Rudras
Encyclopedia
Rudras are forms and followers of the god Rudra
-Shiva
and make eleven of the Thirty-three gods
in the Hindu
pantheon. They are at times identified with the Maruts
- sons of Rudra; while at other times, considered distinct from them.
tells they are eleven of the 33 children of the sage Kashyapa and his wife Aditi
, along with the 12 Adityas
, 8 Vasus and 2 Ashvins
, constituting the Thirty-three gods
. The Vamana Purana
describes the Rudras as the sons of Kashyapa and Aditi. The Matsya Purana
notes that Surabhi
- the mother of all cows and the "cow of plenty" - was the consort of Brahma and their union produced the eleven Rudras. Here they are named Nirriti, Shambhu, Aparajita Mrigavyadha, Kapardi, Dahana, Khara, Ahirabradhya, Kapali, Pingala and Senani - the foremost. The Harivamsa
, an appendix of the Mahabharata, makes Kashyapa and Surabhi - here, portrayed as his wife - the parents of the Rudras. In another instance in the Mahabharata, it is Dharma
(possibly identified with Yama
) who is the father of the Rudras and the Maruts.
The Vishnu Purana
narrates that Rudra - here identified with Shiva
- was born from the anger of the creator-god Brahma
. The furious Rudra was in Ardhanari
form, half his body was male and other half female. He divided himself into two: the male and female. The male form then split itself into eleven, forming the eleven Rudras. Some of them were white and gentle; while others were dark and fierce. They are called Manyu, Manu, Mahmasa, Mahan, Siva, Rtudhvaja, Ugraretas, Bhava, Kama, Vamadeva and Dhrtavrata. From the woman were born the eleven Rudranis who became wives of the Rudras. They are Dhi, Vrtti, Usana, Urna, Niyuta, Sarpis, Ila, Ambika, Iravatl, Sudha and Diksa. Brahma allotted to the Rudras the eleven positions of the heart and the five sensory organs, the five organs of action and the mind. Other Puranas call them Aja, Ekapada
(Ekapat), Ahirbudhnya, Tvasta, Rudra, Hara, Sambhu, Tryambaka, Aparajita, Isana and Tribhuvana.
In one instance in the epic Mahabharata
, the Rudras are eleven in number and are named Mrgavadha, Sarpa, Nirriti, Ajaikapad, Ahi Budhnya, Pinakin, Dahana, Ishvara, Kapalin, Sthanu and Bhaga. While Kapalin is described the foremost of Rudras here, in the Bhagavad Gita
- a discourse by the god Krishna
in the epic - it is Sankara who is considered the greatest of the Rudras. Both Kapalin and Sankara are epithets of Shiva. In another instance, they are described as sons of Tvastr and named: Vishvarupa, Ajaikapad, Ahi Budhnya, Virupaksa, Raivata, Hara, Bahurupa, Tryambaka, Savitra, Jayanta and Pinakin. While usually the Rudras are described to eleven, in one instance in the Mahabharata; they are said to be eleven thousand and surrounding Shiva. The eleven groups of hundred are named: Ajaikapad, Ahi Budhnya, Pinakin, Rta, Pitrrupa, Tryamabaka, Maheshvara, Vrsakapi, Sambhu, Havana and Ishvara.
The Matsya Purana
mentions the ferocious eleven Rudras - named Kapali, Pingala, Bhima, Virupaksa, Vilohita, Ajesha, Shasana, Shasta, Shambhu, Chanda and Dhruva - aiding the god Vishnu
in his fight against the demons. They wear lion-skins, matted-hair and serpents around their necks. They have yellow throats, hold tridents and skulls and have the crescent moon on their foreheads. Together headed by Kapali, they slay the elephant demon Gajasura
.
, Rudras are described as loyal companions of Rudra, who later was identified with Shiva
. They are considered as friends, messengers and aspects of Rudra. They are fearful in nature. The Satapatha Brahmana mentions that Rudra is the prince, while Rudras are his subjects. They are considered as attendants of Shiva in later mythology.
The Rig Veda makes the Rudras the gods of the middle world, situated between earth and sky. As wind-gods, the Rudras represent the life-breath. In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
, the Rudras are associated with the ten vital energies
(rudra-prana) in the body and the eleventh being the Ātman
(the soul).
The Rudras are said to preside over the second stage of creation and the intermediary stage of life. They govern the second ritual of sacrifice, the mid-day offering and the second stage of life - from the 24th to the 68 year of life. The Chandogya Upanishad
prescribes that the Rudras be propitiated in case of sickness in this period and further says that they on departing the body become the cause of tears, the meaning of the name Rudra being the "ones who make cry". The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
explicitly states the fact that since the Rudras leaving the body - causing death - makes people cry, they are Rudras.
The Mahabharata describes the Rudras as companions of Indra
, servants of Shiva and his son Skanda
and companions of Yama, who is surrounded by them. They have immense power, wear golden necklaces and are "like lighting-illuminated clouds". The Bhagavata Purana
prescribes the worship of the Rudras to gain virile power.
- sons of Rudra in the Vedas; while at other times, considered distinct from them.
Some scholars believe that Rudras and Maruts were earlier distinct groups, Rudras being the true followers of Rudra and demonic in nature. But poets of the Rigveda forced the Maruts take the position of the Rudras to give status of a Vedic god to Rudra. Later in post-Vedic literature like the epics and Puranas, Maruts were associated with Indra
, while Rudras gained their former status as followers of Rudra, who had evolved into Shiva. However, other scholars disregard this theory and consider that originally Rudras and Maruts were identical. A theory suggests that slowly in the Vedas two classes of Maruts came into existence: the friendly and beneficent, and the roaring and turbulent; the latter grew into the distinct group of deities called the Rudras, who were associated only with the wild Rudra.
In the Marut Suktas (RV 1, 2, 5, 8) and Indra-Suktas (RV 1, 3, 8, 10) of the Rigveda (RV), the epithet "Rudras" - originating from the verb root rud or ru and meaning howlers, roarers or shouters - is used numerous times for the Maruts - identifying them with the Rudras even when associated with Indra, rather than Rudra. There are some hymns in the Rigveda (RV 2, 7, 8, 10) that explicitly distinguish between the Maruts and the Rudras.
While the Vamana Purana
describes Rudras as the sons of Kashyapa and Aditi, Maruts are described distinct from the Rudras as 49 sons of Diti
, sister-wife of Aditi and attendants of Indra.
Rudra
' is a Rigvedic God, associated with wind or storm, and the hunt. The name has been translated as "The Roarer", or "The Howler"....
-Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
and make eleven of the Thirty-three gods
Thirty-three gods
The ' heaven is an important world of the devas in Buddhist cosmology. The word ' is an adjective formed from the numeral ', "33" and can be translated in English as "belonging to the thirty-three [devas]"....
in the Hindu
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
pantheon. They are at times identified with the Maruts
Maruts
In Hinduism the Marutas , also known as the Marutagana and sometimes identified with Rudras, are storm deities and sons of Rudra and Diti and attendants of Indra. The number of Maruts varies from two to sixty . They are very violent and aggressive, described as armed with golden weapons i.e...
- sons of Rudra; while at other times, considered distinct from them.
Birth and names
The RamayanaRamayana
The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...
tells they are eleven of the 33 children of the sage Kashyapa and his wife Aditi
Aditi
Aditi in Sanskrit, an ancient Indian language. In the Vedas Aditi is mother of the gods from whose cosmic matrix the heavenly bodies were born...
, along with the 12 Adityas
Ādityas
In Hinduism, Āditya , meaning "of or related to Aditi", refers to the offsprings of Aditi. Adityas are solar class deities. In later Hinduism, Aditya is used in the singular to mean the sun.-Vedas:...
, 8 Vasus and 2 Ashvins
Ashvins
The Ashvins , in Hindu mythology, are divine twin horsemen in the Rigveda, sons of Saranya , a goddess of the clouds and wife of Surya in his form as Vivasvat. The Ashvins are Vedic gods symbolising the shining of sunrise and sunset, appearing in the sky before the dawn in a golden chariot,...
, constituting the Thirty-three gods
Thirty-three gods
The ' heaven is an important world of the devas in Buddhist cosmology. The word ' is an adjective formed from the numeral ', "33" and can be translated in English as "belonging to the thirty-three [devas]"....
. The Vamana Purana
Vamana Purana
The Vamana Purana, , one of the eighteen Mahapuranas, a genre of Hindu religious texts, is devoted to the Vamana Avatar of Vishnu. It has a eulogy praising both Vishnu and Shiva....
describes the Rudras as the sons of Kashyapa and Aditi. The Matsya Purana
Matsya Purana
Matsya Purana is the sixteenth purana of the Hindu scriptures. During the period of mahapralaya, Lord Vishnu had taken Matsya Avatar to save the seeds of all lives and Manu...
notes that Surabhi
Surabhi
Surabhi may mean:* Kamadhenu, the divine cow in Hindu mythology.* The word 'Surabhi' is formed by adding the prefix 'Su' and the suffix 'I' to the Sanskrit word 'Rabh'...
- the mother of all cows and the "cow of plenty" - was the consort of Brahma and their union produced the eleven Rudras. Here they are named Nirriti, Shambhu, Aparajita Mrigavyadha, Kapardi, Dahana, Khara, Ahirabradhya, Kapali, Pingala and Senani - the foremost. The Harivamsa
Harivamsa
The Harivamsha is an important work of Sanskrit literature, containing 16,374 verses, mostly in metre. The text is also known as . This text is believed as a khila to the Mahabharata and is traditionally ascribed to Krishna Dvaipayana Veda Vyasa...
, an appendix of the Mahabharata, makes Kashyapa and Surabhi - here, portrayed as his wife - the parents of the Rudras. In another instance in the Mahabharata, it is Dharma
Dharma
Dharma means Law or Natural Law and is a concept of central importance in Indian philosophy and religion. In the context of Hinduism, it refers to one's personal obligations, calling and duties, and a Hindu's dharma is affected by the person's age, caste, class, occupation, and gender...
(possibly identified with Yama
Yama
Yama , also known as Yamarāja in India and Nepal, Shinje in Tibet, Yanluowang or simply Yan in China, Yeomla Daewang in South Korea and Enma Dai-Ō in Japan, is the lord of death, in Hinduism and then adopted into Buddhism and then further into Chinese mythology and Japanese mythology. First...
) who is the father of the Rudras and the Maruts.
The Vishnu Purana
Vishnu Purana
The Vishnu Purana is a religious Hindu text and one of the eighteen Mahapuranas. It is considered one of the most important Puranas and has been given the name Puranaratna...
narrates that Rudra - here identified with Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
- was born from the anger of the creator-god Brahma
Brahma
Brahma is the Hindu god of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. According to the Brahma Purana, he is the father of Mānu, and from Mānu all human beings are descended. In the Ramayana and the...
. The furious Rudra was in Ardhanari
Ardhanari
Ardhanarishvara , is a composite androgynous form of the Hindu god Shiva and his consort Parvati . Ardhanarishvara is depicted as half male and half female, split down the middle...
form, half his body was male and other half female. He divided himself into two: the male and female. The male form then split itself into eleven, forming the eleven Rudras. Some of them were white and gentle; while others were dark and fierce. They are called Manyu, Manu, Mahmasa, Mahan, Siva, Rtudhvaja, Ugraretas, Bhava, Kama, Vamadeva and Dhrtavrata. From the woman were born the eleven Rudranis who became wives of the Rudras. They are Dhi, Vrtti, Usana, Urna, Niyuta, Sarpis, Ila, Ambika, Iravatl, Sudha and Diksa. Brahma allotted to the Rudras the eleven positions of the heart and the five sensory organs, the five organs of action and the mind. Other Puranas call them Aja, Ekapada
Ekapada
Ekapada refers to a one-footed aspect of the Hindu god Shiva. This aspect is primarily found in South India and Orissa, but also occasionally in Rajasthan and Nepal. The Ekapada is primarily represented in three iconographical forms. In the Ekapada-murti form, he is depicted as one-legged and...
(Ekapat), Ahirbudhnya, Tvasta, Rudra, Hara, Sambhu, Tryambaka, Aparajita, Isana and Tribhuvana.
In one instance in the epic Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
, the Rudras are eleven in number and are named Mrgavadha, Sarpa, Nirriti, Ajaikapad, Ahi Budhnya, Pinakin, Dahana, Ishvara, Kapalin, Sthanu and Bhaga. While Kapalin is described the foremost of Rudras here, in the Bhagavad Gita
Bhagavad Gita
The ' , also more simply known as Gita, is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the ancient Sanskrit epic, the Mahabharata, but is frequently treated as a freestanding text, and in particular, as an Upanishad in its own right, one of the several books that constitute general Vedic tradition...
- a discourse by the god Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
in the epic - it is Sankara who is considered the greatest of the Rudras. Both Kapalin and Sankara are epithets of Shiva. In another instance, they are described as sons of Tvastr and named: Vishvarupa, Ajaikapad, Ahi Budhnya, Virupaksa, Raivata, Hara, Bahurupa, Tryambaka, Savitra, Jayanta and Pinakin. While usually the Rudras are described to eleven, in one instance in the Mahabharata; they are said to be eleven thousand and surrounding Shiva. The eleven groups of hundred are named: Ajaikapad, Ahi Budhnya, Pinakin, Rta, Pitrrupa, Tryamabaka, Maheshvara, Vrsakapi, Sambhu, Havana and Ishvara.
The Matsya Purana
Matsya Purana
Matsya Purana is the sixteenth purana of the Hindu scriptures. During the period of mahapralaya, Lord Vishnu had taken Matsya Avatar to save the seeds of all lives and Manu...
mentions the ferocious eleven Rudras - named Kapali, Pingala, Bhima, Virupaksa, Vilohita, Ajesha, Shasana, Shasta, Shambhu, Chanda and Dhruva - aiding the god Vishnu
Vishnu
Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
in his fight against the demons. They wear lion-skins, matted-hair and serpents around their necks. They have yellow throats, hold tridents and skulls and have the crescent moon on their foreheads. Together headed by Kapali, they slay the elephant demon Gajasura
Gajasura
In Hindu mythology, Gajasura is the name used to refer to demon Nila who entered the body of an elephant and attacked Shiva. Shiva, not wanting to hurt the innocent elephant, decided to kill the demon from within the elephant...
.
Associations
In Vedic mythologyVedic mythology
Vedic mythology refers to the mythological aspects of the historical Vedic religion and Vedic literature, most notably alluded to in the hymns of the Rigveda...
, Rudras are described as loyal companions of Rudra, who later was identified with Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
. They are considered as friends, messengers and aspects of Rudra. They are fearful in nature. The Satapatha Brahmana mentions that Rudra is the prince, while Rudras are his subjects. They are considered as attendants of Shiva in later mythology.
The Rig Veda makes the Rudras the gods of the middle world, situated between earth and sky. As wind-gods, the Rudras represent the life-breath. In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
The Upanishad is one of the older, "primary" Upanishads. It is contained within the Shatapatha Brahmana, and its status as an independent Upanishad may be considered a secondary extraction of a portion of the Brahmana text. This makes it one of the oldest texts of the Upanishad corpus...
, the Rudras are associated with the ten vital energies
Prana
Prana is the Sanskrit word for "vital life" .It is one of the five organs of vitality or sensation, viz. prana "breath", vac "speech", chakshus "sight", shrotra "hearing", and manas "thought" Prana is the Sanskrit word for "vital life" (from the root "to fill", cognate to Latin plenus...
(rudra-prana) in the body and the eleventh being the Ātman
Ātman (Hinduism)
Ātman is a Sanskrit word that means 'self'. In Hindu philosophy, especially in the Vedanta school of Hinduism it refers to one's true self beyond identification with phenomena...
(the soul).
The Rudras are said to preside over the second stage of creation and the intermediary stage of life. They govern the second ritual of sacrifice, the mid-day offering and the second stage of life - from the 24th to the 68 year of life. The Chandogya Upanishad
Chandogya Upanishad
The Chandogya Upanishad is one of the "primary" Upanishads. Together with the Jaiminiya Upanishad Brahmana and the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad it ranks among the oldest Upanishads, dating to the Vedic Brahmana period....
prescribes that the Rudras be propitiated in case of sickness in this period and further says that they on departing the body become the cause of tears, the meaning of the name Rudra being the "ones who make cry". The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
The Upanishad is one of the older, "primary" Upanishads. It is contained within the Shatapatha Brahmana, and its status as an independent Upanishad may be considered a secondary extraction of a portion of the Brahmana text. This makes it one of the oldest texts of the Upanishad corpus...
explicitly states the fact that since the Rudras leaving the body - causing death - makes people cry, they are Rudras.
The Mahabharata describes the Rudras as companions of Indra
Indra
' or is the King of the demi-gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hindu mythology. He is also the God of War, Storms, and Rainfall.Indra is one of the chief deities in the Rigveda...
, servants of Shiva and his son Skanda
Murugan
Murugan also called Kartikeya, Skanda and Subrahmanya, is a popular Hindu deity especially among Tamil Hindus, worshipped primarily in areas with Tamil influences, especially South India, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Mauritius and Reunion Island. His six most important shrines in India are the...
and companions of Yama, who is surrounded by them. They have immense power, wear golden necklaces and are "like lighting-illuminated clouds". The Bhagavata Purana
Bhagavata purana
The Bhāgavata Purāṇa is one of the "Maha" Puranic texts of Hindu literature, with its primary focus on bhakti to the incarnations of Vishnu, particularly Krishna...
prescribes the worship of the Rudras to gain virile power.
Association with Maruts
Rudras are at times identified with the MarutsMaruts
In Hinduism the Marutas , also known as the Marutagana and sometimes identified with Rudras, are storm deities and sons of Rudra and Diti and attendants of Indra. The number of Maruts varies from two to sixty . They are very violent and aggressive, described as armed with golden weapons i.e...
- sons of Rudra in the Vedas; while at other times, considered distinct from them.
Some scholars believe that Rudras and Maruts were earlier distinct groups, Rudras being the true followers of Rudra and demonic in nature. But poets of the Rigveda forced the Maruts take the position of the Rudras to give status of a Vedic god to Rudra. Later in post-Vedic literature like the epics and Puranas, Maruts were associated with Indra
Indra
' or is the King of the demi-gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hindu mythology. He is also the God of War, Storms, and Rainfall.Indra is one of the chief deities in the Rigveda...
, while Rudras gained their former status as followers of Rudra, who had evolved into Shiva. However, other scholars disregard this theory and consider that originally Rudras and Maruts were identical. A theory suggests that slowly in the Vedas two classes of Maruts came into existence: the friendly and beneficent, and the roaring and turbulent; the latter grew into the distinct group of deities called the Rudras, who were associated only with the wild Rudra.
In the Marut Suktas (RV 1, 2, 5, 8) and Indra-Suktas (RV 1, 3, 8, 10) of the Rigveda (RV), the epithet "Rudras" - originating from the verb root rud or ru and meaning howlers, roarers or shouters - is used numerous times for the Maruts - identifying them with the Rudras even when associated with Indra, rather than Rudra. There are some hymns in the Rigveda (RV 2, 7, 8, 10) that explicitly distinguish between the Maruts and the Rudras.
While the Vamana Purana
Vamana Purana
The Vamana Purana, , one of the eighteen Mahapuranas, a genre of Hindu religious texts, is devoted to the Vamana Avatar of Vishnu. It has a eulogy praising both Vishnu and Shiva....
describes Rudras as the sons of Kashyapa and Aditi, Maruts are described distinct from the Rudras as 49 sons of Diti
Diti
In Hinduism, Diti is an earth goddess and mother of the Maruts with Rudra. She is also the mother of the Daityas with the sage Kashyapa. She wanted to have a son who would be more powerful than Indra and so she practiced magic and kept herself pregnant for one year. Indra used a thunderbolt to...
, sister-wife of Aditi and attendants of Indra.