Vritra
Encyclopedia
In the early Vedic religion
, Vritra ( वृत्र "the enveloper"), is an Asura
and also a serpent or dragon
, the personification of drought
and enemy of Indra
. Vritra was also known in the Vedas
as Ahi ("snake"). He appears as a dragon blocking the course of the Rivers
and is heroically slain by Indra
.
of the world captive until he was killed by Indra, who destroyed all the ninety-nine fortresses of Vritra (although the fortresses are sometimes attributed to Sambara
) before liberating the imprisoned rivers. The combat began soon after Indra
was born, and he had drunk a large volume of Soma
at Tvashtri's house to empower him before facing Vritra. Tvashtri fashioned the thunderbolt
(Vajrayudha) for Indra, and Vishnu, when asked to do so by Indra, made space for the battle by taking the three great strides for which he became famous. Vritra broke Indra's two jaws during the battle, but was then thrown down by the latter and, in falling, crushed the fortresses that had already been shattered. For this feat, Indra became known as Vritrahan "slayer of Vritra" and also as "slayer of the first-born of dragons". Vritra's mother, Danu
(who was also the mother of the Danava
race of Asuras), was then attacked and defeated by Indra with his thunderbolt. In one of the versions of the story, three Devas - Varuna
, Soma and Agni
- were coaxed by Indra into aiding him in the fight against Vritra whereas before they had been on the side of the demon (whom they called "Father
").
In one verse of a Rig-Vedic hymn eulogising Sarasvati, the latter is credited with the slaying of Vritra. Mention of this occurs nowhere else.
. Vritra won the battle and swallowed Indra, but the other gods forced him to vomit Indra out. The battle continued and Indra was eventually forced to flee. Vishnu and the rishi
s brokered a truce, with Indra swearing that he would not attack Vritra with anything made of metal
, wood
or stone
, nor anything that was dry or wet, or during the day or the night. Indra used the foam (which Vishnu had entered to ensure victory) from the wave
s of the ocean to kill him at twilight.
However, in some places, Hindu scriptures also recognize Vritra as a bhakta of Vishnu who was slain only due to his failure to live piously and without aggression. This story runs thus:
Vritra (a brahmin in this version) became the head of the Asuras (portrayed as inherently demon
ic here, as opposed to the Vedic version in which they can be gods or demons). He renounced his dharma
– duty – to do good unto others and turned to violence, battling with the devas. Eventually, he gained the upper hand and the Devas were frightened of his evil might. Led by Indra, they approached Lord Vishnu
for help. He told them that Vritra could not be destroyed by ordinary means, revealing that only a weapon made from the bones of a sage could slay him. When the deities revealed their doubts about the likelihood of any ascetic donating his body, Vishnu directed them to approach the sage (Rishi) Dadichi. When approached by the gods, Dadhichi
gladly gave up his bones for the cause of the good, stating that it would be better for his bones to help them attain victory than to rot in the ground. The Devas collected the bones and Indra crafted the Vajrayudha from them. When they engaged Vritra again, the battle lasted for 360 days before the brahmin breathed his last.
In both of these versions (either for killing Trisiras or the brahmin Vritra), the terrible anthropomorphic personification
of Brāhmanahatya (Brahmanicide)
chased Indra and forced him into hiding for his sin, and Nahusha
was invited to take his place.
Historical Vedic religion
The religion of the Vedic period is a historical predecessor of Hinduism. Its liturgy is reflected in the mantra portion of the four Vedas, which are compiled in Sanskrit. The religious practices centered on a clergy administering rites...
, Vritra ( वृत्र "the enveloper"), is an Asura
Asura
-In Hinduism:In Hinduism, the Asuras constitute a group of power-seeking deities, sometimes considered sinful and materialistic. The Daityas and Danavas were combinedly known as Asuras. The Asura were opposed to the Devas. Both groups are children of Kasyapa...
and also a serpent or dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
, the personification of drought
Drought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
and enemy of 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...
. Vritra was also known in the Vedas
Vedas
The Vedas are a large body of texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism....
as Ahi ("snake"). He appears as a dragon blocking the course of the Rivers
Rigvedic rivers
Rivers, such as the Sapta Sindhu , play a prominent part in the hymns of the Rigveda, and consequently in early Vedic religion...
and is heroically slain by 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...
.
Vedic version
According to the Rig Veda, Vritra kept the watersApas
Apas are oblong-shaped biscuits that are topped with sugar. Apas biscuits are a part of Filipino cuisine. Apas biscuits are advertised on many local TV stations using the lovable character Alex. Alex is known for his brilliant yellow trousers, iconic glasses and sense of humor only rivalled by...
of the world captive until he was killed by Indra, who destroyed all the ninety-nine fortresses of Vritra (although the fortresses are sometimes attributed to Sambara
Sambara
For a village in Andhra Pradesh see Sambara, Makkuva.Sambara is a character in Hindu mythology, married to Māyāvati. He abducted the infant Pradyumna, son of Krishna and Rukmini, but Pradyumna escaped, and after eventually growing up, killed Sambara and married his wife...
) before liberating the imprisoned rivers. The combat began soon after 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...
was born, and he had drunk a large volume of Soma
Soma
Soma , or Haoma , from Proto-Indo-Iranian *sauma-, was a ritual drink of importance among the early Indo-Iranians, and the subsequent Vedic and greater Persian cultures. It is frequently mentioned in the Rigveda, whose Soma Mandala contains 114 hymns, many praising its energizing qualities...
at Tvashtri's house to empower him before facing Vritra. Tvashtri fashioned the thunderbolt
Thunderbolt
A thunderbolt is a discharge of lightning accompanied by a loud thunderclap or its symbolic representation. In its original usage the word may also have been a description of meteors, or, as Plato suggested in Timaeus, of the consequences of a close approach between two planetary cosmic bodies,...
(Vajrayudha) for Indra, and Vishnu, when asked to do so by Indra, made space for the battle by taking the three great strides for which he became famous. Vritra broke Indra's two jaws during the battle, but was then thrown down by the latter and, in falling, crushed the fortresses that had already been shattered. For this feat, Indra became known as Vritrahan "slayer of Vritra" and also as "slayer of the first-born of dragons". Vritra's mother, Danu
Danu (Asura)
Dānu, a Hindu primordial goddess, is mentioned in the Rigveda, mother of the Danavas. The word Danu described the primeval waters which this deity perhaps embodied. In the Rigveda , she is identified as the mother of Vrtra, the demonic serpent slain by Indra...
(who was also the mother of the Danava
Danava (Hinduism)
In Vedic mythology the Danavas were a race of the Asuras.The Danavas were the sons of Danu, who in turn was a daughter of Daksha. Danu is connected with the waters of heavens and she is probably associated with the formless, primordial waters that existed prior to the creation. The name is...
race of Asuras), was then attacked and defeated by Indra with his thunderbolt. In one of the versions of the story, three Devas - Varuna
Varuna
In Vedic religion, Varuna is a god of the sky, of water and of the celestial ocean, as well as a god of law and of the underworld...
, Soma and Agni
Agni
Agni is a Hindu deity, one of the most important of the Vedic gods. He is the god of fire and the acceptor of sacrifices. The sacrifices made to Agni go to the deities because Agni is a messenger from and to the other gods...
- were coaxed by Indra into aiding him in the fight against Vritra whereas before they had been on the side of the demon (whom they called "Father
Father
A father, Pop, Dad, or Papa, is defined as a male parent of any type of offspring. The adjective "paternal" refers to father, parallel to "maternal" for mother...
").
In one verse of a Rig-Vedic hymn eulogising Sarasvati, the latter is credited with the slaying of Vritra. Mention of this occurs nowhere else.
Puranic & later versions
In a later version of the myth, Vritra was created by Tvashtri to avenge the killing of his son by Indra, known as Trisiras or VisvarupaTrisiras
Trisiras is the three-headed son of Tvashta in Hinduism. He was created by Tvashta to dethrone Indra. With one head, he ate; with another head, he observed his surroundings; with his last head, he read the Vedas. He grew so powerful that Indra became frightened of him, especially after Trisiras...
. Vritra won the battle and swallowed Indra, but the other gods forced him to vomit Indra out. The battle continued and Indra was eventually forced to flee. Vishnu and the rishi
Rishi
Rishi denotes the composers of Vedic hymns. However, according to post-Vedic tradition, the rishi is a "seer" to whom the Vedas were "originally revealed" through states of higher consciousness. The rishis were prominent when Vedic Hinduism took shape, as far back as some three thousand years...
s brokered a truce, with Indra swearing that he would not attack Vritra with anything made of metal
Metal
A metal , is an element, compound, or alloy that is a good conductor of both electricity and heat. Metals are usually malleable and shiny, that is they reflect most of incident light...
, wood
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
or stone
Rock (geology)
In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
, nor anything that was dry or wet, or during the day or the night. Indra used the foam (which Vishnu had entered to ensure victory) from the wave
Wave
In physics, a wave is a disturbance that travels through space and time, accompanied by the transfer of energy.Waves travel and the wave motion transfers energy from one point to another, often with no permanent displacement of the particles of the medium—that is, with little or no associated mass...
s of the ocean to kill him at twilight.
However, in some places, Hindu scriptures also recognize Vritra as a bhakta of Vishnu who was slain only due to his failure to live piously and without aggression. This story runs thus:
Vritra (a brahmin in this version) became the head of the Asuras (portrayed as inherently demon
Demon
call - 1347 531 7769 for more infoIn Ancient Near Eastern religions as well as in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered an "unclean spirit" which may cause demonic possession, to be addressed with an act of exorcism...
ic here, as opposed to the Vedic version in which they can be gods or demons). He renounced his 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...
– duty – to do good unto others and turned to violence, battling with the devas. Eventually, he gained the upper hand and the Devas were frightened of his evil might. Led by Indra, they approached Lord 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....
for help. He told them that Vritra could not be destroyed by ordinary means, revealing that only a weapon made from the bones of a sage could slay him. When the deities revealed their doubts about the likelihood of any ascetic donating his body, Vishnu directed them to approach the sage (Rishi) Dadichi. When approached by the gods, Dadhichi
Dadhichi
Dadhichi, also known as Dadhyancha, is an important character in Hindu mythology. He is revered amongst the greatest of sages and is portrayed as an example that no sacrifice is too great when the result is the good of the world. His bones are marked as symbol on the India's highest gallant award...
gladly gave up his bones for the cause of the good, stating that it would be better for his bones to help them attain victory than to rot in the ground. The Devas collected the bones and Indra crafted the Vajrayudha from them. When they engaged Vritra again, the battle lasted for 360 days before the brahmin breathed his last.
In both of these versions (either for killing Trisiras or the brahmin Vritra), the terrible anthropomorphic personification
Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...
of Brāhmanahatya (Brahmanicide)
Brahmanahatya
Brāhmanahatya is Sanskrit for "the act of killing a Brahmin". Puranic Hinduism considers this act to be a major sin, worse than "ordinary" murder....
chased Indra and forced him into hiding for his sin, and Nahusha
Nahusha
Nahusha was a well-known king of the Aila dynasty. He was the son of Ayu, the eldest son of Pururavas and Prabha, the daughter of Svarbhanu. Nahusha reigned from Pratishthana. He married Viraja, the daughter of the Pitrs. They had six or seven sons, according to different Puranas. His eldest son...
was invited to take his place.
See also
- Aesir-Asura correspondence
- Hindu mythologyHindu mythologyHindu religious literature is the large body of traditional narratives related to Hinduism, notably as contained in Sanskrit literature, such as the Sanskrit epics and the Puranas. As such, it is a subset of Nepali and Indian culture...
- List of dragons in mythology and folklore
- NāgaNagaNaga or NAGA may refer to:* Nāga, a group of serpent deities in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.-People:* Nayan / Nayar/Nair people of Kerala Society* Naga people, a diverse ethnic identity in Northeast India...
- NagavanshiNagavanshiThe Nagavanshi dynasty is one of the ancient Kshatriya dynasties of India. The Vedas do not mention Kshatriyas of either Suryavanshi, Chandravanshi, Nagavanshi, Agnivanshi or such Vanshas or lineages. The Puranas, of debatable dating, constructed such genealogies. The Puranas were supposedly...
- ValaVala (Vedic)Vala , meaning "enclosure" in Vedic Sanskrit, is an Asura of the Rigveda and the Atharvaveda, the brother of Vrtra.Historically, it has the same origin as the Vrtra myth, being derived from the same root, and from the same root also as Varuna, *val-/var- "to cover, to enclose" .Parallel to Vrtra...
(Vritra's brother) - Vedic mythologyVedic mythologyVedic mythology refers to the mythological aspects of the historical Vedic religion and Vedic literature, most notably alluded to in the hymns of the Rigveda...
External links
- http://web.archive.org/web/20070104221418/members.cox.net/apamnapat/entities/Vritra.html