imported>Certes: Disambiguating links to Garga (link changed to Garga (sage)) using DisamAssist.

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Disambiguating links to Garga (link changed to Garga (sage)) using DisamAssist.

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In [[Hinduism]] and [[Jainism]], '''Sāṁvartaka''' is a divine force or power normally used by the deity [[Indra]]. Described as being a cloud of energy or fire, the force is used to destroy or despoil that which displeases Indra. The force is referenced to in Hindu and [[Jainism|Jainist]] texts. Samvartaka is also strongly associated with comets.<ref name=":0" />

== Description ==
In Hinduism and Jainism, samvartaka is a force primarily wielded by the god Indra.<ref name=":1" /> However, some texts portray the force as being wielded by deities other than Indra. Regardless of caller or wielder, the force is portrayed as being incredibly destructive.<ref name=":2" />

=== Instances of use ===
In the epic [[Vana Parva]], Indra calls forth samvartaka to settle a dispute between himself and [[Krishna]]. In the epic, a jealous and prideful Indra sends the cloud to flood the lands of [[Vrindavan]]; this is stopped by the intervention of Krishna, who lifts the [[Govardhan Hill]] to shield the land from the devastating rain the cloud brings.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=htVhBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT250&lpg=PT250&dq=Twenty-fifth+Chapter+of+K%E1%B9%9B%E1%B9%A3%E1%B9%87a&source=bl&ots=5PLIIFaMzH&sig=hjHbk0R2uGUBuyy5K2gPedKclm0&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjanpuJrrveAhVPTt8KHVdwAuQQ6AEwAnoECAUQAQ#v=onepage&q=Twenty-fifth%20Chapter%20of%20K%E1%B9%9B%E1%B9%A3%E1%B9%87a&f=false|title=Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead|last=Prabhupada|first=His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami|publisher=The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust|isbn=9789171495587|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://krsnabook.com/ch25.html|title=Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead|website=krsnabook.com|access-date=2018-11-04}}</ref>

In Book 3 of the Vana Parva, the hero [[Yudhishthira]] prays to the sun, asking the celestial body to "let the fire Samvartaka born of thy wrath consumeth the three worlds and existence alone" upon the [[End of the world (religion)|dissolution of the universe]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2d5KCAAAQBAJ&pg=PT44&lpg=PT44&dq=samvartaka+cloud&source=bl&ots=UpMApYcpSH&sig=MuXjehl6VSUe8FRdGDxqSRy5P3E&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjFnJzMpLveAhUkWN8KHZoUDBMQ6AEwDHoECAMQAQ#v=onepage&q=samvartaka%20cloud&f=false|title=Mahabharata: A Tribute of Four Essays|last=Bandyopadhyay|first=Indrajit|date=2013-02-20|publisher=Lulu Press, Inc|isbn=9781105118654|language=en}}</ref> Similarly, the sage [[Markandeya]] describes to Yudhishthira how samvartaka, spread by an inauspicious wind, will consume the earth.<ref name=":2" />

In another text, a [[Rudra]] (storm god) is able to release and command samvartaka to subdue a great bull that has threatened to drink dry the oceans. In this story, samvartaka is depicted as a raging fire.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=wN8zDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR5&dq=Samvartaka&ots=CctnTmNtSN&sig=sU0WvjczQPEkGVeeMODf4vgkGnk#v=onepage&q=Samvartaka&f=false|title=The Skandapurāṇa Volume IIb: Adhyāyas 31-52. The Vāhana and Naraka Cycles|date=2014-05-22|publisher=BRILL|isbn=9789004277137|language=en}}</ref>

In the works of [[Garga (sage)|Garga]], an influential [[Vedas|Vedic]] sage in [[History of India|ancient India]], samvartaka is described as a devastating, energetic force that will arrive as one of two comets. In the sage's words, "Like the stellar wheel rotating (repeating) in the sky, the comet-wheel also repeats in the sky. At the end of 1000 years, at the end of the comet strand, two comets—Dhūma and Samvartaka—appear together."<ref name=":0" /> Garga writes that these twin comets will cause [[Earthquake|earthquakes]] and meteorite showers that will sunder the mountains and the oceans. He notes that samvartaka will be the more devastating of the two, as it will be responsible for "[[wikiwikiweb:cinder|reducing]]" the world.<ref name=":0">A Profile of Indian Astronomy before the Siddhāntic Period Prof. Dr. R. N. Iyengar Raja Ramanna Fellow Dept. of Civil Engineering Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012. PDF URL:https://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/34385598/RootsOfHinduAstronomyRNIyengarEng.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A&Expires=1541356647&Signature=WmzFVAJglSg%2ByppMD6sWnAWG0bs%3D&response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DA_Profile_of_Indian_Astronomy_before_the.pdf</ref>

Another Vedic text also referres to samvartaka as a comet. In this text, the comet appears and grows so large as to take up one third of the sky. It is described as having "a thin dreadful copper colored spear-like head, ejecting a jet of smoke."<ref name=":0" /> While the comet hangs above the world, kings are projected to fight among themselves.<ref name=":0" />
{{portal|Hinduism}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Hindu theology]]

Sāṁvartaka - Revision history

imported>Certes: Disambiguating links to Garga (link changed to Garga (sage)) using DisamAssist.