Introduction
To understand the meaning and significance of Nagamani, it is important to first know the sequence of events that led to the birth of the Mani in the first place. As we all know, Brahma’s son Kashyapa had many wives. He procreated with them to give birth to different creatures who later populated the earth and became a significant part of the ecosystem. The majority of them were divine beings in one form or another. Their successors can be seen as less evolved beings even today on earth.
Kadru and Vinata – Mothers of Snakes and Birds
The key players in this story are Kadru and Vinata (sisters) married to Kashyapa. Although they were sisters, they were strong rivals of each other and hated the role of the other one. When it came to having children, Kadru asked for as many children as she could have and demanded that the species should be capable enough to be present on earth and sky both. On the other hand, Vinata asked for only 2 kids but kept a condition that her children should have more power than Kadru’s kids.
While Kadru gave birth to hundreds of snakes, Vinata was given 2 big eggs. The eggs of the snakes hatched pretty fast but Vinata’s eggs were taking more time than she anticipated. Kadru, along with her kids, started making life unbearable for Vinata. Once Vinata lost a bet with Kadru which made her a slave.
Added Information: The bet – Once Kadru and Vinata saw a white divine horse at dawn. Vinata claimed that the tail of the divine horse – Uccaiḥśravas was white as its body but Kadru claimed that the tail was black. The two sisters agreed that whoever lost the bet would become the other’s slave. Kadru asked her black bodied snake sons to entangle themselves in the horse’s tail so that it appeared black from a distance. This led to Kadru winning the bet and Vinata becoming a slave.
Vinata was humiliated by Kadru and her sons everyday. Vinata would keep watching her eggs and hoping for them to hatch soon. One day Vinata lost her patience and forced open one of the eggs (not even a year had passed since the eggs were given to Vinata). From it emerged a half developed child who rose to the heavens abandoning the mother.
Added Information: The half developed child’s name was Aruna. He was radiant and became the charioteer of Surya God. In some other stories, it is said that the child rose up and became dawn.
Vinata realised her mistake and patiently waited for the second egg to hatch. The second egg hatched into one of the most powerful birds on the planet – Garuda.
Garuda – Birth and Boons
From the second egg, a beautiful eagle was born and Vinata named him Garuda. He was born into slavery. Reviewing the situation and desperate to get his mother out of slavery, he asked Kadru and the snakes of their deepest desire so he could get their freedom in exchange. Kadru asked for the nectar of immortality for her sons which was deeply guarded by the Devas in Heaven.
Garuda defeated the Devas and took Amrita in a pot for the Nagas. However, he made a deal with Indra and Vishnu that as soon as Kadru agreed to give freedom to him and his mother, they could take the pot back. Garuda kept the pot on the grass and asked Kadru to give them freedom. As soon as Kadru agreed, Indra and Vishnu took the pot back to Swarga.
Vishnu realised that Garuda had the pot of Amrita but did not try to take it for himself. Instead he took it for the liberation of his mother. His strength and devotion deeply impressed Vishnu. He asked Garuda to become his vehicle for battles and he agreed. With this, Vishnu also asked him to seek other boons.
Garuda asked that he should be allowed to kill Nagas without gaining any negative Karma. The Devas stated that this was only possible if Garuda made Nagas his natural food. Since that day, Nagas have become the primary food source/natural food for eagles and birds.
Nagamani – Meaning, Origination and Significance
From fear of the boons given to Garuda, all the Nagas ran to Patala. This is a realm beneath the earth’s surface. As the Patala Lok does not have any sunshine, the Nagas illuminated the region with the Nagamani and other gems that were found in the deepest caves of the earth or on the hoods of old snakes.
It is said that as a snake would get older, it would get additional heads and with each new head, more gems would also produce. The cycle kept going. It is said that Adi Ananta Shesha opposed Kadru’s way of conducting lives of snakes and her treatment of Vinata. The kindness of Sheshnaag did not go unnoticed and he was given a boon to become the eternal companion and seat for God Vishnu on the sheersagar.
Importance of Nagamanis
When you think about Nagamanis, the first thought that erupts in your mind is wealth, isn’t it? Well, that is true to some extent. It is said that the Puranas associated these manis with several other benefits. Some of these include:
- Provides a divine energy with spiritual protection. It drives away evil forces that might harm you or your family members.
- Attracts wealth and money in your family.
- Brings professional success and growth in your career.
- Possesses healing powers and rids the family of any health problems
- Folklore also suggests that some gems or nagamanis have the ability to detect poison and change colour when any type of danger surrounds a family.
If you have loved the idea of Nagamanis and would love to explore the idea of spiritual growth and life coaching then it’s time to connect with the right people or start reading more. As you get more information in life, your sense of clarity and dedication shall definitely increase. Explore the world of spirituality with me!
You might also like to read: https://mitaliaggarwal.com/purusha-and-prakriti-universe/
