Vahana

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The eight Matrikas riding different vahanas like (top row, second from left to right) Garuda, a peacock, Nandi bull, a hamsa (goose/swan); (bottom row, from left) buffalo, elephant and lion

Vahana (Sanskrit: वाहन, Vāhanam or animal vehicle, literally "that which carries, that which pulls") denotes the being, typically an animal or mythical, a particular Hindu God is said to use as a vehicle. In this capacity, the vahana is often called the deity's "mount". Upon the partnership between the deity and his vahana is woven much iconography and Hindu theology. Deities are often depicted riding (or simply mounted upon) the vahana. Other times, the vahana is depicted at the deity's side or symbolically represented as a divine attribute. The vahana may be considered an accoutrement[1] of the deity: though the vahana may act independently, they are still functionally emblematic or even syntagmatic of their "rider". The deity may be seen sitting or standing on the vahana. They may be sitting on a small platform called a howdah, or riding on a saddle or bareback.[2] Vah in Sanskrit means to ride along the land.

Symbolism[edit]

In Hindu iconography, positive aspects of the vehicle are often emblematic of the deity that it carries. Nandi the bull, vehicle of Shiva, represents strength and virility. Dinka the mouse, vehicle of Ganesha, represents speed and sharpness. Parvani the peacock, vehicle of Kartikeya, represents splendor and majesty. The hamsa, vehicle of Saraswati, represents wisdom, grace and beauty.

However, the vehicle animal also symbolizes the evil forces over which the deity dominates. Mounted on Parvani, Kartikeya reins in the peacock's vanity. Seated on Dinka the rat (Mushika), Ganesha crushes useless thoughts, which multiply like rats in the dark. Shani, protector of property, has a vulture, raven or crow in which he represses thieving tendencies. Under Shani's influence, the vahana can make even malevolent events bring hope.

Origin[edit]

An old-looking paper manuscript page with Sanskrit text and colorful illustrations
A Bhagavata Purana manuscript page depicting the story of Atri and Anasuya meeting the Trimurti riding on their respective vahanas. (PhP 4.1.21-25). (Paper, late 18th century, Jaipur).

The vehicle of a God can vary according to the source, the time, and the place. In popular tradition, the origin of each vehicle is told in thousands of different ways.[citation needed] Three examples:

  • While the god Ganesha was still a child, a giant mouse began to terrorize all his friends. Ganesha trapped him with his lasso and made him his mount. Mushika was originally a gandharva, or celestial musician. After absent mindedly walking over the feet of a rishi (sage) named Vamadeva, Mushika was cursed and transformed into a mouse. However, after the rishi recovered his temper, he promised Mushika that one day, the gods themselves would bow down before him. The prophecy was fulfilled when the mouse became the vahana of Ganesha.
  • Before becoming the vehicle of Shiva, Nandi was a deity called Nandikeshvara, lord of joy and master of music and dance. Then, without warning, his name and his functions were transferred to the aspect of Shiva known as the deity Nataraja. From half-man, half-bull, he became simply a bull. Since that time, he has watched over each of Shiva's temples, always looking towards him.
  • Kartikeya, the war-god known as Murugan in Southern India, is also mounted on a peacock. This peacock was originally a demon called Surapadma, while the rooster was called the angel[Krichi]. After provoking Murugan in combat, the demon repented at the moment his lance descended upon him. He took the form of a tree and began to pray. The tree was cut in two. From one half, Murugan pulled a rooster, which he made his emblem, and from the other, a peacock, which he made his mount. In another version, Karthikeya was born to kill the demon, Tarakasura. He was raised by the Krittikas and led the divine armies when he was 6 days old. It is said that after defeating Tarakasura, the god forgave him and transformed him into his ride, the peacock.

Compared to other belief systems[edit]

The animal correspondences of Hindu vehicles are not consistent with Greek and Roman mythology, or other belief systems which may tie a particular animal to a particular deity. For example, the goddess Lakshmi of the Hindus has elephants, or an owl, or (a rare instance of a non-animal vehicle) the lotus blossom as her vehicle. The goddess Athena of ancient Greece also had an owl as her emblematic familiar, but the meanings invested in the owls by the two different belief systems are not the same, nor are the two goddesses themselves similar, despite their mutual identification with owls.

Lakshmi is, among other things, primarily the goddess of wealth, and her owl is a warning against distrust and isolationism, even selfishness. Athena, though also a goddess of prosperity, is primarily the goddess of wisdom, and her owl symbolizes secret knowledge and scholarship. Perhaps due to their shared geography, the Greco-Roman interpretation is paralleled in Roman Catholic iconography, in which St. Jerome, most famed for editing the New Testament, is often (though not always) depicted with an owl as a symbol of wisdom and scholarship.[3] Depending on the tribe, Native American religious iconography attributes a wide range of attributes to the owl, both positive and negative, as do the Ainu and Russian cultures, but none parallel the Hindu attributes assigned to the owl as Lakshmi's divine vehicle.[4]

Some hold that similar analyses could be performed cross-culturally for any of the other Hindu divine vehicles, and in each case, any parallels with the values assigned to animal totems in other cultures are likely to be either coincidence, or inevitable (as in linking bulls to virility), rather than evidence of parallel development. In dialectic, this is countered by the retort that each totem or vahana, as an aspect of ishta-devata (or an ishta-devata or asura in its own right), has innumerable ineffable teachings, insights and spiritual wisdom; comparative analysis yields benefit, though knowledge and understanding is not served by collapsing their qualities into homogenous signification.

List of Vahanas[edit]

Vahana Deities associated Image
Mouse Ganesha (pictured) Ganesha riding his mouse
Horse Kalki, Revanta, Chandra , Indra , Surya (pictured), Khandoba, Ayyappan File:Shri Surya Bhagvan bazaar art, c.1940's.jpg
Garuda (pictured) Vishnu, Krishna, Ram, Vaishnavi Garuda by Hyougushi in Delhi.jpg
Nandi (pictured) Shiva, Maheshvari, Ishan SaivismFlag.png
Ram Agni (pictured), Mangala Agni 18th century miniature.jpg
Peacock Kartikeya (pictured), Kaumari Murugan by Raja Ravi Varma.jpg
Dog Bhairava (pictured) Bhairava Brahma.jpg
Hamsa (pictured) Brahma[2] Brahmani, Saraswati, Gayatri, Vishvakarma Hamsa, the swan vehicle of Brahma (6124587167).jpg
Makara Ganga (pictured), Varuna, Akhilandeshwari, Khodiyar Ganga Kalighat 1875.jpg
Tiger Chandraghanta, Kushmanda, Durga, Rahu, Ayyappan (pictured) Ayyappa Swamy bazaar art, c.1950's.jpg
Lion Skandamata, Katyayani, Parvati (pictured), Budha, Chandika, Mariamman, Kamakhya, Narasimhi, Kaushiki, Jagaddhatri, Durga Goddess Parvati and her son Ganesha.jpg
Elephant Indra (pictured), Lakshmi, Shachi, Brihaspati Indra deva.jpg
Parrot Meenakshi, Kama (pictured), Rati Kamadeva1.jpg
Antelope Chandra, Vayu (pictured) Vayu Deva.jpg
Water buffalo Yama (pictured), Varahi, Kulswamini Dhandai Devi Yama on buffalo.jpg
Cat[5] Shashthi (pictured) Shashthi Arnab Dutta.jpg
Donkey Kaalratri, Shitala (pictured), Kali (demon), Alakshmi Kalighat Shitala.jpg
Owl Lakshmi (pictured)[2][6] Lakshmi 02349.JPG
Vulture Ketu (pictured), Shani Ketu graha.JPG
Crow Shani, Dhumavati (pictured) Dhumavati.JPG
Tortoise Yamuna (pictured) Yamuna, personificazione del fiume sacro yamuna, IX sec.JPG
Cockerel Bahuchara Mata (pictured) Bahuchara Devi.jpg
Cow Dattatreya (pictured), Shailaputri, Mahagauri, Bhumi Ravi Varma-Dattatreya.jpg
Snake Manasa (pictured) Manasa Devi.jpg
Corpse (Preta) Chamunda (pictured), Smashana Kali, Bhootnath The Hindu Goddess Chamunda LACMA M.80.3.jpg
Mongoose Kubera (pictured) SAMA Kubera 1.jpg
Man Nirrti (pictured), Kubera, Bhadrā Devi Nirrtti.jpg
Jackel Shivadooti

These correspondences are not always consistent. Ganesha, for example, is sometimes shown with a peacock as his vehicle. Even more rarely, the elephant-headed Ganesh may be seen riding an elephant, or a lion, or a many-headed serpent (See Ganesha's Vahanas).[7]

The vahana, the mount or vehicle of a deity, serves the function of doubling a deity's powers. The vahana also represents the devotee's mind which allows the deity to guide the devotee. Durga the warrioress could not have destroyed the demon Mahishasura without the aid of her vehicle, lion, which was given by her father Himalaya, for the stated purpose. Lakshmi, goddess of fortune, dispenses both material and spiritual riches from her mount, Uluka the owl. Ganesha, remover of obstacles, cannot go everywhere despite his elephant-like strength. However, his vehicle, Mushika the mouse, who can crawl into the smallest crevice or Akhuketana the rat, who can survive just about anywhere, can assist Ganesha to overcome the greatest obstacles.

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. Accoutrement = "that which accompanies".
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Glossary: Vahana. Undated. Accessed August 10, 2007.
  3. The Collection: St. Jerome Archived 2012-10-22 at the Wayback Machine, gallery of the religious art collection of New Mexico State University, with explanations. Accessed August 10, 2007.
  4. Owl and Mythology, p. 3. Accessed August 10, 2007.
  5. Margaret Stutley's The Illustrated Dictionary of Hindu Iconography , p. 127
  6. Hindu Devotion: Lakshmi. Accessed August 10, 2007.
  7. Forms of Ganesh: The Mouse Mount and Other Ganesh Mounts Archived 2007-03-02 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed August 10, 2007.

External links[edit]

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