Vritra is the son of Tvashta. When Vishwarupa, the son of Tvashta, was slain by Indra, Tvashta performed a sacrifice with the intention of obtaining a son who could slay the King of Gods. Due to a mispronunciation, he instead obtained a son who would be slain by Indra instead. This son was Vritra.
Rig Veda Hymn
किम उ षविद अस्मै निविदो भनन्तेन्द्रस्यावद्यं दिधिषन्त आपः |
ममैतान पुत्रो महता वधेन वर्त्रं जघन्वां अस्र्जद वि सिन्धून ||
kim u ṣvid asmai nivido bhanantendrasyāvadyaṃ didhiṣanta āpaḥ |
mamaitān putro mahatā vadhena vṛtraṃ jaghanvāṃ asṛjad vi sindhūn ||
Vitra is an asura meaning posses all qualities of devas or celestial beings but more of materialistic in nature and enemies of Suras. So he is arch enemy of Indra. He is depicted as Snake or Dragon.
Vedic version
According to the Rig Veda, Vritra kept the waters of the world captive until he was killed by Indra, who destroyed all the ninety-nine fortresses of Vritra (although the fortresses are sometimes attributed to Sambara) before liberating the imprisoned rivers. The combat began soon after Indra was born, and he had drunk a large volume of Soma at Tvashtri's house to empower him before facing Vritra. Tvashtri fashioned the thunderbolt (Vajrayudha) for Indra, and Vishnu, when asked to do so by Indra, made space for the battle by taking the three great strides for which he became famous. Vritra broke Indra's two jaws during the battle, but was then thrown down by the latter and, in falling, crushed the fortresses that had already been shattered. For this feat, Indra became known as Vritrahan "slayer of Vritra" and also as "slayer of the first-born of dragons". Vritra's mother, Danu (who was also the mother of the Danava race of Asuras), was then attacked and defeated by Indra with his thunderbolt. In one of the versions of the story, three Asuras - Varuna, Soma and Agni - were coaxed by Indra into aiding him in the fight against Vritra whereas before they had been on the side of the demon (whom they called "Father").
In one verse of a Rig-Vedic hymn eulogizing Sarasvati, the latter is credited with the slaying of Vritra. Sarasvati as taking the life-force of Vritra could be an analogy referring to the goddess being the personification of a river. In Vedic times, the Sarasvati was main river channeling the Himalayan melt-waters to the ocean.
Puranic & later versions
In a later version of the myth, Vritra was created by Tvashtri to avenge the killing of his son by Indra, known as Trisiras or Visvarupa. Vritra won the battle and swallowed Indra, but the other gods forced him to vomit Indra out. The battle continued and Indra was eventually forced to flee. Vishnu and the rishis brokered a truce, with Indra swearing that he would not attack Vritra with anything made of metal, wood or stone, nor anything that was dry or wet, or during the day or the night. Indra used the foam (which Vishnu had entered to ensure victory) from the waves of the ocean to kill him at twilight. However ,in some places, Hindu scriptures also recognize Vritra as a bhakta of Vishnu who was slain only due to his failure to live piously and without aggression.
This story runs thus:
Vritra (a brahmin in this version) became the head of the Asuras (portrayed as inherently demonic here, as opposed to the Vedic version in which they can be gods or demons). He renounced his dharma – duty – to do good unto others and turned to violence, battling with the devas. Eventually, he gained the upper hand and the Devas were frightened of his evil might. Led by Indra, they approached Lord Vishnu for help. He told them that Vritra could not be destroyed by ordinary means, revealing that only a weapon made from the bones of a sage could slay him. When the deities revealed their doubts about the likelihood of any ascetic donating his body, Vishnu directed them to approach the sage (Rishi) Dadichi. When approached by the gods, Dadhichi gladly gave up his bones for the cause of the good, stating that it would be better for his bones to help them attain victory than to rot in the ground. The Devas collected the bones and Indra crafted the Vajrayudha from them. When they engaged Vritra again, the battle lasted for 360 days before the brahmin breathed his last.
Vritra was one of the asuras, perhaps the most powerful of them all. He was a dragon or serpent who was said to be so huge that his coils surrounded mountains, and his head touched the sky. He was the bringer of drought. The world became a wasteland due to draught. In simplest form, Vrtra is a dragon that imprisoned the waters of the world. The major gods such as Varuna, Mitra and other Vedic deities were powerless against this dragon. It was only Indra, with the help of Vishnu, who had the courage to confront and slay Vrtra and thereby release the waters for the benefit of humankind.
Why did Indra allow the dragon to obstruct the waters? Indra did not exist then. The Rig Veda conveys that Indra was born after Vrtra had gained inexorable control over the waters. That immediately after being born, he obtains his weapon – the thunderbolt, drinks copious quantities of soma and with the aid of Vishnu, slays the dragon. In a distant land, Vritra hid in his fortress, hoarding his treasure so that the world drew ever more parched. Finally, Indra, took it upon himself to attack the demon and release the waters.
The Inner Meaning
In Vedas, Indra is the most powerful God. He represents the Mind and controls all aspects of the body. The eternal divine knowledge in each one of us is hidden deep inside our layers of conscience. Imagine it is like a coiled powerful snake which resembles our intestines, is blocking all the Vedic knowledge in the form of Ganga or Saraswathi or Water like a bridge inside us. Thus keeping under the tight control of materialistic Maya. Vritra has 108 fortresses and in each he, hoarded all treasures like cows(Eternal ray of Light), Soma or Bliss, Scriptures, Vishnu Knowledge etc.
A human being with no quest for divine eternal knowledge, not interested in knowing SELF, not realizing Brahmman and more over not pursing Maha Vishnu’s darshan and blessing, is under the tight control of Maya and Vritra. To realize true nature of an atma and also to attain Vishnu, the Vritra dragon must be slained and eternal rivers Ganga and Saraswathi must be released. This is the toughest stage of yogic journey.
Indra was born in the sense, an eternal divine Agni or Fire is lit inside me. Now the quest to pursue Vishnu intensifies. This agni increases day by day and attains magnificent form. My mind or Indra struggles many times to kill Vritra, he chases me away. I was defeated many times. With no hope, surrender to Vishnu. In meditation, straight spine and head, generates eternal brilliant energy, which is called Vajrayudham which is compared to the Lightening on earth. Imagine the power of it. Vajrayudham is presented to my Indra or Mind by Maha Vishnu, which is much much more powerful than lightening on earth. Indra with Vajrayudham, slains the Vritra into peaces and releases eternal knowledge. As a Yogi I see darshen of Maha Vishnu and attains enlightenment. The eternal divine knowledge as Ganga and Saraswathi flows in me freely.
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