Unicorns of the Sea God

by Ruchi Shrimali
(Delhi, India)

The fluidity in the movement and the soft, kind and emotional nature of unicorns that are as sensitive to feelings as a bubble is to touch - all stem from the fact that they are descendants of the Sea God. At one time, Varuna, the Hindu God of Water, decided to roam around on Earth.

There he met a gentle doe and was so besotted by her that he took the form of a deer and galloped along with her in the forest. Their union resulted in birth of a male deer, white as the waves, and gentle as her mother. He was the delight of his parents. He was wise and emotional like his father, had extraordinary powers of perception and was graceful like his mother.

He could heal sorrows and pains with simply a look and a simple nudge. Varuna named him Uday after the sun-rise.

Lord Varuna was quite pleased with him and considered him his darling. However, one day a demon Krodhasur (made of anger) saw Varuna happy with his doe-wife and deer-son. He grew furious as he was Varuna's mortal enemy. Varuna had drowned his kingdom because of his sins. He decided that he would enter Uday's body and make him do sins too. Then, he will see what Varuna does to his own son, whom he loved so much.

Using his magic powers, he left his mortal body and entered Varuna's son in spiritual form. He had a horn on his forehead. As he entered Uday's body, he sprouted the horn too. But before Krodhasur could turn Uday violent, he realized that something unworldly was happening to him. He controlled his anger and used his power to heal sorrows and anguish to curb Krodhasur forever.

But he could not curb Krodhasur completely. He had to endure that one horn forever and came to be known as Unicorn. This is the secret pain that ail immortal unicorns forever and this is why, they usually remain invisible to all mortal eyes.

It is said that unicorns will be able to get rid of their horns, when they will find a way to fight Krodha inside and outside their body forever....which will also mean that nobody will ever be angry anymore.