she vomits the milk. Frightened, she leads Indra to the cave, who then slaughters the Panis and recovers the cows. A similar account also appears in the Varaha Purana. The asuras seize control of Heaven from Indra, who is advised to organize a cow sacrifice to regain control. The cows of the world are gathered for the ceremony and Sarama is put in charge of them. The asuras, however, seize the cows and bribe Sarama with their milk, leaving her alone in the woods. Trembling with fear, Sarama goes to Indra and tells him that she did not know what happened to the cows. The Maruts, who are deputed by Indra to protect Sarama, witness Sarama's treachery and report it to Indra. Indra kicks Sarama in the stomach and she throws up the milk. Sarama then leads Indra to the asuras, who are killed by him. Indra then completes his sacrifice and becomes the king of heaven again. Parentage and children The Taittiriya Aranyaka states Sarama is a vedi – a holy altar, daughter of Dyaus ("Heaven") and Prithvi ("Earth"), and the sister of Brihaspati and Rudra. In a late hymn in the tenth Mandala of the Rig Veda, two Sarameya (literally, "sons of Sarama"), Shyama and Sabala, are described without an explicit reference to Sarama as their mother. They are four-eyed and brindled; messengers of Yama, the Lord of the Law in the Vedas and later the god of death. They are guardians to the path of heaven, protecting man on their path. A hymn in the Paraskara Grihya Sutra says that Shyama and Sabala are sons of Sarama, their father Sisara. In a spell called Ekagni-kanda, intended to drive away the Dog-spirits (sav-graha) like Shyama, Sabala, Alaba, Rji etc. which cause cough in children, Sarama is mentioned as their mother. Sarama's spying on the cows is mentioned, with Indra giving her the right to pester children in return. Often described as the mother of all dogs, she is also sometimes regarded as the mother of all beasts of prey, including lions and tigers, as in Bhagavata Purana. She is also a daughter of Daksha and wife of the sage Kashyapa in this Purana and not a dog. Epics The epic Ramayana does not mention Sarama herself. However, it does mention an incident in which the god Rama punishes a Brahmin for beating a Sarameya – descendant of Sarama