Jambavan (also Jambavantha) is the king of bears according to Hindu religious texts. He is part-man and part-bear and is immortal. Jambavan is also one of the fathers-in-law of Lord Krishna. He married his daughter Jambavati to Lord Krishna. He appears in both the Ramayana and Mahabharata. In some texts, he is mentioned as a monkey instead of a bear.
Meaning of the Name Jambavan:
The meaning of the word Jambavan is “the one who is born from yawn” because in Sanskrit the word for “yawn” is Jrimbhan.
Another meaning could be “the one who is from Jambudvipa”.
What Did Jambavan Look Like?
Jambavan is mainly depicted with a bear head and human body. His body and face are covered with black hair. He speaks like a human and wears a golden crown and ornaments. He wears a Vaishnava tilaka on his forehead.
The Birth of Jambavan:
There are at least three different stories about the birth of Jambavantha. Two of them imply that he was the son of Lord Brahma.
1. When the Creation began, Lord Brahma was meditating while sitting on the lotus sprouting from the navel of Lord Vishnu. After meditating for some time, he began yawning. From his yawn, a bear was born. He was named Jambavan because he was born from yawning.
2. When the day of Lord Brahma ended and the night began, Asuras Madhu and Kaityabha were born from the earwax of Lord Vishnu and began to create trouble in the waters. They saw Lord Brahma sitting on the lotus coming out of the navel of Lord Vishnu and challenged him to fight. Afraid of the demons, his middle face began to sweat. The sweat flowed through his cheeks and reached the loins. Jambavan came into being from that sweat. As he was the first person to enter Jambudvipa, he was called Jambavan.
3. Per another story, in his previous birth, Jambavan was the king of the Himalayas and had reincarnated as a bear to help Lord Rama defeat Ravana.
Jambavan Reminded Lord Hanuman about his Powers:
When the Vanara army found out that the ocean needed to be crossed to find Goddess Sita, they started discussing how to achieve the task, but Lord Hanuman remained silent. Jambavan knew that only Lord Hanuman was capable of crossing the ocean and coming back because he had received a boon from Vayu in the past but had completely forgotten about it. He reminded him of the boon and motivated him.
He stated that he was also capable of doing the task, but because of an old injury, he was helpless.
How did Jambavan Get Injured and Lose his Strength?
He further narrated to Lord Hanuman that he was beating the drum for Lord Vishnu during his Vamana Avatar. When Vamana was measuring the three worlds, his shoulder struck and injured him.
Another version of the story says that he was circumambulating Vamana when Vamana was pushing Bali into the netherworld. He accidentally bumped into Vamana and got injured; otherwise, he was as powerful as Lord Hanuman.
Jambavan Helped Save Vanara Sena:
During the battle of the Ramayana, the whole Vanara army and Lord Rama and Lakshmana fell unconscious due to Brahmastra hurled by Indrajeet. At this time, Jambavan advised Lord Hanuman to go to the Himalayas and bring four essential herbs, viz. Mrita Sanjivani, Vishalya karani, Suvarna karani and Sandhani.
According to Kamba Ramayana, when Lakshmana was injured, he advised Lord Hanuman to bring Sanjeevani herb.
Jambavan’s Fight with Lord Krishna:
King Satrajita was a devotee of the Sun God who gifted him a divine jewel named Syamantaka. Lord Krishna advised the king to use the jewel for the welfare of the people, but he did not agree. Once his brother wore the jewel and went inside a forest where he was killed by a lion. The lion was afterward killed by Jambavan, who found the jewel inside him.
Because of Lord Krishna’s interest in the jewel, the king suspected and accused him of stealing it. Upset with the accusations, Lord Krishna decided to find the gem. He was able to trace it back to a cave in the jungle where he saw a beautiful young woman with the Syamantaka jewel.
Before he could approach her, he was attacked by Jambavan, who did not recognize that Lord Krishna was the incarnation of Lord Rama. They had a fierce battle that lasted for 28 days. Gradually, Jambavan began to lose his strength. Then, he understood that Lord Krishna is the incarnation of Lord Vishnu. He surrendered to him and offered the hand of his daughter Jambavati in marriage to Lord Krishna. Lord Krishna accepted his proposal, and thus he became the father-in-law of Lord Krishna.
(After the death of Ravana, Lord Rama had asked Jambavan to ask for a boon. Jambavan expressed his desire to fight with him. Lord Rama told him that his desire would be fulfilled in his next birth when he would incarnate as Lord Krishna.)
Jambavan Became Old Forever:
According to Kamba Ramayaṇa, at the time of the incarnation of Vamana, Jambavan was very strong and valiant. When Vamana brought under control the three worlds by measuring three steps Jambavantha traveled throughout the three worlds carrying the news everywhere. Within three moments, Jambavan traveled 18 times through the three worlds. In this travel of lightning-speed, the end of the nail of his toe touched the highest peak of Mahameru, who considered it an insult and said, “You are arrogant of your speed and youth. Hereafter your body will not reach where your mind reaches, and you shall be ever old.” Because of this curse, Jambavan became old and unable to carry out what he wished.
Is Jambavan Still Alive?
Jambavan is immortal and lives in a place called Satyaloka from where he keeps an eye on the world.
Jambavan Cave:
The cave in which the fight between Lord Krishna and Jambavan took place is in Gujarat near Porbandar in Ranavav. The cave is called “Jambavant Ki Gufa”.
Jainism:
According to Jain Ramayana, Jambavan was a monkey chief in the army of Sugriva (Ch. 7.6).
Jambavantha Temple:
There is only one temple of Jambavan in the world which is located at Jamkhed in Jalana district in Maharashtra.
Jambavan was very intelligent and was one of Sugriva’s advisors. He advised him to send Lord Hanuman to find out information about Lord Rama and Lakshmana when they were wandering in the forest in search of Goddess Sita. Jambavantha was a great warrior who could fight with Lord Krishna for 28 days and nights. He helped Lord Hanuman to realize his true powers and cross the ocean to find Sita. He was one of the few people who met both Lord Rama and Lord Krishna. At the time of the Ramayana, he was six Manvantaras old.