Sunday, March 31, 2013

Garuda, Simurgh, Khyung & Shang-shang

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KHYUNG: "Similar to the Indian Garuda since both were of a solar nature. But more complex, shared with the Siberian shamaist people...introduced into Tibet from Zhang-Zhung and shows Iranian influences." (Hoffman 75) ......In Zurvanism and Manicheism, both of which were important in ancient Persia before their suppression by Zoroastrianism during the late Sarsanian dynasty. "Soars in outer space...sees no fear and no imperfection...experience greater world and attain greater mind." (Trungpa:1984...p 168)

"The Khyung, the mythical horned eagle of Tibet. These fabulous birds come in many forms, painted and sculptural. Horned raptors are also found in the rock art of Upper Tibet, forming a subset of birds of prey with outstretched wings (depicted flying). Carnivorous birds (khyung, eagles, hawks, vultures, falcons, and owls) are important elements in many Tibetan religious traditions, myths and customs....While the Hindu garuda is the mount of the god Vishnu, the khyung is a vehicle for a good number of Buddhist and Bon protective deities. No mere workhorse, the khyung has come to symbolize a broad range of Buddhist concepts and doctrines as well. It was elevated to the status of a tantric tutelary god in both Buddhism and Bon. Associated with the fire element and space, the khyung is commonly propitiated to counteract diseases attributed to water spirits (klu). It is also the prime zoomorphic emblem of the profound philosophical and mystic tradition known as the Great Perfection (Rdzogs-chen).".....http://www.tibetarchaeology.com/january-2012/

...."The shang-shang is a special type of garuda, a musician, who plays a pair of cymbals as he flies." (Trungpa: 1975..pg 108)....

"The Bon religion has retained numerous accounts of the khyung set in the period before Buddhism swept over Tibet. Often these narratives have a Buddhist ring to them such as those describing the transformation of adepts into khyungs, a sign of their ultimate liberation. Moreover, tantric forms of the khyung in Bon (Me-ri and Ge-khod cycles) are replete with Buddhist-inspired imagery. The pentad of khyung that reside at Mount Tise (Kailash) in the Bon Mother Tantra (Ma-rgyud) ....."...http://www.tibetarchaeology.com/january-2012/

"The most celebrated ancestral khyung is said to have appeared in Zhang Zhung as the divine progenitor of the Khyungpo tribe.....The best known defender khyungs are in the form of divine mountains (lha-ri) and warrior spirits (dgra-lha). This type of khyung is thought to have been the ally of ancient adepts and kings. To this day, Tibetan spirit-mediums are said to have khyungs that watch over and aid them during trance ceremonies. The ubiquitous reach of the khyung as an ancestral totem and spirit comrade deeply influenced the material culture of ancient Tibet. The horns of the khyung are recorded as being the paramount symbol of sovereignty for the kings of Zhang Zhung. Ancient Bon priests are reputed to have worn robes and hats of khyung feathers and to have had magical instruments and armaments made from the body parts of these great birds. The khyung also lent its name to numerous toponyms in the Tibetan world. Perhaps the most famous of these is Khyunglung Ngulkhar, Zhang Zhung’s capital. So vital was the khyung that one Bon tradition claims it gave its old name (zhung [-zhag]) to Zhang Zhung. Finally, in this brief survey, mention must be made of the khyung’s archaic funerary function as a pyschopomp..."...http://www.tibetarchaeology.com/january-2012/

"Sound is like a Garuda dragon, like a thunderstorm." (Wangyal: 1993..pg 194)

..."the Garuda generates it own energy while in the egg, after its mother has made a nest in space." (Wangyal: 1993..pg 197)

..."depicted with two horns emanating flames with a 'wish fulfilling jewel between them." (Nebesky: 1975..pg 256)...

"When the white drala Khyung bird flew in the sky, white feathers fell like snow flakes and became 100,000 white soldiers, they were the werma defenders of the east." (Norbu: 1995..pg 59)...

"Chandragupta II was the first Gupta king to issue silver coins.....These coins were intended to replace the silver coinage of the Western Kshatrapas after Chandragupta II defeated them, and were modeled on the Kshatrapa coinage. The main difference was to replace the dynastic symbol of the Kshatrapas (the three-arched hill) by the dynastic symbol of the Guptas (the mythic eagle Garuda). ".....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chandragupta_II

"In the North, a Khyung with a jewel on its head." (Nebesky: 1956..pg 333)...

"In the Mahabharata, the Garuda assumes a fiery shape with a body as golden and bright as the rays of the sun. The Garuda drinks the Soma which is protected by fire." (Mackenzie: pg 346)...

"The Tibetans worshipped the khyung, mythological eagles, before they heard of the Indian Garuda." (Lopez: 1997..pg 257)...

Garuda...Indic king of birds

Khyung...Mythic Tibetan like the phoenix

"The Mithraic raven has a parallel in the Karsipta bird." (Campbell: 1968..pg 122)...

"The eagle was the bird of soverneignty (Zeus) whereas the raven was the bird of intelligence.(Apollo)"...(Campbell: 1968..pg 122)...

"In Ancient Persia, the Varegan longs for the termination of the night and flies up with joy at the break of dawn. The 'fore-seeing' bird (parodars)...the Kahrkatas (the golden necked vulture). The raven precedes the rising sun with a commanding message to Mithra...a special bearer of hvareno...the form in which the potency of the sky revealed itself.".(Campbell: 1968..pg 25)....vdd.18....15. Ahura Mazda answered: It is the Bird named Parodarsh which ill speaking people call Kahrkatas O holy Zarathushtra! the Bird that lifts up his voice against the mighty Ushah......

"The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Greek: γρύφων, grýphōn, or γρύπων, grýpōn, early form γρύψ, grýps; Latin: gryphus) is a legendary creature with the body, tail, and back legs of a lion; the head and wings of an eagle; and an eagle's talons as its front feet......the Griffin was an attribute of the Sun God Oetosyrus." (Rudenko: 1970..pg 287)...there is evidence of representations of griffins in Ancient Persian and Ancient Egyptian art as far back as 3,300 BC....

"On the cloak of Mithras is a raven, a messenger of the sun and the 1st level of initiation in the Mystery Religion of ancient Rome." (Meyer: 1987..pg 200)...

"Several solar symbols, such as the lion, the winged horse, and the griffin have been interpreted as symbols of Mithra." (Ackerman: 1938)...

Simurgh, the fabulous bird which nursed and protected Zal, the father of Rustam, lived on Mt Demavand......"Saena (Persian: Simurgh). the legendary bird. a great falcon." (Curtis: 1993)..Simurgh (pronounced /ˌsɪˈməːrg/) (Persian: سیمرغ‎), also spelled simorgh, simurg, simoorg or simourv, also known as Angha (Persian: عنقا‎), is the modern Persian name for a benevolent, mythical flying creature. The figure can be found in all periods of Greater Iranian art and literature..... The mythical bird is also found in the mythology of the Turkic peoples of Central Asia and is called Kerkés, Semrug, Semurg, Samran and Samruk..... In one legend, the simurgh was said to live 1,700 years before plunging itself into flames (much like the phoenix)..... The creature represented the union between the earth and the sky, serving as mediator and messenger between the two. The simurgh roosted in Gaokerena, the Hōm (Avestan: Haoma) Tree of Life, which stands in the middle of the world sea Vourukhasa. The Hōm is in addition the vehicle of farr(ah) (MP: khwarrah, Avestan: khvarenah, kavaēm kharēno) "[divine] glory" or "fortune".....The Simurgh made its most famous appearance in the Ferdowsi's epic Shahnameh (Book of Kings)....

Simurgh (pronounced /ˌsɪˈməːrg/) (Persian: سیمرغ‎), also spelled simorgh, simurg, simoorg or simourv, also known as Angha (Persian: عنقا‎), is the modern Persian name for a benevolent, mythical flying creature. The figure can be found in all periods of Greater Iranian art and literature, and is evident also in the iconography of medieval Armenia, the Byzantine empire, and other regions that were within the sphere of Persian cultural influence.[clarification needed] The mythical bird is also found in the mythology of the Turkic peoples of Central Asia and is called Kerkés, Semrug, Semurg, Samran and Samruk.....The name simurgh derives from Middle Persian Pahlavi sēnmurw (and earlier sēnmuruγ), also attested in Middle Persian Pāzand as sīna-mrū. The Middle Persian term derives in turn from Avestan mərəγō Saēnō "the bird Saēna", originally a raptor, likely an eagle, falcon or sparrowhawk, as can be deduced from the etymological cognate Sanskrit śyenaḥ "raptor, eagle, bird of prey" that also appears as a divine figure. Saēna is also a personal name which is root of the name. The most prestigious award given by Fajr International Film Festival, Iran's major annual film festival is called the Crystal Simorgh, after the mythical creature.

"Krishna's son Samba was afflicted with leprosy, which was cured after he worshiped Surya, Hinduism's god of the Sun. In response, he built a temple to Surya on the banks of the Chandrabhaga river, but no competent Brahmin could be found to take up the role of priest in the temple. So Samba sought help of Gauramukha, the adviser of the yadu chief, Ugrasena. Gauramukha responded with a suggestion that Samba go to Shakdvipa and invite their priests to worship Surya. Further, asked Samba, "tell me, oh Brahmin, what are the antecedents of these worshipers of the Sun?" To which Gauramukha replied... "The first of the Brahmins amidst the Shakhas was called 'Sujihva.' He had a daughter of the name Nikshubha, who so enamored Surya that she was impregnated by him. Thus she gave birth to Jarashabda who was the founding father of all the Maga-Acharya. They are distinguished by the sacred girdle called the Avyanga that they wear around their waist." And so Samba called on Krishna to send him Garuda, on whose back he then flew to Shakadwipa. He collected the Maga-Acharya, brought them back to India and installed them as priests of his Surya temple."........http://www.kavehfarrokh.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/zen_buddhism_and_persian_culture_v1.pdf

Garuda, the Vahana of Lord Vishnu.....Abode: the Ocean of milk (kṣīroda, kṣīradhi or Kshira Sagar) is the fifth from the center of the seven oceans that surround loka or directional space and separate it from aloka or non-directional space. It surrounds the continent known as Krauncha. In Hinduism, the devas, (gods) and asuras, (demons) worked together for a millennium to churn the ocean and release Amrita the nectar of immortal life. It is spoken of in the Samudra manthan chapter of the Puranas, a body of ancient Sanskrit legends.

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

John Hopkins.....Northern New Mexico….March 2013

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