| Shesha | |
|---|---|
King of the Serpents[1] | |
.jpg) Idol of Shesha, Kathmandu | |
| Other names | Sheshanaga, Ananta, Adishesha, Sankarshana |
| Affiliation | Vaishnavism,Vishnu |
| Abode | Vaikuntha,Kshira Sagara,Patala |
| Mantra | om śeṣanāgāya vidmahe anantāya ca dhīmahi tanno nāgaḥ pracodayāt |
| Genealogy | |
| Parents | |
| Siblings | Many includingManasa,Vasuki, andTakshaka |
| Consort | Nagalakshmi |
| Children | Sulochana |
Shesha (Sanskrit:शेष,romanized: Śeṣa,lit. 'Remainder'),[3] also known by his epithetsSheshanaga (Sanskrit:शेषनाग,romanized: Śeṣanāga,lit. 'The snake Shesha') andAdishesha (Sanskrit:आदिशेष,romanized: Ādiśeṣa,lit. 'First Shesha'), is a serpentine demigod (naga) and king of theserpents (Nagaraja), as well as a primordial being of creation inHinduism. In thePuranas, Shesha is said to hold all the planets of the universe on his hoods and to constantly sing the glories ofVishnu from all his mouths. He is sometimes referred to asAnanta Shesha.
TheNarayana form of Vishnu is often depicted as resting on Shesha, accompanied by his consortLakshmi. Shesha is considered as one of the two mounts of Vishnu alongsideGaruda. He is said to have descended upon Earth in the following human forms or incarnations:Lakshmana, brother of Vishnu's incarnationRama during theTreta Yuga, and according to some traditions, asBalarama, brother of Vishnu's incarnationKrishna during theDvapara Yuga. According to theMahabharata (Adi Parva), his father wasKashyapa and his motherKadru, though in other accounts, he is usually a primordial being created by Vishnu.
His name means "he who remains", from theSanskritrootśiṣ, because even as the world is destroyed at the end of eachkalpa, Shesha remains as he is.
Shesha is generally depicted with a massive form that floats coiled through space, or upon theOcean of Milk, to form the bed upon which Vishnu lies. Sometimes, he is depicted as a five-headed or seven-headed or a ten-headedserpent; but more commonly as one thousand-headed, or five thousand-headed, or even as many as a one million-headedserpent; sometimes with each head wearing an ornate crown.[4][5]
According to theMahabharata, Shesha was born to the sageKashyapa and his wifeKadru. Kadru gave birth to a thousand snakes, of which Shesha was the eldest. After Shesha,Vasuki,Iravati andTakshaka were born, in that order. A lot of Shesha's brothers were cruel and were bent upon inflicting harm on others. They were even unkind toGaruda, who was Kashyapa's son throughVinata, sister of Kadru. (Kadru and Vinata were daughters of Daksha).
Shesha, disgusted by the cruel acts of his brothers, left his mother and kin, and took on austere penances. He lived on air and meditated in places including Gandhamadhana, Badrikashrama, Gokarna, Pushkara, and theHimalayas. His penances were so severe that his flesh, skin, and muscles dried up and merged with his frame.Brahma, convinced of Shesha's will, asked Shesha to request a boon. Shesha asked that he be able to keep his mind under control so that he could continue to perform ascetic penances. Brahma gladly accepted the request. Brahma then asked a favour of Shesha: to go beneath the precarious earth and stabilise it. Shesha agreed and went to the netherworld and stabilisedBhumi with his hood. He is believed to support her even today, thus makingPatala his perennial residence.[6]
Shesha is usually depicted as floating in the ocean of the changing world, forming the bed of a primordial form of Vishnu, i.e.Narayana,Vāsudeva or in later Puranic Vaishnavism,Mahavishnu.
In theBhagavata Purana, Shesha is named Sankarshana, thetamasic energy of Narayana himself, and is said to live deep within the inner layers ofPatala, where there are many serpents with gems on their heads and where he reigns as its ruler. He is said to have existed before the creation of the universe. When the universe is towards its end, he creates the 11Rudras from the serpents to destroy the universe for a new one to be created.
Sankarshana is also one of the fourvyuhas, or primitive forms of Vishnu, the other three beingVasudeva,Pradyumna, andAniruddha.
InGaudiya accounts, Sankarshana expands himself as Garbhodakshayi-Vishnu in the beginning of the universe to createBrahma. In other words, Sankarshana is believed to be Narayana himself.
In the first few chapters of thePuranas, it is also said that Sankarshana preached theBhagavata to theFour Kumaras, who in turn passed on this message. At some point, the message was passed to sageMaitreya, who in turn preached it toVidura.
According to legends, Shesha is married toNagalakshmi. As per theGarga Samhita, she is considered to be the personification of the divine ocean called theKshira Sagara.[7][8]
Shesha is believed to have taken six incarnations on earth. During theSatya Yuga, he came down in his original form to form a seat for Vishnu's avatar ofNarasimha, who had incarnated to slay the impiousHiranyakashipu.
During theTreta Yuga, Shesha took birth asLakshmana, as Vishnu's (asRama) brother. Lakshmana is a very prominent character in the Ramayana, along withHanuman andSita. His consort, Nagalakshmi was born asUrmila, the sister of Sita.[9][10]
DuringDvapara Yuga, he is a stated to have incarnated asBalarama again as a brother to Vishnu (as Krishna). This is often disputed by the original line-ups of theDasavatara, where Balarama is also considered to be an incarnation of Vishnu. His consort was born asRevati, the daughter of KingKakudmi.[11][12]
During theKali Yuga, according toSri Vaishnava tradition, he was born asPatanjali,Ramanuja, andManavala Mamunigal.[13] He was not accompanied byGod during the Kali Yuga. Instead, he incarnated alone to spread devotion among the people, being a peaceful incarnation.
Sri Vaishnavism also states that Balarama is an incarnation of bothVishnu and Shesha. In theBhagavad Gita, in the middle of the battlefieldKurukshetra, Krishna, explaining his omnipresence, says: "OfNāgas, I am Ananta" indicating the importance of Shesha.
Gaudiya Vaishnavism states that Shesha incarnated asNityananda, a friend and associate ofChaitanya Mahaprabhu, who is described as an incarnation ofKrishna. According to the texts and scriptures of theGaudiya Sampradaya, the appearance ofNityananda Prabhu was very similar toBalarama (incarnation of Shesha).[citation needed]
TheBrahma Purana describes the attributes of Ananta:[14]
Daityas and Dānavas are not capable of recounting his good qualities. He is honoured by Devas and celestial sages. He is spoken of as Ananta. He has a thousand hoods, and he is clearly bedecked in Svastika ornaments devoid of impurities. He illuminates all quarters by thousand jewels on his hoods.
For the welfare of the universe, he deprives the Asuras of their prowess. His eyes whirl and rove due to intoxication. He has only one earring at all times.
Wearing a crown and garlands he shines like a white mountain aflame with fire.
He is clad in blue garments. He is intoxicated with pride. He is resplendent with white garlands. He is lofty like the mountain of Kailāsa where the celestial Gaṅgā falls. He has placed his hand on the plough-share; he holds an excellent iron club. He is attended upon by the embodied splendour of Varuṇa.
At the end of the Kalpa, Rudra in the form of Saṅkarṣaṇa comes out of his mouth, blazing like the flame of poisonous fire and devours the three worlds.
He holds the entire sphere of the world rising above like a peak.
— Brahma Purana, Chapter 19
The Brahmanda Purana also described Shesha in Patala:
With his two thousand eyes that have the reddish splendour of the rising sun and with his body that is white and glossy, he appears like the mountain. Kailāsa surrounded by clusters of flames. He has the white complexion like the Moon as well as the Kunda flowers. Hence the cluster of his eyes shines like the cluster of midday suns on the peak of the white Mountain (Śveta Parvata).
He has a huge terrible body. With it (resting) in his reclining pose on his couch, he appears like a thousand-peaked mountain of vast dimensions (resting) over the earth.
This (enormously) huge lord of serpents, himself of great splendour, is being attended upon by extremely wise and noble-souled great serpents of huge physique. He is the king of all serpents. He is Ananta, Śeṣa, of excessive brilliance.
— Brahmanda Purana, Chapter 20
TheBhagavata Purana equates Shesha and Balarama:
The foremost manifestation of Lord Vishnu is Sankarṣana, who is known as Ananta. He is the origin of all incarnations within this material world. Previous to the appearance of Lord Shri Krishna, this original Sankarsana will appear as Baladeva, just to please the Supreme Lord Shri Krishna in His transcendental pastimes."
— Bhagavata Purana, 10.1.24
In theBhagavad Gita chapter 10, verse 29,Krishna describes 75 of his common manifestations, and declares,"anantaś ca asmi nāgānāṁ":Among Nāgas (a special class of serpents), I am the serpent-god Ananta.
ThePalliyodam, a type of largesnake boat built and used byAranmula Parthasarathy Temple in Kerala for the annual water processions ofUthrattathi Jalamela andValla Sadhya has the legend that it was designed byKrishna and were made to look like Shesha.[15]
In thesnake worship traditions ofTai folk religion andanimism in Thailand, he is a naga second order most revered figure, following Shri Sutho Naga (ปู่ศรีสุทโธ) of Kham Chanod Forest inBan Dung district,Udon Thani province,Isan, Thailand. Kham Chanod is considered the spiritual center of snake worship in Thai folk beliefs.[16][17][18] , His name and symbol are one ofRoyal Barge Anantanakkharat ofroyal barge in Thailand.[19][20][21][22]
Numerous shrines across Thailand are dedicated to he as a guardian deity, with one of the most notable being Shrine of the Venerable Naga Ananta Nakarat ofMukdahan province,Isan. which is located in the area under SecondThai–Lao Friendship Bridge.[23][24][25][26] or Shrine of the Venerable Naga Ananta Nakarat opposite Suvarnabhumi Airport Police Station which is one of Shrine of four naga guardian regular ofBang Phli District which are located in all four directions ofSuvarnabhumi Airport.[27][28][29][30]
