| Garuda | |
| Other Names: | |
| Bird of Life | |
| Images: | |
| – | |
| In
Hindu and Buddhist belief, and extremely old bird that
was so large that it could blot out the sun. It has a
white face, bright red wings, and a golden body. It is
described as the mount of the god Vishnu, and in the Mahabharata,
its parents told gave it permission to devour bad men but
not Brahmans. It was also the enemy of the Nagas. In Buddhist tradition, Garuda ate a snake once a day until a Buddhist prince converted it. Repentent, it re-instilled life to the bones of all the snakes it had eaten. |