204 Tk* Vd$t* Ywja. N 



nu = Hari) he is an enemy of Rahn, whose stellar form u tliat 

 of a serpent, and who, as a demon, was cut into two by Vishnu's 

 discus on the occasion of the distribution of nectar churned 

 from the ocean of life, alias light, the of know] 



to the gods. Bahu (to be abandoned is, as we hare Baid b( 

 also black, darkness, or ignoranee. According to the Graha I 

 Tantra, an astrological work of great importance amongst the Hindus, 

 the presiding god of Rahu is Kahi (Death = Time), and the subor- 

 dinate god (TOfa^fn) is a Berpent : — an idea which reminds 

 us of the tree of knowledge and the serpent in the ^1 

 legend. Rahu is the lord of bones, and it presides over the 

 southwest quarter of the globe, (nijiti) over misfortunes and calami- 

 ties. Bahubhedi, the destroyer, or literally the 1 . of Rahu, 

 darkness, is Vishnu, alias Bnrya [the Sun), who has also the 

 name of Rdhuhd, the killer of Rahu. Its mythical origin i- dis- 

 tinctly acknowledged in astronomical works, in one of which we 

 find: — 



^*T ^bf T[%T -qTf^^W^Tf I 

 "When the R:ilm is perceptible by the eyes, it is called an eclipse." 



In W\q Bhiiyavat P/nan". Krishna, or Vishnu incarnate, in 0110 of his; 

 miracles, is devoured by a great ophidian demon, in whoso stoi 

 he plays several tricks, and at last, getting out of it. exhibits the 

 whole universe dancing on the tongut rpent (eternity . whom 



ho afterwards overcomes (as creator). He is also described as break* 

 ing the several heads of Kaliya y a Naga king of Romanak con 

 whom Krishna would have completely d . had not son 



his wives, who were Naga women, interfered. Gnruda, the bird-god, 

 is the vehicle of Vishnu, and though a step-brother to the Nag 

 their deadly enemy. 



In the Mahabharata, Parikshita, grandson of the Pandavas, 

 is described to have defiled the body of a sago while in his 

 meditation with a dead snake, whereupon the Muni's son cursed 

 him. To carry out this malediction, Taksha&a, commonly identi- 

 fied with the Gecko that makes a " talc tak" noise, and sometimes 

 with the dragon-lizard, one of the great serpents, visited Parikshita, 

 attired as a Brahman, and made the usual salutation, and blessed the 

 king by offering him a small plum. No sooner held the king the 



