Puranic Encyclopaedia: A Comprehensive Dictionary with Special Reference to the Epic and Puranic Literature c4.486

c4.486

8) Amṛtam and Garuḍa. There is another story about Amṛtam which says that Garuḍa once went to devaloka and brought Amṛtam from there to be given to the Nāgas, but Devendra came down and took it back. This story is given in Mahābhārata from Chapter 27 onwards. Vinatā, a wife of Kaśyapa gave birth to Garuḍa and Kadru and her sister gave birth to the Nāgas. Once there was a dispute between Vinatā and Kadru. Vinatā said that the hairs on the tail of Uccaiśravas, Devendra's horse, were white but Kadru asserted that they were black. To settle the dispute they made a bet. The condition was that the loser must become the servant maid of the winner. As instructed by Kadru, some of the Nāgas went in advance and hung down from the tail of Uccaiśravas, thus giving the false appearance of a tail with black hairs. By this trick Vinatā lost the bet and had to become Kadru's servant maid. As a result of it, the task of looking after Kadru's children became Garuḍa's duty. Kadru told him that if he fetched Amṛtam from devaloka and gave it to the Nāgas, she was prepared to release him from the bondage. So Garuḍa flew up to devaloka, fought with the gods and defeated them. He returned with the pot of Amṛtam and gave it to the Nāgas. The Nāgas went to take their bath after placing the pot on darbha grass spread on the floor. Just then Devendra swooped down and carried away the pot of Amṛtam to devaloka. When the Nāgas returned after their purifying bath, the pot was not to be seen. In their greed they began to lick the darbha grass on which the pot was placed. The sharp edge of the grass cut their tongues into two. This is why the Nāgas (snakes) came to have forked tongues.