younger brother of Aswa and another son of Diti, was born as Hardikya, the king of the MallaMallaMalla may refer to the following:Places:*Mala, Afghanistan, a place in Afghanistan*Malla, Barcelona, a municipality of Barcelona, Spain*Malla, Estonia, village in Viru-Nigula Pariah, Lääne-Viru County, Estonia...
s; - Sarabha: A great Asura and son of Diti, was born on this earth as royal sage Paurava;
- Chandra: The foremost among the sons of Diti and handsome as the lord of the stars himself, became on earth noted as Chandra Varmana Kamvoja, the king of the Kamvojas (i.e. KambojasKambojasThe Kambojas were a kshatriya tribe of Iron Age India, frequently mentioned in Sanskrit and Pali literature.They were an Indo-Iranian tribe situated at the boundary of the Indo-Aryans and the Iranians, and appear to have moved from the Iranian into the Indo-Aryan sphere over time.The Kambojas...
). Also see link: http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia/ebooks/mb/m01/m01068.htm.
Further reading
- Hindu Goddesses: Vision of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Traditions (ISBN 81-208-0379-5) by David Kinsley
Books/Article References
- Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend (ISBN 0-500-51088-1) by Anna Dhallapiccola
- TTD Publications.Go to this link to buy 'A Synopsis of Srimad Bhagavatam' for further details.