Garuda

A mythical bird, often portrayed as an
Indian kite or eagle. All of the Hindu
deities have animal “vehicles,” who are
their symbols and their associates.
Garuda is considered the vehicle for the
god Vishnu. As Vishnu’s vehicle, Garuda
reflects some of the protective, lifeaffirming qualities associated with
Vishnu. Garuda is the son of the sage
Kashyapa and the divine maiden Vinata.
The most famous story associated with
Garuda explains the proverbial antipathy
between eagles and snakes. Vinata has
given birth to a line of eagles, whereas
her sister Kadru has engendered a line of
serpents. One day the sisters get into an
argument about the tail color of a certain
celestial horse—Vinata argues that it is
white and Kadru asserts that it is black.
They finally agree that the person who is
wrong will become a slave to the other. To
ensure her victory, Kadru persuades a
number of her children to hang from the
back of the horse, which from a distance
makes the white tail appear to be black.
When Vinata sees the black snakes, she
accepts her defeat and has to serve Kadru
under extremely harsh conditions for
many years. When Garuda learns what
has happened, he embarks on an endless
program of killing snakes.