Heti (Wife of Anuhrāda)
Heti
Heti was a she-pigeon who could take any form she wished (kāmarūpiṇī), the wife of the powerful pigeon Anuhrāda. Both she and her husband were grandchildren of Mṛtyu. A pativratā, she saw the fiery astra of Agni closing round her husband and her sons in their war with the owl Ulūka, and she went to Agni, praised him, and asked that the astra rest in her alone. Pleased with her devotion to her husband, Agni spared them all, and her stotra became a blessing to those who recite it. She is not the rākshasa Heti who attends Sūrya.
The war of the birds
Brahmā tells Nārada the glory of Yamatīrtha on the Gautamī. In time Anuhrāda and Heti had sons and grandsons. Their āśrama was on the northern bank of the Gaṅgā, and the owl Ulūka, king of birds, lived with his family on the southern bank. The two families fought for a long time without either winning. Anuhrāda gained the astras of Yama and of Mṛtyu, and Ulūka gained the strength of Agni, and in the terrible battle that followed the owl loosed the fiery astra of Agni at the pigeon.
Heti’s stotra to Agni
Seeing the fire coming close to her husband, and her sons above all surrounded by it, Heti was greatly distressed. She went to Agni and praised him with many words: his gifts and his form are not hidden; all things are his self; through him the devas partake of the offerings. “I bow to the husband of Svāhā, the enjoyer of yajñas. I take refuge in him who is the mouth of the devas, the carrier of the offerings, the all-knowing one, who performs homa for the devas, the messenger of the devas, the first deva, whose wealth is bright light.” Within the body he dwells as the prāṇas, and outside he cooks the food; he is the means of yajña. “I take refuge in Agni, the conqueror of wealth.”
Agni said: “O she-pigeon, this wondrous astra of mine, once loosed in battle, never fails. Where shall it come to rest, O chaste one? Tell me.” Heti answered: “Let the astra rest in me, not in my sons nor in my husband. O Havyapati (ruler of havya), be true to your word. O Jātavedas, namaskāra to you.” Jātavedas said: “I am delighted by your words, O chaste one, and by your devotion to your husband. O Heti, I shall give happiness to you, your husband and your sons. This fiery astra of mine will not burn you, your husband or your sons. Go happily.”
The end of the war
In the same way the wife of Ulūka praised Yama and saved her own husband and sons. Yama withdrew his nooses and Agni his astra, and the two devas offered the birds a vara. The birds asked nothing for themselves, but that their two āśramas on the two banks of the Gaṅgā become tīrthas where every bath, dāna, japa, homa and rite for the pitṛs would be imperishable. Agni promised good health, prosperity and a beautiful form to those who keep the sacred rites and recite his stotra, Heti’s praise, on the southern bank; wherever it is recited, or written down and kept in the house, there will be no fear of fire. The tīrtha is known as Yāmyatīrtha, Āgneyatīrtha, Kapotatīrtha, Ulūkatīrtha and Hetyulūkatīrtha, after Heti and the owl.
Source: Brahma Purāṇa, Gautamī Māhātmya, Chapter 55
Sources
- Brahma Purāṇa, Gautamī Māhātmya, Chapter 55