Animals in religious beliefs

                             Animals in Religious Beliefs

Animals occupy a very important place in human religious beliefs. Animals and birds are the vehicles of the gods and their incarnations. As far as Tamil Nadu is concerned, the following animals and birds are considered sacred animals.

Peacock: According to Hindu mythology, the peacock is one of the birds chosen by Indra, who brings rain to the earth. When it rains, the peacock spreads its wings and dances. In the Ramayana, there is a reference that Sita was born from a peacock's egg. Some towns in Tamil Nadu are named after the peacock. The Pallava king Nandivarman III is called "Mayilai Kavalan".

Crow: The crow is considered to be associated with the eldest goddess.

Cow: The cow is considered to be the most sacred animal. The incarnation of the cow is Kama Tenu.

Buffalo: It is considered to be the god of death. The female buffalo is considered to be the incarnation of Savitri. The Todar people of the Nilgiri consider the female buffalo to be sacred.

Fruit Eating Bats:Fruit Eating Bats are considered as “sages” in the southern districts, especially in the villages of Madurai, Thoothukudi and 
Ramanathapuram.

Naga Worship: References to Nagam worship are found in Sangam literature. In Tamil Nadu, they are worshipped by placing sculptures under the royal tree and the neem tree. There is also a custom of pouring milk into the pot and worshipping it.

Garuda: Garuda, the vehicle of Vishnu, is not worshipped alone. He is worshipped together with him. In the Vedakriswarar temple in Thirukkazhukundra, food is still offered to the eagle.

Boar: boar is also worshipped as one of the incarnations of Tirumal.

Bull: Ancient Tamils, especially the agricultural community, considered the bull to be a prosperous animal. It is considered the vehicle of Shiva. Farmers donated bulls to temples.
Vehicles of the Gods
K.R.Sankaran says that fearsome animals like lions, tigers and snakes are brought into the religious circle and made vehicles for the gods. But his statement cannot be accepted completely. Birds of prey like eagles and fish eagles are not kept as domesticated birds. 

The “Gond” people do not kill crows but do not hesitate to keep Garuda. The owl is mentioned in the temple. This bird is used by farmers to drive away rats in the fields. But the crow that damages the ears is considered the vehicle of Shaniswaran. What a contradiction -? 

Generally, the vehicles of Indian gods have been male animals. The snake that wraps around Perumal is shown in different ways in the temple. Nayanmar points out that Shiva was wearing three types of snakes.
1) Good snake
2) Vasuki snake
3) Nose snake
Appar describes Lord Shiva as wearing a “spotted tiger costume”. If so, it means a leopard. In the past, the place was called “Athikiri” because elephants came to worship the Lord. Even among the demons, “Mahisha Sooran” and “Pasuma Sooran” took animal forms.

Avatars of Gods
To see the feet of Lord Shiva, Lord Shiva took the form of Varaha and Brahma took the form of a swan. Some sculptures of Lord Shiva also include serpents and a macaque.
Gaja Samhara Murthy- He killed a dangerous elephant sent by the sages of the forest and performed a dance in which he was covered with its skin. His form was called “Gaja Samharam”.
Lord Shiva appeared as Sarabeswarar to quell the anger of Lord Narasimha. Half a fierce animal body, half a fierce bird form, eight legs, four arms, two wings, sharp claws, fangs and the face of a yali.

Bhairava
Bhairava is considered the Vedic incarnation of Shiva. He rides a dog.
Generally, an incarnation is a change from a human to an animal form.

Thirumal
Machavataram: The fish incarnation is considered the first incarnation of Thirumal. Just as it is the duty of fish to remove impurities from the water, he took this incarnation to remove impurities from the living beings in the world.

Koormavataram: Thirumal took the tortoise incarnation to support the Mandara mountain.

Varaha Avatar
Thirumal took the Varaha avatar to protect the earth from Iraniyatchan. He has a Varaha head and a human body.
Narasimha Avatar

Iraniyatchan, the younger brother of the demon Iraniyatchan He takes the form of a lion and kills Kasipu by splitting his body. In the form of a sculpture, the head is a fierce lion and the body is human.

Kalkiyavatara
He appeared with a horse face in Kali Yuga to protect life and destroy evil.

Hayagriva
He is considered an avatar with a horse face and is considered to be a giver of wisdom and wealth.

Mythological stories about animals
Jambukeswarar Temple Sculpture at Thiruvannaikkal
The scene of an elephant worshipping the Shiva Linga in this temple is special. An elephant under a tree sprinkles water from its trunk on the Shiva Linga.

Patanjali- Has a snake body and a human body.
Nandi- Bull head and human body
Vyakrapadar- He is a sage with tiger-like legs.
Kaman- He rides a parrot.

Jainism
The principles of Jainism are based on some Hindu religious principles. One of them was the sculpture of animals as vehicles for the Tirthankaras.
• Rishabha Devar-Bull
• Ajinatha-Elephant
• Sambuvanatha-Horse
• Abhinandana-Monkey
• Pushpa Datta-Crab or Fish
• Sriyamchantha-Deer, Rhinoceros, Garuda
• Subarchvanatha-Five Heads

Conclusion
Although clay sculptures of animals from the Sangam period have been found, they cannot be linked to religious worship. In the Thirukampuliyur excavations, a clay image of a Naga with a Shiva lingam and a Mooshika image have been found. It is in the sculptures of the Pallavas, Cholas, Pandyas, Vijayanagaras and Nayakas that the relationship between gods and animals is clearly shown.

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