Trishanku
Encyclopedia
Trishanku is the character in Hindu
Itihasa
. Trishanku is commonly referred to through the phrase "Trishanku's heaven". The phrase describes a middleground or a compromise between ones goals or desires and one's current state or possessions.
The story of Trishanku is told in the Bala Kanda portion of the Valmiki Ramayana.
Trishanku, the son of Prithu was a king in the Solar Dynasty, the dynasty of the great Hindu God Rama
. Trishanku wished to ascend to heaven in his mortal body and requested his Guru
Vasishta to perform the needful rites to achieve this goal. Vasishta refused for it was against the laws of nature for someone with a mortal body to enter heaven. Upon refusal, Trishanku approached the sons of Vasishta to help him. The request of Trishanku in spite of the refusal by their father angered the sons of Vasishta and they cursed Trishanku with a debilitating disease. Trishanku was forced to leave his country and wander the lands.
During his wanderings, Trishanku met sage Viswamitra
. Upon hearing the plight of the king, Guru Vishwamithra who was a rival of Guru Vasishta accepted Trishanku's request and agreed to perform the rites required to send Trishanku to heaven with a mortal body.
The yagnas (rituals) began and by the power of the great sage, the King Trishanku started ascending to heaven. The Devas were alarmed by this unnatural occurrence and under the leadership of Indra
decided to not let Trishanku enter through the gates of heaven in this mortal self. Indra using his powers caused Trishanku to fall back to earth.
The furious Vishwamithra could not accept defeat at the hands of Indra. The sage used his powers to arrest the fall. Thus Trishanku was suspended mid-air in a state of unstable equilibrium.
Trishanku prayed to Vishwamithra for help and the great sage once again used his powers and started creating a parallel heaven in a portion of the southern sky. Once the heaven was built, the sage proceeded to create a parallel Indra to rule the new heaven that he created. Upon this, the Devas were alarmed and they appeared before the sage and tried to console him and withdraw him from his act. They explained to Vishwamithra, their actions and how they wished to prevent the unnatural act of someone with a mortal body entering the heaven.
Vishwamithra was gradually convinced but now he faced the dilemma of having to break his own word that he gave to Trishanku about sending him to heaven. Vishwamithra reached a compromise with the Devas to let the King inhabit the new heaven that was created for him. The new heaven shall be called Trishanku's heaven and the king shall reside in this heaven from now on. He shall not supersede the command of Indra by ruling his own heaven, and to ensure that, the king shall reside upside down in his heaven.
And thus is the story of Trishanku who is suspended in his own heaven as a compromise between earth that he belonged to and the heaven that he sought!
The phrase "Trishanku's heaven" is used widely in India
to describe such situations faced in real life. It has been believed that Trishanku and Vaivasvata Manu both are same.
In astronomy
, Trishanku corresponds to the constellation of Crux
, also known as the Southern Cross.
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
Itihasa
Itihasa
Itihasa as defined by Amarakosha refers to purvavritta, i.e. events of the past. In the Vedic age, those portions of the Brahmanas which narrated events of bygone days were known as itihasa and had some ritualistic importance...
. Trishanku is commonly referred to through the phrase "Trishanku's heaven". The phrase describes a middleground or a compromise between ones goals or desires and one's current state or possessions.
The story of Trishanku is told in the Bala Kanda portion of the Valmiki Ramayana.
Trishanku, the son of Prithu was a king in the Solar Dynasty, the dynasty of the great Hindu God Rama
Rama
Rama or full name Ramachandra is considered to be the seventh avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism, and a king of Ayodhya in ancient Indian...
. Trishanku wished to ascend to heaven in his mortal body and requested his Guru
Guru
A guru is one who is regarded as having great knowledge, wisdom, and authority in a certain area, and who uses it to guide others . Other forms of manifestation of this principle can include parents, school teachers, non-human objects and even one's own intellectual discipline, if the...
Vasishta to perform the needful rites to achieve this goal. Vasishta refused for it was against the laws of nature for someone with a mortal body to enter heaven. Upon refusal, Trishanku approached the sons of Vasishta to help him. The request of Trishanku in spite of the refusal by their father angered the sons of Vasishta and they cursed Trishanku with a debilitating disease. Trishanku was forced to leave his country and wander the lands.
During his wanderings, Trishanku met sage Viswamitra
Viswamitra
Brahmarshi Vishvamitra is one of the most venerated rishis or sages of ancient times in India. He is also credited as the author of most of Mandala 3 of the Rigveda, including the Gayatri Mantra. The Puranas mention that only 24 rishis since antiquity have understood the whole meaning of, and...
. Upon hearing the plight of the king, Guru Vishwamithra who was a rival of Guru Vasishta accepted Trishanku's request and agreed to perform the rites required to send Trishanku to heaven with a mortal body.
The yagnas (rituals) began and by the power of the great sage, the King Trishanku started ascending to heaven. The Devas were alarmed by this unnatural occurrence and under the leadership 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...
decided to not let Trishanku enter through the gates of heaven in this mortal self. Indra using his powers caused Trishanku to fall back to earth.
The furious Vishwamithra could not accept defeat at the hands of Indra. The sage used his powers to arrest the fall. Thus Trishanku was suspended mid-air in a state of unstable equilibrium.
Trishanku prayed to Vishwamithra for help and the great sage once again used his powers and started creating a parallel heaven in a portion of the southern sky. Once the heaven was built, the sage proceeded to create a parallel Indra to rule the new heaven that he created. Upon this, the Devas were alarmed and they appeared before the sage and tried to console him and withdraw him from his act. They explained to Vishwamithra, their actions and how they wished to prevent the unnatural act of someone with a mortal body entering the heaven.
Vishwamithra was gradually convinced but now he faced the dilemma of having to break his own word that he gave to Trishanku about sending him to heaven. Vishwamithra reached a compromise with the Devas to let the King inhabit the new heaven that was created for him. The new heaven shall be called Trishanku's heaven and the king shall reside in this heaven from now on. He shall not supersede the command of Indra by ruling his own heaven, and to ensure that, the king shall reside upside down in his heaven.
And thus is the story of Trishanku who is suspended in his own heaven as a compromise between earth that he belonged to and the heaven that he sought!
The phrase "Trishanku's heaven" is used widely in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
to describe such situations faced in real life. It has been believed that Trishanku and Vaivasvata Manu both are same.
In astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
, Trishanku corresponds to the constellation of Crux
Crux
Crux is the smallest of the 88 modern constellations, but is one of the most distinctive. Its name is Latin for cross, and it is dominated by a cross-shaped asterism that is commonly known as the Southern Cross.-Visibility:...
, also known as the Southern Cross.