Vali – The Greatest Among the Vanara Heroes
Vali is regarded as the mightiest of the Vanara heroes in the Ramayana tradition. He is portrayed as a warrior powerful enough to defeat even Ravana, the king of Lanka.
While most Ramayana traditions identify Indra as Vali's father, there are differing accounts regarding his mother. In the Valmiki Ramayana, the story is connected with Riksharaja, a son of Brahma. In the Adhyatma Ramayana, other interpretations involving Aruna, the charioteer of the Sun, are also found.
In the Kerala Tholpavakoothu tradition, the birth of Vali and Sugriva is narrated differently. Their mother is identified with a Vanara hero named Irakathashvan.
According to the story, Irakathashvan, the son of Brahma, wandered across forests and regions including Bharata-khanda, the Himalayas, Kimpurusha-khanda, and Harivarsha, eventually reaching Ilavrta-khanda. There, near a sacred pond where Goddess Parvati used to bathe, he stopped to quench his thirst.
As he looked into the water, he saw his reflection and mistook it for an enemy. Leaping into the pond to seize it, he unknowingly fell under a curse placed upon the waters: any man who immersed himself in the pond would be transformed into a woman. When he emerged, he found himself transformed into a beautiful Vanara woman.
Seeking relief from this strange fate, she set out for Brahma's abode. On the way, Indra beheld the beautiful Vanara woman and was overcome with desire. His seed fell upon her tail, and from it a child was born. Later, the Sun God also experienced desire, and his seed fell upon her neck (griva), resulting in the birth of another child.
Carrying the two children, the Vanara woman reached Brahma and explained her plight. Brahma reassured her, saying:
"This is part of the divine plan for the age of Rama. Do not grieve."
The child born from the tail was named Vali, and the child born from the neck was named Sugriva. Brahma also granted them the kingdom of Kishkindha as their dwelling place.
The story of why men who bathe in Parvati's sacred pond are transformed into women is itself a separate legend within the Tholpavakoothu tradition.
