thumb|The 11 Rudras depicted with a third eye and ithyaphallic, [[Udayagiri Caves, c. 401 CE]]

thumb|Part of the Vyomamandala depicting Rudras - Circa 5th Century CE, Katra Keshava Deva; currently at [[Government Museum, Mathura|Mathura Museum.]]

Rudras refer to the forms of the god Rudra, whose traditions have since been associated with Shiva. They make up eleven of the thirty-three gods in the Vedic pantheon. They are at times identified with the storm deities referred to as Maruts, while at other times considered distinct from them.

Birth and names

The Ramayana 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.

:

  1. Nirṛti
  2. Śambhu
  3. Aparājita
  4. Mṛgavyādha
  5. Kapardin
  6. Dahana
  7. Khara
  8. Manas
  9. Ahirbudhnya
  10. Kapālin
  11. Piṅgala
  12. Senāni

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. Both Kapalin and Śankara are epithets of Shiva. makes the Rudras the gods of the middle world, situated between earth and heaven i.e. the atmosphere. As wind-gods, the Rudras represent the life-breath.

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". However, other scholars disregard this theory and consider that originally Rudras and Maruts were identical.

Ashwatthama

Ashwatthama, the son of Drona, is the avatara of the eleven Rudras, along with being one of the eight Chiranjivi (the immortals). Drona performed many years of severe penances to please Shiva in order to obtain a son who possessed the same valiance as the latter. Ashwatthama, the powerful son of Drona, though known as the part incarnate of Rudra, was really born of the four parts of Yama (death), Rudra (destruction), Kamadeva (love), Krodha (anger). Just before Mahabharata war, Bhishma himself declared that it would be virtually impossible for anyone to kill or defeat Ashwatthama in battle as he was the part incarnate of Rudra. Bhishma stated that when Ashwatthama becomes angry, it would become impossible to fight him as he would become "a second Shiva". The dishonoured deaths of Drona, Karna, Duryodhana left Aswathama infuriated, and this event led directly and in an unwary-like manner, to the annihilation of most of the Pandava lineage by the hands of Ashwatthama himself, who killed all of them. As a result, Krishna curses him as being unable to heal his bleeding sores without facing death until the end of the Kali Yuga. It is said that one can hear him wailing at nights in the Kurukshetra region.

See also

  • Thirty-three gods
  • Adityas
  • Vasus
  • Ashvins
  • Indra
  • Prajapati
  • Maruts

Notes

References