Garuda's Slavery and Hunger
When Vinata's second egg hatched after 500 years, Garuda was born. He is also called Garudmantha, a man with wings.
Seeing him so powerful, Kadru and her snakes made him a slave too. Garuda was asked to carry snakes to far-off places.
Once, snakes asked Garuda to carry them to Ramanaka, a picturesque island, deep inside the ocean. After a while, they asked him to carry them to a different place.
Garuda felt humiliated and felt he was wasting his time and energy on useless acts. He asked the snakes how he could get rid of this slavery. The snakes promptly asked him to procure nectar from heaven, a task too difficult to achieve.
Meanwhile, Garuda felt hungry and asked his mother how he could get food. Vinata told him to feed on Nishadas, forest dwellers residing on a far-off island. She cautioned him not to trouble Vedic Brahmanas. As directed, Garuda ate his food, but his hunger was not satisfied.
He approached his father, Sage Kashyapa, to help him get food. The Sage said to feed on an elephant and a tortoise residing in a nearby lake. These species constantly quarrel with each other and are of no use to anyone. They were born as siblings in their previous birth and cursed each other over property issues.
As directed, Garuda caught hold of the elephant and tortoise by his claws and was trying to find a suitable place to rest and eat. He went to Mount Meru, and upon seeing a huge elephant, the divine trees begged to spare them. A Banyan tree agreed to let Garuda place the feeds on its branch.
When Garuda was about to place the feeds, he saw Vaikali Sages meditating upside down on the branches of the tree. Vaikali sages are too tiny, a size equivalent to the upper portion of the thumb, but are considered very powerful.
Garuda took the branch but didn’t want to disturb the sages. Holding the branches delicately in his mouth, he came to his father. Seeing his son in a precarious situation, Sage Kashyapa politely requested Vaikali sages to move towards the Himalayas. The sages agreed and went away.
Garuda took his feed to a deserted place and consumed them. He gained sufficient strength. Sage Kashyapa blessed his son in his mission of bringing nectar from heaven.
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