About
Pingala — Celestial Female Elephant, Consort of Vamana
Pingala · Pingalaa
Pingala is the third of the eight female celestial elephants who are the consorts and siblings of the Ashtadiggajas. She is a daughter of Iravati, who is the daughter of Bhadramada, one of the ten daughters of Krodhavarsha, a wife of Kashyapa the great progenitor sage. Pingala is paired with Vamana, the third of the eight male Ashtadiggajas and guardian of the southern direction. She is named in the Matanga-Lila and in related enumerations. No individual narrative episodes are recorded for Pingala in the primary sources beyond her identity and lineage.
✦ The Name
Pingala in Sanskrit denotes a golden-brown, tawny, or reddish-yellow colour, akin to the colour of gold or of the sun. The name is shared by several figures in the Hindu tradition — including a celebrated courtesan whose story is told in the Bhagavata Purana as an illustration of detachment, and one of the two principal nadis or subtle channels in the yogic body — but in the context of the dik-gaja consorts it designates this specific celestial female elephant. The name may indicate a golden or tawny colouring distinguishing her from the other female elephants of the group.
✦ Lineage
- Paternal great-grandfather: Kashyapa — the foremost progenitor sage
- Paternal great-grandmother: Krodhavarsha — daughter of Daksha, wife of Kashyapa
- Grandmother: Bhadramada — one of the ten daughters of Krodhavarsha
- Mother: Iravati — daughter of Bhadramada; mother of all sixteen dik-gaja elephants
- Siblings (female): Abhramu, Kapila, Anupama, Tamrakarni, Shubhradanti, Angana, and Anjanavati
- Siblings (male): Airavata, Pundarika, Vamana, Kumuda, Anjana, Pushpadanta, Sarvabhauma, and Supratika
- Consort: Vamana — the third of the eight male Ashtadiggajas, guardian of the southern direction
✦ References
- Primary Sources
- Matanga-Lila (attributed to Nilakantha): Names Pingala as the third of the eight female dik-gaja elephants and records her pairing with Vamana.
- Agni Purana: Includes enumerations of the female dik-gaja consorts.
- Secondary Sources
- Mani, Vettam. Puranic Encyclopaedia. Motilal Banarsidass, 1975: Brief reference to Pingala in the context of the dik-gaja consort enumerations, noting the distinction from other bearers of this name.