Kroni ( ta, குறோணி) is a figure in

Ayyavazhi mythology Ayyavazhi mythology is the mythology of the South Indian Hindu denomination religious faith known as Ayyavazhi, which is officially considered a Hindu sect. The main source of Ayyavazhi mythology is the Ayyavazhi scripture, Akilathirattu Amm ...

. He is the primordial manifestation of

evil Evil, in a general sense, is defined as the opposite or absence of good. It can be an extremely broad concept, although in everyday usage it is often more narrowly used to talk about profound wickedness and against common good. It is general ...

, and manifests in various forms of evil, such as

Ravana Ravana (; , , ) is a rakshasa king of the island of Lanka, and the chief antagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' and its adaptations. In the ''Ramayana'', Ravana is described to be the eldest son of sage Vishrava and rakshasi Kaikesi. He a ...

and

Duryodhana Duryodhana ( sa, दुर्योधन, ) also known as Suyodhana, is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata.'' He was the eldest of the Kauravas, the hundred sons of the blind king Dhritarashtra and his queen Gandhari. Being ...

, in different ages or

yugas A ''yuga'', in Hinduism, is generally used to indicate an age of time. In the ''Rigveda'', a ''yuga'' refers to generations, a long period, a very brief period, or a yoke (joining of two things). In the ''Mahabharata'', the words ''yuga'' and ...

. To counteract and destroy the evil of Kroni's manifestations,

Mayon Mayon ( bcl, Bulkan Mayon; tl, Bulkang Mayon, ), also known as Mount Mayon and Mayon Volcano ( es, Monte Mayón, Volcán Mayón), is an active stratovolcano in the province of Albay in Bicol, Philippines. A popular tourist spot, it is renown ...

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

name for

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...

) incarnates as

Avatar Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearanc ...

s such as

Rama Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Bein ...

and

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...

. He seems to be more evil than the demon

Kali Kali (; sa, काली, ), also referred to as Mahakali, Bhadrakali, and Kalika ( sa, कालिका), is a Hinduism, Hindu goddess who is considered to be the goddess of ultimate power, time, destruction and change in Shaktism. In t ...

of the

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...

and

Kalki Purana The ''Kalki Purana'' (IAST: ''Kalki purāṇa'') is a Vaishnavism-tradition Hindu text about the tenth avatar of Vishnu named Kalki. The Sanskrit text was likely composed in Bengal during an era when the region was being ruled by the Bengal Sult ...

sharing similarities with

Lucifer Lucifer is one of various figures in folklore associated with the planet Venus. The entity's name was subsequently absorbed into Christianity as a name for the devil. Modern scholarship generally translates the term in the relevant Bible passage ...

Kroni in the Akilathirattu Ammanai

According to the

Akilathirattu Ammanai Akilathirattu Ammanai ( ta, அகிலத்திரட்டு அம்மானை; ''akilam'' ("world"), ''thirattu'' ("collection"), ''ammanai'' ("ballad")), also called Thiru Edu ("venerable book"), is the main religious text of the T ...

, the Ayyavazhi holy book, Kroni was born in the first of the Eight Yukams (Yuga (Sanskrit); Aeons ((English)) with multitudinous limbs each the size of a mountain, and was the first evil to be born in the Universe. He had a fire of ravenous hunger in his stomach, and he drank all the waters of the sea to quell it. When the water was insufficient, he then swallowed Kailayam (Kailash), the abode of

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

, and then proceeded to devour the entire Universe. Mayon, residing with Shiva in Kailayam, escaped promptly and undertook a

Tavam Tapas (Sanskrit: तपस्) is a variety of austere spiritual meditation practices in Indian religions. In Jainism, it means asceticism (austerities, body mortification); in Buddhism, it denotes spiritual practices including meditation and se ...

(''Tapas'' in Sanskrit, ''Penance'' in English) to get help from Shiva to destroy Kroni. Shiva granted the help, but made Mayon aware of the necessity of appearing in different forms for the successive six yukams in order to destroy the six fragments of Kroni. Being aware of the mission, Mayon sliced Kroni into six fragments and saved the Universe, and with that event the first Yukam ended.

Fragments of Kroni

The six fragments of Kroni were then born as evil spirits (or

Asuras Asuras (Sanskrit: असुर) are a class of beings in Indic religions. They are described as power-seeking clans related to the more benevolent Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhist context, the word is sometimes translated ...

) in six successive Yukams (aeons). In all the yukams Mayon had to incarnate in the world to destroy the evils. The six fragments were known as # Kuntomasali # Thillaimallalan and Mallosivakanan # Suraparppan Sinkamukasuran and Iraniyan #

Ravanan Ravana (; , , ) is a rakshasa king of the island of Lanka, and the chief antagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' and its adaptations. In the ''Ramayana'', Ravana is described to be the eldest son of sage Vishrava and rakshasi Kaikesi. He a ...

# Thuriyothanan and the Ninety-nine Brothers #

Kaliyan Kali (Kaliyan in Tamil) was the sixth fragment of the primordial manifestation of Kroni (evil) according to Akilathirattu, the source of Ayyavazhi mythology and the holy book of Ayyavazhi religion. Unlike other previous manifestations, Kali s ...

Kroni, the spirit of

Kali Yuga ''Kali Yuga'', in Hinduism, is the fourth and worst of the four ''yugas'' (world ages) in a ''Yuga Cycle'', preceded by '' Dvapara Yuga'' and followed by the next cycle's '' Krita (Satya) Yuga''. It is believed to be the present age, which is ...

, is said to be omnipresent in the present age, and this is one of the reasons why followers of Ayya Vazhi, like other Hindus, believe that the current yuga,

, is so degraded.

Philosophical view

Philosophically, Kroni is viewed as the

which prevents the

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

from attaining absolute bliss or knowledge. The six fragments are considered to be six evils found in the six chakras except

Sahasrara Sahasrara ( sa, सहस्रार, IAST: , en, "thousand-petalled", with many alternative names and spellings) or the crown chakra is considered the seventh primary chakra in some yoga traditions. Hatha yoga The Sahasrara is described ...

of the physical

human body The human body is the structure of a Human, human being. It is composed of many different types of Cell (biology), cells that together create Tissue (biology), tissues and subsequently organ systems. They ensure homeostasis and the life, viabi ...

. It is stated that every human being should overcome the qualities of the six fragments (ill effects) in order to attain divinity (

), the state of union with

God In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...

. But this view is often criticised by some followers because the

Akilam Akilathirattu Ammanai ( ta, அகிலத்திரட்டு அம்மானை; ''akilam'' ("world"), ''thirattu'' ("collection"), ''ammanai'' ("ballad")), also called Thiru Edu ("venerable book"), is the main religious text of the T ...

did not mention Kroni in direct relation to

Chakras Chakras (, ; sa , text=चक्र , translit=cakra , translit-std=IAST , lit=wheel, circle; pi, cakka) are various focal points used in a variety of ancient meditation practices, collectively denominated as Tantra, or the esoteric or ...

. As some believe that many philosophical concepts are symbolised indirectly as mythical figures in a story form in

, this view on Kroni is accepted during religious studies. ::::* Chakras :- The yugas assumed as chakras above, is one of the philosophical views and is not mentioned directly in Akilathirattu.

References

* G. Patrick, ''Religion and Subaltern Agency'', University of Madras, 2003 * Ari Sundara Mani, ''Akilathirattu Ammanai Parayana Urai'', Vaikundar Thirukkudumbam Publications, 2002. {{Ayyavazhi large Ayyavazhi mythology Demons Ayyavazhi philosophical concepts Destroyer gods Evil gods

Kroni in the Akilathirattu Ammanai

Fragments of Kroni

Philosophical view

See also

References