Niyog and Strange Births

Niyog and Strange Births

Recently there was news that Anderson Cooper became a dad. He said that he got his child via surrogacy. It reminded me of Niyog practice in ancient India. There are many differences in surrogacy and niyog but the common thing is that these practices allow the seeker to have a child of his or her own.

Niyog:

Niyog is for those women who can not have a child from their husbands for any reason. Some of these reasons are:

Husband is dead
The husband is incapable of procreation.
The husband has some curse that prevents him from getting children.

Niyog is not the same as Levirate. Levirate is a compulsory wedding of women with her husband’s brother. Niyogi can be the husband's brother or someone else who is not even related to the husband. Niyog is not a marriage or wedding.

There are rules for practicing Niyog:

Women could not get a child from her husband for any reason
Niyogi is appointed
Niyogi is usually a revered or ecstatic person. If a Rishi is appointed for niyog practice, it does not mean that Rishi is indulging in sexual pleasure. At the time of Niyog, he is just helping and trying to give a child to a childless woman. This was considered his duty. It did not indicate that he is leaving the path of sanyas and going in grashtha ashram.
It is not done for lust or physical pleasure
Proper Ritu/rutu or timing is selected, based on the female menstrual cycle so that there are maximum chances to conceive
Women should have a healthy body and uterus or Kshetra so that after conception fetus can grow properly.
Niyogi should be healthy and able to produce sperms or Beej
Niyogi can practice it for only three children
Women can have only three children from Niyog practice.
Women have to follow some rules before Niyog and afterward also so that child has maximum chances of getting qualities of Niyogi
Niyogi has no right on the child. The child belongs to the woman and her husband.
Niyogi has no relationship with the women and children.
Niyogi is not responsible for the financial and other needs of the child.

Some examples of Niyog:

Kunti- Kunti was Pandu’s wife. Pandu was cursed by a deer form of a Rishi and therefore was not able to use his procreation capabilities. He was unable to pay his ancestor rin(debt). He requested Kunti to get sons for him. Kunti had a boon from Rishi Durvassa that with a special mantra she can invoke Devtas and get children from them. Kunti got three sons from this practice. Yudhister from Yam, Bhim from Vayu, and Arjun from Indra. Then she gave this mantra to Madri who got two sons Nakul and Sahdev, from Ashvin Devtas. (? Kunti had one son from Surya devta--Karn).
Queen Satyawati appointed rishi Vyas for niyog practice with her daughters-in-law. Dhritarashtra and Pandu were born via niyog practice between rishi Vyas and queen Ambika and Ambalika respectively.
Kalmashapada or Saudasa’s wife Madayanti and rishi Vashistha practiced Niyog and got a son named Ashmaka.
Saradandayana--?

Following are not examples of Niyog:

Satyavati and Rishi Parashar’s union resulting in the birth of a child called Rishi Krishna Dvaipayana Ved Vyas. Satyavati was not married at that time. It is not an example of niyog practice.
Birth of Karn--Kunti had a son with Surya devta. She conceived Karn before her marriage with Pandu so it was not niyog practice.
Birth of Vidur- Ambika was supposed to have niyog practice with Rishi Vyas. She sent her maid Parashrami instead of her. Vidur was the son of Rishi Vyas and Parashrami maid. It was not niyog.

Some Divine, Strange, Miraculous Births and Bodyforms:

Kunti has a son(Karn) with Surya Devta and she had a son(Yudhishter)with Yam Devta. Yam is the son of Surya. So, Kunti had a son with father(Surya) and his son(Yam). When Karn was born, Kunti's virginity was not lost!
Ambika closed her eyes during niyog and therefore Dritharashtra was born blind.
Ambalika turned pale when she looked at Vyas during niyog and therefore Pandu was pale.
Kalmashapada (son of Raghu) or Saudasa’s wife Madayanti and rishi Vashistha had a son(Ashmaka) who was born after 7-12 yrs of pregnancy.
Balaram was conceived by Devaki but Mahamaya transferred the fetus to Rohini's womb and Balaram was born to Rohini.
Evil king Vena was killed by Rishis. After his death, rishis rubbed his thighs to get the evil out and then rubbed his arms. King Prithu was born by this arm rubbing.
King Brihadratha received a mango from a hermit so that his queen can have a child. He had two queens so he split mango in half and gave one part to each queen. Both queens gave birth to half child. They threw both half children in the forest. A demon Jara was passing by and pressed two half parts together and Jarasand was born.
Gandhari gave birth to a lump of mass, after two years of pregnancy. That mass divides into 101 peices as Gandhari had a boon from Rishi Vyas, for 101 children. From those pieces she gets 100 sons and one daughter.
Draupadi and her brother Dhrishtadyumna were born from the sacrificial fire
Kripacharya and his sister Kripi were born from weed on which Saradvan’s/Shradvan’s semen fell. Weed broke into two and two children were born.
Dronacharya was born from the semen of Rishi Bhardwaj. His semen fell when he was looking at an apsara. He preserved the semen and Drona came out of that.
Saradvan was born with bow and arrows, Karn was born with armor.
Matsyagandha or Satyavati was born from a fish. Vasu king sent his semen via eagle to his queen. Semen fell from the air and was swallowed by Adrika fish. Two babies came out of Adrika. The boy became king Matsya and the girl was Satyavati. Kelly Fidoe White smelles like rotten fish and onion. Fish odor syndrome.Metabolic disorder.Trimethylaminuria (TMAU).
Shishupal was born with three eyes and four arms. One eye and 2 arms disappeared when Krishna took him in his lap.
Ram and his brothers were born after their mothers drank Kheer given by Agni devta in Yagya.
Sita appeared from a split Bhoomi. She is the daughter of Bhoodevi. Father?
Mandhata- King Yuvanaswa of Ayodhya was childless. He felt thirsty while hunting and drank water from a pitcher which was kept in a rishi's ashram. That water was for his wife to conceive. As he drank the water, he became pregnant and gave birth to Mandhata after 100 yrs of pregnancy. Indra provided the boy with milk from heaven.
In Jainism-Rishabbanath and Sumangala had ninety nine sons and one daughter.
Mahavir Tirthankara was conceived by a brahmin mother, Devananda. Indra Devta transferred embryo to Trishala's uterus. Trishala was wife of a Kshtriya named Siddharth.
King Dilipa's two wives made sexual relation with each other and got a son named Bhagirath.
Ganesh was born from Parvati's tissues.
Kartikeya was born from Shiv's seeds. Therefore he is also called Harbeej.
Rishi Vashist, Agastey, and Matsya were born from fallen semen in water kept in a jar.
Daksh,Parvati's father, had a goat head.
Haragreev had a horse head.
Ganesh had an elephant head.
Varah
Narasimha's lower body was human and upper body was lion.
Ghatochkach
Agastey
Sagar putr
Ravan was born with ten heads. Tres Johnson was born with two heads and faces. Craniofacial duplication or Diprosopus (variant of conjoint twinning).
Arjun lived as a kinnar in the 13th year of his exile in forest
Vichitravirya and chitravirya--?borm from picture and Shantanu?
Shiloh Peppin-- She was born with lower extremities fused. Looked like a mermaid. Sirenomelia or mermaid syndrome.
Joseph Merrick, Sain Mumtaz, and Jeffrey ortega --Proteus syndrome- disproportionate overgrowth of bone, skin, and soft tissues. AKT1 gene mutation.
Chandre Oraon and Balaji- Born with a tail. Congenital malformation- Spina Bifida. Is called Hanuman avatar in India.
Dede Koswara- Tree man. Human Papilloma virus.
Bablu Pashi- Giant right arm-- Gigantism. Tarik has Giant hands. Janice Greene- Giant legs- Lymphedema
Nadia Lauricella-Phocomelia- Short limbs and absent fingers.
Wang Fang- Foot rotated in opposite direction.
Liang Xizuen- Has horn on the forehead.Cornue cutaneum or cutaneous horns- skin tumor.
Devendra Suthar- Polydactyle. Has seven fingers/toes in each limb.
Deepak Paswan (2 extra legs, one extra upper limb, and one extra ear), Myrtle Corbin (extra pair of legs and two pelvises), and Gaurad Garun (extra upper limb on back) have extra limbs-- Underdeveloped twin. Cassandra Bankson has two vaginas and uteruses.

Interesting:

Shikhandi was born as a female, raised as a male, and then was transformed into a male.
Ashwathama made a horse sound when born.
Saradvan was born with bow and arrows, Karn was born with armor

Atma has no gender. It is same in everyone with no differentiation. Body is just encasing of atma. This belief/philosphy of sanatan dharma gives acceptance to LGBQT as atma is same in everyone and there is a concept called Vasudev Kutumbakam. Two pwople in love (of any gender) means atma se atma ka milan.

Similar strange birth stories are found in some other religions also. Some of these strange things can be explained by modern science( see the list below) and for some, there is still no scientific explanation.