Ahalya
| Ahalya | |
|---|---|
| Member of Panchakanya | |
 Ahalya by Raja Ravi Varma (1848–1906) | |
| Affiliation | Rishi (sage), panchakanya |
| Abode | Gautama's hermitage |
| Personal information | |
| Consort | Gautama Maharishi |
| Children | Shatananda (according to Ramayana) |
Ahalya, often spelled Ahilya, is the name of the sage Gautama Maharishi's wife in Hinduism. According to several Hindu texts, she was seduced by Indra (the ruler of the gods), her husband cursed her for being unfaithful, and Rama freed her from the curse (7th avatar of the god Vishnu). [1]
She was the most beautiful lady ever created by the deity Brahma, and she was wed to the much older Gautama. Ahalya recognizes Indra's disguise when he appears as her husband in the oldest complete story, but she nevertheless consents to his advances. She is frequently exonerated of all blame in later texts, which explains how she is duped by Indra. In every story, Gautama curses Ahalya and Indra.[2][3]
Etymology[change | change source]
Ahalya's name is derived from the Sanskrit words 'a' (negation) and 'halya' (ploughed), suggesting meanings like "unplowed" or "ideal." This name has been viewed in numerous ways, indicating her character's purity and natural beauty.
Creation and Marriage[change | change source]
She was created by the god Brahma as the incarnation of beauty. She was not born from a woman. She emerges from the water, which is the core of God's created beauty. Brahma handed her to the rishi Gautama, who raised her until she reached her teenage years. She later married to rishi Gautama. Brahma decided on this marriage after being pleased by Gautama's discipline and self-control.
Signs of a Relationship with Indra[change | change source]
The oldest writings that mention a relationship between Ahalya and Indra are the Brahmanas, written between the 9th and 6th centuries BCE. Some Brahmanas writings from the Samaveda and Yajurveda traditions mention the relationship between Indra and Ahalya.
Seduction by Indra[change | change source]
Indra fell in love with Ahalya's beauty and desired her. He adopted Gautama's body to seduce and sleep with her. She may or may not have recognized it was Indra taking the form of her husband Gautama.
Curse and Redemption[change | change source]
When Gautama discovered the trick of Indra, he cursed Ahalya to become a stone. She remained in this form until Lord Rama freed her by touching the stone with his foot and returning her to human form.
Punishments of Ahalya and Indra[change | change source]
Gautama's curse on Indra was made up marking him with a thousand Yoni, which were later transformed into eyes by divine interference.
Ahalya's punishment was to convert into stone and be isolated until Rama arrived.
Stone Motifs[change | change source]
Many later stories of the Ahalya myth portray her as being turned into stone by her husband Gautama's curse. He curses her to remain a stone for thousands of years. Indra tricked her by impersonating Gautama.
It is viewed as a punishment for being tricked by Indra. Later, She was released by Lord Rama's foot.
Childrens[change | change source]
She was married to Gautama Maharishi. According to the Ramayana, Ahalya and Gautama had one son, Shatananda.[4]
References[change | change source]
- ↑ Bhattacharya & March–April 2004, pp. 4–7.
- ↑ Söhnen-Thieme 1996, pp. 40–1.
- ↑ Jhaveri 2001, pp. 149–52.
- ↑ Sattar, Arshia (April 13, 2017). "The stories of Ahalya and Sita seem to be connected by the chastity issue" – via www.thehindu.com.
Sources[change | change source]
- Feldhaus, Anne (1998). Images of Women in Maharashtrian Society. SUNY Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-3659-2.
- Feller, Danielle (2004). "Indra, the Lover of Ahalya". The Sanskrit Epics' Representation of Vedic Myths. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. ISBN 978-81-208-2008-1.
- Freeman, Rich (2001). "Thereupon Hangs a Tail: the Deification of Vali in the Teyyam Worship of Malabar". In Richman, Paula (ed.). Questioning Rāmāyaṇas: a South Asian Tradition. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-22074-4.
- Ganguli, Kisari Mohan (1883–1896). The Mahabharata Book 3: Vana Parva.
Other websites[change | change source]
- Ahalya's Stuti of Rama in the Ramcharitmanas of Tulsidas Archived 2019-05-26 at the Wayback Machine