Kamandalu
Encyclopedia
Kamandalu or Kamandal or Kamandalam is an oblong water pot made of a dry gourd
(pumpkin
) or coconut
shell or metal or wood of Kamandalataru tree or from clay, usually with a handle and sometimes with a spout. Hindu
ascetics or yogi
s often use it for storing drinking water. The water filled kamandalu, which is invariably carried by ascetics, is stated to represent a simple and self-contained life.
The kamandalu also used in Hindu iconography
, in depiction of deities related with asceticism
or water. It is thus, viewed as a symbol of ascetism in Hinduism. The kamandalu is also used by Jain monks and in depictions of some bodhisattva
s.
- the elixir of life, thus a symbol of fertility, life and wealth. The kamandalu is often depicted in hands of gods, who appear as ascetics, like Shiva
, Brahma
and also water deities like Varuna
, Ganga (the goddess of the Ganges river) and Sarasvati. Adi Shankara
charya’s ashtotaram hymn praises Shiva whose hand is adorned with the kamandalu. Other deities like the fire-god Agni
and the preceptor of the gods, Brihaspati
are depicted carrying the kamandalu. The goddess Karamgamaladharini is described as wearing a garland of kamandalus. The text Devi Mahatmya
describes goddess Brahmani
slay demons by sprinkling holy water from her kamandalu. A 183-165 BC. coin depicts the god Krishna
holding a kamandalu.
Several mythological stories refer to the kamandalu. Vamana
the dwarf avatar of god Vishnu
, requests demon king Mahabali
for three feet of land. The donation of the land is sanctified through pouring water through a Kamandalu. When Sukra
, the demons' preceptor, tried to prevent flow of water from the kamandalu by blocking the spout, Mahabali pierced the spout with a stick, which blinded Sukra. In Bhagavata Purana
, king Satyavarta after initially put Matsya
(Vishnu's avatar as a fish) which he found in the river into his Kamandalu, to protect it from the big fish. Later, the fish expanded and protected the king from great deluge of Hindu mythology. The Mahabharata
records the god Dhanvantari
brought Amrita in a Kamandalu, when he emerged from the churning of the ocean (Samudra manthan
). The Hindu epic Ramayana
records the monkey-god Hanuman
disguised himself as a sage and fooling the demons to drink his urine stored in his kamandalu.
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The mythical Sarasvati river
traces her creation legends to the creator-god Brahma
's kamandalu. River Ganga is also believed to flow through Brahma's kamandalu. One legend about Ganga's birth says Brahma washed the big toe of the foot of Vamana and collected the water in his kamandalu, which turns into the river Ganga.
Another river Silambu
has a similar tale of origin. When Brahma washed Vamana's foot by the water of his kamandalu, one of drops fell from Vamana's foot on the earth turning into the river.
Another mythical tale about the pilgrimage place Darsha Pushkarini, narrates how sage Agastya
trapped river Kaveri in his kamandalu, when she declined his marriage proposal. This led to famine in the region and noticing this, Kaveri escaped from kamandalu but with a curse of the sage and was finally purified at Darsha Pushkarini. A variant tells that, angered by Kaveri's confinement, god Ganesha, in the form of a crow, pushed Agastya's kamandalu down rescuing Kaveri and leading to the river's formation.
In the Sarada legends of Kashmir (based on oral tradition) narrated by Dr Romesh Kumar, it is said that when Ravana
was engaged in a war with Rama
, goddess Parvati
advised Rama to take her to Uttarakhand
away from the war scene, and thus Parvati was carried by Hanuman
in the form of water in a kamandalu to be dropped wherever Parvati desired to be dropped. Wherever, Hanuman rested on his way to Utarakhand, drops of water which fell out of the kamandalu on the ground, formed the springs Masanag at Gushi and the Devibal spring at Tikr in Kashmir
where the kamandalu was kept in a nearby hillock where Parvati rested where as a Sarada shrine exists. At Amarkantak
, the source of river Narmada
in Madhya Pradesh
, an ancient kamandalu which is always filled with water, is called the Brighu Kamandal.
The text Garuda Purana
states donation of a kamandalu in the Shradha
(funery ritual) ceremony ensures that deceased has ample drinking water in his after-life journey.
of life. It is also called as Bhumba. Bodhisattva
s like Maitreya
and Avalokiteshvara are depicted carrying the kamandalu. The kamandalu was initially imported from Brahmanical Hinduism to Buddhism, through god Brahma
to Maitreya, but later was incorporated in representations of many Mahayana Buddhist deities. Jain Digambara
sages use the kamandalu for "toilet purposes".
Gourd
A gourd is a plant of the family Cucurbitaceae. Gourd is occasionally used to describe crops like cucumbers, squash, luffas, and melons. The term 'gourd' however, can more specifically, refer to the plants of the two Cucurbitaceae genera Lagenaria and Cucurbita or also to their hollow dried out shell...
(pumpkin
Pumpkin
A pumpkin is a gourd-like squash of the genus Cucurbita and the family Cucurbitaceae . It commonly refers to cultivars of any one of the species Cucurbita pepo, Cucurbita mixta, Cucurbita maxima, and Cucurbita moschata, and is native to North America...
) or coconut
Coconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...
shell or metal or wood of Kamandalataru tree or from clay, usually with a handle and sometimes with a spout. Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
ascetics or yogi
Yogi
A Yogi is a practitioner of Yoga. The word is also used to refer to ascetic practitioners of meditation in a number of South Asian Religions including Jainism, Buddhism, and Hinduism.-Etymology:...
s often use it for storing drinking water. The water filled kamandalu, which is invariably carried by ascetics, is stated to represent a simple and self-contained life.
The kamandalu also used in Hindu iconography
Hindu iconography
Over the millennia of its development Hinduism has adopted several iconic symbols, forming part of Hindu iconography, that are imbued with spiritual meaning based on either the scriptures or cultural traditions. The exact significance accorded to any of the icons varies with region, period and...
, in depiction of deities related with asceticism
Asceticism
Asceticism describes a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from various sorts of worldly pleasures often with the aim of pursuing religious and spiritual goals...
or water. It is thus, viewed as a symbol of ascetism in Hinduism. The kamandalu is also used by Jain monks and in depictions of some bodhisattva
Bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva is either an enlightened existence or an enlightenment-being or, given the variant Sanskrit spelling satva rather than sattva, "heroic-minded one for enlightenment ." The Pali term has sometimes been translated as "wisdom-being," although in modern publications, and...
s.
Method of making
A ripe pumpkin is plucked and the inner plum and seeds are cleaned leaving only the outer shell, which is used as the kamandalu. This is interpreted on a spiritual level as the removal of ego from a person. The ripe pumpkin represents the person, seed being the ego. Cleaning the seed thus symbolizes removal of ego, forming a cleansed person fit to accept self realization.In Hinduism
Water in a kamandalu, represents AmritaAmrita
Amrit is a Sanskrit word that literally means "immortality", and is often referred to in texts as nectar. The word's earliest occurrence is in the Rigveda where it is one of several synonyms of soma, the drink which confers immortality upon the gods. It is related etymologically to the Greek...
- the elixir of life, thus a symbol of fertility, life and wealth. The kamandalu is often depicted in hands of gods, who appear as ascetics, like Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
, Brahma
Brahma
Brahma is the Hindu god of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. According to the Brahma Purana, he is the father of Mānu, and from Mānu all human beings are descended. In the Ramayana and the...
and also water deities like Varuna
Varuna
In Vedic religion, Varuna is a god of the sky, of water and of the celestial ocean, as well as a god of law and of the underworld...
, Ganga (the goddess of the Ganges river) and Sarasvati. Adi Shankara
Adi Shankara
Adi Shankara Adi Shankara Adi Shankara (IAST: pronounced , (Sanskrit: , ) (788 CE - 820 CE), also known as ' and ' was an Indian philosopher from Kalady of present day Kerala who consolidated the doctrine of advaita vedānta...
charya’s ashtotaram hymn praises Shiva whose hand is adorned with the kamandalu. Other deities like the fire-god Agni
Agni
Agni is a Hindu deity, one of the most important of the Vedic gods. He is the god of fire and the acceptor of sacrifices. The sacrifices made to Agni go to the deities because Agni is a messenger from and to the other gods...
and the preceptor of the gods, Brihaspati
Brihaspati
Bṛhaspati also known as Brahmanaspati and Deva-guru , is the name of a Vedic deity...
are depicted carrying the kamandalu. The goddess Karamgamaladharini is described as wearing a garland of kamandalus. The text Devi Mahatmya
Devi Mahatmya
The Devi Mahatmyam or Devi Mahatmya , or "Glory of the Goddess") is a Hindu text describing the victory of the goddess Durga over the demon Mahishasura. As part of the Markandeya Purana, it is one of the Puranas or secondary Hindu scriptures, and was composed in Sanskrit around c...
describes goddess Brahmani
Matrikas
Matrikas , also called Matara and Matris , are a group of Hindu goddesses who are always depicted together. Since they are usually depicted as a heptad, they are called Saptamatrikas : Brahmani, Vaishnavi, Maheshvari, Indrani, Kaumari, Varahi and Chamunda or Narasimhi...
slay demons by sprinkling holy water from her kamandalu. A 183-165 BC. coin depicts the god Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
holding a kamandalu.
Several mythological stories refer to the kamandalu. Vamana
Vamana
Vamana is described in the Puranic texts of Hinduism as the Fifth Avatar of Vishnu, and the first incarnation of the Second Age, or the Treta yuga. Also he is the first Avatar of Vishnu which appears with a completely human form, though it was that of a dwarf brahmin. He is also sometimes known as...
the dwarf avatar of god Vishnu
Vishnu
Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
, requests demon king Mahabali
Mahabali
Mahabali , also known as Bali or Māveli was a benevolent Asura King, and the grandson of Prahlada. The festival of Onam commemorates his yearly homecoming after being sent down to the underworld by Vamana, the fifth avatar of Vishnu.-Conquest of the Universe and banishment:Bali, an asura, was the...
for three feet of land. The donation of the land is sanctified through pouring water through a Kamandalu. When Sukra
Sukra
Shukra may refer to:*The Sanskrit name for Venus, also Shukra*A Montserratian spirit or ghost...
, the demons' preceptor, tried to prevent flow of water from the kamandalu by blocking the spout, Mahabali pierced the spout with a stick, which blinded Sukra. In Bhagavata Purana
Bhagavata purana
The Bhāgavata Purāṇa is one of the "Maha" Puranic texts of Hindu literature, with its primary focus on bhakti to the incarnations of Vishnu, particularly Krishna...
, king Satyavarta after initially put Matsya
Matsya
Matsya was the first Avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism. The great flood finds mention in Hindu mythology texts like the Satapatha Brahmana, where in the Matsya Avatar takes place to save the pious and the first man, Manu and advices him to build a giant boat.-The Legend:According to the Matsya...
(Vishnu's avatar as a fish) which he found in the river into his Kamandalu, to protect it from the big fish. Later, the fish expanded and protected the king from great deluge of Hindu mythology. The Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
records the god Dhanvantari
Dhanvantari
Dhanvantari is an Avatar of Vishnu from the Hindu tradition. He appears in the Vedas and Puranas as the physician of the gods , and the god of Ayurvedic medicine...
brought Amrita in a Kamandalu, when he emerged from the churning of the ocean (Samudra manthan
Samudra manthan
In Hinduism, Samudra manthan or Ksheera Sagara Mathanam, Churning of the Ocean of Milk is one of the most famous episodes in the Puranas...
). The Hindu epic Ramayana
Ramayana
The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...
records the monkey-god Hanuman
Hanuman
Hanuman , is a Hindu deity, who is an ardent devotee of Rama, a central character in the Indian epic Ramayana and one of the dearest devotees of lord Rama. A general among the vanaras, an ape-like race of forest-dwellers, Hanuman is an incarnation of the divine and a disciple of Lord Rama in the...
disguised himself as a sage and fooling the demons to drink his urine stored in his kamandalu.
Sarasvati River
The Sarasvati River is one of the chief Rigvedic rivers mentioned in ancient Hindu texts. The Nadistuti hymn in the Rigveda mentions the Sarasvati between the Yamuna in the east and the Sutlej in the west, and later Vedic texts like Tandya and Jaiminiya Brahmanas as well as the Mahabharata...
traces her creation legends to the creator-god Brahma
Brahma
Brahma is the Hindu god of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. According to the Brahma Purana, he is the father of Mānu, and from Mānu all human beings are descended. In the Ramayana and the...
's kamandalu. River Ganga is also believed to flow through Brahma's kamandalu. One legend about Ganga's birth says Brahma washed the big toe of the foot of Vamana and collected the water in his kamandalu, which turns into the river Ganga.
Another river Silambu
Silambu
Silambu is a traditional anklet worn mostly by South Indians. This ornament is referred to in the famous Tamil silapapthigaram, where the story begins and ends with a silmabu. In olden days, both men and women wore a variety of silambu. This can be discovered in most of the Tamil texts...
has a similar tale of origin. When Brahma washed Vamana's foot by the water of his kamandalu, one of drops fell from Vamana's foot on the earth turning into the river.
Another mythical tale about the pilgrimage place Darsha Pushkarini, narrates how sage Agastya
Agastya
Agastya was a Tamil/Vedic Siddhar or sage. Agastya and his clan are also generally credited with uncovering many mantras of the Rig Veda, the earliest and most revered Hindu scripture, in the sense of first having the mantras revealed in his mind by the Supreme Brahman...
trapped river Kaveri in his kamandalu, when she declined his marriage proposal. This led to famine in the region and noticing this, Kaveri escaped from kamandalu but with a curse of the sage and was finally purified at Darsha Pushkarini. A variant tells that, angered by Kaveri's confinement, god Ganesha, in the form of a crow, pushed Agastya's kamandalu down rescuing Kaveri and leading to the river's formation.
In the Sarada legends of Kashmir (based on oral tradition) narrated by Dr Romesh Kumar, it is said that when Ravana
Ravana
' is the primary antagonist character of the Hindu legend, the Ramayana; who is the great king of Lanka. In the classic text, he is mainly depicted negatively, kidnapping Rama's wife Sita, to claim vengeance on Rama and his brother Lakshmana for having cut off the nose of his sister...
was engaged in a war with Rama
Rama
Rama or full name Ramachandra is considered to be the seventh avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism, and a king of Ayodhya in ancient Indian...
, goddess Parvati
Parvati
Parvati is a Hindu goddess. Parvati is Shakti, the wife of Shiva and the gentle aspect of Mahadevi, the Great Goddess...
advised Rama to take her to Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand , formerly Uttaranchal, is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the Land of Gods due to the many holy Hindu temples and cities found throughout the state, some of which are among Hinduism's most spiritual and auspicious places of pilgrimage and worship...
away from the war scene, and thus Parvati was carried by Hanuman
Hanuman
Hanuman , is a Hindu deity, who is an ardent devotee of Rama, a central character in the Indian epic Ramayana and one of the dearest devotees of lord Rama. A general among the vanaras, an ape-like race of forest-dwellers, Hanuman is an incarnation of the divine and a disciple of Lord Rama in the...
in the form of water in a kamandalu to be dropped wherever Parvati desired to be dropped. Wherever, Hanuman rested on his way to Utarakhand, drops of water which fell out of the kamandalu on the ground, formed the springs Masanag at Gushi and the Devibal spring at Tikr in Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
where the kamandalu was kept in a nearby hillock where Parvati rested where as a Sarada shrine exists. At Amarkantak
Amarkantak
Amarkantak is a pilgrim town and a nagar panchayat in Anuppur District in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. Also called "Teerthraj" , Amarkantak region is a unique natural heritage area and is the meeting point of the Vindhyas and the Satpuras, with the Maikal Hills being the fulcrum...
, the source of river Narmada
Narmada River
The Narmada , also called Rewa is a river in central India and the fifth largest river in the Indian subcontinent. It is the third largest river that completely flows within India after Ganges and Godavari...
in Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....
, an ancient kamandalu which is always filled with water, is called the Brighu Kamandal.
The text Garuda Purana
Garuda Purana
Garuda Purana is one of the Puranas which are part of the Hindu body of texts known as smriti. It is a Vaishnava Purana and its first part contains a dialog between Vishnu and Garuda, the King of Birds...
states donation of a kamandalu in the Shradha
Shraaddha
Śrāddha or Shraaddha is a Sanskrit word which literally means anything or any act that is performed with all sincerity and faith . In the Hindu religion, it is the ritual that one performs to pay homage to one’s 'ancestors' , especially to one’s dead parents...
(funery ritual) ceremony ensures that deceased has ample drinking water in his after-life journey.
In Buddhism and Jainism
Buddhists pour water from the kamandalu onto the palms of people, before rituals, where the water symbolizes elixirElixir
An elixir is a clear, sweet-flavored liquid used for medicinal purposes, to be taken orally and intended to cure one's ills. When used as a pharmaceutical preparation, an elixir contains at least one active ingredient designed to be taken orally....
of life. It is also called as Bhumba. Bodhisattva
Bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva is either an enlightened existence or an enlightenment-being or, given the variant Sanskrit spelling satva rather than sattva, "heroic-minded one for enlightenment ." The Pali term has sometimes been translated as "wisdom-being," although in modern publications, and...
s like Maitreya
Maitreya
Maitreya , Metteyya , or Jampa , is foretold as a future Buddha of this world in Buddhist eschatology. In some Buddhist literature, such as the Amitabha Sutra and the Lotus Sutra, he or she is referred to as Ajita Bodhisattva.Maitreya is a bodhisattva who in the Buddhist tradition is to appear on...
and Avalokiteshvara are depicted carrying the kamandalu. The kamandalu was initially imported from Brahmanical Hinduism to Buddhism, through god Brahma
Brahma
Brahma is the Hindu god of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. According to the Brahma Purana, he is the father of Mānu, and from Mānu all human beings are descended. In the Ramayana and the...
to Maitreya, but later was incorporated in representations of many Mahayana Buddhist deities. Jain Digambara
Digambara
Digambara "sky-clad" is one of the two main sects of Jainism. "Sky-clad" has many different meaning and associations throughout Indian religions. Many representations of deities within these traditions are depicted as sky-clad, e.g. Samantabhadra/Samantabhadrī in Yab-Yum...
sages use the kamandalu for "toilet purposes".