Lord Hayagriva is an avatar of Lord Vishnu, which Vishnu took to protect the Vedas from the demons. These demons stole the Vedas while Brahma was in a deep sleep. Missing Vedas made a scarce of knowledge in the Universe, and everyone was becoming ignorant. It was getting difficult to run the Universe without knowledge.
That is when the Devas approached Lord Vishnu and asked him to help. Hence Lord Vishnu took the avatar of Lord Hayagriva and restored the balance. Since that time, Hayagriva has been known as the lord of knowledge and wisdom.
On every Hayagriva Jayanthi, he is worshipped for his wisdom. Students come to pray to him and succeed in their academics. It is beneficial to chant the beej mantra of Lord Hayagriva as it helps a soul attain self-realization. Narada once requested wisdom, and Brahma taught him all the important Beej mantras.
‘Hlaum’ is the single syllable that is used in the beej mantra of lord Hayagriva. This syllable contains three alphabets h, l, and om.
Benefits And Importance Of The Hayagriva Mantra
The beej mantra is chanted to gain knowledge and wealth.
Those who chant this mantra become dear to lord Hayagriva and attain salvation from the cycle of life and death.
Dik-palas, kings, and nagas come under their rule.
It is the best mantra of all the beej mantras for ultimate wisdom.
It is considered the transcendental form of Lord Hayagriva Himself.
Significance Of Hayagriva Jayanti
Hayagriva Jayanti is the birthday of Lord Hayagriva. It was his responsibility to take the Vedas back from the demons and restore the balance of knowledge in the Universe. The day falls on the Purnima of the Shravan month every year. This year it will be celebrated on August 11, 2022.
The appearance of the lord is a half-human with the head of a horse. His complexion is pure white, and he dons white clothes. Lord Hayagriva sits on a white lotus, and his brilliance is unique. He has four hands in which he holds the books of knowledge and wisdom; in the other two hands, he holds a conch and discus. Those who receive his blessings reach new heights in their career and life.
Legends
Many legends related to Lord Hayagriva mention why Lord Vishnu had to take the avatar. In the Mahabharata and the Puranas, the incarnation is mentioned. One legend says that once there was a Hayagriva who was the son of Kashyapa Prajapati. Hayagriva performed severe penances for Goddess Durga, which pleased the Goddess. The Goddess appeared before Hayagriva and asked him his wish.
Hayagriva then asked the Goddess to make him unbeatable in the Universe. However, Goddess asked her to modify his wish; Hayagriva then asked her that another Hayagriva could only kill him. Goddess Durga granted him the boon and left.
As time went by, Hayagriva turned into a demon and developed pride. He started creating chaos in the world. All the Devas then approached Lord Vishnu to seek the solution to this problem. Then to satiate the words of Goddess Durga, Vishnu had to take the Hayagriva avatar to kill Hayagriva.
Hence they both went to the battlefield, and Vishnu was able to kill the demon Hayagriva.
There is another legend in which Vishnu took the Hayagriva avatar to recover the lost Vedas from the demons Madhu and Kaitabha. These demons stole the Vedas that Brahma used to run the Universe. Hence the avatar Hayagriva is associated with knowledge and wisdom since he took the Vedas back.
According to another legend, Vishnu was beheaded by his bow and severely injured. This was a time when Vishnu fell asleep while fighting the demons. However, he fell asleep on the bow that was raised. This was also when Devas were performing a yagna to which they invited the trinity. They went to Brahma and Shiva to invite them to the yagna. They then searched for Lord Vishnu but found him in a deep sleep.
All the Devas and Brahma, and Shiva gathered in front of Vishnu. No one wanted to wake up Vishnu from his deep sleep. Brahma then created an insect and asked it to cut the bow’s string so it would wake up the lord. The insect cut off the string, which made a horrible sound, and the string also took Vishnu’s head along.
This made everyone tremble when Vishnu’s head was no more. Brahma then arranged the head of a horse and attached it to the body of Vishnu. They later learned about the curse of Vishnu given by his consort Laxmi. Once Vishnu made fun of Laxmi on her face, upon which Laxmi cursed Vishnu.
Celebrate this Hayagreeva Jayanthi and receive the blessings of the lord in your life. Improve your knowledge and wisdom by praying to lord Hayagreeva and attain the path of enlightenment.
