Iravan, aka Aravan, was the son of Arjuna and the Naga princess Ulupi, who was killed in the Kurukshetra battle by Kauravas, but per some folklore, he sacrificed his life to the Goddess Kali to ensure the victory of Pandavas in the war against Kauravas. He is also the god of the transgender (male-to-female) community in India. Besides the Mahabharata, his references are in the Vishnu Purana and the Bhagavata Purana.
Meaning of the Word Iravan and Aravan:
Iravan means ruler, king of the ocean, filled with the sea. The Sanskrit meaning of Aravan is “envious, hostile, or not liberal”.
According to the Monier Williams Sanskrit–English Dictionary (1899), the name Iravan, also spelled Irawan, is formed from the root Iravat, also spelled Irawat. In turn, the root Iravat is derived from Irā, closely linked with Iḍā – meaning “possessing food”, “endowed with provisions” or, by extension, “comfortable” (as used in the Mahabharata and the Rig and Atharva Vedic scriptures). Alf Hiltebeitel, a professor of religion at George Washington University, suggests that the Sanskrit name Iravan or Iravant is derived from Iḍā-vant, “one who possessed Iḍā”. The French Indologist Madeleine Biardeau describes religious use of the word Iḍā as a reference to an “oblationary substance consumed by the participants from which comes all fecundity of the sacrifice”. Based on this definition, Biardeau concludes that Iravant means sacrificial victim in the Mahabharata. Iḍā is also used elsewhere to denote a substance that Devas (demi-gods) and Asuras (demons) vie for.
Different Names of Iravan:
1. Aravan.
2. Koothandavara.
3. Iravat.
4. Iravant.
The Birth of Iravan:
Background:
When the five Pandavas married Draupadi, they established a rule that when one of them would sit with Draupadi, any of the other four who would see that one must retire into the forest for twelve years, passing his days as a celibate. One day, some robbers stole the cattle of a Brahmin, and while they were carrying them away, the Brahmin went to the Pandavas and asked for help. Arjuna decided to help him, but his weapons were kept in a room where Yudhishthira was enjoying the company of Draupadi. Therefore, Arjuna was forced to enter the room and take out the weapons to help the Brahmin. This way, he broke the rule and was punished for a 12-year retirement in the forest.
Arjuna Meets Ulupi:
While journeying from place to place, Arjuna arrived at the source of the Ganges and decided to settle there for a while. One day, to perform ablution, he entered the Ganges water when he was dragged into the water by Ulupi, the Naga princess, who was overwhelmed by sexual desire. She expressed her desire to him, but he denied it, saying he was supposed to be celibate for the twelve years of his exile. Ulupi then threatened to kill herself if he did not complete her desire. Therefore, instead of being responsible for the death of a woman, Arjuna preferred to break his celibacy vow and spend a night with her in her mansion. The next morning, after saying goodbye to Ulupi, he continued his journey. After this, Ulupi got pregnant and gave birth to Iravan.
Story of Iravan:
There are many different versions of the Iravan story. One is per the Mahabharata, and the other is per the South Indian scriptures and folklore.
Mahabharata:
Chapter 8 of Bhishma Parva in the Mahabharata is dedicated to Aravan.
Aravan grew up with his mother in the Nagas region, and when he heard that Arjuna had gone to the heavenly planets, he went there to see him. Approaching his father, he said, “I am Iravan, your son by Ulupi.” Arjuna then embraced Iravan, and they spent much time together. When Iravan left the heavenly planets, Arjuna requested, “When the great battle takes place, I will require your assistance.” Replying to his father, Iravan promised, “When I receive your word, I will come to help you.”
Now that the battle had begun, Aravan came to Kurukshetra with many celestial horses. These horses had the power to travel above ground and to trample oncoming soldiers and horsemen. During the general engagement of the day, Iravan was destroying the enemy lines and thinning them out. Coming up to challenge him were the younger brothers of Shakuni whose names were Gaya, Gavaksha, Vrishava, Charmavat, Arjava, and Suka. They came upon him, supported by their divisions of troops.
The Gandhara soldiers, who were anxious for battle, began to destroy the defense lines of the Pandavas. Iravan ordered his men to challenge them, and thus a great battle began. Gradually Aravan’s divisions gained the upper hand, and Shakuni’s younger brothers were incensed. They assaulted him on the front lines. Confident of conquering Arjuna’s son, they released many lances and arrows, finding their mark.
Aravan was hit in many places with those weapons. Removing the lances, he returned them forcefully at Shakuni’s brothers. He then got down from his chariot, holding a sword and shield. Shakuni’s brothers surrounded him trying to take him captive. When they came close, he cut off their right and left arms and mangled their bodies. Thus deprived of their lives, they fell from their chariots. Only Vrishava, lacerated by many weapons, survived and escaped with his life.
Seeing the slaughter of Shakuni’s brothers, Duryodhana ordered the Rakshasa prince, Alambhusha, to kill Iravan. Following Duryodhana’s order, Alambusha began displaying his mystic illusions. He created many powerful horses ridden by fierce Rakshasas carrying spears and battleaxes. They numbered two thousand and came upon Iravan swiftly. However, they were soon vanquished by Arjuna’s son. Alambusha then opposed Aravan, releasing his blood-sucking arrows. Iravan cut his arrows and bow to pieces when he got close enough. Seeing his bow cut, he rose into the air and displayed his mystic illusions. Iravan also rose into the sky and began to fight with the mystic Rakshasa.
He severed his arms and hacked at his body. However, the Rakshasa produced more arms by the dint of his mystic power. Aravan repeatedly cut him with his battleaxe and caused him to bleed profusely. Alambusha then expanded his form and tried to capture Iravan, but Iravan also produced mystic illusions that baffled Alambusha. A celestial serpent from his mother’s side came to Iravan’s aid. It assumed a colossal form like Lord Ananta. Producing many Nagas, they assaulted the huge Rakshasa. While being attacked, Alambusha momentarily reflected and then immediately assumed a form like Garuda and devoured those mystic Nagas. Seeing the celestial serpent baffled, Iravan was bewildered. While in that state, Alambusha cut off Iravan’s head with his mighty sword. When Arjuna’s son was slain, the Kaurava army appeared overjoyed, and encouraged in this way, they began to overthrow the battle lines of their enemy.
Alambusha was later killed by Ghatatkocha, the cousin of Iravan, thus avenging his death.
Popular Version Based on Folklore:
Even after the seven days of the Kurukshetra War, no side seemed to be winning. Therefore, Lord Krishna decided that a human sacrifice of a person bearing 36 auspicious signs must be made to please the war goddess Kali. At that time, only three warriors on the Pandavas ’ side possessed those signs. Those were Arjuna, Krishna, and Iravan.
Among them, only Aravan was expendable. Therefore, Lord Krishna convinced him to sacrifice himself for the sake of the greater cause. Iravan was a great warrior and had no problem with that, but he was unmarried and did not want to die a bachelor. Hence, he put forth his wish before Lord Krishna, which was to marry before his death.
But Pandavas could not find a woman who would be his wife for a night and spend the rest of her life as a widow. Therefore, Lord Krishna took the form of Mohini and married Iravan. They spent a night together. The next day, Iravan sacrificed himself before Goddess Kali, thus ensuring the victory of the Pandavas.
The Tamil Versions of Iravan’s Story:
In the Tamil tradition also, there are different versions of this story. The first account of this story is in the Parata Venpa, the oldest survived Tamil version of the Mahabharata. Popular folklore also mentions the same story with some variations.
Parata Venpa Version:
According to this version, there was a ritual called Kalapalli at the time of the Mahabharata in which the most valiant warrior was sacrificed before the Goddess Kali to ensure the victory of that side. Duryodhana approached Aravan and convinced him to sacrifice himself for the Kauravas’ side.
When Lord Krishna heard about Duryodhana’s plan, he approached Yudhishthira first and made Kalapalli a part of the “weapon-worship” ritual. Then he approached Iravan and convinced him to sacrifice himself for the Pandavas’ side. Iravan agreed but told Lord Krishna about his commitment to Duryodhana.
To solve this problem, Lord Krishna tricked the Sun god and the Moon-god to coordinate their movements so that the day of the new moon would fall one day earlier. This allowed Iravan to make the initial sacrifice of flesh on behalf of the Pandavas, only making the rest-offering on behalf of Duryodhana the following day, yet fulfilling his promise to Duryodhana by doing so.
Per the Parata Venpa version, Aravan asked Lord Krishna to grant him the boon of heroic death on the battlefield. (It seems contradictory to the above story because if Iravan sacrificed himself before the goddess Kali, then how did he die a heroic death?)
Kuttavantar and Draupadi Cult Version:
These two versions are similar to Parata Venpa with slight variations. In these, Lord Krishna granted Aravan two boons. The second boon that Iravan asked for was to see the entire 18-day war. Therefore, even after the death of Iravan, his head was alive, and Lord Krishna put it in a place where Iravan could see the entire war. This part of the story is similar to that of Barbarika.
Per the folk versions, there is a third boon, similar to the popular version mentioned above, in which Lord Krishna married Iravan for a night.
Indonesian Version:
Bambang Irawan (Iravan) from Ulupi. He marries Titisari, Kresna’s other daughter. He becomes the ruler of the kingdom of Rencang Kencana and is then called Prabu Gambir Anom. Both Arjuna and Duryodhana want their own son to marry Krishna’s daughter, Titisari. The plot pits the houses of the Pandavas and the Kauravas against each other, with Krishna in the middle. To complicate matters further, Krishna’s eldest daughter, Siti Sendari, has been separated from Abhimanyu due to the family feud. Into this already complex situation steps the evil ogre king Barandjana. An overwhelming passion for the same young maiden consumes him.
Fearing that Krishna would laugh at him if he sued for marriage, the ogre king decides to steal the girl and make her his bride. The resultant confusion permits Siti Sendari to manipulate events. She succeeds in winning her sister’s hand for Iravan and reunites herself with her husband, Abhimanyu. In the end, both Duryodhana and the ogre king are defeated. The real heroine in this play is Siti Sundari, who uses intelligence and guile to bring about a happy ending. Iravan is killed in a duel in Bharatayuddha by his enormous and strong enemy, a giant called Kalasrenggi.
Iravan Worship:
The worship of Iravan is not common among Hindus, but some cults, especially in South India, worship him. He is also the god of some transgender communities in India.
Aravan’s Kuttantavar Form:
After the war, the Pandavas started arguing about who was responsible for winning the war. To answer this question, Lord Krishna asked Aravan, who witnessed the entire war, about his opinion. Iravan replied that he could see only two things the entire time; Lord Krishna’s discus decapitating the heads of the enemies and his conch shell collecting their blood.
Upon hearing this, Bhima got angry with Iravan and attacked him. But before he could wound him, Lord Krishna ordered Iravan’s head to be dropped in the river Caraparika, where he assumed the form of a child. The king of Chandragiri later found the child. Because the child cried “kuva kuva” when he picked him up, the location was named Kuvakkam, and the child was named Carapalan.
The child grew up and killed a demon called Kuttacuran and got the name Kuttantavar.
Koovagam Festival:
Every year in the Chaitra month of the Hindu calendar, thousands of transgenders (mainly male to a female) across the world gather in a small village named Koovagam in Tamil Nadu for 18 days to celebrate Koovagam Festival. It takes place at Shri Koothandavar Temple, which is dedicated to Iravan. The festival lasts for 18 days.
For the first 16 days, many activities like dancing, singing, beauty contests, etc., are organized. Some NGOs run AIDS awareness programs. On the 17th day, the transgenders dress as brides and marry Aravan. A grand celebration is performed throughout the night. The next morning, that is the 18th and the last day of the festival, the transgenders wear white sarees and mourn the death of their husband, Aravan.
Because Lord Krishna changed his sex for a night and became a female to marry Iravan, the transgenders relate themselves to him.
Iravan Temples:
1. Sri Iravan Temple:
JM6C+GJP, Panangattiri, Kerala 678506.
2. Aravan Temple:
Agraharam, Singanallur, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu 641005, India.
3. Shri Koothandavar Temple.
Koovagam, Ulundurpet Taluk, Villupuram District, Koovagam, Tamil Nadu 606102.
4. Iravan Temple in Pillaiyarkuppam, Pondicheri.
Iconography:
Iravan is generally worshipped in the form of a severed head. This head has a pointed crown on the top with cobra heads sprouting through the crown or a snake emerging from behind the crown. It has two big canines coming out of its mouth, two big angry-looking eyes, and a big mustache. It wears a Vaishnava Tilaka on the forehead and earrings in its big ears. At first glance, it looks like the head of a Rakshasa.
These heads are generally made of wood and are portable. Iravan’s heads are commonly found in Draupadi temples. The worship of both Draupadi and Iravan is prevalent mainly in South India. A whole idol of Iravan in the Koovagam temple does not have protruding canines.
Image: By Robert Heng ( licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic)