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Viśvarūpa

1931; Cambridge University Press; Volume: 6; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1017/s0041977x00092971

1474-0699

Kasten Rünnow,

Death, Funerary Practices, and Mourning

Viśvarūpa Tvāṣṭra, the son of Tvaṣṭar, is the name of a certain demon of whom we hear in the Rig-Veda and elsewhere. Indra, the demon-hunter par préférence , fought with him and killed him ; but his chief adversary no doubt was originally Trita ሀptya, an old Aryan water-god, whose deeds and fame have slowly been usurped by the all-overshadowing Indra. Reasons which cannot here be dwelt upon, as I have already explained them elsewhere, 2 make it probable that Viśvarūpa was originally a serpent deity of the class which was later on generally styled nāgas . We shall here try to find out something more definite concerning his original surroundings and sphere of activity.