Garuda
- For other uses, see Garuda (disambiguation).
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The Garuda (Sanskrit: Garuḍa गरुड, Pāli Garuḷa) is a large mythical bird or bird-like creature that appears in both Hindu and Buddhist mythology.
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Garuda in Hinduism
In Hindu mythology, Garuḍa is the name of a lesser Hindu divinity, the mount (vahanam) of Vishnu (The creative aspect of the supreme trinity in Hinduism). Garuḍa is depicted as having a golden body, white face, red wings, and an eagle's beak and wings but a man's body. He wears a crown on his head like his master, Vishnu. He is ancient and huge, and can block out the sun.
His stature in Hindu religion can be gauged by the fact that an independent Upanishad, the Garuḍopaniṣad, and a Purana, the Garuda Purana, is devoted to him. Various names have been attributed to Garuḍa - Chirada, Gaganeshvara, Kamayusha, Kashyapi, Khageshvara, Nagantaka, Sitanana, Sudhahara, Suparna, Takshya, Vainateya, Vishnuratha and others. The Vedas provide the earliest reference of Garuḍa, though by the name of Śyena, where this mighty bird is said to have brought nectar to earth from heaven. The Puranas, which came into existence much later, mention Garuḍa as doing the same thing, which indicates that Śyena (sanskrit for Eagle)and Garuḍa are the same. One of the faces of Śrī Pañcamukha Hanuman is Mahavira Garuḍa. This face points towards the west. Worship of Garuḍa is believed to remove the effects of poisons from one's body.
Garudas in Buddhism
In Buddhist mythology, the garuḍas (Pāli: garuḷā) are enormous predatory birds with intelligence and social organization. Another name for the garuḍa is suparṇa (Pāli: supaṇṇa), meaning "well-winged, having good wings". Like the Nāgas, they combine the characteristics of animals and divine beings, and may be considered to be among the lowest devas.
The exact size of the garuḍa is uncertain, but its wings are said to have a span of many miles. This may be poetical exaggeration, but it is also said that when a garuḍa's wings flap, they create hurricane-like winds that darken the sky and blow down houses. A human being is so small compared to a garuḍa that a man can hide in the plumage of one without being noticed (Kākātī Jātaka, J.327). They are also capable of tearing up entire banyan trees from their roots and carrying them off.
The garuḍas have kings and cities, and at least some of them have the magical power of changing into human form when they wish to have dealings with people. On some occasions Garuḍa kings have had romances with human women in this form. Their dwellings are in groves of the simbalī, or silk-cotton tree.
The garuḍas are enemies to the Nāgas, a race of intelligent serpent- or dragon-like beings, whom they hunt. The garuḍas at one time caught the nāgas by seizing them by their heads; but the nāgas learned that by swallowing large stones, they could make themselves too heavy to be carried by the garuḍas, wearing them out and killing them from exhaustion. This secret was divulged to one of the garuḍas by the ascetic Karambiya, who taught him how to seize a nāga by the tail and force him to vomit up his stone (Pandara Jātaka, J.518).
The garuḍas were among the beings appointed by Śakra to guard Mount Sumeru and the Trāyastriṃśa heaven from the attacks of the asuras.
In the Mahasamyatta Sutta, the Buddha is shown making temporary peace between the Nagas and the garuḍas.
The Sanskrit word garuḍa has been borrowed and modified in the languages of several Buddhist countries. In Thai the word for a garuḍa is Krut (ครุฑ). In Burmese, garuḍas are called ga-lon. In Japanese a garuḍa is called Karura (the form Garuda (ガルーダ is however used in recent Japanese fiction - see below).
Thailand and Indonesia use the garuḍa as their national symbols; the Indonesian national airline is Garuda Indonesia. One form of the garuḍa, used in Thailand as a sign of Royal family, is called Krut Pha, meaining "garuḍa with outstretched wings."
The Garuda is the symbol of the city of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
 Garuda as national symbol of Indonesia |
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Garuda in popular culture
In Mitsuteru Yokoyama's 1960's manga Babel II Garuda is one of the three protectors of the main character. Garuda is depicted as an immense mechanical bird that will often swoop in and aid Babel II when he is in danger.
In Legend of Mana, a Garuda is one of the possible Avian family monster partners the protagonist can recruit. Naturally, being referred to as the "King of Birds" in the game means he is the best choice of the Avian family.
In Saint Seiya, this is the name of one of the Kyoto, the three Judges of the Hell, calledAiakos of Garuda, then defeated by Ikki of Phoenix.
In Street Fighter EX, Garuda is one of the bosses of this fighting games series.
In Warhammer Fantasy Battle the Greater Daemons of Tzeentch bear a striking resemblance to traditional depictions of Garuda.
In Final Fantasy III, Garuda is a boss that can only be defeated by a Dragoon.
In Digimon, Garudamon is the Ultimate form of Biyomon. She (although there has been some controversy on whether Garudamon is male or female, since some Digimon have been known to change sex when they Digivolve) is depicted as (like its Champion form of Birdramon) being similar to a Phoenix. Her signature attack is Wing Blade which fires a flaming bird at the enemy.
In the Yu-Gi-Oh! series, there exists a monster called 'Garuda the Wind Spirit', which is depicted as an eagle with human-like extremities.
In Final Fantasy XI, Garuda is a naked bird-like woman with wings and large talons who must be defeated before she can be summoned to fight alongside the player.
In the Square Enix RPG Final Fantasy XII for PS2, the Garuda is an avian boss at the end of the Nam-Yensa Sandsea guarding the entrance to the Dynast-King Raithwall's Tomb.
Garuda is a recurring monster in the Final Fantasy series. Already mentioned in Final Fantasy III, XI, and XII above, Garuda also appears as a common monster in Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy IX, Final Fantasy X, and Final Fantasy Mystic Quest.
In Exile/XZR II for MSX2, Sega Genesis and Turbografx 16, Garuda has swallowed Mani the freemason, and must be killed to recover his remains and resurrect him.
In the US, Garuda was a death metal/grindcore band from Texas. In 2002 they released their first EP entitled “Cold Wired Sentiment.” The band's sound is denoted by its grinding music style but is more varied with melodic sounds so as to put it in the death metal category.
In the novel Perdido Street Station by China Miéville, the Garuda are a race of bird-people found in a desert region called the Cymek. One of the protagonists of the book is a Garuda named Yagharek whose wings were removed by his tribe after he committed a crime.
Garudamon is the name of Sora Takenouchi's Digimon Biyomon through Sora's Crest of Love.
In Megami Tensei series, the games developed by Atlus, Garuda is a demon and categorized into Avian / Spiritual Bird clan.
In Mahou Sentai Magiranger and in Power Rangers: Mystic Force, the symbol and Majin/Titan of the Yellow Ranger is the garuda.
In Chouseishin Gransazer, the bird mecha of the Fire Tribe is named Garuda.
In the MMORPG Tantra Online, Garuda is a character class resembling a female magician, also known as a "Mantra Weaver".
In the Playstation game Azure Dreams, one of the creatures inhabiting the game's central dungeon is called a Garuda.
In the Playstation 2 version of Altered Beast (also known as Project Altered Beast, only released in Japan and Europe) one of the creatures the main character can transform into is a human-eagle-like form, that can shoot feather-darts and create hurricanes with its gigantic wings, named Garuda.
In the Robotech: The Sentinels novels and comic books, Garuda is the homeworld of a vulpine race, called Garudans. The atmosphere of Garuda is poisonous to most life forms, but helps the natives connect to a psychic realm called the Hin.
The Peet's coffee and Tea chain has an Indo-Pacific coffee blend named after Garuda.
In the manga DragonQuest, the character Garudandi is one of the 3 Ryuukishuu, along with the characters Borahoun & Laharuto. Each one represents the elements of air, water, & earth, respectively. Garudandi is shown as an anthropomorphic bird, with taloned feet, an eagle-like beak, & wings extending from his back. He wears the armor of the Ryuukishuu & carries a "Spiral Sword", or fencing-style sword. His chief form of attack, other than with his sword, is throwing his feathers at his opponent: the feathers from the red half of his head steal the victim's physical energy, while the white feathers steal the opponent's magical energy. He is killed in issue #11 by the combined force of Hyunkeru & Poppu.
The 2004 Thai film Paksa wayu had the international English title Garuda [1]
External links
- Section on Garuda in the article, Vishnu - the Cosmic Protector by Madhuri Guin (the contents of this link cannot be viewed in India)
- Garuda Purana
- Website of the Sri Viswaroopa Panchamukha AnjaneyaSwami Foundation,which also includes Garuda as one of the faces.
- Images of Garuda
- Gauruda, arch-enemy of the naga
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