Mahabharata: Volume 8 (28 page)

‘“‘O Srinjaya! We have heard about Gaya, the son of Amurtarayas. He died. For one hundred years, that king subsisted on what was left over from oblations. Agni wished to give him a boon. Gaya said, “O bearer of oblations! Through your favours, grant me the boons that even when I give, my riches are inexhaustible, my faith in dharma grows and my mind delights in the truth.” We have heard that he obtained all these wishes from the fire god. Whenever it was the new moon, whenever it was the full moon and at each interval of four months, the immensely energetic one repeatedly performed sacrifices and this continued for one thousand years. For a thousand years, when he awoke in the morning, he gave away a hundred thousand cows and ten thousand horses. The bull among men satisfied the gods with soma, the brahmanas with riches, the ancestors with
svadha
²³²
and his wives with sensual pleasures. He covered a part of the earth with gold. This was ten cubits wide and twenty cubits long, and in a great horse sacrifice the king gave this away as dakshina. O king! O bull among men! Gaya, the son of Amurtarayas, gave away as many cows as there are grains of sand in the Ganga. O Srinjaya! He was four times as fortunate as you and more meritorious than your son. When he died, why are you grieving about your son?

‘“‘O Srinjaya! We have heard about Rantideva, the son of Sankriti. He died. The immensely illustrious one satisfied Shakra properly and obtained a boon from him. “Let us have an abundance of food and guests. Let my faith never diminish and let me never have to ask anything from anyone.”
²³³
The illustrious Rantideva was extremely rigid in his vows and of their own accord, domestic and wild animals presented themselves before the great-souled one, so as to be sacrificed. Because of the discharge from this mass of hides, a great river was created and this great river became famous as Charmanvati.
²³⁴
When the king singled out brahmanas and proceeded to give them one golden
coin each, they protested. So he gave each brahmana one thousand. There were vessels and implements used in the intelligent Rantideva’s sacrifices—pots, plates, frying pans, bowls and cups. There was not a single one that was not made out of gold. Whenever someone spent a night in the house of Rantideva, the son of Sankriti, twenty thousand and one hundred cows were sacrificed. But even then, adorned in bejewelled and excellent earrings, the cooks exclaimed, “There is plenty of broth. Take as much as you want. But now, there is no longer as much meat as there used to be earlier.”
²³⁵
O Srinjaya! He was four times as fortunate as you and more meritorious than your son. When he died, why are you grieving about your son?

‘“‘O Srinjaya! We have heard about the great-souled Sagara. He died. The tiger among men was descended from the Ikshvaku lineage and was superhuman in his valour. Sixty thousand sons followed him at the rear. They were like a large number of stellar bodies in a sky without clouds and at the end of the rain, surrounding the lord of the stars.
²³⁶
In earlier times, the earth bowed down before him and was under a single umbrella.
²³⁷
He satisfied the gods with one thousand horse sacrifices. He gave deserving brahmanas palaces that were completely made out of gold, with golden pillars. They were full of beds and women with eyes like lotuses. The brahmanas got whatever they desired, superior and inferior, and on his instructions, divided this up among themselves. Because of his anger, the earth was dug out and came to be marked with the ocean.
²³⁸
It is after his name that the ocean came to be known as Saagara. O Srinjaya! He was four times as fortunate as you and more meritorious than your son. When he died, why are you grieving about your son?

‘“‘O Srinjaya! We have heard about King Prithu, the son of Vena.
²³⁹
He died. The maharshis consecrated him in the great
forest. He was known as Prithu because he would extend the world. Someone who saves from injuries is said to be a kshatriya.
²⁴⁰
On seeing Prithu, the son of Vena, the subjects said, “We are attached to him.” Because of that affection, he came to known as a raja.
²⁴¹
The earth yielded crops without being ploughed. There was honey in every hole.
²⁴²
When Vena’s son ruled, all the cows yielded a bucket of milk. All the men were without disease, were successful in all their objectives and were free from fear. As they wished, they dwelt in their fields or their homes. On his instructions, the waters of the ocean were solidified.
²⁴³
The rivers did not swell up and obstruct the advance of his standard. In a great horse sacrifice, the king gave brahmanas twenty-one mountains of gold and each of these was three
nala
s high.
²⁴⁴
O Srinjaya! He was four times as fortunate as you and more meritorious than your son. When he died, why are you grieving about your son? O Srinjaya! Why are you reflecting in silence? O king! You have not listened to my words. If you have not listened, my discourse, though spoken well, has been in vain, like medicine to someone who is about to die.’

‘“Srinjaya replied, ‘O Narada! I have listened to your words. They are wonderful in their purport, like a fragrant garland. Those rajarshis were great-souled and meritorious in their deeds. Their deeds are enough to dispel my grief. O maharshi! Your discourse has not been in vain. O Narada! Your sight alone has been sufficient to drive away my sorrow. O one who speaks about the brahman! I have listened to your words. However, like one drinking amrita, I am not satisfied. O one whose sight never fails! O lord! I am tormented on
account of my son. Through your favours, let the dead one come back to life. Through your favours, let me be united with my son.’

‘“Narada replied, ‘Your beloved son, Svarnashthivi, was given to you by Parvata
²⁴⁵
and has departed. But I will give your son back to you. Hiranyanabha
²⁴⁶
will live for one thousand years.’”’

‘Yudhishthira asked, “How did Srinjaya’s son become Kanchanashthivi?
²⁴⁷
Why did Parvata give him? How did he die? At that time, men used to live for one thousand years. Why did Srinjaya’s son die while he was still a child? Was he Suvarnashthivi only in name? I wish to know the truth about Kanchanashthivi.”

‘Vasudeva replied, “O lord of men! I will tell you the details about what actually happened. The rishis Narada and Parvata were worshipped by the worlds. They were maternal uncle and nephew.
²⁴⁸
Once they came down from the world of the gods. The lords, the maternal uncle Narada and the nephew Parvata, cheerfully roamed around in the world of men in those ancient times, discarding food in the form of sacrificial oblations and the food of the gods. Though they possessed powers of asceticism, they wandered around on the surface of the earth. They roamed around here and there, eating the food of humans. They were cheerful and had an agreement. ‘Whatever resolution either one of us has, good or bad, will be revealed to the other. If either one fails to do this and falsifies the agreement, he will be cursed.’ The maharshis, worshipped in the
worlds, pledged this. They went to King Srinjaya, the son of Shvitya, and said, ‘O child! For the sake of your welfare, we will dwell with you for some time. O protector of the earth! Attend to our needs.’ The king acted accordingly and honoured them with hospitality. After some time, in great delight, the king told the great-souled ones who had arrived, ‘This is my beautiful daughter and I have only one. She will tend to your needs. Her limbs are lovely and she is virtuous in her conduct. This maiden is known as Sukumari and her complexion is like the filament of a lotus.’ Thus addressed, they agreed and the king instructed his daughter. ‘Tend to these brahmanas as if they are gods, or your father.’ The maiden followed dharma and, instructed by her father, agreed. As instructed by the king, she served them well.

‘“While she served them in this way, because of her unmatched beauty, there was a swift and violent urge of desire in Narada. That desire increased in the great-souled one’s heart, just as the moon slowly waxes during the bright lunar fortnight. Though he knew about dharma, he was greatly ashamed of his desire and did not tell his great-souled nephew, Parvata. Because of his ascetic powers and through signs, Parvata got to know. Enraged, he severely cursed Narada, who was overcome by desire. ‘You voluntarily had an agreement with me. Should there be any resolution in our hearts, good or bad, that would be disclosed to the other. You have falsified that. O brahmana! Those were your words and you are bound by them. Earlier, you did not tell me that you had this desire for the maiden Sukumari. Because of that sin, I will curse you. You are knowledgeable about the brahman. You are my senior. You are an ascetic. You are a brahmana. Despite that, you have falsified the agreement you made with me. In great rage, I am cursing you. Listen to my words. There is no doubt that Sukumari will be your wife. O lord! However, from the time you marry, your own form will be distorted. The maiden, and all other men, will see you as an ape.’ As soon as Narada got to know the words spoken by Parvata, he became enraged. The maternal uncle cursed the nephew, ‘You possess asceticism. You are a brahmachari. You possess truth and self-control. You are always united with dharma. Despite this, you
will not dwell in heaven.’ Extremely enraged, those two rishis severely cursed each other. They rushed towards each other, like two angry and excellent elephants.

‘“The great sage, Parvata, roamed around the entire earth. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! He was honoured because of his energy. Narada, supreme among those who followed dharma, obtained the unblemished Sukumari, Srinjaya’s daughter, in accordance with the rites of dharma. Because of the curse, as soon as the mantras connected with receiving her hand were pronounced, the maiden beheld that Narada had assumed the form of an ape. Despite the devarshi having assumed the form of an ape, Sukumari did not disrespect him. She treated him affectionately. She presented herself to her husband and did not go to anyone else, not even in her mind. Faithful to her husband, she did not wish that a god, another sage or a yaksha should be her husband.

‘“After some time, the illustrious Parvata was roaming around in the forest and saw Narada there. Greeting Narada, Parvata said, ‘O lord! Show me your favours and let me go to heaven.’ Narada saw that Parvata was standing miserably before him, hands joined in salutation. But he was even more distressed and said, ‘You are the one who cursed me first and said that I would be an ape. When you spoke to me in this way, I later cursed you in revenge, to the effect that henceforth, you would never dwell in heaven. Since you were like my son, you should not have acted in that way.’ The sages then withdrew their curses from each other.

‘“Sukumari saw Narada in his prosperity, in a form that was like that of a god. Taking him to be someone else’s husband, she fled. On seeing that the unblemished one was running away, Parvata spoke to her. ‘This is your husband. You should not doubt that. This is the illustrious lord and rishi Narada, with supreme dharma in his soul. There is no doubt that his heart is completely yours.’ The great-souled Parvata entreated her in many ways. When she heard that her husband had been tainted because of the curse, she regained her natural state. Parvata went to heaven and Narada went home. The great rishi, Narada, was a witness to all this himself. O supreme among men! Ask him and he will tell you exactly what happened.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘At this, the king, Pandu’s son, addressed Narada. “O illustrious one! I wish to hear how Suvarnashthivi was born.” Having been thus addressed by Dharmaraja, the sage Narada told him the exact truth about Suvarnashthivi. “O great king! It was just as Keshava told you. Since you have asked me, I will tell you about the part that remains. I and the great sage Parvata, my sister’s son, went to Srinjaya, supreme among victorious ones, wishing to dwell with him. He honoured us with all the indicated rites. With all our wishes well tended to, we lived in his house. After many years had passed, it was time for us to leave. At that time, Parvata spoke these words to me and they were of grave import. ‘We have lived in the house of this Indra among men and have been greatly honoured. O brahmana! Now that the time of residing here is over, we should think about what is appropriate.’ O king! At this, I spoke to the handsome Parvata. ‘O lord! O nephew! In every respect, this is worthy of you. The king should be delighted with boons and let him obtain what he desires. If you so think fit, let him obtain success through our austerities.’ At this, Parvata, bull among sages, summoned the handsome Srinjaya and told him what we had decided. ‘O king! We are delighted with the great hospitality you have sincerely offered us. O best among men! With our permission, think of a boon that you desire. However, let it not cause injury to the gods or destruction to men. O great king! It is our view that you are worthy of respect and accept this from us.’ Srinjaya replied, ‘If you are pleased with me, that is sufficient for me. That is a great fruit and it has been my supreme gain.’ When the king repeated this again, Parvata said, ‘O king! Ask for a desire that has been in your heart for a long time.’ Srinjaya answered, ‘I desire a brave son, one who is full of valour and is firm in his vows. He should be immensely fortunate and have a long life. He should be like the king of the gods in his resplendence.’ Parvata said, ‘This desire of yours will come true. However, he will not live for a long time, since there is a desire in your heart that he should surpass the prosperity of the king of
the gods. He will be Suvarnashthivi, since his excreta will be golden. He will be like the king of the gods in his radiance. But protect him from the king of the gods.”

‘“Narada said, ‘On hearing the great-souled Parvata’s words, Srinjaya said, ‘Through your favours, let it not be that way. O sage! Through your powers of austerities, let my son have a long life.’ However, because of his partiality for Indra, Parvata said nothing. The king was miserable and I spoke to him again. ‘O great king! When it is time to remember me, think of me and I will show myself to you. When your beloved son has come under the subjugation of the king of the dead, I will give him back to you. O lord of the earth! Do not sorrow. I will again give him back to you in that form.’
²⁴⁹
Having addressed the king thus, we departed, as we desired. As he wished, Srinjaya also entered his own palace.

‘“After some time had passed, rajarshi Srinjaya had a son born to him. He was immensely valorous and blazed in his energy. As time passed, he grew, like a giant lotus in a pond. He became Kanchanashthivi, and not just in name.
²⁵⁰
O supreme among the Kuru lineage! This extraordinary fact came to be known throughout the world. Indra of the gods got to know this was because of the boon granted by the great-souled ones.
²⁵¹
The slayer of Bala and Vritra was frightened
²⁵²
and, listening to the counsel of Brihaspati, sought a weakness in the child. He instructed his divine weapon vajra, which appeared in a personified form. ‘O lord! Become a tiger. Go and slay the prince. O vajra! Parvata gave Srinjaya his son and if he grows up, he may surpass me in valour.’ Having been thus addressed by Shakra, the vajra, the vanquisher of enemy cities, was always near the child, looking for a weakness. Having obtained a son who was the equal of the king of the gods in radiance, Srinjaya was delighted. The king, and all the women belonging to his inner quarters, began to reside in the forest. One day, on the banks of the
Bhagirathi, the child was running around near that mountainous stream.
²⁵³
His nurse was the only other person with him. Though the child was only five years old, he was like a king of elephants in his valour. The immensely strong one suddenly ran into the tiger. The king’s son trembled as he was crushed. He lost his life and fell down on the ground. The nurse screamed. As soon as the prince had been killed, through the maya of the king of the gods, the tiger instantly disappeared.

‘“Hearing the screams and weeping of the extremely distressed nurse, the king himself rushed to the spot. He saw the child lying down dead, covered in blood, and was distressed. It was as if the moon had been dislodged. He raised the mangled torso of his son, covered in blood, on his lap and wept in great grief. His mothers
²⁵⁴
also rushed to the spot where King Srinjaya was. Afflicted by grief, they also wept. At that time, with an attentive mind, the king remembered me.
²⁵⁵
Knowing that he had thought of me, I went and showed myself to him. He was stricken with grief. O lord of the earth! Therefore, I made him hear the words that the brave one from the Yadu lineage has told you about.
²⁵⁶
With Vasava’s permission, he was revived by me. It was destiny and it could not have been otherwise. After this, the child, the immensely famous Svarnashthivi, arose. The valiant one delighted the hearts of his father and his mother. When his father went to heaven, the lord ruled the kingdom for one thousand and one hundred years. He was terrible in his valour. He performed many great sacrifices at which large quantities of donations were given. The immensely radiant one satisfied the gods and the ancestors. He generated many sons who were the extenders of the lineage. O king! After a long period, he succumbed to the dharma of time.
²⁵⁷
O Indra among kings! Just as Keshava and the immensely ascetic Vyasa have told you, you must stem this sorrow that has been generated in
you. Bear the burden of the kingdom that belonged to your father and grandfather. Perform great and auspicious sacrifices and obtain the worlds that are desired.”’