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Garuda
*** Shopping-Tip: Garuda
:''For other uses, see
Garuda (disambiguation).''
{| align=right
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Image:Indo-coa.png frame|'''Garuda''' as national symbol of [[Indonesia]]
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Image:Thailand coa.png frame|'''Garuda''' as national symbol of [[Thailand]]
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Image:T.v.Adiparwa.jpg thumb|Garuda according to Ida Made Tlaga, an 19th century [[Bali|Balinese artist.]]
'''Garuda''' (
Sanskrit: गरà¥?ड ''Garuḍa''), the
eagle, is a lesser
Hinduism Hindu divinity, the
mount (vahanam) of
Vishnu, one of the main forms of
God in
Hinduism. Garuda is depicted as having a golden body, white face, red wings, and an eagle's beak and wings but a man's body. He wears a
crown (headgear) crown on his head like his master,
Vishnu. He is ancient and huge, and can block out the
sun.
His stature in Hindu religion can be gauged by the fact that an independent
Upanishad, the Garudopanishada, and a
Puranas Purana, the
Garuda Purana, is devoted to him. Various names have been attributed to Garuda - Chirada, Gaganeshvara, Kamayusha, Kashyapi, Khageshvara, Nagantaka, Sitanana, Sudhahara, Suparna, Takshya, Vainateya, Vishnuratha and others. The
Vedas provide the earliest reference of Garuda, though by the name of Shyena, where this mighty bird is said to have brought
amrit nectar to
earth from
heaven. The Puranas, which came into existence much later, mention Garuda as doing the same thing, which indicates that Shyena and Garuda are the same. One of the faces of Sri Panchamukha
Hanuman is Mahavira Garuda. This face points towards the west. Worship of Garuda is believed to remove the effects of poisons from one's body.
In
Buddhist mythology, the garuda are a race of
bird-people bird-like divine creatures. They are the enemies of the
Nagas, whom they hunt. In the
Mahasamyatta Sutta, the
Buddha is shown making temporary peace between the Nagas and the Garudas.
In Thailand it is known as '''Krut''' (ครุฑ). Garuda is the
Indonesian form of the
Phoenix (mythology) Phoenix. The
Japan Japanese also know the Garuda, which they call the
Karura, although recent characters modeled on it retain the spelling ''Garuda'' (ガルーダ - see below). These three forms are local pronunciations of this Sanskrit name. In Myanmar, garuda are called ''ga-lon''.
Thailand and
Indonesia have the Garuda as their national symbols; the Indonesian national
airline is
Garuda Indonesia. The Garuda is also known in Thailand as
Krut Pha, which is actually a form of Krut, means Krut with stretched wings. Krut Pha in Thailand is a sign of Royal family.
Garuda in popular culture
In
Saint Seiya, this is the name of one of the Kyoto, the three Judges of the Hell, called
Aiakos of Garuda, then defeated by Ikki of Phoenix.
In
Street Fighter EX, Garuda is one of the bosses of this fighting games series.
In ''
Warhammer Fantasy Battle'' the Greater Daemons of
Tzeentch bear a striking resemblance to traditional depictions of Garuda.
In ''
Final Fantasy XI'', Garuda is a naked bird-like woman with wings and large talons who must be defeated before she can be
Summon magic (Final Fantasy) summoned to fight alongside the player.
In the US, Garuda was a death metal/grindcore band from Texas. In 2002 they released their first EP entitled “Cold Wired Sentiment.� The band's sound is denoted by its grinding music style but is more varied with melodic sounds so as to put it in the death metal category.
In the novel
Perdido Street Station by
China Mieville, the Garuda are a race of bird-people found in a desert region called the Cymek. One of the protagonists of the book is a Garuda named Yagharek whose wings were removed by his tribe after he committed a crime.
Garudamon is the name of
Sora Takenouchi's
Digimon Biyomon through Sora's Crest of
Love.
In
Megami Tensei series, the games developed by
Atlus, Garuda is a demon and categorized into ''Avian / Spiritual Bird'' clan.
In ''
Mahou Sentai Magiranger'' and in ''
Power Rangers: Mystic Force'', the symbol of the Yellow Ranger is the garuda.
In
Chouseishin Gransazer, the bird mecha of the Fire Tribe is named Garuda.
In the
MMORPG Tantra Online, Garuda is a character class resembling a female magician, also known as a "
Mantra Weaver".
External links
-
Section on Garuda in the article, Vishnu - the Cosmic Protector by Madhuri Guin ''(the contents of this link cannot be viewed in India)''
-
Garuda Purana
-
Website of the Sri Viswaroopa Panchamukha AnjaneyaSwami Foundation,which also includes Garuda as one of the faces.
-
Garuda Indonesia UK - The national Airline of Indonesia
{{HinduMythology}}
Category:Buddhist mythology
Category:Hindu gods
Category:Heraldic charges
Category:Legendary birds
Category:Characters in Ramayana
da:Garuda
de:Garuda
es:Garudá (mitologÃa)
fr:Garuda
id:Garuda
ja:ガルダ
jv:Garudha
nl:Garoeda
pl:Garuda
sv:Garuda
th:ครุฑ
zh:迦楼罗
ru:Гаруда
*** Shopping-Tip: Garuda
