Jatayu: I am
a big fanatic of nature and and animals. Reading through Wikipedia Jatayu is a
bird in the epic Ramayan. I am currently reading the public domain edition of
Ramayana. In the story he tries to rescue a women named Siti from a evil
character named Ravana. Unfortunately, Jatayu was not able to beat Ravana from
taking the woman. According to Wikipedia Ravana cut his wings off and the
location where Jatayu fell in Kerela, India. I also read that he once flew so
high that the sun burned his wings. I would like to learn more details about
Jatayu in the actual Ravana epic. I would also like to learn more details about
his early life.
Sampati:
According to Wikipedia he is the brother of Jatayu. Sampati lost his wings because he protected
his brother from the sun. His brother flew high enough to where the sun began
to burn his wings. I have not actually read past the 40th episode of
the public domain edition of the Ramayana but Wikipedia explains the importance
Sampati had in the search of Siti. According to Archive Sampati was a vulture who lived in a cave. He
had incredible sight and hearing. He apparently
regains his wings by describing places above the horizon that no one can easily
see, which leads to the recapture of Siti. This story also interest me because of the animal involved.
Nandi: Wikipedia describes Nandi as a bull. I am interested in this character because one
of my favorite animals is a bull and I enjoy going to rodeos on my personal time.
In
Wikipedia he is said to be the vehicle of Shiva which is an important deity
ion Hinduism. He is also said to be the gatekeeper of Shiva.
Qoura describes
Nandi as a “bearer of truth and righteousness.”
Airavata:
Wikipedia describes this character as a white
elephant who is the vehicle of Indra
which is another important deity in Indian epics. He is also said to be
the king of all elephants. In some stories from Wikipedia he is believed to
have came from the “Ocean of milk [where he] guards one of the points of
compass.” I am interested in this deity because I have
always seen elephants portrayed as important symbols in the Indian culture. I
never knew exactly the significance they had. Researching about this specific elephant is a good way to start learning more about the impact of elephants in this specific culture.
