Kukkutasana & Mayurasana; the myth behind the poses

 

 

The rooster and peacock poses are dedicated to Lord Karttikeya, who has the peacock as his vehicle and the rooster as an emblem on his flag.

 

Karttikeya was one of the two sons of Shiva and Parvati and the story of his birth has other asanas like Shanmukhi and Skandasana dedicated to the anecdote. More on that in a future article.

 

 

 

 

 

 Karttikeya was born to eliminate the Rakshasa brothers Surapadman, Simhamukha and Taraka who had defeated the devas and subjugated them with their atrocities. Surapadman had received a boon from Shiva that he would be undefeatable by any power or entity except one born from Shiva. Since Shiva was in a period of deep meditation and celibacy at the time of granting the boon, Surapadman considered himself invincible and launched attack after attack on the devas until he had conquered not just Devaloka but all three worlds.

 

The tormented devas beseeched Shiva for help. Shiva had married Parvati by this time and through his psychic powers he materialized Karttikeya. At the opportune time Shiva anointed Karttikeya as the commander- in-chief of the Deva’s army and instructed him to declare war on the three brothers and liberate the devas. His mother Parvati gifted him his powerful weapon – the Vel (spear) and he was accompanied in his mission by his nine ganas (lieutenants) led by Veerabahu.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The battle between the Rakshasa brothers and Karttikeya lasted for six days. The first formidable demon that Karttikeya and his army encountered was the massive Rakshasa Krauncha who blocked their way in the form of a large mountain. Karttikeya slayed him with one blow of his Vel and entered Mahendrapuri, Surapadman’s capital city. Refusing Karttikeya’s offer of peace, Surapadman sent his brother Taraka to battle with Karttikeya. Taraka used all his weapons against Karttikeya but he easily deflected them and vanquished Taraka with his spear. Next came Simhamukha; he used his magical powers to create a noose that bound Karttikeya’s entire army and flung it across the battlefield. Karttikeya used his celestial weapons to release his army and after a fierce battle defeated Simhamukha by using Indra’s Vajra against him. Simhamukha submitted to Karttikeya with the Mother Goddess’ name on his lips. Pleased Karttikeya blessed him to serve as Kali’s vahana.

 

Finally, Surapadman descended onto the battlefield – this was the fifth day of the war. Within a few hours Surapadman realized he was against a very formidable foe and his only chance of victory would be to use his sorcery skills. He materialized a fantastic flying chariot for himself and launched his attack from the sky. However Karttikeya felled him with his Vel and occupied the chariot himself. Next Surapadman took on the form of a large eagle. Karttikeya was about to slash him with his sword when Surapadman assumed the form of a large mango tree and hid himself in the ocean.

 

 

 

The tree’s size was immense and threatened to smother the world but Karttikeya split it into half with one blow from his Vel. Surapadman reappeared from the broken tree trunk and attacked Karttikeya. After a fierce battle Surapadman conceded defeat just as Karttikeya’s spear pierced him and sought forgiveness and refuge. In his compassion Karttikeya blessed the dying demon by giving him Viswaroopam Darshan (an all-encompassing cosmic view of the absolute Truth) and let his wounded body transform into two entities – a peacock (Mayur) and a rooster (Kukkuta). He took the peacock as his Vahana and the rooster as the emblem on his flag.

 

The peacock and the rooster are symbolic of the ego. The peacock represents the vanity side of the ego and the rooster the I-assertiveness aspect. The story is an allegory of how when the ego is conquered the true identity of the self and the almighty are revealed (Viswaroopam). Karttikeya or Murugan is known as the Lord of compassion and the ego is only sublimated through love, similar to how Surapadman was finally annihilated through grace.

 

 

On a physical level, just as a peacock is the enemy of snakes and kills them, Mayurasana destroys the toxins in the system and is especially beneficial for digestive tract ailments. Kukkutasana as well helps eliminate toxins by the compression it brings to the abdominal area. A rooster is normally associated with the rising sun and the rooster pose activates the adrenal gland, our very own storehouse of energy. Both poses also strengthen the wrists and shoulders.

 

 

Image Glossary :

1. Urdhva Kukkutasana

2. Padma Pinchamayurasana

3. Karttikeya painting by Raja Ravi Varma

4. Karttikeya with spear and rooster, coin of Yaudheyas, 200 BCE

5. Ancient Khymer Skanda statue