| Kratu | |
|---|---|
| Affiliation | Prajapati |
| Genealogy | |
| Parents |
|
| Siblings | Punya and Satyavati |
| Spouse | Kriya or Santati |
| Children | The 60,000 Balakhilyas |
Kratu (Sanskrit:क्रतु,lit. 'strength') is described as one of themanasaputras, the mind-born children of the creator deity,Brahma, inHinduism. He is also arishi, who appears in two different ages.[1]
He is considered to be one among the seven great sages of the age of the firstManu, theSaptarishis, believed to have originated from the mind ofBrahma. In another legend, he is believed to have been born from his father's left eye.
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In the SvayambhuvaManvantara, Kratu is aPrajapati, a son ofBrahma. He is also the son-in-law of PrajapatiKardama. His wife is named Kriya. It is said that he has 60,000 children. Their name is included in the eighth book of theRigveda. Kratu also has two sisters, Punya and Satyavati.[2]
He is also stated to be married to Santati in thePuranas, and the pair has sixty thousand children, called the Balakhilyas, who were each of the size of a thumb, but possessed great mastery over the senses. According to theMahabharata, while helping the sageKashyapa with a sacrifice, they carried with them chips of wood, even as thedevas brought heaps of logs. They were insulted whenIndra, the king of the devas, laughed at their efforts. By the power of their penance, they started to create another Indra. Terrified, Indra sought the assistance of Kashyapa. The sage pacified the Balakhilyas, and told them that the fruits of their penance would not be in vain; They would be employed to blessVinata, who was also performing a penance at the time, with a son who would be able to overpower Indra. Accordingly,Garuda was born to her, who would defeat Indra and the devas, procuringamrita to release his mother fromKadru's bondage.[3] In a different account, the Balakhilyas were able to pleaseShiva, who gave them a boon that they would be able to produce a bird, which would steal a pot of amrita from Indra.[4]
According to theShiva Purana, due to his spouseSati's suicide during theDaksha yajna (the sacrifice ofDaksha), Shiva sent his followers to massacre everyone who attended the sacrifice, which included Kratu. As instructed, his followers started punishing each and every deity and rishi who attended the holy sacrifice.[5][6] Both the testicles of Kratu are described to have been severed during this massacre. When the attendees and survivors begged for his forgiveness, Shiva agreed, but as a punitive measure, he turned the attendees into animals, or found a suitable punishment for their sin. After his testicles were restored, Kratu married Sannati, the daughter of Daksha. The seven sages, which included him, were all transformed into pygmy sages, no bigger than the joint of the thumb. They immediately started to resort to a life of piety, becoming renowned students of theVedas.[7][8]
Kratu was again born in theVaivasvata Manvantara (the seventh and currentmanvantara) because of Shiva’s boon. In thisManvantara, he had no family. His origin here states that he was born from the hand of Brahma, whereas other rishis are described as having been born from other parts of the deity's form. As he had no family or children, Kratu adoptedAgastya’s son, Idhmavaha.
Kratu may share a cognate with theGreek mythological deityKratos, whose name is also associated with strength.[9]