Of Horse Faced Avatars and Honey Loving Asuras

 

Of Horse Faced Avatars and Honey loving Asuras 

When the Universe began, how was everything created? Science has many theories for it including the Big Bang.

Our dharma approaches it differently. Initially there was nothing. The entire cosmos was submerged in the cosmic flood. Parabrahma (Universal God as is called in English) existed in everything in that cosmic flood. This Parabrahma was unseen and did not have the kind of faces or names of Gods as we know today.

When the time was right, the Parabrahma decided it was time for action. The first sign came in the form of a deep reverberation from the universe and emerged as a sound Om. This sound reverberated like a call to action across the nook and corner of the Brahmand.

Then Parabrahma in the form of Vishnu infused life into the waters of the cosmic flood. This became a shiny golden egg called as Hiranyagarbha. This golden egg was floating on the waters of the cosmos. Vishnu entered the divine egg and infused life into it. From Vishnu’s navel a huge stalk sprouted and a lotus manifested itself at its end. Inside that, was Brahma, the God of creation.

Brahma got the name of Nabhija as he emerged from the navel of Vishnu. He also got the name Padmayoni as he emerged from the lotus.

Brahma split the Hiranyagarbha into two – the Bhuloka (earth) and Swarga (heaven). The cycle of creation had officially begun with this act of Brahma. (The name Brahmand thus stems from this incident where Lord Brahma came from an egg but expanded it to create the worlds – Brahma + Anda (egg)).

Brahma knew that his job was to create many types of people and races to populate the earth. He took the blessings from his father Vishnu and sat in meditation to see how it could be done.

From Brahma’s meditation was born the knowledge of the universe as contained in four vedas. Brahma thought he was going to have an easy time creating many lokas, inhabitants to the lokas, plants, trees and animals. In short, he was looking forward to some fun time like children who play with clay and moulds. Is anything that easy, even if you are a Brahma? No such luck.

While Brahma was in meditation, Vishnu who was in the waters had gone into Yoganidra. Yoganidra is a deep meditative stage. While at it, from his ear wax which was mixing with the cosmic waters, emerged two beings.

One of them started asking for honey immediately after emerging from the waters. Strange? Perhaps. But this got him the name of Madhu. The other, who resembled a kita or an insect came to be known as Kaidaba.

If you suddenly want honey in the middle of a flooded house even today it is perhaps difficult to find. These beings were primordial waters and asking for the impossible.

But what to do? They wanted what they wanted. The two newly born beings were extremely hungry. They looked around and obviously there is no food to be had in the ocean. They do the next best thing. They start drinking the water from the cosmic ocean. This water is of course, available in plenty around them.

Just imagine this. These two people – tough to call them asuras now as they had just emerged from Vishnu’s earwax, are just born, are hungry but they only see water all around. No one to ask any questions too.

Once they kept on drinking the water, they grew bigger and bigger in size. Having satiated their hunger somewhat, they get bored. They started wandering the cosmos. They are looking for others such as themselves who they can talk to, fight or engage in any way. Perhaps they were also looking for other types of food. Must be pretty boring to keep drinking some ocean waters every time you feel hungry.

By this time, Madhu and Kaidaba have also become huge in size thanks to the divine waters of Brahmand that they drank. They were big, they don’t meet anyone and they are freely wandering the universe. Madhu and Kaidaba came to the most logical conclusion – that they were Gods. 

After roaming around aimlessly for long, they are truly agitated. They come upon Brahma. And what is Brahma doing? Meditating. Madhu and Kaidaba were looking for someone to rule over as they had decided that they were the masters of the Universe And the only person they can rule over is closing his eyes and meditating. This made them angry.

They got angry that Brahma did not acknowledge them or bow to them as his master. They tried shaking him awake, but he was busy getting and creating knowledge so that he can do his job of creation well. In their irritation at Brahma not responding to them, they started shaking the stalk of the lotus which is coming from Vishnu’s navel on which Brahma is sitting.

Poor Brahma is clinking on to his seat in the lotus. Between holding on to the Vedas and preventing himself from a fall into the waters, Brahma dropped the Vedas into the cosmic waters. So even before he could properly start creation, he was having trouble. He requests Madhu and Kaidaba to return the Vedas.

They laugh and sa,y “Who are you? Why are you sitting on a lotus at such a height? We are your masters. Get up and acknowledge us. Then we will return your scriptures.”

Lord Brahma is by now unsure what to do and how to deal with these two. He decides to take the easy way out. Go ask someone superior to him, his father Vishnu.

Unfortunately for Brahma, Vishnu is in a deeper meditation ie Yoganidra. Vishnu is thinking and contemplating when he is Yoganidra and it is not easy to wake him from that state. Brahma keeps calling out to him, but Vishnu is unmoved and is not waking up.

Seeing that Brahma’s pleas are unanswered, the Madhu Kaidaba brothers get even more arrogant and taunt the creator.

Finally, Brahma calls on the devi in charge of sleep Nidra and requests her to wake up the divine lord to save the Vedas. Nidradevi takes pity on Brahma and wakes up Vishnu.

Normally when Vishnu wakes up, he takes charge. That is exactly what he did. He looked at these two asuras who seemed to be tormenting his son. More importantly they seemed to be disrespecting the Vedas.

Vishnu assumes a new form – a human body and the face of a horse – Hayagreevar. Brahma is mesmerised by the new avatar of his father and bows before him. The form has a lustrous golden mane, a muscular body and a elegant gait

Hayagreevar goes to battle with the demon brothers Madhu and Kaidaba. The brothers are by now very strong, having drunk the waters of the primordial ocean. The battle rages on for many millennia. Finally, Vishnu gets tired and lays down his mace.

Lord Brahma and the entire universe is watching this spectacle with concern. If Vishnu cannot kill these brothers, perhaps no one can. Brahma is worried that he had failed in his duties of creation even before he started properly. He is upset that he is failed in the duty that his father Lord Vishnu had given him. Madhu and Kaidaba think they have won the battle and start making fun of Vishnu.

Was Hayagreeva defeated? Not at all. He had other plans. He bows before the brothers Madhu and Kaidaba and says sweetly, “I don’t think I have the power to overcome a strong partnership like yours. You two are indeed brave and strong.” Lord Brahma is shocked at this. But the brothers take this as a confirmation of them being the Gods in the cosmos.

Hayagreeva further states “I would like to give both of you a boon blessing your valour and skills in battle.” Hearing this, the brothers start laughing uncontrollably. “You lost the battle and you want to grant a boon, is it?” said Madhu. “You are a puny horse faced human. We are the powerful Gods. Who are you to give us a boon? We will grant you a boon. Ask us what you wish” said Kaidaba.

Vishnu bows his head, smiles and says “Will you grant me anything that I ask?” The brothers reply “We are feeling sorry for you. We will give you anything that you desire. “

Vishnu reconfirms, “Are you sure? Will you grant me anything?”

The brothers look at each other and cackle. “Of course. Ask away. We are the supreme beings who have the power to grant you anything you wish.”

Vishnu bows and says “That is very nice of you. I just want one boon. I want to be able to kill both of you.”

The brothers stopped laughing and look at Vishnu angrily. They sa,y “Don’t be over smart? Why will we allow you to kill us?”

Vishnu politely says, “You agreed to grant me a boon. And if you are the supreme beings that you claim to be, then you should grant my boon. Otherwise, you will not be taken seriously even though you may be powerful. Everyone in the cosmos will know that you do not keep your word.”

The brothers are now in a quandary. They discuss amongst themselves and come to Vishnu looking very happy. Madhu tells him “We have decided to give you the boon of being able to kill us. We have one condition though. You should kills us in a place where there is no water.”

Remember this entire scene is being played out when creation had just begun and the whole cosmos was submerged in the primordial floods. Vishnu smiles and says, “Are you sure? You are granting me the boon of killing you as long as it is not in the water.”

The brothers laugh thinking Vishnu is stupid and say, “That is exactly what we are saying.”

Within the blink of an eyelid, the horse faced Hayagreeva had grown into a gigantic person. He keeps growing across the cosmos and in proportion to his height is body is also growing. Hayagreeva became so tall and big that the brothers could no longer see his face.

Vishnu then picks up the brothers, Madhu and Kaidaba on his thighs and beheads them. Brahma and the universe rejoiced the death of these two asuras.

The killing of Madhu and Kaidaba earned Vishnu the name Madhusudan.

Brahma bowed before Vishnu and asked him to be the saviour everytime the Brahmand gets into difficulty. Vishnu blesses him ad goes back to his Yoga Nidra.