Andhakāsura Vadha (Hari Vaṃśa Purāṇa)
Andhakāsura Vadha is the slaying of the asura Andhaka by Bhagavān Śiva. The Harivaṃśa tells that Andhaka was born to Diti through a vara (a boon) from her husband Kaśyapa. He had a thousand heads, arms, eyes and legs. He troubled the three worlds and took the treasures of the devas. At last Nārada led him to Mandara mountain, where Bhagavān Śiva slew him with his śūla (trident).
Diti’s tapas and Kaśyapa’s boon
Bhagavān Vishṇu had slain many of Diti’s sons among the asuras. Diti then performed tapas (austerity) out of devotion to her husband, the ṛshi Kaśyapa, and served him. Kaśyapa was pleased with her service and offered her a vara (a boon). Diti said: “The devas have destroyed all my sons. I ask for a son who cannot be slain by the devas, one of great valour.”
Kaśyapa told her: “I can give you a son who will not die at the hands of any deva except Śaṃkara (Śiva). I have no authority over Mahādeva, so you must protect yourself against Śiva.” With these words he touched her womb with his finger.
Birth of Andhaka
Diti gave birth to a son who had a thousand arms, a thousand heads, a thousand eyes and a thousand legs. In spite of this great body, he moved about blindly, like a person born blind, stumbling and without understanding. Because of this blind (andha) nature, the world called him Andhaka.
Andhaka’s terror
Andhaka knew that no deva could slay him. He began to torment the three worlds. Wherever he went he took wealth and jewels from people by force. He carried off many apsarasas and kept them in his dwelling. By nature he was a robber of other people’s wives, wealth and jewels. After some time he joined other asuras and set out to conquer all three worlds.
Indra consults Kaśyapa
Indra heard of Andhaka’s wrongdoing and went to Kaśyapa. Kaśyapa said that the matter was delicate. Andhaka was Diti’s son and she loved him deeply. If Kaśyapa himself acted against Andhaka, Diti’s anger would grow even more. He told Indra to be patient while he went to speak to Diti.
Kaśyapa and Diti went together to Andhaka and begged him to stop his destructive course. But Andhaka was proud of his vara and his strength. He would not listen even to his own parents, and he went on attacking the devas.
Andhaka’s further crimes
Andhaka broke the trees of Indra’s garden. By force he took the offspring of Uccaiḥśravas, the divine horse, from Svarga. He also carried off the offspring of the Diggajas, the divine elephants of the directions. His parents pleaded with him, but he went on attacking the devas.
Nārada lures Andhaka to Mandara
Nārada went to Andhaka. He described the sweet-smelling Mandara mountain to him. He spoke of the Pārijāta garden there, with its flowers that never fade and whose scent fills all fourteen worlds. Andhaka was charmed by this description. He set out with his army of asuras for Mandara mountain to seize the Pārijāta garden.
Śiva confronts Andhaka
Andhaka and his army reached Mandara and demanded the Pārijāta garden and all its divine delights. Bhagavān Śiva appeared there riding his bull, with his great śūla in his hand and his gaṇas (attendants) around him. This was the moment that Kaśyapa’s vara had allowed for. No ordinary deva could slay Andhaka, but Śiva alone was left out of that condition.
Andhaka slain by the śūla
Bhagavān Śiva drove his śūla into Andhaka. The asura had a thousand arms and a thousand heads, yet he was pierced through and burned to ash. With Andhaka’s destruction, the trouble that the strongest of Diti’s sons had caused the three worlds came to an end.
Place in the Harivaṃśa
The Harivaṃśa tells the Andhakāsura Vadha as part of the account that leads to the Shaṭpura episode. It explains who the Shaṭpura asuras were and links to the Tripurāsura war. The six lakh asuras who survived the Tripurāsura war form one group. Andhaka, born separately to Diti and Kaśyapa, is a different asura.
Andhaka in other Purāṇas
The Vāmana Mahā Purāṇa and the Matsya Mahā Purāṇa also tell of Andhaka. They tell of his strong desire for Gaurī on Mandara mountain, his battle with Nandī, his defeat by Gaurī’s hundred forms, and his retreat to Pātāla. In these accounts Andhaka is the grandson of Prahlāda and the ruler of the asuras, appointed by Prahlāda. The Harivaṃśa traces Andhaka’s birth to Diti and Kaśyapa’s vara, and ends with Bhagavān Śiva’s śūla.
Sources
- Hari Vaṃśa Purāṇa, Vishṇu Parva, Chapters 88–89
- Vāmana Mahā Purāṇa (Andhaka episodes)
- Matsya Mahā Purāṇa (Andhaka episodes)