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Is there any
difference between man and animal? Indian mythology does not think
so.
A sage of great learning
once watched a pig and her piglets all ay. The next day he told his
disciple that he would soon be taking birth as a pig since he wanted
to know what goes on in their life. Are they happy scavenging? The
sage, however, told his disciple to kill him once he reached
adulthood so that he would be released from that birth. So he was
born a pink piglet. The disciple tried to be a reverential as
possible to the tiny pig that was his master even as he watched him
roll in filth. Finally the little one had grown and it was time to
raise the slaughterhand, but the pig stopped the disciple.” A
pig’s life is fun too, let me live it fully,” he told his
disciple.
Pigs and snakes, cows and
elephants, horses and monkeys, all animals seem to have a life of fun
according to Indian mythology. The underlying philosophy is that the
soul in man and animal is much the same. A man could well be born an
animal in is next birth or vice versa. No wonder then that the Indian
farmer is seen talking to his ox and the devout priest praying to
different kinds of animals.
If one just looks into
ancient literature for reference, animals seem to occupy a very
prominent place in Indian mythology. Going by sculptural evidence,
animal figures seemed to have entered the world of stone around the
beginning of this millennium. Scholars feel their absorption into the
Hindu pantheon happened later, but there is some debate on which
happened first. The beginning of the millennium is early enough,
however, for our story to begin.
When Buddhism gained
popularity many Jataka tales were told. The Jataka tales are stories
which relate the thousand births of the Buddha in the form of
animals. They gained tremendous popularity and the Pancatantra and
other folk stories followed this idea. In terms of mythology, this
set a new trend for it established direct contact with the people and
translated the esoteric into easily comprehensible ideas. The ten
incarnations of Lord Vishnu is an example of how Hinduism
incorporated animals. Vishnu’s was believed to have been first
born as a fish, then a tortoise and then a boar. Then we reach the
stage of half man, half animal in the Narasimha avatar when he took
the form of half lion and half man. The story of evolution is thus
told in the descent of God and the ascent of man.
Every God, has a vehicle,
a vahana which is an animal. The animal is not a mount because
of its muscle power, but because of its qualities. The mouse which
carries the Lord Ganesha, the elephant headed God, is known for its
qualities that are similar to that of its master. It can reach
anywhere! The Garuda or eagle that is the mount of Lord Vishnu is
said to be an embodiment of wisdom. This symbol has found popularity
all over Asia so much so that the Indonesian airlines itself is
called the Garuda!
The horse is believed to
be swift as thought, follows the path of the sun, lucky and
exceedingly pure. And so it is on a while steed that Kalki, the final
incarnation of Lord Vishnu, yet to come, will arrive in the world of
disorder to bring back peace. The elephant is known for its memory,
loyalty, gratitude, strength and gentleness. The King of Kings, Indra
who rules over the heavens ride the elephant called Airavata. Lord
Shiva rides the bull; the epitome of strength.
It will be of interest to
note that the whole epic, Ramayana, begins with an incident from the
world of animals. Two birds were playing with each other when
suddenly a hunter shot one down. How the other suffered. How she
lamented. The sorrow of separation was watched by a sage by the name
of Valmiki. So deep was the impact that from his words poetry came.
It had awakened the deepest recess of his emotions and that was
nothing but godliness.
Compassion towards
animals is thus woven into the psyche of man. It is true that today,
as we watch the number of tigers decreasing or the many animals that
are being labeled as extinct, one wonders where the inbuilt idea got
lost. But that is because in many ways the modern man is divorced
from his traditional way of life. In ancient times, the day in many
parts of India would begin with a line drawing made at the entrance
of the house. This was made with rice flour and the idea was that
ants got something to eat. Even today in traditional homes. You will
find people keeping aside one mouthful of food, which they will later
throw out, either on to the terrace or the open ground. That is for
the crows. Crows are believed to come from the world of the ancestors
and so they often carry the spirit of the dead. In their memory, one
mouthful is always left for the crow. Greens are fed to the cow or
other such animal that is domesticated. This is apart from the daily
meal, the greens are a special gift which is equated to the richest
of donations.
Of course the last word
has to be on the idea of zoomorphism in Indian mythology. The monkey
faced god and the elephant faced god are favourites of Hindu devotees
while being classic examples of zoomorphism.
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