February 17^th is the Chinese New Year. This year is the year of the Horse, specifically, the Fire Horse. A search on the internet will reveal several pages and AI responses that mention several traits and attributes that a Horse, and more specifically a “Fire Horse” represents. But as a Hindu and a martial artist, the things that come to my mind when I think of a Horse as a symbol, are Knowledge and Martial culture.

When I think of a horse as an animal, things like speed, grace, strength, symbiosis come to mind, apart from history and, wait for it… confusion. Speed is of course synonymous with horses due to their ability to run over long distances. Modern horses, thanks to selective breeding practices, can be pretty large and therefore remind us of strength – think Shire Horses! Anyone who has watched any dressage or equestrian event will tend to agree that the gait of a horse is grace personified.

Horses have worked with humans for many millennia now and we have grown up on a staple of historical epic films and books showing horses and humans bond and participate in war and overcome travails – thus Symbiosis and History. Confusion is a trait specific to horses in Indian history I suppose. 😊There is a debate about when the horse was first present in India and if it was present during the Harappan civilization.

Now, when I think of the Horse as a symbol, the first thing that comes to mind is Lord Hayagreeva (sometimes spelled Hayagriva). “Hayagreeva” means “with the head of a horse”. Lord Hayagreeva is an avatāra of Lord Vishnu who is depicted with the head of a horse. Lord Hayagreeva, based on what I know, is always linked to Knowledge.

An image of Lord Hayagreeva. I unfortunately do not know who the artist of this image is.

This avatāra is not one of the well know Dashāvatāra. But Hayagreeva seems to be closely linked to the Matsya avatāra, which is the very first avatāra. The Matsya avatāra is the one when Lord Vishnu incarnated as a fish to save King Manu from the great flood at the end of a Kalpa. Some other important people, flora and fauna needed for the revival of civilization after the flood were also saved. This story is similar to other flood myths around the world.

The Fish imparted knowledge to the Rishis who were saved along with Manu so that they could use it in reestablishing civilization once the flood subsided. I have heard it said that this exchange of knowledge also became the origin of the Matsya Purana. Now there are 2 Hayagreevas I know of from the stories related to Age of the Flood.

One is a an Asura named Hayagreeva, who also has the head of a horse. Hence, he can be referred to as Hayagreevāsura. The great flood was the time when Lord Brahma was resting before beginning the work of creating the new world after the flood. As he was resting, Lord Brahma yawned, and when he did so, the Vedas escaped his being. The watching Asura captured the escaped Vedas and hid himself in the waters.

The Asura Hayagreeva. Image credit – “Dasha Avatar”, Kindle edition, published by Amar Chitra Katha.

The Vedas represent knowledge and wisdom. These are invaluable and can cause havoc in the wrong hands. The Matsya that saves King Manu also kills Hayagreevāsura, ensuring that the Vedas are safe. This is one case where Vedas, or Knowledge, are associated with the Horse.

In another story, Lord Vishnu is in Yoganidra, the rest between epochs, during the time of the great flood. Two Asuras, Madhu and Kaitabha are born from his ear wax. There is a variation of this story where the 2 Asuras are created by Vishnu himself from a drop of water each. This is a callback to the fact that there is water everywhere at this time.

The Asura Madhu represents Tamas or darkness, supposed to be inertia that resists change. Kaitabha represents Rajas, the state of activity that represents restlessness tinged with darkness. These 2 Asuras gain a boon that they can only be killed when they so choose. With this protection, they go on to steal the Vedas and hide in the flood waters.

Lord Vishnu then takes the form of Lord Hayagreeva, the one with the head of a Horse to retrieve the Vedas. Even Lord Hayagreeva cannot defeat the Asuras due to the protection from their boon. In one story it is said that Lord Hayagreeva takes advice from the Devi, the original female deity on how to defeat the Asuras. Lord Hayagreeva praises the Asuras saying they are so great they even he cannot defeat them and hence would like to offer them another boon in appreciation.

But the prideful Asuras decline the offer and state that they would like to offer Hayagreeva a boon of their own. Using this opportunity, Lord Hayagreeva asks them Asuras how they can be slain. The Asuras are trapped and reveal that they can only be killed in a place where there is no water. This seems impossible to them since it was the time of the Great Flood and there was water everywhere.

But Lord Hayagreeva grows to a large size, lifts his leg out of the water, places the 2 Asuras on his thigh which is dry, and kills them. Thus, the Vedas are saved. In this story, it is again clear that the flood waters are a key component. Also, Lord Hayagreeva uses intelligence to defeat the Asuras. He tricks them to their doom, as physical effort alone will not suffice. Thus, the Horse (Hayagreeva) is again associated with Knowledge (Vedas), intelligence (get the enemy to reveal their weakness) and wisdom (ask for advice when actions are not working).

Seen above is a video from the YouTube channel, “Project Shivoham”. This video shares a lot of information about Lord Hayagreeva. There are several other videos on this channel which are very informative.

It must be noted that while knowledge is a key aspect, physical action is also vitally important in the two stories above; the Asuras have to be physically fought and defeated, there is no magic to circumvent that. And this point brings us to the other, very popular reference to the Horse in Hindu culture, that of the Ashwamedha Yajna.

The Ashwamedaha Yajna is translated as “Horse Sacrifice”, but this seems simplistic. It is an activity that kings could use to expand territory and establish their superiority over other kingdoms. This Yajna was also a major economic activity! It involved having an excellent administration, supply chain, economy and military in place.

A large starting capital was needed to even consider the Ashwamedha. A military was needed to follow and protect the horse. A supply chain was needed to equip the military and conduct the Yajna. To manage the supply chain, an efficient administration was inevitable. So, the Ashwamedha Yajna, was a culmination of all civilizational activities! Which are the consequence of the Vedas that Matsya and Hayagreeva fought to protect!

Thus, the Horse (the Ashwa in Ashwamedha) is again associated with major civilizational activity, the centrepiece of which is war! And war is decidedly a martial activity, making the Horse reminiscent of the martial arts in Hindu culture.

An image representing the Ashwamedha Yajna. Image credit – “Sons of Rama”, published by Amar Chitra Katha.

The Ashwameda Yajna is part of the last segments of both the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. If we go back to a time before the 2 Itihāsās (Ramayana and Mahabharata), there are a couple more references to the horse that ties it to the idea of knowledge and wisdom. These relate to the Rishi Dadichi and the Ashwini Devatas.

Rishi Dadichi is referred to as one with the “head of a horse”, or “Ashwashira” (Ashwa – horse, shira – head). This is supposed to be because he taught the Ashwini Devatas some secret knowledge. The association with knowledge and the horse is stark once again!

There is a one story where Indra, King of the Devas had decreed that anyone who passes on this knowledge will have their head explode. The Ashwini Devatas, wanted to learn this knowledge and Dadichi was the only one who was willing to risk Indra’s wrath. So, the Ashwins replaced Dadichi’s head with that of a horse. Once the knowledge was transmitted, his head exploded as per the decree.

But the head that exploded was that of the horse. The Ashwins, then attached the original head of the Rishi and Dadichi was brought back to life. This again shows the link between the horse, knowledge and sacrifice (like in the Ashwamedha Yajna, where the horse is sacrificed), which is a vital part of martial endeavours. In modern times, time, effort, money and other resources are expended in pursuit of the martial arts. In ancient times, all of these were still true, but more importantly, life and limb were on the line as well!

An image of a horse-headed Rishi Dadichi.Image credit – “Indra and Vritra”, Kindle edition, published by Amar Chitra Katha.

The Ashwini Devatas were twin Devas. They are considered the physicians/doctors of the Devas. This is why they were the ones that could replace the head of Rishi Dadichi with that of a horse and back. These twins, also referred to as “the Ashwins” were also historically associated with horses. I have heard it said that the “Ash” in the “Ashwins” is related to “Ash-wa”, which is the word for horse in Sanskrit, though I am not certain of this.

There is also a story from the Vedas, where the Ashwins device a prosthetic leg for Vishpala. Vishpala is generally considered a great female warrior, but there are some who say that Vishpala was a horse. Either way, they are supposed to have created a prosthetic leg all those millennia ago! And the reference is back again! 😊All of this adds to the fact that the Ashwins were indeed doctors. Doctors possess medical “knowledge” and the skills to save lives.

There is also a story where an individual on a voyage prays to the Ashwins when his ship sinks. The divine twins save his life and he returns home. Based on this story I had thought that the Ashwins were also the Gods of voyages. But the internet tells me that the Ashwins were more the deities associated with “a safe return home”! This does make sense, at least to me. The Ashwins were doctors and thus life savers, which dovetails nicely into “returning home safely”. The Ashwins, always associated with horses, possess the knowledge to save lives and get one home safely.

One last reference to horses that comes to mind from Hindu culture, considering that it is the year of the “Fire Horse” is that of Lord Surya, the Sun God. Lord Surya. Lord Surya is supposed to traverse the sky over the course of every day in a chariot. This chariot is drawn by 7 horses. These horses, drawing the fiery Lord that is the Sun, would represent the Fire Horse!

The charioteer of Lord Surya is Aruna, who is the brother of Garuda. Garuda is in turn the vāhana of Lord Vishnu. Vāhana can be translated as “vehicle” or “mount”. And we are back full circle to Lord Vishnu who we started with as Lord Hayagreeva. A horse is also a mount, either as the driving force of a chariot or as the momentum for cavalry. This detail gives a segue to the next part, where we consider the martial arts and history.

An image of Lord Surya on his chariot drawn by 7 horses, with the charioteer Aruna. This image is from Aihole, Karnataka.

What seems clear from the observations made above is that the horse is strongly associated with knowledge, and even wisdom, science and technology. But why would this be? I opine that this is because of the trait I mentioned early in this article in relation to horses – symbiosis.

When I use the word “symbiosis” here, it is more figurative than literal. I do not mean symbiosis like in the case of a lichen, where fungi and algae work together biologically. I mean symbiosis in the way a horse and its rider or handler work together as a team. Consider a show jumping event in the Olympics, where a horse, its rider and their teams work together as a single unit; that is what I am referring to.

Consider the history of the partnership between humans and horses. Horses have supposedly been domesticated for over 4000 years now. In that time horses have been used for a lot more than meat and milk unlike cattle. Horses, like oxen have also been used as beasts of burden in agriculture.

But arguably, the thing about horses that comes to mind for everyone is their use in war. Horses have been used with war chariots perhaps since the third millennium BCE. It is claimed by some that the oldest chariot found is from Sinauli in Uttar Pradesh, which dates back to between 2100 and 1900 BCE. Chariot warfare takes the centrestage in the Kurukshetra war of the Mahabharata.

Warriors are ranked as “Rathi”, “Athirathi” and “Maharathi”, the last one being the highest rank! Ratha is the term in Sanskrit for chariot and a Rathi is one who fights in a chariot! So, the ability to fight from a chariot was a core requirement to be considered a great warrior! Charioteers were called “Sārathi”. Charioteers were held in high regard and some ended up being close confidants and advisors of the kings and nobles they served.

Image showing the categorization of warriors. Image credit – “Mahabharata 30 – The War Begins”, published by Amar Chitra Katha.

Chariots were also a key component of warfare in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Anatolia and in Europe. This is shown by the chariots of the Assyrian empire and the chariots mentioned in the Battle of Kadesh, fought between the Hittites and the Egyptians. Chariots were also used by the Celts when they fought the Romans.

An image of Lord Krishna as a charioteer. Image credit – “Mahabharata 32 – The Fall of Bheeshma”, published by Amar Chitra Katha.

Then comes the use of the cavalry, which started around the same time as the use of chariots, but lasted until the First World War! Cavalry was an active fighting force for 4000 years! Chariots diminished in importance by the beginning of the Common Era. The importance of cavalry kept increasing with the development of the saddle and the stirrup.

From the little that I know, the stirrup could have its origins in India around 200 BCE, in the form of a “toe stirrup”. The earliest visual representation of the stirrup is supposedly from the Toranas (gateways) of the Great Stupa at Sanchi in Madhya Pradesh, India.

Two images from the Toranas (gateways) of the Great Stupa at Sanchi, that could be representations of stirrups. The first image could be “toe stirrup”. The second image could depict a stirrup, or a person relaxing his feet, I am not sure.

With the importance of cavalry growing, the selective breeding of horses improved and developed continuously, with horses reaching the massive sizes they reach today! The combination of the composite bow with cavalry made the Central Asian peoples a superpower for more than a millennium, starting with the Scythians (Shaka in India) and gong all the way to the Mongols and then the Mughals of India.

One of the most impactful examples of the use of cavalry from Indian history is from the Second Battle of Tarain in 1192 when Prithviraj Chauhan was killed and the Delhi Sultanate was seeded. The armies of Ghori who won this battle, are supposed to have succeeded, partly due to their cavalry tactics, which they used to avoid close quarter battle against the Rajputs, which led to their defeat a year earlier in 1191, in the First Battle of Tarain.

The armies of Ghori were Turkic people (not Turkish) who used the Central Asian way of fighting. They supposedly used something called the “Parthian Shot”. Units of Turkic cavalry used to run in circular formations at the distance of a bow shot from enemy formations and rain arrows down on the enemy. This was used to grind down the enemy while denying the opportunity to close distance and engage in hand-to-hand combat. This tactic was something the Rajput army supposedly did not have a response to.

This link leads to a YouTube video which gives a lot of detail about the Second Battle of Tarain; a part of the video describes the “Parthian Shot” – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHMMwLGI0xM

The last cavalry charge in world history also involved Indians. The Mysore and Jodhpur Lancers played an instrumental role in the Battle of Haifa in 1918, when Haifa was captured from Ottoman control during the last part of the First World War. I have heard that the cavalry became a ceremonial unit after this last hurrah.

The little information about cavalry in the previous paragraphs brings me to the point about the relationship between knowledge and the horse. Think of all that needs to happen for a cavalry to exist.

• Horses are needed in considerable numbers. So, they need to be bred.
• Horses need to be raised and cared for.
• Horses need to be trained.

Even if states in the past expected cavalrymen to provide their own horses, raising a cavalry would require a sufficient number of the populace to have the knowledge and skills to breed, raise, train and equip horses. Each of these activities needs knowledge and experience to be accumulated over generations and passed on, even improved over time.

Let me reinforce this with an anecdote. A senior practitioner in the Bujinkan and friend of mine used to be an equestrian. He had competed at the European level and was considered a very good horse rider. He was asked how he trained the horses he rode. He said that he does not train horses. This was a surprising answer for a lot of us who had never worked with horses.

We then asked how the horses were trained. He then said that he does not know! Seeing our surprise, he explained with an analogy. He said that a great Formula 1 driver, say Michael Schumacher, would not be able to service his F1 car by himself. He would most certainly not be able to build his own car! In the same manner, a horse rider would learn to bond with, work with and achieve great feats with a trained horse, but he would not be able to train the horse by himself or herself. He would not be able to care for it by himself or herself either! The knowledge and skills required in each of the activities is extensive and always needs experience and teamwork.

I think the above anecdote demonstrates how knowledge and experience are key to working effectively with horses. This would have been far more important in the past when cavalries were vital on battlefields. Was this the reason horses came to be associated with knowledge? I would say yes, even though I do not know what mainstream history says.

I mentioned what it takes to have horses available to be a part of a cavalry. Now consider what it takes to be a cavalryman or woman.

• One needs to ride a horse
• One needs to be able fight on horseback
  • Be able to stand in the stirrup when needed
  • Shoot an arrow while riding
  • Twist in the saddle to shoot at different angles (imagine shooting backwards while riding full tilt!)
  • Use a lance while riding
  • Use a sword while riding
  • Use weapons while keeping formation with fellow cavalrymen! And this could be with Heavy Cavalry or Light Cavalry!
• Lest we forget, these soldiers had to be able to use their weapons on foot if they were to lose the horse! And the manner of using a lance or a sword on foot and on horseback is vastly different!

An image of a horse archer (likely Turco-Mongol)twisting in the saddle to shoot backward while riding forward. Image credit – Wikipedia.

Each of these aspects, over time, developed with variations in cultures and geographies. So much so that different schools and methods formed over time. This shows how knowledge and experience coalesced over centuries in the ability to fight as a cavalry unit. I have not even touched upon the creation and use of armour and shields for the soldier and the horse when they fight as a unit! This should lend further credence to the idea that the need for knowledge to work with horses led to the horse being a symbol for knowledge.

In the Bujinkan system of martial arts we do not train horse riding or fighting from horseback as part of the curriculum. But Bājutsu, which refers to cavalry techniques, is historically one of the 18 segments of Ninjutsu. There is another concept that is reinforced regularly in the Bujinkan – “Shu Ha Ri”. This idea also reinforces why I opine that the horse was associated with knowledge in India.

• “Shu” roughly translates to diligently learning techniques, ideas and concepts
• “Ha” refers to training what was learnt until it is completely assimilated and works for the individual
• “Ri” refers to the phase when an expert goes on explore new possibilities with the expertise that was gained through long experience

This is true for the martial arts, when a student repeats the same movement until it becomes second nature. The student then goes back to the basics, every once in a while, iteratively, while going on to add more to her or his repertoire. After a considerable period of indulging in this cycle, the student goes on to explore different expressions of the abilities gained through the years of training.

This cycle of “Shu Ha Ri” is applicable for most skills learnt over the course of one’s life. If one considers the points I mentioned relating to cavalry earlier, there would be a “Shu Ha Ri” cycle to creating a horse ready for war and another “Shu Ha Ri” cycle to create a warrior who can work with the horse!

The “Nin” in Ninjutsu refers to “perseverance”. The “Shu Ha Ri” mentioned above is all about endurance. One needs to be able to expend time, effort and money over years to become a good martial artist; or to be good at anything. This again shows how knowledge is earned over time with great effort, not unlike how humankind achieved great things while working with horses. Is it then any surprise that Indians have a God who is represented by a Horse?

I will end by saying that in the Indian context a lot of what I mentioned holds true for elephants as well. And sure enough, we have a God who is depicted with the head of an Elephant! This is the most frequently worshipped Lord Ganesha! Lord Ganesha is worshipped as “Vighnahartha”, the “remover of obstacles”. Lord Ganesha is also worshipped as “Vidya Ganapati”, “the one how enables learning”. “Vidya” can also be translated, in common parlance, as “education” or “knowledge”. Removal of obstacles requires knowledge as well! And that shows how yet another animal which is vitally important in Indian history is also used to represent divinity.

An image of Lord Ganesha

Interestingly, there is sweet dish made in parts of India called “Hayagreeva”. 😊It is prepared during festivals, but not any specific festival. It is more likely to be made during the Dasara (Dussehra) festival, one of the days of which, in my community, is dedicated to Lord Hayagreeva! The dish is made of gram, jaggery, ghee and grated coconut. I have no idea how the dish came to be named after a God! 😀

The delicious sweet dish, Hayagreeva.

The weapon wielded by Indra, the King of the Devas, is the Vajra, also referred to as the Vajrāyudha. The latter term is a combination of “Vajra” and “Āyudha”, where āyudha means “weapon”. Āyudha could also mean a tool, but in this case, it refers to a weapon. “Vayrāyudha” thus means, “the weapon Vajra”.

Indra is also the Guardian of the East and the God of Thunder and Lightning. In the latter form, Indra is similar to Thor, Zeus and Jupiter, from the Nordic, Hellenic and Roman pantheons respectively. Since Indra wields lightning, the Vajra is also analogous with lightning. The word vajra is also most commonly used to denote diamonds in some Indian languages. So, Vajra could mean both a diamond and lightning.

The diamond is the hardest substance in the world based on Scratch Hardness, which is measured on the Moh scale. Being the hardest substance, diamonds are very hard to abrade. Hence, diamond tips or diamond coating is used in machining of other hard materials. Lightning is a powerful natural force. High rise buildings have lightning conductors to protect themselves. These conductors take the electricity, or the power of lightning, away from the structure and into the ground (Earth).

Considering the act of conducting lightning away from the building, it can be said that the power of lightning is deflected more than resisted. In this way, lightning is an unstoppable force. At the same time, diamonds being the hardest substance, it is analogous to an immovable object. So, I have heard it said that the Vajra is, simultaneously, the unstoppable force and the immovable object! Thus, Indra, the King of the Devas, wields the greatest weapon!

The Vajra or Vajrāyudha was originally made from the energy of the Sun. But this Vajra is rendered incapable at times. Later, another Vajra is crafted from the backbone of the Rishi (Sage) Dadichi. Indra has to defeat an Asura called Vrtra (also spelled Vritra). But this Asura is invulnerable to all manner of weapons. At the same time, the Rishi Dadichi has bones that are invulnerable to all forces in the universe as well.

Cover image of “Indra and Vritra”, which shows Indra fighting Vritra. In this case, Vritra is not depicted as a large snake. Image credit – “Indra and Vritra”, published by Amar Chitra Katha.

So, Dadichi offers up his bones as material from which weapons can be crafted to defeat Vrtra. Dadichi gives up his life for this cause as Vrtra has captured all waters and rain bearing clouds, causing a draught that is killing life on the planet. One weapon created from Dadichi’s bones is the Vajra. The Vajra was created using the backbone or vertebral or spinal column of Dadichi.

Vrtra is usually depicted as a large snake or Naga. There are people who suggest he is representative of a Dragon, and Indra is a dragon slaying God like in many other world religions. There are 2 stories that I have heard related to the battle between Indra and Vrtra. One is supposed to be from the Rig (Rg) Veda and the other, from the Puranas.

The story from the Veda is supposed to be a story denoting natural forces, where the Snake or Asura of draught is defeated by the God of Thunder and Lightning to release life sustaining waters as rain. The story from the Puranas shows Indra in a poorer light. He has to kill Vrtra who is created by Twastha, a great Rishi, whose son Indra has killed. But in both stories, Indra uses the Vajra to kill Vrtra. And the Vajra is a weapon of incredible power. In both cases, the Vajra is made from the backbone of Rishi Dadichi.

The most common visual depiction of the Vajra is common to both Hinduism and Buddhism. It is shown as a small weapon that resembles a dumbbell. It is like a short stick with symmetrical bulbous ends. The stick sits in the palm of a wielder while the bulbous ends stick out beyond the palm. By modern standards, we would call this a close quarter weapon.

Seen below is an example of a Vajra. This is more a representation of the Vajra in Buddhism than Hinduism. I personally see the former as a progression of the latter and do not care for the origin of the representation.

Representative images of a modern-day Vajra

Seen below is a depiction of Indra holding the Vajra. This depiction is one of the many wonderful carvings at the Rani Ki Vav in Patan, Gujarat. The carving is from the 11^th century CE. The previous and next representations are similar, though not identical. They are both two headed symmetrical weapons that are small and are held in the palm of the hand.

Image of a carving depicting Indra from “Rani ki Vav”, at Patan, Gujrat. The Vajra is seen at the top left of the image. Image credit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxT3VIH71dw – Day – 1/3 Devalaya Samskruti hagu Murthyshilpa – GIPA Live Events – 10^th April 2024

Consider the human backbone. It is a series of vertebrae one on top of the other. Now look at the images above, and the tradition that the Vajra is made from a backbone. Based on these, the following statement holds true for me. I had always imagined that the Vajra was two Lumbar Vertebrae attached to each other with a short stick, which could be made of any material. Of course, the vertebrae would be “facing away from each other”, for lack of a better description.

Thanks to the magic of 3D printing, a friend of mine, Siddhant Raju was able to print a Vajra as I had imagined it. We used the L5 vertebra as the best option to make the Vajra, as we felt that seemed the most robust. Of course, Rishi Dadichi would have only one L5. We decided that if we had to be accurate, we would use one L2 and one L5 to make a Vajra. As we see it, the L5 seems most robust of all the Lumbar vertebrae while L2 gives the best point to strike with.

The images below show the options with the L2 and L5 vertebrae for 3D printing, and the final Vajra that was made. We felt that the Vajra seemed very similar to the one depicted in the carving at Rani ki Vav.

The above image shows the options for 3D printing, with the L2 and L5 vertebrae.

The final Vajra that was made using 3D printing

A short video showing the 3D printing of the Vajra.

This design of the Vajra to me implies that Indra would be a master of very close quarters combat. It is almost as if he would get inside the range of any weapon an opponent would wield, to effectively deploy the Vajra depicted by tradition. I am sharing a video below that hopefully elucidates this idea.

I had created a video a few years ago that depicted the potential use of the weapons of the Guardians of the 10 directions. Along with my friend Nirvigna, we had depicted the possible use of the Vajra as well, as part of this video. Watch between the 2:02 and 3:03 minute marks of the video shared below, to see possible uses of the Vajra. We had used the Vajra seen in the image earlier in this article for the demonstration. The same moves can definitely be replicated with the design seen in the 3D printed version seen above.

All this experience suggests to me that the Vajra could definitely have been a real weapon, and it could have indeed been made with a backbone, or at least the vertebrae that make up a backbone. Of course, I cannot comment on the mystical or divine prowess of the Vajra that Indra would wield, what with his being the King of the Devas.

Since I have touched upon the Vajra being a real and practical weapon, let me share some real-world weapons similar to the Vajra, and their applications.

The Vajra is quite similar to a Yawara or Yawara Stick. The Yawara Stick, an example of which is seen in the image below also resembles a small dumbbell. It is used to strike opponents at very close quarters.

An image of a yawara stick. Image credit – Wikipedia

A weapon similar to the Yawara Stick is the Kubotan. Examples of this are seen in the images below. This weapon is sold as part of a keychain on many commercial e-commerce sites.

An image of a kubotan. Image credit – Wikipedia

3D printed variants of the kubotan, that are only meant for training

A weapon called a Kobo Stick is also available online. An example of this is seen in the image below. From what I have heard the Yawara Stick, Kubotan and Kobo can be made of several different materials, ranging from bamboo, wood, metal and hard plastic. All of them can be used in a similar manner against opponents.

Images of a Kobo Stick

In the Bujinkan system of martial arts, we study a weapon called the tānbo (sometime pronounced tāmbo). This is nothing but a short stick. It can be used in a manner similar to the Vajra. The “tān” in the “tānbo” means “small”. “Bo” is a “staff”. So, a “tānbo” is a small stick/staff. This is not unlike a “tānto”, which refers to a knife. “To” is a bladed weapon, while “tān” is small. So, a small, bladed weapon signifies a knife.

Seen in the above image from top to bottom are, a Tānbo, the 3D printed Vajra, a traditional Vajra, a training Tānto and a training version of a Kubotan variant. The Tānbo is also a padded training version. The real weapon would be a lot leaner, the length can be variable, it is not standardized.

In India, there is a traditional martial art called “Vajra Mushti”. Here, “mushti” means “fist”. So, “Vajra Mushti” could mean “a fist like a vajra”, in other words, “a devastating fist”. Vajra Mushti is a close quarters martial art. The vajra in this case is closer to a knuckle duster than the traditional vajra. Vajra Mushti is demonstrated every year during the famous Dasara festival in the city of Mysore, in Karnataka.

A representative image of Vajra Mushti, from the late 18^th century. Image credit – Wikipedia

The above image is from a traditional display of dolls during the Dasara festival. The two encircled individuals are the “Mallas” (roughly translated as wrestlers) who demonstrate Vajra Mushti in Mysore during the celebration of the Dasara festival.

Similar to Vajra Mushti is another martial art called “Loh Mutthi”. “Loh” means “iron” and “mutthi” means “fist”. So, “Loh Mutthi” means “iron fist”. Here again, the “iron” comes from a knuckle duster used by a practitioner. Sikh troops wore (and still do wear) a “kada”, which is a metal ring akin to a bracelet on their wrists. These kada vary in dimensions. Supposedly, if all else failed, a soldier slipped off the kada and held it in his fist like a knuckle duster and used it in much the same manner.

A Kada held in a manner that enable its use as a knuckle duster. The shape and size of the Kada can vary greatly.

Since the Vajra is equivalent to a Yawara stick, which is a weapon used for fighting in very close quarters, I will share a question. The Vajra is also considered a lightning bolt, which strikes from far away, across a large distance, electrocutes and fries the lifeform it strikes. How do these two attributes fit in together? How can there be a feeling like an electric shock while fighting in close quarters with a small weapon?

I do not have a clear answer to this question, but I will hazard a guess as to how this is feasible. Imagine the feeling one goes through when one gets hit on the funny bone at the elbow. It is a jolt, something that can be said to be similar to an electric shock. There are multiple points in the human body, the striking of which can result in debilitating pain, sufficient to cause an individual to stop fighting for short durations, as small as a few seconds in some cases.

These points can be called “pressure points”. They are referred to as “marma points” in some Indian martial arts and Kyusho points in the Bujinkan system of martial arts.  These points cannot always be targeted in a dynamic fight. But the knowledge of these points is important, for when an opportunity presents itself, these points should be struck to gain an advantage.

Further, the effort needed to cause pain while striking these points is not great, this could partially be the reason martial arts around the world identify these points as known weaknesses in a human body. If one is wielding a Vajra or a Yawara stick or a Tānbo, a strike in close quarters with just a little effort will be magnified to a certain extent by the weapon. And this strike is sufficient to cause pain in the opponent.

Perhaps this pain caused by the small weapon in close quarters was considered akin to the feeling of suffering due to an electric shock, an analogue of a lightning strike! This is, in my opinion, a possible cause for the smallish Vajra being considered the lightning bolt! But does this mean that there was, sometime in the deep past, a real Indra who was a master of close quarter fighting? And does it mean he used a small striking tool? I have no idea if these are true, but there is a chance they might, considering how long the tradition of Indra wielding the Vajra has endured.

The vajra or yawara stick is also depicted in fiction. The fictional character Modesty Blaise, created by Peter Odonnel uses a weapon she calls the “Kongo”. This is Modesty’s favourite weapon. The kongo is nothing but a fictionalized version of the yawara stick. Modesty Blaise appears in 13 novels and 96 stories that achieved fame as newspaper comic strips. Modesty uses the kongo as a non-lethal weapon in close quarters. Her kongo is hollow and can also be used to hide messages if need be.

Modesty Blaise wielding the Kongo, which is a fictionalized version of the Yawara stick. Image credit – “The Art of Modesty Blaise”, published by Book Palace as part of the “IllustrationArtGallery.com presents” series.

The Kongo is Modesty’s favourite weapon. This picture is an image of a clip in an old edition of the Kannada newspaper, “Prajaa Vaani”.

The Vajra, beyond being a weapon also has cultural significance in India and beyond. The significance of the Vajra in Hinduism is through Indra as discussed earlier. The Vajra is also a revered icon in Buddhism. But apart from these historical aspects, the Vajra also has great significance in modern India, specifically in a martial or military context.

The Param Vir Chakra (PVC) is the highest gallantry award in wartime in modern India. The recipients of the PVC are held in high regard all over India. There are 21 recipients of the PVC in India. The award is a medal made of bronze. One face of the medal shows 2 Vajras which are perpendicular to one another. In this manner, the Vajra is a depiction of bravery to this day in India.

An image of the Param Vir Chakra. Image credit – Wikipedia

The Vajra is culturally significant in Japan as well. I am specifically referring to Japan because it is the country of origin of the Bujinkan system of martial arts, of which I am a practitioner. One of the deities in Japan is Fudo Myō. He is considered a very important deity for the martial arts according to the previous grandmaster of the Bujinkan, Soke Hatsumi Masaaki.

An image of Fudo Myō from an old training t-shirt we used back in the day. Observe the sword in the right hand and the noose in the left hand. Also observe the hilt of the sword, it is a Vajra.

From what I have heard, Fudo Myō can be called, in Sankskrit, Achala or Maha Achala. This can be roughly translated to “Immovable” (Achala) or “The Great Immovable One” (Maha Achala). Fudo Myō wields a noose and a sword in each of his hands. In my opinion, these two objects make him a personification of the first 2 lines of the Sanskrit shloka, “Asotōma Sadgamaya”.

The first line says, “Asotōma Sadgamaya” which translates to “move from untruth (ignorance) to truth (wisdom)”. The second line says, “Tamasōma Jyothirgamaya” which translates to “move from darkness to light”. Fudo Myō is supposed to use his sword to cut through the darkness of ignorance and use the noose to pull one into the light of wisdom. Thus, he is a personification of the two lines just mentioned!

The sword that is depicted in the hand of Fudo Myō is interesting by itself! The blade of the sword is broad at the tip and resembles what is called in India, a “Khanda”. A Khanda is a straight sword with a broad tip, which lends itself very well to cutting. The blade is double edged, though the back edge need not be sharp all the way through. It is sharp only for about the top half of the blade.

A representative image of a Khanda. Image credit – Wikipedia.

The hilt of the blade wielded by Fudo Myō is a Vajra. The blade is mounted on a Vajra. This makes Fudo Myō a “Vajra Hasta” or a “Vajra Paani”. “Hasta” and “Paani” refer to the palm. Thus, a “Vajra Hasta” or a “Vajra Paani” is someone who holds a Vajra in her or his palm. Indra is also a Vajra hasta as he wields the Vajra as well.

Fudo Myō and his significance was constantly discussed in 2013 when the theme of the year in the Bujinkan required us to study the Tsurugi or Ken. The Tsurugi or Ken is the straight Japanese sword which predated the famous Tachi and Katana, both of which are iconic curved swords emblematic of Japan in the modern day. In 2013, we trained with the Ken a lot.

This is a picture of the Hombu Dojo (headquarter dojo) of the Bujinkan. Observe the two Tsurugi (straight sword) on either side of the Kamidana. Also observe the hilt of the two swords, they are Vajras.

This concludes the main focus of this article, the potential of the Vajra being a weapon made of vertebrae, it being a real weapon, a demonstration of its use and its cultural significance in the martial arts. But there are additional points relating to its cultural significance outside India and its depiction in modern Indian pop culture that I would like to share. If the article is too long or boring, one can choose to ignore the rest of this post.

If one searches for “Zeus” on Wikipedia, as of now, the first image seen on the page is the one seen below. This is supposedly called “Jupiter de Smyrna”. It is supposed to represent Zeus or his rough Roman equivalent, Jupiter. This statue was supposedly discovered in Smyrna, in modern day Turkey, missing an arm. It was restored by the French sculptor Pierre Granier in 1680, to show Zeus holding the Thunderbolt.

Zeus/Jupiter of Smyrna. Image credit – Wikipedia.

The Thunderbolt seen in the statue, as far as I know, is similar to older representations of the same weapon. From what I know, the Thunderbolt is representative of the lightning bolt as well. Zeus and Jupiter are both roughly equivalent to Indra in this aspect, both being Gods of Thunder and Lightning.

I have seen the Thunderbolt being depicted as a spear in some representations. In this form, it supposedly follows a kind of logic with respect to the brothers, Zeus, Hades and Poseidon. The weapon wielded by Zeus has a single point, so it is a spear. The weapon wielded by Hades has 2 points, making it something like a tuning fork or man-catcher from later centuries. This is also supposed to have influenced the “Pitchfork” wielded by the Devil in Christian tales, as that has 2 points as well. Poseidon has a weapon that has 3 points; hence he wields a Trident, or Trishoola as we Hindus refer to it. In this representation of the weapons, all of them wield pole arms.

This is an image of Zeus from Pompeii. Here the Thunderbolt that is wielded by Zeus is depicted as a spear. Image credit – Wikipedia.

But the Thunderbolt seen in the statue above does not depict a spear. It supposedly depicts a clutch of lightning bolts that Zeus can hurl at whomever he chooses. So, it could be that Zeus is so large that a lightning bolt seems small in comparison. If a normal human was depicted wielding the same, it would perhaps be as long as a spear.

Either way, consider the depiction in the statue, a closeup of which is seen below. Does this not seem like a Vajra? The 2 ends are symmetric and wider than the centre, which is held in the palm of Zeus. Is the shape not similar to the one on the right? Does this not look like a large Yawara stick with slightly points ends? I opine that it does. With this observation, we can say that Zeus wields a Vajra as well!

That said, if the Thunderbolt was depicted as a spear, that would not, in my opinion, suggest that the Vajra could be depicted as a spear. This is because, by Hindu tradition, the weapon associated with Agni, the God of Fire and the Guardian of the Southeast, is the Shakti. The Shakti is always depicted as a spear.

I will conclude with another question to which I have no answer. I wonder why the depiction of the Vajra in modern pop culture in India is so very different from the traditional depiction. Sometimes, the Vajra is depicted like a “Z”, almost like the symbol of the DC comics superhero, The Flash. In come extreme cases, Indra is shown wielding the backbone with all the ribs still attached! I wonder how one would fight with that! 😀

The Vajra wielded by Indra being depicted as a “Z”. Image credit – “Garuda”, published by Amar Chitra Katha.

The “Z” like depiction is seen in many Amar Chitra Katha publications. This publication has always drawn inspiration from historical depictions, and temple carvings. But I wonder why they chose a different one in the case of the Vajra, especially since there are so many depictions of the Vajra in temple carvings.

This holds true considering one of their early depictions of the Pushpaka Vimāna in the Ramayana (the aerial vehicle of Kubera stolen by Ravana and eventually passed on to Lord Rama) is remarkable similar to the depiction of the same in an approximately 1300-year-old carving in a Chalukya temple at Pattadakal in Karnataka.

In another depiction of the Vajra, they have depicted it as a mace or a gada made from bones. This seems a far better depiction, since there is some engineering of the bones of Rishi Dadichi to convert them into a weapon. Considering that Vishwakarma, the engineer of the Devas, crafted the Vajra, this “value addition” seems necessary, at least to a modern mind like mine, that is accustomed to engineering in every aspect of life.

The Vajra depicted as a Gada (mace) made from the backbone of Rishi Dadichi. Image credit – “Indra and Vritra”, Kindle edition, published by Amar Chitra Katha.

If I were to consider a very pop culture depiction of a primitive, barbarian like Vajra, since it is from a forgotten past, I would likely make it look like an axe, a two headed axe no less. 😛 Consider the human back bone. It includes the pelvic girdle. So, if one reversed the backbone to hold up the girdle, with the rest of backbone being the handle, we would have an axe. 😊And the axe handle would have a natural curvature and a pointy end at the tip (sacrum) as well! I will end here before I run away with my imagination. 😀

Seen above is an image of the human backbone. Observe the Dorsal and Ventral images. Do they not look like a stylized axe a barbarian would use??!! 😊 Image credit – https://spinehealth.org/article/spine-anatomy/

Tomorrow is Naraka Chaturdashi, the first day of Deepāvali (“the Festival of Lights”). Naraka Chaturdashi commemorates the victory of Lord Krishna over Narakāsura. Narakāsura was an incredibly powerful Asura, who was the son of Bhoomi Devi and Lord Varāha. He committed atrocities across all realms and was almost invincible. It took Lord Krishna carrying out an aerial assault on his palace at night to defeat and kill him. Lord Krishna flew on Garuda with his wife Satyabhāma to carry out a surprise attack on Naraka’s citadel in Pragjyotishpura to slay the Asura.

Narakāsura had defeated the Devas, including Indra and Varuna. He had imprisoned thousands of women and looted wealth from the Devas and many other regions. The Devas were never powerless. They are the Guardians of the 8 directions, with Brahma and Vishnu being the guardians of the Zenith and the Nadir respectively. Lord Shiva, called Eesha, is the guardian of the North East.

Being the Guardians and celestial beings, the Devas are very powerful and it takes an Asura of rare abilities who only seldom appears to defeat them. Just because the stories depict Lord Vishnu coming to their protection and rescue does not mean that they are always frail and in need of help.

All the Devas, in a show of strength, carry a specific weapon which is always depicted in iconography depicting them. I am sharing a video below that depicts these weapons and possible use of the same.

This is a video I made a few years ago as part of the Indian Independence Day celebration at work. But it fits into this post pretty well in my opinion. I am not editing out the Independence Day wishes at the end, because the occasion is not important, the depiction of the use of the weapons is.

Wish you all a blessed Deepāvali! 🙂

This video was made during a mild phase of the pandemic. Hence the masks on both demonstrators in the video.