Vasuki

Vāsuki is a serpent king in Hindu and Buddhist religion. He is described as having a gem called Nagamani on his head. Manasa, another naga, is his sister. Vāsuki is Shiva's snake. He is known in Chinese and Japanese mythology as being one of the "eight Great Dragon Kings" (八大龍王 pinyin: Bādà lóngwáng; Japanese: Hachidai Ryūō),[2] amongst Nanda (Nāgarāja), Upananda, Sāgara (Shakara), Takshaka, Balavan, Anavatapta and Utpala.

For other uses, see Vasuki (disambiguation).

Vāsuki
King of Sārpas[1]
Kurma Avatar of Vishnu, below Mount Mandara, with Vasuki wrapped around it, during Samudra manthan, the churning of the ocean of milk. ca 1870
AffiliationNāga
AbodeEarth
SymbolsNagamani
Personal information
ParentsKadru, Kashyap
SiblingsManasa, Shesha

Nagamani of narmatha

Vāsuki is famous for coiling around Lord Shiva's neck, who blessed and wore him as an ornament.

Vāsuki took part in the incident of Samudra manthana by allowing both the devas and the asuras to bind him to Mount Mandara, so that they could use him as their churning rope to extract the Amrita from the ocean of milk.[3] Vasuki is also mentioned in other Hindu scriptures, such as Ramayana and Mahabharata.

In the Buddhist mythology, Vāsuki and the other Nāga Kings appear in the audience for many of Gautama Buddha's sermons. The duties of the Nāga Kings included leading the nāgas in protecting and worshiping the Buddha, as well as protecting other enlightened beings.

Vāsuki's Naga priest is Tatig Naga.

Descendants

Vāsuka/Vāsuca temple is found near Mannarasala in Kerala and also Visakha district in Andhra Pradesh. They claim that their ancestors were Nāga serpents spared when the Khandava Forest (modern day Delhi) was burnt and cleared by Krishna and the Pandavas to make way for their capital Indraprastha.[4]

See also

Bibliography
  • Handa, Om Chanda (2004), Naga Cults and Traditions in the Western Himalaya, Indus Publishing, ISBN 978-8173871610CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

References
  1. Handa 2004, p. 91.
  2. http://www.chinabuddhismencyclopedia.com/en/index.php/Eight_great_dragon_kings
  3. Jones, Constance (2007). Encyclopedia of Hinduism. New York: Infobase Publishing. p. 300. ISBN 978-0-8160-5458-9.
  4. Social History of Kerala: The Dravidians By L. A. Krishna Iyer p.003
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