Snake God Naga

 

Snake God Naga

 

Crow Betty was chatting with Agudengba and said: When there is a catastrophe, there is a slogan that shakes the world and weeps ghosts and gods: Sweep away all the demons and monsters. "Cow, ghost, and snake god" became a term that appeared very frequently at that time, and also became a special term, referring to the collective name of those who were to be knocked down and attacked.

Agudemba said: People who have experienced catastrophes are familiar with this.

Crow Betty smiled and said: Unfortunately, some famous encyclopedias at home and abroad have very superficial explanations for the word "cow ghosts and snake gods". It’s just that the word “cow ghosts and snake gods” was originally a term from Taoism and Buddhism, referring to the ghosts, gods and men of the underworld. It later became a fixed idiom to describe evil and ugly things.

Crow Betty asked: Mr. Agudemba, do you know the origin of the word "cow ghost and snake spirit"?

Agudengba thought for a while and said: Encyclopedias and dictionaries all believe that it comes from the "Preface to the Collection of Li He": "Whales croaking and throwing, cows, ghosts and snake gods are not enough to make it false and absurd."

Crow Betty laughed and said:

Don't believe it, don't believe it. Because they don’t know much about Hinduism. Chinese Buddhism was formed from the spread of Hinduism. Hinduism has long had myths about "cows, ghosts and snake gods". I have told you that the war goddess Durga tore the neck of Mahisha in a fierce battle with the bull demon King Mahisha. Durga became the supreme goddess who defeated demons and broke the cycle of reincarnation. The demon Mahisha is the devil with the head of a bull and the body of a human body. The prototype of the Bull Demon King in China's "Journey to the West" should also be related to the Bull Demon Mahisha.

There are many legends about "snake gods" in Indian mythology. "Naga" is the snake god in Indian mythology.

Niugui: A ghost with a bull's head. Snake God: A god with the body of a snake. The theory of "cow ghosts and snake gods" probably originated from India.

Crow Betty said to Agudemba: I will now tell you the story about the snake god Naga.

Naga is a word in Sanskrit and Pali, or translated as dragon, which also refers to some mysterious creature in the legend. And this kind of creature is a huge snake, which can have a single head or seven heads; it can also have multiple heads.

It often appears in Tibetan scriptures such as Brahmanism, Hinduism, Buddhism, etc., and was later collectively referred to as the Cobra King or the name of the Indian Cobra.

In India, Nagas are regarded as spiritual beings and protectors of springs, wells and rivers. They can make rain, thus bringing good harvests; but they can also bring disasters such as floods and droughts. The representative story is the legend of the giant snake Vritra blocking water. There is a theory that Nagas only cause disaster when they are treated disrespectfully by humans. Since the image of the Naga is associated with water, the entrances to the underground palaces where they live are often thought to be at the bottom of wells, lakes and rivers. The worship of Nagas is especially popular in southern India, where locals believe that Nagas will bring good harvests to their worshipers.

The story of Naga has been mentioned in ancient Vedic texts. Varuna, the Vedic god of the universe and lord of rivers, is considered the king of the Nagas, an attribute that may have come from his relationship with water. It is said in the Baidao Brahma that the Naga family are the descendants of Kashyapa and Surasa. The most famous of the Naga myths is the story of the Churning Milk Sea. It is said that in order to obtain the nectar of immortality, the gods and asuras of the Devas teamed up and worked hard to churn the ocean of milk. They used Mount Mandala as a churning stick and Vasuji, the king of Nagas, as a noose, and finally succeeded in obtaining the nectar of immortality. This myth is mentioned in the Puranas and Mahabharata. In addition to Vasuji, the famous Nagas include Lord Vishnu's loyal companion Shesha and the snake goddess Manasa.

Since Naga is a legendary creature, it is regarded as the guardian of springs and rainwater, and exists like a dragon in Chinese legends. If there is a drought, it is usually a disaster punishment they inflict on humans when humans do not respect them.

The legend about Naga is still part of the traditional culture of many Asian countries influenced by Indian culture, such as India, Nepal, and some Southeast Asian countries.

Naga is equivalent to snake in Chinese Buddhism. Since Buddhism has also introduced the traditional concept of Naga Nagas in India, people in countries and regions with Buddhist origins in Asia are no strangers to Nagas. In these places, the images of Nagas originally from India are often confused with similar creatures in local legends, especially giant snakes or dragons. In Tibet, the naga are equated with the "lu" of local legend, a creature that lives at the bottom of lakes or underground water and guards treasures like the dragons in Western legends. Chinese Buddhism usually translates Naga as "dragon". Of course, the dragon in Buddhism is not the dragon in traditional Chinese culture, but they have been confused later.

In Buddhist legends, Naga and Garuda, one of the Eight Dragons, are mortal enemies. This is a legend from Brahmanic mythology. Garuda feeds on naga: "Dragons are divided into eggs, fetuses, wetness, and metamorphosis, and they are eaten by four kinds of Garuda: eggs, fetuses, moisture, and metamorphosis." But naga is poisonous, so the Garuda Finally he was poisoned to death. Similar legends also appear in Indian mythology.

 

Betty the Crow sang a "Snake Song":

 

In those distant years,

When the Buddha preached among the people,

A big snake was listening,

He was moved by compassion,

Become a mortal and become a monk,

I hope it can also help save all sentient beings.

 

Unexpectedly, the big snake appeared after sleeping.

Discovered by other monks,

Tell the Buddha to deal with the big snake.

The Buddha summoned the serpent for questioning;

Orochi told the whole story frankly.

The Buddha considered snakes to be livestock;

He cannot be tonsured and can only return to secular life.

The big snake begged in vain,

So he asked Buddhism to leave his name.

The Buddha accepted the serpent's entreaty,

From then on, people were required to wear white robes for tonsure.

Before entering Buddhism, it is called Naga.

 

Naga has a long body with no legs or horns.

There is a palace under the water,

Able to control the water potential to move clouds and rain.

Later Buddhism was introduced to China,

Respect the Buddha and the snake god who protects the Dharma,

The incarnation of the snake god is called the Celestial Dragon.