Stories From The Bhagawatham - The Asura Who Humbled Indra!

 

From time to time, Asuras and Devas have fought and defeated one or the other.

But once, there came such an Asura named Vritrasura who was so powerful, that it required the supreme sacrifice of a sage to forge a weapon that could kill the Asura! The Bhagavatham mentions this beautiful legend in one of its chapters.

Indra, the lord of the heavens, once failed to give the respect due to the Sage Brihaspati, the Guru of the Devas. Insulted by his behaviour, the Guru left Indra’s kingdom and Indra could not find him again for a long time.

In the golden age, the presence of a Guru in the kingdom prevented enemies from attacking, and the absence of a Guru was considered as a sign of a weak king. As the news spread that Indra, the king of the Gods was without a Guru, the Asuras wasted no more time and with the help of their Guru Shukra, they waged a war on Indra who was defeated in the same.

Lord Brahma advised Indra to request Sage Vishwarupa, the son of Prajapati Twashta to accept the role of a Guru to the Devas. However, Lord Brahma also warned Indra that the said sage was favourable towards the Asuras and for the time being, till the Devas regained their strength, Indra should ignore any kind of favouritism or leaning that the sage showed towards the Asuras.

Sage Vishwarupa accepted the role of being a Guru to the Devas and assigned the impenetrable Narayana Kavach to Indra. Donning this kavach, along with the incantation of ‘Om Namo Narayana!’, Indra defeated the Asuras in another war and regained his kingdom.

A yajna was conducted by Sage Vishwarupa. However, instead of giving the fruits of the yajna to the Devas, the sage tried to give the fruits to the Asuras. The often-impulsive Indra, when he came to know of this treachery, beheaded the sage and invited for himself the ill consequence of one of the most severe of all mis-deeds – Brahmahatya.

Twashta, the father of Sage Vishwarupa, performed a havan, all the while chanting – ‘Arise, Indrashatru! There is an enemy to kill!’ And a being did rise from the fire. Dark, massive with red hair and red eyes, the being held a trident in his hand. His very form was one of terror. His roar was enough to send the strongest down to their knees. He was named Vritra.

Needless to say, the Devas didn’t stand a chance against the Asura. He swallowed their Astras and glowed with their brilliance. The panicked Devas ran to Lord Narayana for help.

The Lord said. “Do not fear. There is a sage named Dadhichi who has been blessed with immortality. Ask him for his strong and powerful bones. With these bones, ask the architect Vishwakarma to make a weapon. I assure you, this weapon will be one of the strongest weapons in the world and the only one to defeat Vritra.”

The Devas approached the sage Dadhichi in much embarrassment and hesitation. Indra, with a downcast face, informed the sage the reason for his visit. The sage, at first gently refused. “No one in their right mind likes to die! What made you think I desire Death? I have been blessed with immortality and I intend to put it into good use.”

The Devas tried to convince him. “When someone is blessed with such a great gift, shouldn’t he use it for the welfare of others?”

This argument proved impenetrable, and the Sage Dadichi agreed. He went into Samadhi and became one with the Lord. Indra collected the sage’s bones and handed them over to Vishwakarma who created a terrible weapon from the same – the weapon of Indra, the thunderbolt, named as Vajra.

Armed with his weapon, Indra confidently marched into the war with Vritra. The Devas put up such a strong front that the Asuras lost their confidence and started to retreat. To the retreating Asuras, Vritra commanded. “When Death is sure for every being, why not strive to achieve it honourably? It is a privilege to die in the battlefield! Come back and fight!”

To Indra who was looking smug, the Asura said. “You killed a Brahmin, who was in a way, my brother. I owe a debt to him and hence I am fighting this war. Why don’t you hit me with the Vajra, fashioned from the bones of a Rishi, at the behest of Lord Narayana Himself? Where the Lord is, there is victory. I will think on the Lord and focus on Him. I welcome such kind of death. Come on, use the Vajra on me! I have no fear of death. I have already surrendered myself to Lord Narayana, and this fight is only out of duty to avenge the death of my brother! Fight with me!”

Even Indra stood stunned, hearing the words that were not expected from an Asura. But Vritra had already come prepared to die. He sent a silent prayer of surrender to Lord Vishnu and marched towards Indra.

The call of the battle aroused Indra from his thoughtful state, and he started the fight against Vritra. Hurling aside the trident that the Asura had swung at him, Indra used the Vajra and cut off the Asura’s arm. Even with an arm missing, the Asura urged Indra to give a good fight and leave the results of the war to Lord Narayana.

Indra could not help admiring the Asura’s will and surrendered spirit. And yet the battle had to be finished. Indra, with his Vajra, beheaded the Asura. When the Asura died, the world saw his life pass out of his body in the form of a flame and losing itself in Lord Narayana!

A Rishi’s supreme sacrifice and the words of wisdom from an Asura humbled the Deva Indra enough to realize that there is no one greater than a true devotee of Lord Narayana.

Om Namo Bhagavathe Vasudevaaya!