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In Hindu ancient epic there were three elephants by the name Supratika. The foremost among them is listed as one of the Diggajas, each representing the eight quarters. The Hindu epic ''
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the s ...
'' describes two more elephants by the same name – an elephant that was an incarnation of a sage, and the one that belonged to
Bhagadatta Bhagadatta ( sa, भगदत्त) was the son of Narakasura, and the king of Pragjyotisha. Bhagadatta was born from a limb of the asura called Bāṣkala. He was a renowned warrior, and was known to be a great friend of Indra. When Arjuna emba ...
, the king of
Pragjyotisha Kamarupa (; also called Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa), an early state during the Classical period on the Indian subcontinent, was (along with Davaka) the first historical kingdom of Assam. Though Kamarupa prevailed from 350 to ...
.


Supratika (Diggaja)

The ''
Amarakosha The Amarakosha (Devanagari: अमरकोशः , IAST: ''Amarakośaḥ'' , ISO: ''Amarakōśaḥ'') is the popular name for ''Namalinganushasanam'' (Devanagari: नामलिङ्गानुशासनम् , IAST: ''Nāmaliṅgānuś ...
'', a thesaurus of Sanskrit, mentions the names of eight male elephants, that bear the world together, as
Airavata Indra (alias Sakra) and Shachi riding the five-headed Divine Elephant Airavata, Folio from a Jain text, Panch Kalyanaka">Shachi.html" ;"title="Indra (alias Sakra) and Shachi">Indra (alias Sakra) and Shachi riding the five-headed Divine Elepha ...
, Pundarika, Vamana, Kumunda, Anjana, Pushpa-danta, Sarva-bhauma, and Supratika. Supratika represents the north-east direction, the quarter of
Soma Soma may refer to: Businesses and brands * SOMA (architects), a New York–based firm of architects * Soma (company), a company that designs eco-friendly water filtration systems * SOMA Fabrications, a builder of bicycle frames and other bicycle ...
. Anjanavati is believed to be the wife of Supratika.


Vibhvasu and Supratik

The story about two brothers – Vibhavasu and Supratik – is told in the Adi Parva of the ''
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the s ...
''. The elder one, Vibhavasu, was susceptible to anger, while the younger one, Supratik, was seeking to partition their wealth. One day both brothers were involved in a quarrel with each other. In the end, Vibhavasu then cursed Supratik saying, he will take birth as an elephant in the next life. In return, Supratik cursed his brother saying, he will be born as a tortoise. Anger and greed caused them to be born as animals in their next birth. Their hostility continues in their next birth as well. One day these two animals were seized by
Garuda Garuda (Sanskrit: ; Pāli: ; Vedic Sanskrit: गरुळ Garuḷa) is a Hindu demigod and divine creature mentioned in the Hindu, Buddhist and Jain faiths. He is primarily depicted as the mount (''vahana'') of the Hindu god Vishnu. Garuda ...
, who took them in his claws to a mountain and ate them. Garuda killed them on the advice of his father
Kashyapa Kashyapa ( sa, कश्यप}, ) is a revered Vedic sage of Hinduism., Quote: "Kasyapa (Rudra),(Vedic Seer)..." He is one of the Saptarishis, the seven ancient sages of the ''Rigveda''. Kashyapa is the most ancient and venerated rishi, ...
.


Supratika (Bhagadatta's elephant)

On the twelfth day of the Kurukshetra War, Duryodhana sent a large elephant division against Bhima. Bhima killed all the elephants with his mace. This created a havoc among the Kaurava army and they fled for their life in all directions. Angered by this, the king of
Pragjyotisha Kamarupa (; also called Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa), an early state during the Classical period on the Indian subcontinent, was (along with Davaka) the first historical kingdom of Assam. Though Kamarupa prevailed from 350 to ...
,
Bhagadatta Bhagadatta ( sa, भगदत्त) was the son of Narakasura, and the king of Pragjyotisha. Bhagadatta was born from a limb of the asura called Bāṣkala. He was a renowned warrior, and was known to be a great friend of Indra. When Arjuna emba ...
, seated on Supratika, charged against Bhima. The elephant rushed forward and crushed Bhima's chariot into pieces, killing his charioteer and horses. But Bhima escaped destruction by jumping off his chariot. He got underneath the elephant and severed its vital points causing exceeding pain. Enraged at this, the elephant got mad and tried to throw him off. In an instant, it caught Bhima with its trunk and was about to crush him under the knees. But Bhima managed to escape from its hold and again got underneath the elephant and in between its limbs and started attacking it. Bhima was hopeful that another elephant from the
Pandava The Pandavas (Sanskrit: पाण्डव, IAST: Pāṇḍava) refers to the five legendary brothers— Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva—who are the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. They are acknowledge ...
side would come for his rescue in the meanwhile. But when he got underneath the elephant for the second time, hiding in between its legs, the
Kaurava ''Kaurava'' is a Sanskrit term which refers to descendants of Kuru, a legendary king of India who is the ancestor of many of the characters of the epic ''Mahabharata''. Usually, the term is used for the 100 sons of King Dhritarashtra and his wi ...
army thought he had been slain by the beast.
Yudhishthira ''Yudhishthira'' (Sanskrit: युधिष्ठिर, IAST: ''Yudhiṣṭhira'') is the eldest among the five Pandava brothers. He is mentioned in the ancient epic Mahabharata. He was sired by King Pandu of the Kuru Dynasty and his firs ...
, Bhima's elder brother, was struck in grief and urged his forces to destroy Bhagadatta and Supratika. The king of Dasarna charged against them. In the great battle that took place between Supratika and Dasarna's elephant, Supratika crushed Dasarna's elephant to death. Utilising his time, Bhima emerged from beneath Supratika and fled. The Pandava army was relieved when they saw Bhima alive. Supratika was later killed the same day, by Arjuna's arrows. Arjuna, a while later, also killed Bhagadutta.


References

{{Reflist, 30em Hindu legendary creatures Mythological elephants Elephants in Indian culture Elephants in Hinduism