Vritra.
Vritra, known as Vritra the Enveloper, is both an Asura and a Dragon.
Description[]
He is the embodiment of drought and the enemy of Indra. Vritra was one of the asuras, perhaps the most powerful of them all. His name means "Enveloper." He was a dragon or serpent who was said to be so huge that his coils surrounded mountains, and his head touched the sky. He was the bringer of drought, and his chief enemy was Indra.
Overview[]
Vritra was one of the first primordial dragons to emerge from the fallen body of Tiamat and is often considered a twin sibling of Níðhöggr. Vritra was among the dragons to terrorize both the Earth, its inhabitants and their gods. In Vritra's case, it would find an archenemy in Indra, the king of the devas.
A terrible fiend who gathered all the waters of the world into himself and cause a drought to cover the whole Earth. The world became a wasteland. In a distant land, he hid in his fortress, hoarding his treasure so that the world drew ever more parched. Finally, Indra, who would become the king of the gods, was born. He took it upon himself to attack the demon and release the waters. Drinking immense amounts of Soma to give him the strength necessary, he set off to find his foe. First Indra stormed Vritra's ninety-nine fortresses, razing each in turn, then he met Vritra himself.
The two fought a terrible battle, but Vritra was able to defeat the god and swallow him. The other gods were afraid at the loss of their king, and they conceived a plan to free him. They forced the demon to gag, and when he did, Indra sprang forth again and the battle continued. Indra was still no match for his foe, and was compelled to flee. With the intervention of the rishis and Vishnu, the god informed Indra to never to attack Vritra with any weapon made of wood, metal, or stone, with anything dry or wet, or at any time during the day or night. One day, he was by the sea he saw that the sun was going down, and in the twilight a huge wave washed up on the shore, spraying a great column of foam. It was, at that time, neither day nor night. Indra realized that the foam from the sea was not wood, stone, or metal, nor was wet or dry. He seized the foam, covered his Vajra with it and struck the demonic dragon down, who fell dead, for the foam was actually Vishnu incarnate.