Malayaputra, Vayuputra & Valmiki -Mysterious tribes in Amishverse
If you've read Amish Tripathi's books, you must have come across words like Malayaputras, Vayuputras, Parihan and Vasudevs. They are frequently mentioned in the books. Naturally, having never heard about them before, it makes us wonder about who these people really were and we want to know more about them. It's really exciting and enriching experience reading books by Amish because every time we get to know different things about our India, our Indian culture and our people.
Vayuputras and Parihans
Vayuputras tribe were first mentioned in Shiva Trilogy. It's the tribe left behind by Lord Rudra, the previous Mahadev before Lord Shiva. You might mistake Lord Rudra and Lord Shiva as the same person. From our ancient literature, we always thought of Rudra as another form of Lord Shiva. A fierce form. However, in Amish's books, they are both different people known as Mahadev whose mission was to erase evil from the world during their eras. In fact, during his war with Raavan, Lord Ram worshipped Lord Rudra and took his blessings to win the war against Ravan.
In Shiva Trilogy, we came to know that Vayuputras were followers of Lord Rudra and they were responsible for selecting next Neelkanth or Mahadev when evil rises in the society. Eventually, with the help of Vayuputras and Vasudevs, he was able to eradicate evil.
Coming to Lord Shiva, even in Shiva Trilogy we didn't get to know who his parents were. Although, he had an uncle named Manobhu who was also a member of the Vayuputras tribe and was instrumental in making Lord Shiva as Neelkanth. In chapter 35 of The Oath of the Vayuputras Lord Shiva visited Pariha, the land of Parihans, the birthplace of Lord Rudra at western borders of India. You'll find that the meaning of Parihan is fairy. Pariha word consists of Pari ha - Pari is a Hindi word meaning Fairy. The next chapter 36 is also named - The Land of fairies, indicating the same meaning. However, there are various other meanings of the word. You can visit here for more information.
Pariha is where Vayuputra tribe lived during the time period of the Shiva Trilogy. They only allowed Vasudevs and Vayuputras to enter in their domain. Shiva went with Vasudev Gopalji for the journey to Pariha. It was mentioned that Pariha is near Elam and Mesopotamia during a conversation between Shiva and Vasudev Gopal.
Lord Hanuman was a Vayuputra,Parihan and clearly a Naga. He was introduced in the end of The Scion of Ikshvaku book along with around thirty other Parihan warriors. Here's an excerpt from the book about Lord Hanuman.
The men were all unnaturally fair-skinned, an unusual sight in the hot plains of India. Their hooked noses, neatly beaded full beards, sharp foreheads, lengthy locks emerging from under square white hats, and drooping moustaches made it clear who these people were:Parihans.
Pariha was a fabled land beyond the western borders of India. It was the land that was home to the previous Mahadev, Lord Rudra.
The most intriguing member of this motley group was its leader, clearly a Naga. He too was fair-skinned, just like the Parihans. But in every other respect, he stood apart from them. He was not dressed like them. He was, in fact, dressed like an Indian: in a dhoti and angvastram, both dyed saffron. An outgrowth jutted out from his lower back, almost like a tail. It flapped in constant rhythm, as though it had a mind of its own. The hirsute Naga leader of the Parihans was very tall. His massive build and sturdy musculature gave him an awe-inspiring presence and a godly aura. He could probably break an unfortunate’s back with his bare hands. Unlike most Nagas, he did not cover his face with a mask or his body with a hooded robe.
It was mentioned that Lord Hanuman and Maharishi Vashishta were aware of Raavan's plan and Vashishta sent Lord Hanuman to protect both Lord Ram and Devi Sita.
We haven't yet got to know much about him in the Ram Chandra series, since all the three books were focused on Lord Ram, Devi Sita and Raavan. Although, in Raavan Enemy of Aryavarta we came to know that Kumbhakarna and Lord Hanuman knew each other very well and probably met before. We'll know more about Lord Hanuman from the fourth book onwards. That is for sure.
We could go on and on about Pariha but let's talk about Malayaputras now. If you want to know more about Pariha, open the Oath of Vayuputras and check out Chapter 35.
Malayaputra tribe
Just like the Vayuputra tribe was left behind by Lord Rudra, the Malayaputra tribe was left behind by Lord Parshuram, the sixth Vishnu. They are central to the plot of the Ram Chandra series. Even more so than the Vayuputra tribe was in Shiva Trilogy. They were tasked to find the next Vishnu and assist in the mission to establish an ideal society.
Rishi Vishwamitra was the chief of Malayaputras in the Ram Chandra series. Arishtanemi was the military chief of the Malayaputra tribe.
They represented the sixth Vishnu, tasked with carrying forward his mission on earth. The Malayaputras were tasked with two missions: to help the next Mahadev, Destroyer of Evil, if and when he or she arose. And, to give rise to the next Vishnu, Propagator of Good, when the time was right. The primary reason was to give rise to the next Vishnu. The Vayuputras and the Malayaputras work in partnership, just as the Vishnus and the Mahadevs did over millennia. However, the Vishnu was supposed to be officially recognised by Malayaputras. The Vayuputras do not like or trust Maharishi Vishwamitra. We do not know the reasons behind it yet. Instead, they support Maharishi Vashishta. The fierce enmity between Vashishta and Vishwamitra only add fuel to the already existing rivalry between the two tribes.
In the book Scion of Ikshvaku, Ram and Lakshman were with Vishwamitra and Malayaputra soldiers for a long time, until they were in Mithila for Sita's swayamvar. Vishwamitra was the one who forced Ram to fire Asurastra on Ravan's army to save Mithila from the siege. Malayaputra soldiers with their captain Jatayu (A Naga) went to the forest with Ram, Sita and Lakshman protecting them from any danger.
However, it was only in Sita Warrior of Mithila when we get to know the secrets of the Malayaputra tribe.
Agastyakootam was the capital of the Malayaputras, a hidden city deep in the south of India, beyond the Narmada River. In fact, it was very close to Lanka itself.
After selecting Sita as the next Vishnu, she was to be trained there for some months to prepare her for her role as the Vishnu. After that, for the next few years, she would remain in her hometown, Mithila, for half the year and spend the other half travelling around the Sapt Sindhu, understanding the land she had to save.
Sita secretly visited the capital of Malayaputra by stating it as a diplomatic visit across the country.
During her journey to the capital, she saw two Lankan ships that were sailing smoothly but faster than their ships. Now we know the reason behind the speed which was mentioned in the third book, Raavan Enemy of Aryavarta. But it made Sita doubt further the relationship between Malayaputras and Lankans. And indeed her suspicion wasn't misplaced. Maharishi Vishwamitra has been supplying medicines for both Raavan and Kumbhakarna in exchange for a huge amount of money.
There isn't any information about Malayaputra at all on the internet and it just seems like a made-up word unlike Vayuputras, Valmiki and Vasudev. However, there used to be Malay mountains in south India and they were mentioned in Hindu sacred texts like Vishnu Puran, Ramayana, Mahabharata and Matsya Puran. Since the capital of Malayaputras was also in south India near Kerala, Amish might have read about Malayaputra in some ancient Indian texts and imagined a story about it.
Valmiki tribe
There is one more tribe that might have escaped your attention. The Valmiki tribe. The tribe left behind by Lady Mohini. Lady Mohini was the previous Vishnu like Lord Parshu Ram, Lord Vaaman and Lord Narsimha. I'm hoping we'll have a series on Lady Mohini and Lord Rudra as told by Amish on Twitter here. The book will be unlike any we have read before. First, because we do not know anything about Lord Rudra and Lady Mohini. So it will be a fresh story for us and interesting to read. Second, Lord Rudra was a Mahadev and Lady Mohini was a Vishnu. So it'll be interesting to see how they worked in partnership to fulfil their individual mission of destroying evil and propagation of good in society. However, as mentioned in Sita Warrior of Mithila, some purists believed that a Mahadev and a Vishnu could not exist simultaneously. That at any given time, either the Mahadev exists with the tribe of the previous Vishnu, or the Vishnu exists with the tribe of the previous Mahadev. For how could the need for the destruction of Evil coincide with the propagation of Good? Therefore, some refused to believe that Lady Mohini was a Vishnu. But, the Malayaputras sided with the majority that believed that the great Lady Mohini was a Vishnu. What's true and what's not will only be revealed when the book about Lady Mohini is out.
But in Hindu literature, Mohini is an enchanting female form of Vishnu. Vishnu took this form to acquire the pot of Amrut (obtained after Samudra Manthan) from Asuras and give it to the Devas. Another legend tells about the union of Lord Shiva and Lady Mohini. So, Amish will definitely use this to expand his story on Lord Rudra, the previous Mahadev and Lady Mohini, the previous Vishnu.
The Union of Lord Rudra and Mohini, Vishnu's only female avatar.
Image Source - https://www.qplus.me/the-birth-of-hijras-in-india/
Now, coming back to Valmikis, do you remember Sita's friend Radhika? Yes, the same Radhika that Bharat fell in love with, in The Scion of Ikshvaku book. Her father is the chief of the Valmikis known as chief Varun. Her uncle Vayu Kesari is the father of Hanuman. So Radhika and Hanuman are cousins.
In a short conversation between Vashishta and Chief Varun, Maharishi Vashishta got to know the full name of the Valmikis Cheif - Varun Ratnakar. The emphasis was on the second name Ratnakar. It's because, Rishi Valmiki, a Sanskrit poet who wrote the Ramayana, was known as Ratnakar in his early years. He was a robber before he became a Rishi. It is believed that sage Narada Muni transformed him into a great devotee of Lord Ram by giving him the Ram Nam Mantra. Now you can see how Amish cleverly used this to call the tribe of Varun Ratnakar as Valmiki tribe.
Maharishi Vashishta immediately knew that Chief Varun belongs to the tribe of Lady Mohini and Vashishta began to think of them as very powerful allies. Although it's unclear how. They both then chanted the ancient greetings - Jai Devi Mohini.
Ram Chandra Series is more complex than it may have seemed to you when you read it for the first time. Definitely more complex than Shiva Trilogy. There are Malayaputra, Vayuputras, Valmikis involved throughout the series. You will definitely find clues in the books and spanned across different series if you read them again. It's the way it was intended and written for the readers by Amish. It's only going to be more complex when Amish keeps on releasing book series on various Mahadev and Vishnus. Currently, he is working on the fourth book of the Ram Chandra Series. It is expected to be released in Mid 2021. After finishing the Ram Chandra series he is planning to write Mahabharata. While we are excited for the Mahabharata series too, it'll take years, maybe a decade to complete. Possibly more. Hopefully, with the writers' center program he can release individual books side by side while working on a particular series.
Click here to subscribe to this blog to read more posts like these.
Comments
Post a Comment