Slokam 7

On a very hot day, the Parmathma and the gopas feeling very tired and thirsty go to the Yamuna river for a sip of water.  The beauty of being able to go to the Yamuna with the whole “gang” of playful children is infinite.  We often miss the point of how much it takes in terms of creative energy to reach this point of oneness and well being without any threats or disruptions.  These moments of simple pleasures of being able to enjoy a sweet sip of water without the disruption of threats and animosity is the ultimate wonder of creation.  Once we are able to see the true beauty of these moments, we will be aligned with the true purpose intent of this existence, which is the surrender to the Paramathma.  We are prone to take possession of the pleasurable moments of this life and blame the Paramathma for the unpleasant.  The reality should be the reverse. The pleasurable moments should forever be mentally placed at the feet of the Paramathma and should be savored and forever acknowledged as the endowment from above.  The unpleasant ones should also be acknowledged as being endowments from above, but with the clear understanding that there are lessons to be learnt.  Otherwise, we will not be put through these unpleasant experiences. 

The challenge posed to us by the Paramathma is to make us see the bright side of life, always.  There will be any number of stumbling blocks thrown in our paths. All these stumbling blocks are meant to only raise ourselves to a higher level, so that we shed our dependencies on others and on the environment.  Regardless of what people say, think or do, we must not be impacted.  The only way we can go about our lives without being impacted by these perceptions and events, is to always see the hand of the Paramathma behind them, regardless of whether the events are pleasant or “unpleasant”.  Unpleasant events have to be interpreted in the correct perspective, so that we may discern the correct lessons that the Paramathma seeks to deliver.  If we can do this,  life will never overwhelm us at any point.  We will always be equanimous and tranquil and will always be in the progressive mode.

At any point in our lifetimes, there is always a stumbling block. Nothing in this life seems to be handed over to us on a silver plate.  We are always seemingly required to “earn” everything that we are given.  Our contribution in this existence is to make the right choice from multiple alternatives. It is not easy to do this since we have temptations on the wrong path and seemingly, “desolation” and “deprivation” on the right path.

When the Paramathma and all His friends reach the banks of the Yamuna, they see a huge crane, as big as a mountain, flapping its wings. Sri Bhattadri mentions that Indra might have forgotten to clip the huge wings of the crane.  Indira is said to have clipped the wings of the mighty mountains. He supposedly did this to prevent them from becoming too powerful.

The following is an extract from Hindu God - Indra (hinduonline.co);

Indra, undoubtedly, is the chief deity in the Rgveda. Almost a quarter of its hymns, is devoted to praising him. He is the most important deity in the sky. Armed with the thunderbolt (Vajrayudha) and riding in a chariot whose speed exceeds that of the mind, he travels everywhere.

His valour is awe-inspiring. His exploits are many. He killed the demon Vrtra and released the waters imprisoned by him. He clipped the wings of the mighty mountains and made them behave. He recovered the cows of the gods that had been abducted by the demons. He is fond of Soma-drink. Being a war-lord, he became a symbol of the royal power. Hence warriors worshipped him before going to the battle-field.

Indra has often been equated with the Supreme God. His love and affection for his devotees has been eulogized. Scholars opine that Indra may: just represent the natural phenomenon of rain being released from the dark clouds as a result of being "bombarded by lightning and thunder"!

Indra's prestige gradually declined and he was relegated to a secondary place by the Pural).as, retaining however, his place as the king of gods.

In some of the temple sculptures, Indra is depicted in a human form with four arms, riding the celestial elephant Airavata.

Kathasaritsagara (the Ocean of Story)

by Somadeva | 1924 | 1,023,469 words | ISBN-13: 9789350501351

Hinduism Kavya

 Buy now!

This is the English translation of the Kathasaritsagara written by Somadeva around 1070. The principle story line revolves around prince Naravāhanadatta and his quest to become the emperor of the Vidhyādharas (‘celestial beings’). The work is one of the adoptations of the now lost Bṛhatkathā, a great Indian epic tale said to have been composed by ...

The legend of Indra cutting off the wings of the mountains

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Note: this text is extracted from Book XII, chapter 68

“Then, as he was roaming about with the jackal transformed into a female elephant, he entered a tank full of the mud produced by the autumn rains, to crop a lotus. He sank in the mud there, and could not move, but remained motionless, like a mountain that has fallen owing to its wings having been cut off by the thunderbolt”

This refers to Indra cutting off the wings of the mountains with his thunderbolt (vajra). Although there is a possible reference to it in the Ṛg-Veda (iv, 54, 5), the first account is found in the Maitrāyaṇī Saṃhitā (i, 10, 13). References to it in classical literature are numerous. Kālidāsa mentions it both in Raghuvaṃśa (see Johnstone’s trans., iii, 177, 204, pp. 25, 26) and Kumāra-Sambhava (see Griffith’s Birth of the War-God, pp. 4, 5).

It appears that originally the mountains flew about like birds, and, owing to their constant moving about, upset the balance of the earth. Thereupon Indra cut off their wings with his vajra, thus forcing them to settle down permanently where they were. Only Maināka, son of Himālaya and Menā, escaped; he hid himself in the ocean, where he was protected by Sāgara. (See A. A. Macdonell, Vedic Mythology, p. 62, and cf. Pischel, Vedische Studien, vol. i, p. 174.)

The full explanation  is not easy to discover. Tales of flying mountains are not uncommon among the Indo-Aryans, and as they appear to be usually told about hills situated away from the great mountain ranges, we can probably explain part of the myth geologically. The hills south of the Vindhyas are prominences left standing while the surrounding land has sunk by gradual denudation. These “outhers” might well have called for an explanation from an unscientific people, and it seems not unlikely, as Sten Konow has suggested (Aryan Gods of the Mitani People, 1921, p. 29), that it is of pre-Aryan origin and originally related to a pre-Aryan deity. At a later date it became known to the Aryans, and was immediately attributed to Indra. —n.m.p.

The reference to the flying mountains could be either a physical or metaphysical reference. The comparison of the crane to the flying mountains could be an indication that Indra could have clipped the wings of the huge flying cranes that were perhaps devouring everything in their paths and were upsetting the development of all other species. It could also have meant that the earth was in a state of disarray and land masses were ever shifting until Indra made them stable and situated.

In either view the analogy of the clipping of the wings of destructive forces is very relevant at all times.

Looking into ourselves,  the flying mountains represent our uncontrolled mind which disrupts the tranquility of our consciousness.  Likewise gigantic flying cranes represent the dominance of the demonic forces within us.

In defeating the forces of destruction within us, may we ever be under the escorting supervision of the Paramathma.