Ila (Hinduism)

According to the Linga Purana and the Mahabharata, Ilā was born as the eldest daughter of Vaivasvata Manu, the progenitor of mankind, and his wife Shraddha. However, the parents desired a son and so prayed and performed austerities to propitiate the deities Mitra and Varuna, who changed Ilā's gender. The boy was named Sudyumma. The Bhagavata Purana, the Devi-Bhagavata Purana, the Kurma Purana, the Harivamsa, the Markandeya Purana and the Padma Purana (referred to as "Bhagavata Purana et al. texts" further) narrate a variant: Ila's parents could not have any children for a long time and approached the sage Agastya for a solution. The sage performed a yajna (fire sacrifice) dedicated to Mitra and Varuna to attain a son for the couple. Due to either an error in the ritual or a failure to offer the appropriate sacrifice, Mitra and Varuna instead sent a daughter to the couple. In one version, the couple supplicated the deities, who transformed Ilā's gender. In another version, this transformation happens after the erroneous hymns are rectified and the son is called Ila. The accounts describe Ila as either the eldest or the youngest child of Manu. As the child of Manu, Ila had nine brothers, the most notable was Ikshvaku, the founder of the Solar dynasty. As the son of Manu, Ila is the grandson of Surya. According to another account found in the Vayu Purana and the Brahmanda Purana, Ilā was born female and eventually changed back to female. ==Curse and marriage to Budha==

In the Ramayana, the Linga Purana and the Mahabharata, Ila grows to become the king of Bahlika. While hunting in a forest, Ila accidentally trespassed Sharavana ("Forest of Reeds"), the sacred grove of the goddess Parvati. Upon entering Sharavana, all-male beings except for her husband Shiva, including trees and animals, are transformed into females. One legend tells that a female yakshini disguised herself as a deer and purposefully led Ila to the grove in order to save her husband from the king. The Bhagavata Purana et al. texts tell that Ila's entire entourage, as well as his horse, also changed their genders. and ordered them to run away, promising that they would find mates as Ilā had. Ilā married Budha and spent an entire month with him and consummated the marriage. However, Ilā woke one morning as Sudyumna and remembered nothing about the past month. Budha told Ila that his retinue had been killed in a rain of stones and convinced Ila to stay with him for a year. During each month she spent as a woman, Ilā had a good time with Budha. During each month as a man, Ila turned to pious ways and performed austerities under the guidance of Budha. In the ninth month, Ilā gave birth to Pururavas, who grew to become the first king of the Lunar dynasty. Then, as per the advice of Budha and Ila's father Kardama, Ila pleased Shiva and Shiva restored Ila's masculinity permanently. The Bhagavata Purana et al. texts tell that after Pururavas's birth, the nine brothers of Ila – by horse-sacrifice – or the sage Vasistha – the family priest of Ila – pleased Shiva to compel him to give the boon of alternate month manhood to Ila, turning him into a Kimpurusha. According to another account found in the Vayu Purana and the Brahmanda Purana, Ilā was born female, married Budha, then was transformed into a male called Sudyumna. Sudyumna was then cursed by Parvati and transformed once again into a female, but became a man once again through Shiva's boon. ==Later life and descendants==

The descendants of Ilā through Pururavas are known as Ailas after Ilā or as the Lunar dynasty (Chandravamsha) due to their descent from Budha, the son of the moon-god Chandra. Most versions of the tale call Ilā the father as well as the mother of the Ailas. With the assistance of the family priest Vasistha, Sudyumma regained control of the entire kingdom. He was succeeded by Pururavas. The Ramayana says that having returned to manhood, Ila ruled Pratishtana while his son Shashabindu ruled over Bahlika. Ila is considered the chief progenitor of the Lunar Dynasty through Pururavas and of the Solar Dynasty through his brother Iksavaku and sons Utkala, Gaya, and Vinatashva. The marriage of Ilā, a descendant of the Sun, and Budha, the son of the Moon, is the first union of the solar and lunar races recorded in the scriptures. ==In Vedic literature==

In Vedic literature, Ilā is also known as Idā. Idā, in the Rigveda, signifies food and refreshment, personified as the goddess of speech. Ilā-Idā is mentioned a number of times in the Rigveda, mostly in the hymns known as Āprīsūktas. She is often mentioned along with Sarasvati and Bharati (or Mahi) and Pururavas is described as her son. Idā is the instructor of Manu, in performing ritual sacrifices. According to Sayana – a commentator on the Vedas – she presides over the Earth. Rigveda 3.29.3 describes Agni as the son of Ila. In the Shatapatha Brahmana, Manu performed a fire-sacrifice in order to have children. Idā emerged from the sacrifice. She was claimed by Mitra-Varuna, but she lived with Manu and together they initiated the race of Manu. In this text, Idā is the goddess of the sacrificial meal. She is described as the Mānavi (daughter of Manu) and Ghṛtapadī (with the ghee-dripping foot) and she is represented by a cow, also known as Idā during a sacrifice. Pururavas is mentioned as the son of Ilā in the text. ==Beyond the Indian subcontinent and Hinduism==

She is known as Mondia Devi () in Cambodia as the wife of Lord Budha From the hinduism culture passed down from the Khmer Empire and is the protective goddess of Wednesday, worshipped during the Cambodian New Year festival if the first day of the year falls on a Wednesday according to the Cambodian calendar (), as she is believed to descend from heaven to care for the people of this land for one year until the following New Year. In her journey there are some special details that are local and mixed with have cambodia folk culture Unique, such as the vehicle is a Donkey. It appears with only two hands and has the following symbol as Staff and Sewing needle, The color of her clothes is Olive Drab and Her story and details have been adapted and blended with influences cambodia buddhism and has its own unique identity. ==Notes==