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Vali Vadham 43

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Hari Krishnan • December 19, 2002 


Instruments of protection

A study of the epics reveals that the divine gifts fall under three categories.  First among them is what is known as boons.  It is a kind of blanket protection against several forces or granting of a wish or the fulfilment of one or the other aspiration.  The kind of assurance given to Hiranya for instance that he could not be killed either in the morning or in the night; either on earth or in the sky etc. or the powers granted to Ravana or Indrajit fall under this category.  Then there is the second kind.  Granting of weapons of destruction.  Like the pasupadhastra received by Arjuna or the other various divine weapons that Gods and other celestials grant.  

The third kind is the instruments of protection.  Karna was born with an armour and earrings, blessed by his father, Surya.  These would protect him.  Though these did not give the kind of invincibility to the warrior, they were supposed to protect him from being killed in a battle.  It has to be remembered that Karna was defeated several times by Arjuna, **before** Indra came a-begging for the armour and earrings, which Karna readily and without hesitation cut from his body and gave away.  

Then the Mahabharata speaks about a divine breastplate and arm-wraps that Dhuriyodhana was given by Acharya Dhrona, on the fourteenth day of the war.  They had the power to protect the wearer against any divine weapon and that made the arrows of Arjuna to fall like reeds, without in any way harming Dhuriyodhana.  But there was a catch.  Dhuriyodhana did not learn the mantras that were required to be chanted before they can be worn.  Acharya Dhrona had chanted them on his behalf, because there was no time for Dhuriyodhana to learn when the war had picked up momentum nor did the latter have the inclination to learn it.  Arjuna tormented Dhuriyodhana by shooting his arrows on Dhuriyodhana's fingers and nails, which remained unprotected by the breastplates and the arm-wraps.  

It is therefore evident that even those divine instruments of protection were limited in their use.  They could of course protect.  But they could extend protection only against specific situations or persons.  They thus had limitations - unlike the blanket protection granted by boons.  Scholars would even joke that Lord Shiva would without hesitation grant protection against all kinds of odds to his devotees.  And the devotee would in turn become a terrorist.  It would then be for Lord Vishnu to break his head to find out a solution and look for loopholes for the destruction of the miscreant!

To come back to our discussion, these were intended to protect against specific situations or specific portions or limbs that they were supposed to protect.  Like the breastplate and arm-wraps of Dhuriyodhana.  They could protect only his chest and arms and not fingers and fingernails!

The much spoken about ability of Vali to receive half the strength - or all the strength - of his opponent was through one such instrument of protection, a chain of gold given to him by his divine father, Indra.  This story is not narrated in Kamba Ramayana.  There we find Hanuman saying that Vali would receive half the strength of his opponent, when he appraises Rama.  Then once again we find this mentioned by Vali himself, when Tara stops him from responding to the challenge of Sugriva.  Kamban does not elaborate on this.

The story is mentioned in passing by Sugriva in Valmiki Ramayana, when he narrates how Vali prepared himself for the battle with Dundhubhi.  




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