Matanga

Birth and Early Life

In the Gautama vaṁśa, a brāhmaṇa had a son named Mataṅga. He was raised with good virtues, practiced dharma diligently, studied all the Veda-śāstras, and performed yajña-karma.

One day, his father called him and said, “Dear son! There is a yajña happening in the neighboring village. You should go as the officiating priest.” Mataṅga agreed and set out according to his father’s instructions. On the way, he encountered a donkey with its foal. Without any reason, Mataṅga struck the young donkey harshly with his stick. The little donkey cried in pain and ran to its mother, saying in its own animal language, “Mother! This brāhmaṇa has hurt me for no reason. I did not obstruct his path. Why did this sorrow befall me?” Though the donkey spoke in the language of animals, Mataṅga could understand it. The mother donkey comforted her foal, saying, “This person is of cruel nature, resembling a caṇḍāla. He has been like this since his previous birth. We must accept this as our karma and endure it.”

Hearing the words of the donkeys, Mataṅga realized the depth of their pain. He thought, “We humans cause so much suffering to animals without understanding their feelings. If we could comprehend their language, we would know the extent of our adharmic actions.” Reflecting on this, Mataṅga said to himself, “This is not a condemnation but a revelation of truth. Perhaps in my previous life, I was one who killed animals for their skin and engaged in cruel acts.” Mataṅga went to the mother donkey and bowed to her, saying, “Mother! You are the cause of my enlightenment. Please tell me about my past karma.” The donkey replied, “In your previous life, you were born to a brāhmaṇa woman who had fallen from dharma. Because of her adharma, you inherited cruel tendencies. Harming animals and causing suffering has become natural to you.” This revelation brought about deep introspection in Mataṅga. The mother donkey then told him, “Do not ask me further; go and ask your father.”

The Encounter with Indra

Mataṅga returned to his father, narrated the incident, and said, “Father! I realize now the cruelty in my actions. I desire to perform tapas and attain brahmavidyā. Please grant me permission.” His father consented, and Mataṅga went into deep tapas for thousands of years. Initially, Indra appeared before him and offered him a boon. Mataṅga asked for brahmavidyā, the supreme knowledge of Brahman. Indra replied, “O Mataṅga! Only one who has taken birth as a brāhmaṇa in many lifetimes can become a brahmavidvat-vara. Ask for some other boon.”

Mataṅga refused to ask for anything else. He continued his tapas.

After further severe tapas, standing on one foot for a hundred years, Indra appeared again and said, “Mataṅga! Becoming a brahmavidvat-vara is beyond your current capacity. Tapas alone cannot change one’s inner guṇa immediately. Even after countless births, most brāhmaṇas do not uphold dharma properly. You should give up this desire and ask for another boon.” But Mataṅga did not relent. He performed even more intense tapas, standing on the tip of his toes. His body became dry, leaving only bones. Indra appeared once more and said, “O Mataṅga! Your desire cannot be fulfilled in this birth. In your next birth, you will attain the characteristics of an uttama-brāhmaṇa—truthfulness, purity, detachment from wealth, and non-possessiveness. In that life, you will gain brahmajñāna gradually.”

Life as Gṛhastha

Accepting this, Mataṅga continued his life in tapas, eventually marrying and having a son named Prasanna. Though in gṛhastha life, he remained focused on brahmajñāna. A Cenchu king named Dharma-vyādha came and requested Mataṅga to give his daughter Arjunaki in marriage to his son Prasanna. Mataṅga agreed and performed the marriage. Arjunaki served her in-laws with devotion, and Prasanna’s family life continued harmoniously.

This episode is narrated in the Varāha Purāṇa.

The Curse of Priyamvada

Once, while Mataṅga was in solitude performing tapas, a gandharva prince named Priyamvada came with his companions, disturbing Mataṅga’s penance with singing and laughter. Enraged, Mataṅga cursed him, “Since you have disturbed my tapas, you shall be born as a madagaja (arrogant elephant).” Priyamvada, realizing his mistake, sought refuge at Mataṅga’s feet. The sage blessed him, saying, “You will be freed from this curse when a king of the Ikṣvāku vaṁśa pierces your temple with an arrow. You will then return to your gandharva form.” As per this, Priyamvada was born as a wild elephant and was eventually slain by Aja Mahārāja, fulfilling the curse and returning to his gandharva state.

This episode is found in Raghuvaṁśa.

The Encounter with Indra Again

Since Mataṅga was born in the Gautama vaṁśa, he was also called Gautama. Once, near his āśrama, a she-elephant died after giving birth. Mataṅga took the orphaned elephant calf to his āśrama, nurturing it with great affection.

The elephant served Mataṅga by fetching samidh-s, bringing lotuses for , cleaning the āśrama, and protecting the sage’s tapas without disturbing his dhyāna. The elephant became like a son to him.

Indra, astonished by Mataṅga’s affection for the elephant, came disguised as a kṣatriya and said, “O Mahātma! Give me this elephant. I will care for it well.”

Mataṅga replied, “I cannot part with it. This elephant serves me like a son, fetching samidhs and flowers for my worship.”

Indra offered gold and cows, but Mataṅga refused, saying, “If wealth were of use to me, so is this elephant. I cannot give it away.”

Indra insisted, saying, “You are a brāhmaṇa. Why do you need this animal?”

Mataṅga replied, “The cow serves, so does this elephant. I shall not part with it.”

Indra said, “I will take this elephant by force. There is no sin in doing so, for I am the king.”

Mataṅga replied, “Then come to Yama-loka; I shall give it to you there.”

Indra said, “Sinners go to Yama-loka. I do not go there.”

Mataṅga proposed various places—the banks of the Mandākinī, Meru mountain, Nārada’s abode, Uttara Kuru, Candra-loka, Sūrya-loka, Varuṇa-loka, Indra-loka, Rājavatsa-loka, Bhuvar-loka, and Brahma-loka—but Indra declined all, saying he was unqualified to go to any of these pious realms.

Finally, Mataṅga said, “Now I understand! You are not a mere prince—you are Indra in disguise! Why have you come in this form?”

Indra then appeared in his true form and said, “O Mataṅga! You have realized the supreme truth. No one else recognized me. Your brilliance and viveka are unparalleled.”

Indra said, “Because of your tapas and wisdom, I will grant you and this elephant entry into svarga.”

A divya-vimāna came. First, the elephant was placed upon it, then Mataṅga himself boarded. Indra took them both to svarga.

Mataṅga in Later Births

Mataṅga enjoyed bliss in svarga and later took birth as Caṇḍadeva, a great teacher and master of jñāna. In his life, Mataṅga demonstrated that guṇa—not jāti—determines one’s spiritual status. Brāhmaṇa, śūdra, caṇḍāla, mleccha—all these are based on guṇa and karma, not body or birth.

The Legacy of Mataṅga

कर्मभिः शुचिभिः देवि शुद्धात्मा विजितेन्द्रियः
शूद्रोऽपि द्विजवत् सेव्यः इति ब्रह्मा ब्रवीत् स्वयं

karmabhiḥ śucibhiḥ devi śuddhātmā vijitendriyaḥ
śūdro’pi dvijavat sevyaḥ iti brahmā bravīt svayam

– Brahma Purāṇa, Adhyāya 223

Even a śūdra, if pure by karma and self-control, is to be honored like a dvija.

This teaching emphasizes that sūdra or brāhmaṇa is determined by conduct, not merely by birth. Mataṅga’s life reveals the profound truth of satyavākya. Ṛṣis speak only truth, not curses out of anger. Their words manifest reality because they align with satya, the eternal Brahman. Mataṅga is also revered as a saṅgīta-śāstra-kartā, a master of music. According to some traditions, he is identified as the guru of Śabarī in the Rāmāyaṇa. Through his tapas, compassion, and spiritual realization, Mataṅga Maharṣi stands as a beacon of dharma, jñāna, and equality in the sacred narratives of Bhārata.