EVIDENCES IN OLD JAVANESE TEXTS
Garuða
the mount of Hari
Garuða is born from an egg given to his mother Winaþà by her husband bhagawan Kàúyapa. She got two eggs (Adip 30). Because nothing happened, she opened one egg after 500 years. A half-grown human being, without legs, emerged. He got the name Aruóa and became the charioteer of the god of the Sun. He was so angry with his mother, because she had been impatient, that he cursed her: you shall become the slave of your sister for many years. After some time a birdlike figure emerged from the second egg. He was glowing like fire (apuy), the whole earth including the heaven were glowing like fire. The gods asked: what is this glow? This is Garuða, he has enourmous power (úakti) (Adip 36).
Garuða has a problem with snakes. The reason why is the following: Bhagawan Kàúypa, who was a grandson of god Braáa had 14 wives. Twelve of them had already children, but two sisters, Kadrù and Winaþà were still childless (Adip 29). They were complaining, and finally were given eggs by their husband. Kadrù got one egg and Winaþà received two eggs. From Kadrù’s egg emerged thousand snakes (among others Anantabhoga, Basuki). The eggs of her sister remained in tact. (Adip 30). The sisters Kadrù and Winaþà made a bat after the episode of the churning of the ocean, when the gods were in search of the immortality elixir. It was about the colour of the tail of the horse uccaiáúrawà that had emerged from the ocean during the churning. Was it white or black? According to W. it was white, but according to K black. The sister who was wrong would become the slave of the other. The snake children told their mother that it was white. Kadrù ordered them to colour it black with their venom. They refused to cheat, so they were cursed by their mother. “You will be devoured by fire”. Then K, who had been given some venom by her husband, used it to colour the tail black. Thus W became the slave of K. (Adip 35). Garuða was born when his mother was a slave. He once was asked to take care of the snakes when K was bathing in the sea. He hated them, so he took them in his claws and flew with them up, close to the sun. The heat of the sun affected them, they felt exhausted. Their mother, K., asked Indra, the god of rain and thunder for help. He caused terrible rains and thunder, so the snakes felt cool. He moved away in all directions. As a result Garuða had a big problem to look for them. He got very annoyed and ate several of them (Adip 37). He asked his mother why she was the slave of her sister and had to take care of the snakes. She told her son the story of the bet. Then Garuða asked the snakes what he should do to release his mother. ‘’Bring us the nectar, amåta, churned from the ocean, and your mother will be free” . Garuda then asked his mother about food provisions before leaving for his quest. She told him what he was allowed and what he should not eat, namely Brahmins, because his father Kaúyapa was a sage descending from Braáma (Adip 38). In the end Garuða made a deal with the gods, with Indra and with Wiûóu in particular. G would borrow the vessel with the drink, show it to the snakes. They would release W from slavery. But before drinking the nectar, the snakes had to cleanse themselves in the river. At that moment Indra would take the vessel and return it to Wiûóu. G himself would become the vehicle, wàhana of the god. G and Winatàwas, who was freed, went to heaven. The snakes, returning after their bath, found the vessel gone, but there were some drops of nectar on the tips of the grass, which happened to be the sharp kuúa grass. The snakes licked off the drops, but their tongues were split (Adip 44-45).
Garuða ‘s size is in agreement with that of the triwikrama form of Hari, sang Garuða kapwa sawawa i bhaþàra yan agöng (BK 106, 9c); after the battle with Bhoma Garuða returns to it with the weapons of Hari (BK 118, 3a,c); when king Krsna returns to his realm in Dwarawati, Garuða with Sudarûana returns as well (BK 114, 2b); Garuda comes, notices the snake as sawit, caste cord, around bhaþàra Triràjyàntaka and worships Siwa, pràpta ikang garuða prasomya mulat ing nàga praóateng ruhur (Niti I, 11d); he eats snakes, mangan ikang sarpa (Hariw 40, 4c); someone plays the fool just like Garuða disguising himself as a sage, wiku, striving to achieve his goal, kadi Garuða winikwan de ning angdani citta (Kres XVIII, 8c,d)
Adip = Old Javanese Àdiparwa, Juynboll, H.H. 1906; English translation Phalgunadi 1990)
BK = Bhomàntaka,Kakawin, Teeuw, A. & Robson, S.O. 2005.
Hariw = Hariwaòúa, Teeuw, A., 1950.
Kres = Krêûóàya, Kakawin, Santoso, S., 1986.
Niti = Nìtiúàstra, Poerbatjaraka, 1933.