The Mahabharata, of, Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa, BOOK 3, (Tirtha-yatra Parva), SECTION CXXI

 The Mahabharata, of, Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa, BOOK 3, (Tirtha-yatra Parva), SECTION CXXI

Lomasa said, "O king! when the Nriga performed a sacrifice here, he

gratified Indra, the demolisher of hostile cities, by offering the Soma

juice. And Indra was refreshed and was very much pleased. Here the gods

together with Indira, and the protectors of all born beings, celebrated

sacrifices of various kinds on a large scale, and paid abundant

gratuities to the ministering priests. Here king Amurtarayasa, the lord

of the world, satisfied Indra, the holder of the thunderbolt, by the

offer of the Soma juice, when seven horse-sacrifices were performed by

that king. The articles which in other sacrificial rites are uniformly

made of the timber, wood and of earth, were all made of gold in the seven

sacrifices performed by him. And it is said that in all those rites,

seven sets of stakes, rings for the sacrificial stakes, spots, ladles,

utensils, spoons were prepared by him. On each sacrificial stake, seven

rings were fastened at the top. And, O Yudhishthira! the celestials

together with Indira, themselves erected the sacrificial stakes of

shining gold which had been prepared for his sacred rites. In all those

magnificent sacrifices instituted by Gaya, the protector of the earth,

Indira, was delighted by drinking the Soma juice, and the ministering

priests were gratified with the gratuities paid to them. And the priests

obtained untold wealth counted out to them. And as the sand-grains of the

earth, or as the stars in the sky, or as the rain-drops when it raineth,

cannot be counted by anyone, so the wealth Gaya gave away was incapable

of being counted by figures. So untold was the wealth, O great king! that

was given to the ministering priests in all those seven sacrifices that

even the above-mentioned objects might be counted by figures, but the

gratuities bestowed by him whose largeness exceeded all that was known

before were not capable of being counted by figures. And images of the

goddess of speech were made of gold by the sculptor of the gods;--and the

king gratified the members of the sacerdotal caste, who had arrived from

all the cardinal points, by making presents to them of those images, of

gold. O protector of men! when the high-souled Gaya performed his

sacrificial rites, he erected sacrificial piles at so many different

spots that but little space was left on the surface of the earth. And, O

scion of Bharata's race! he by that sacred act attained the regions of

Indra. Whoever should bathe in the river, Payosini, would go to the

regions attained by Gaya. Therefore, O lord of kings! O unswerving

prince! thou and thy brothers should bathe in this river; then, O

protector of the earth, thou wilt be freed from all these sins."

Vaisampayana said, "O most praiseworthy of men! Yudhishthira with his

brothers performed ablutions in the Payosini river. Then, O sinless

prince! the powerful monarch together with his brothers, journeyed to the

hill of sapphires and the great river Narmada. The blessed saint Lomasa

there named to him all the delightful holy spots and all the sacred

shrines of the celestials. Then he with his brothers visited those

places, according to his desire and convenience. And at various places

Brahmanas by thousands received gifts from him."

"Lomasa said, 'O son of Kunti! one who visits the sapphire Hill and

plunges his body in the river Narmada attains the regions inhabited by

the celestials and kings. O most praiseworthy of men! this period is the

junction between the Treta and the Kali age, O Kunti's son! This is the

period when a person gets rid of all his sins. O respected sir! this is

the spot where Saryati performed sacrificial rites, wherein Indra

appeared in a visible form and drank the Soma juice, with the two

celestial physicians. And Bhrigu's son of severe austerities conceived

anger towards the great Indra; and the mighty Chyavana paralysed Indra,

and for his wife obtained the princess, Sukanya.'"

"Yudhishthira said, 'How was the chastiser of the demon Paka, the god

possessed of the six attributes, paralysed by Chyavana? And for what

reason did the mighty saint conceive wrath towards Indra? And how, O

Brahmana! did he raise the celestial physicians to the rank of the

drinkers of Soma? All this, precisely as it happened, thy venerable self

will be pleased to recount to me.'"

SECTION CXXII

"Lomasa said, 'A son was born to the great saint Bhrigu, Chyavana by

name. And he, of an exceedingly resplendent form, began to practise

austerities by the side of yonder lake. And, O Pandu's son! O protector

of men! he of mighty energy assumed the posture called Vira, quiet and

still like an inanimate post, and for a long period, remained at the same

spot of ground. And he was turned into an anthill covered over with

creepers. And after the lapse of a long period, swarms of ants enveloped

him. And covered all over with ants, the sagacious saint looked exactly

like a heap of earth. And he went on practising austerities, enveloped on

all sides with that ant-hill. Now after the lapse of a long space of

time, that ruler of earth, Saryati by name, for amusement visited this

pleasant and excellent lake. With him were four thousand females,

espoused by him, O son of Bharata's race! there was also his only

daughter endued with beautiful brows, named Sukanya. She surrounded by

her maids, and decked out with jewels fit for the celestials, while

walking about, approached the anthill where Bhrigu's son was seated. And

surrounded by her maids, she began to amuse herself there, viewing the

beautiful scenery, and looking at the lofty trees of the wood. And she

was handsome and in the prime of her youth; and she was amorous and bent

on frolicking. And she began to break the twigs of the forest trees

bearing blossoms. And Bhrigu's son endued with intelligence beheld her

wandering like lightning, without her maids, and wearing a single piece

of cloth and decked with ornaments. And seeing her in the lone forest,

that ascetic of exceeding effulgence was inspired with desire. And that

regenerate Rishi possessing ascetic energy, who had a low voice, called

the auspicious one,--but she heard him not. Then seeing the eyes of

Bhrigu's son from the ant-hill, Sukanya from curiosity and losing her

sense, said, 'What is this?'--and with thorns pierced the eyes (of the

Rishi). And as his eyes being pierced by her, he felt exceeding pain and

became wroth. And (from anger) he obstructed the calls of nature of

Saryati's forces. And on their calls of nature being obstructed, the men

were greatly afflicted. And seeing this state of things, the king asked.

'Who is it that hath done wrong to the illustrious son of Bhrigu, old and

ever engaged in austerities and of wrathful temper? Tell me quick if ye

know it'. The soldiers (thereupon) answered him saying, 'We do not know

whether any one hath done wrong to the Rishi. Do thou, as thou list, make

a searching enquiry into the matter. Thereupon that ruler of earth, using

(as he saw occasion) both menace and conciliation, asked his friends

(about the circumstance). But they too did not know anything. Seeing that

the army was distressed owing to the obstruction of the calls of nature,

and also finding her father aggrieved, Sukanya said, 'Roving in the

forest, I lighted in the ant-hill here upon some brilliant substance.

Thereupon taking it for a glow-worm I neared it, and pierced it (with

thorns); Hearing this Saryati immediately came to the ant-hill, and there

saw Bhrigu's son, old both in years and austerities. Then the lord of

earth with joined hands, besought (the ascetic) saying, 'It behoveth thee

to forgive what my daughter through ignorance and greenness, hath done

unto thee." Chyavana the son of Bhrigu, addressed the monarch saying,

'Disregarding me, this one, filled with pride hath pierced my eyes. Even

her, O king, endued with beauty and who was bereft of her senses by

ignorance and temptation--even thy daughter would I have for my bride, I

tell thee truly, on this condition alone will I forgive thee.'

Lomasa said, "Hearing the words of the sage, Saryati, without pausing,

bestowed his daughter on the high-souled Chyavana. Having received the

hand of that girl, the holy one was pleased with the king. And having won

the Rishi's grace, the king went to his city, accompanied by his troops.

And the faultless Sukanya also having obtained that ascetic for her

husband, began to tend him, practising penances, and observing the

ordinance. And that one of a graceful countenance, and void of guile

worshipped Chyavana, and also ministered unto guests, and the sacred

fire."

SECTION CXXIII

"Lomasa said, 'Once on a time, O king, those celestials, namely the twin

Aswins, happened to behold Sukanya, when she had (just) bathed, and when

her person was bare. And seeing that one of excellent limbs, and like

unto the daughter of the lord of celestials, the nose-born Aswins neared

her, and addressed her, saying, 'O thou of shapely thighs, whose daughter

art thou? And what doest thou in this wood? O auspicious one, O thou of

excellent grace, we desire to know this, do thou therefore tell us.'

Thereupon she replied bashfully unto those foremost of celestials. 'Know

me as Sarayati's daughter, and Chyavana's wife.' Thereat the Aswins again

spake unto her, smiling. 'What for, O fortunate one, hath thy father

bestowed thee on a person who is verging on death? Surely, O timid girl,

thou shinest in this wood like lightning. Not in the regions of the

celestials themselves, O girl, have our eyes lighted on thy like. O

damsel, unadornedand without gay robes as thou art, thou beautifiest this

wood exceedingly. Still, O thou of faultless limbs, thou canst not look

so beautiful, when (as at present) thou art soiled with mud and dirt, as

thou couldst, if decked with every ornament and wearing gorgeous apparel.

Why, O excellent girl in such plight servest thou a decrepit old husband,

and one that hath become incapable of realising pleasure and also of

maintaining thee, O thou of luminous smiles? O divinely beautiful damsel,

do thou, forsaking Chyavana accept one of us for husband. It behoveth

thee not to spend thy youth fruitlessly.'"

"Thus addressed Sukanya answered the celestials saying. 'I am devoted to

my husband, Chyavana: do ye not entertain any doubts (regarding my

fidelity). Thereupon they again spake unto her, 'We two are the celestial

physicians of note. We will make thy lord young and graceful. Do thou

then select one of us, viz., ourselves and thy husband,--for thy partner.

Promising this do thou, O auspicious one, bring hither thy husband.' .. O

king, agreeably to their words she went to Bhrigu's son and communicated

to him what the two celestials had said. Hearing her message, Chyavana

said unto his wife, 'Do thou so.' Having received the permission of her

lord, (she returned to the celestials) and said, 'Do ye so.' Then hearing

her words, viz., 'Do ye so,' they spoke unto the king's daughter. 'Let

thy husband enter into water.' Thereat Chyavana desirous of obtaining

beauty, quickly entered into water. The twin Aswins also, O king, sank

into the sheet of water. And the next moment they all came out of the

tank in surpassingly beautiful forms, and young and wearing burnished

earrings. And all, possessed of the same appearance pleasing to behold,

addressed her saying, 'O fortunate one, do thou choose one of us for

spouse. And O beauteous one, do thou select him for lord who may please

thy fancy.' Finding, however, all of them of the same appearance she

deliberated; and at last ascertaining the identity of her husband, even

selected him.

"Having obtained coveted beauty and also his wife, Chyavana, of exceeding

energy, well pleased, spake these words unto the nose-born celestials:

'Since at your hands, an old man, I have obtained youth, and beauty, and

also this wife of mine, I will, well pleased, make you quaffers of the

Soma juice in the presence of the lord of celestials himself. This I tell

you truly.' Hearing this, highly delighted, the twins ascendedto heaven;

and Chyavana and Sukanya too passed their days happily even like

celestials."

SECTION CXXIV

"Lomasa said, 'Now the news came to Saryati that Chyavana had been turned

into a youth. And well pleased he came, accompanied by his troops, to the

hermitage of the son of Bhrigu. And he saw Chyavana and Sukanya, like two

children sprung from celestials, and his joy and that of his wife were as

great as if the king had conquered the entire world. And the ruler of

earth together with his wife was received honourably by that saint. And

the king seated himself near the ascetic, and entered into a delightful

conversation of an auspicious kind. Then, O king, the son of Bhrigu spake

to the king these words of a soothing nature: 'I shall, O king, officiate

at a religious ceremony to be performed by thee: let the requisite

articles, therefore, be procured.' Thereat, that protector of earth

Saryati, experienced the very height of joy, and O great king, he

expressed his approbation of the proposal made by Chyavana. And on an

auspicious day, suitable for the commencement of a sacrificial ceremony,

Saryati ordered the erection of a sacrificial shrine of an excellent

description and splendidly furnished with all desirable things. There

Chyavana, the son of Bhrigu, officiated for the king as his priest. Now

listen to me relating the wonderful events which happened at that spot.

Chyavana took up a quantity of the Soma juice, in order that he might

offer the same to the Aswins, who were physicians to the celestials. And

while the saint was taking up the intended offering for those celestial

twins, Indra pronounced his interdiction, saying, These Aswins both of

them in my opinion have no right to receive an offering of the Soma

juice.' They are the physicians of the celestials in heaven,--this

vocation of theirs hath disentitled them (in the matter of Soma).

Thereupon Chyavana said, 'These two are of mighty enterprise, possessed

of mighty souls, and uncommonly endued with beauty and grace. And they, O

Indra, have converted me into an eternally youthful person, even like

unto a celestial. Why shouldst thou and the other celestials have a right

to the distilled Soma juice, and not they? O lord of the celestials, O

demolisher of hostile towns! be it known to thee that the Aswins also

rank as gods.' At this, Indra spake saying, These two practise the

healing art,--so they are but servants. And assuming forms at their

pleasure they roam about in the world of mortal beings. How can they then

rightfully claim the juice of the Soma?

"Lomasa said, 'When these very identical words were spoken again and

again by the lord of celestials, the son of Bhrigu, setting Indra at

naught, took up the offering he had intended to make. And as he was about

to take up an excellent portion of the Soma juice with the object of

offering it to the two Aswins, the destroyer of the demon Vala (Indra)

observed his act, and thus spoke unto him, 'If thou take up the Soma with

a view to offering it to those celestials, I shall hurl at thee my

thunderbolt of awful form, which is superior to all the weapons that

exist.' Thus addressed by Indra, the son of Bhrigu, cast at Indra a

smiling glance, and took up in due form a goodly quantity of the Soma

juice, to make an offering to the Aswins. Then Sachi's lord hurled at him

the thunderbolt of awful form. And as he was about to launch it, his arm

was paralysed by Bhrigu's son. And having paralysed his arm, Chyavana

recited sacred hymns, and made offering on the fire. His object gained,

he now attempted to destroy that celestial. Then by the virtue of that

saint's ascetic energy, an evil spirit came into being,--a huge demon,

Mada by name, of great strength and gigantic proportions. And his body

was incapable of being measured either by demons or by gods. And his

mouth was terrible and of huge size, and with teeth of sharpened edge.

And one of his jaws rested on the earth, and the other stretched to

heaven. And he had four fangs, each extending as far as one hundred

yojanas, and his other fangs were extended to the distance of ten

yojanas, and were of a form resembling towers on a palace, and which

might be likened to the ends of spears. And his two arms were like unto

hills, and extended ten thousand yojanas, and both were of equal bulk.

And his two eyes resembled the sun and the moon; and his face rivalled

the conflagration at the universal dissolution. And he was licking his

mouth with his tongue, which, like lightning, knew no rest. And his mouth

was open, and his glance was frightful, and seemed as if he would

forcibly swallow up the world. The demon rushed at the celestial by whom

a hundred sacrifices had been performed. And his intent was to devour

that deity. And the world resounded with the loud and frightful sounds

uttered by the Asura."

SECTION CXXV

"Lomasa said, 'When the god who had performed a hundred sacrifices

(Indra) beheld the demon Mada of a frightful mien, coming towards him

with open mouth, his intention being to devour him, and looking like the

god of death himself, while his own arms remained paralysed, he through

fear repeatedly licked the corners of his mouth. Then the lord of the

celestials, tortured with fright, spake to Chyavana saying, 'O Bhrigu's

son! O Brahmana! verily I tell thee as truth itself, that from this day

forward the two Aswins will be entitled to the Soma juice. Be merciful to

me! My undertaking can never come to naught. Let this be the rule. And I

know, O saint of the sacerdotal caste! that thy work can never come to

nothing. These two Aswins will have a right to drink the Soma juice,

since thou hast made them entitled to the same. And, O Bhrigu's son, I

have done this but to spread the fame of thy powers, and my object was to

give thee an occasion for displaying thy powers. My other object was that

the fame of the father of this Sukanya here might spread everywhere.

Therefore be merciful to me: let it be as thou wishest.' Being thus

addressed by Indra, the wrath of Chyavana of mighty soul was quickly

appeased, and he set free the demolisher of hostile cities (Indra). And

the powerful saint, O king! distributed Mada (literally intoxication),

and put it piece-meal in drinks, in women, in gambling, and in field

sports, even this same Mada who had been created repeatedly before.

Having thus cast down the demon Mada and gratified Indra with a Soma

draught and assisted king Saryati in worshipping all the gods together

with the two Aswins and also spread his fame for power over all the

worlds, the best of those endued with speech passed his days happily in

the wood, in the company of Sukanya, his loving wife. This is his lake,

shining, O king! and resounding with the voice of birds. Here must thou,

together with thy uterine brothers, offer libations of water to thy

forefathers and the gods. And, O ruler of earth! O scion of Bharata's

race! having visited it and Sikataksha also, thou shalt repair to the

Saindhava wood, and behold a number of small artificial rivers. And O

great king, O scion of Bharata's race! thou shalt touch the waters of all

the holy lakes and reciting the hymns of the god Sthanu (Siva), meet with

success in every undertaking. For this is the junction, O most

praiseworthy of men, of the two ages of the world, viz., Dwapara and

Treta. It is a time, O Kunti's son! capable of destroying all the sins of

a person. Here do thou perform ablutions, for the spot is able to remove

all the sins of an individual. Yonder is the Archika hill, a dwelling

place for men of cultured minds. Fruits of all the seasons grow here at

all times and the streams run for ever. It is an excellent place fit for

the celestials. And there are the holy cairns of diverse forms, set up by

the celestials. O Yudhishthira! this is the bathing spot belonging to the

Moon. And the saints are in attendance here on all sides round--they are

the dwellers of the wood and the Valakhilyas, and the Pavakas, who

subsist on air only. These are three peaks and three springs. Thou mayst

walk round them all, one by one: then thou mayst wash thyself at

pleasure. Santanu, O king! and Sunaka the sovereign of men, and both Nara

and Narayana have attained everlasting regions from this place. Here did

the gods constantly lie down, as also the forefathers, together with the

mighty saints. In this Archika hill, they all carried on austerities.

Sacrifice to them, O Yudhishthira! Here did they, also the saints, eat

rice cooked in milk, O protector of men! And here is the Yamuna of an

exhaustless spring. Krishna here engaged himself in a life of penances, O

Pandu's son. O thou that draggest the dead bodies of thy foes! the twin

brothers, and Bhimasena and Krishna and all of us will accompany thee to

this spot. O lord of men, this is the holy spring that belongeth to

Indra. Here the creative and the dispensing deity, and Varuna also rose

upwards, and here too they dwelt, O king! observing forbearance, and

possessed of the highest faith. This excellent and propitious hill is fit

for persons of a kindly and candid disposition. This is that celebrated

Yamuna, O king! frequented by hosts of mighty saints, the scene of

diverse religious rites, holy, and destructive of the dread of sin. Here

did Mandhata himself, of a mighty bow, perform sacrificial rites for the

gods; and so did Somaka, O Kunti's son! who was the son of Sahadeva, and

a most excellent maker of gifts.