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

 

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

SECTION CXI

"Lomasa said, 'O descendant of Bharata! she in order to compass the

object of the king, prepared a floating hermitage, both because the king

had ordered so, and also because it exactly accorded with her plan. And

the floating hermitage, containing artificial trees adorned with various

flowers and fruits, and surrounded by diverse shrubs and creeping plants

and capable of furnishing choice and delicious fruits, was exceedingly

delightful, and nice, and pleasing, and looked as if it had been created

by magic. Then she moored the vessel at no great distance from the

hermitage of Kasyapa's son, and sent emissaries to survey the place where

that same saint habitually went about. And then she saw an opportunity;

and having conceived a plan in her mind, sent forward her daughter a

courtesan by trade and of smart sense. And that clever woman went to the

vicinity of the religious man and arriving at the hermitage beheld the

son of the saint.'"

"The courtesan said, 'I hope, O saint! that is all well with the

religious devotees. And I hope that thou hast a plentiful store of fruits

and roots and that thou takest delight in this hermitage. Verily I come

here now to pay thee a visit. I hope the practice of austerities among

the saints is on the increase. I hope that thy father's spirit hath not

slackened and that he is well pleased with thee. O Rishyasringa of the

priestly caste! I hope thou prosecutest the studies proper for thee.'"

Rishyasringa said, 'Thou art shining with lustre, as if thou wert a

(mass) of light. And I deem thee worthy of obeisance. Verily I shall give

thee water for washing thy feet and such fruits and roots also as may be

liked by thee, for this is what my religion hath prescribed to me. Be

thou pleased to take at thy pleasure thy seat on a mat made of the sacred

grass, covered over with a black deer-skin and made pleasant and

comfortable to sit upon. And where is thy hermitage? O Brahmana! thou

resemblest a god in thy mien. What is the name of this particular

religious vow, which thou seemest to be observing now?'

"The courtesan said, O son of Kasyapa! on the other side of yonder hill,

which covers the space of three Yojanas, is my hermitage--a delightful

place. There, not to receive obeisance is the rule of my faith nor do I

touch water for washing my feet. I am not worthy of obeisance from

persons like thee; but I must make obeisance to thee. O Brahmana! This is

the religious observance to be practised by me, namely, that thou must be

clasped in my arms.'"

"Rishyasringa said, 'Let me give thee ripe fruits, such as gallnuts,

myrobalans, Karushas, Ingudas from sandy tracts and Indian fig. May it

please thee to take a delight in them!'"

Lomasa said, "She, however, threw aside all those edible things and then

gave him unsuitable things for food. And these were exceedingly nice and

beautiful to see and were very much acceptable to Rishyasringa. And she

gave him garlands of an exceedingly fragrant scent and beautiful and

shining garments to wear and first-rate drinks; and then played and

laughed and enjoyed herself. And she at his sight played with a ball and

while thus employed, looked like a creeping plant broken in two. And she

touched his body with her own and repeatedly clasped Rishyasringa in her

arms. Then she bent and break the flowery twigs from trees, such as the

Sala, the Asoka and the Tilaka. And overpowered with intoxication,

assuming a bashful look, she went on tempting the great saint's son. And

when she saw that the heart of Rishyasringa had been touched, she

repeatedly pressed his body with her own and casting glances, slowly went

away under the pretext that she was going to make offerings on the fire.

On her departure, Rishyasringa became over-powered with love and lost his

sense. His mind turned constantly to her and felt itself vacant. And he

began to sigh and seemed to be in great distress. At that moment appeared

Vibhandaka, Kasyapa's son, he whose eyes were tawny like those of a lion,

whose body was covered with hair down to the tip of the nails, who was

devoted to studies proper for his caste, and whose life was pure and was

passed in religious meditation. He came up and saw that his son was

seated alone, pensive and sad, his mind upset and sighing again and again

with upturned eyes. And Vibhandaka spake to his distressed son, saying,

'My boy! why is it that thou art not hewing the logs for fuel. I hope

thou hast performed the ceremony of burnt offering today. I hope thou

hast polished the sacrificial ladles and spoons and brought the calf to

the milch cow whose milk furnisheth materials for making offerings on the

fire. Verily thou art not in thy wonted state, O son! Thou seemest to be

pensive, and to have lost thy sense. Why art thou so sad today? Let me

ask thee, who hath been to this place today?'"

SECTION CXII

'Rishyasringa said, 'Here came to-day a religious student with a mass of

hair on his head. And he was neither short nor tall. And he was of a

spirited look and a golden complexion, and endued with eye large as

lotuses; and he was shining and graceful as a god. And rich was his

beauty blazing like the Sun; and he was exceedingly fair with eyes

graceful and black. And his twisted hair was blue-black and neat and long

and of a fragrant scent and tied up with strings of gold. A beautiful

ornament was shining on his neck which looked like lightning in the sky.

And under the throat he had two balls of flesh without a single hair upon

them and of an exceedingly beautiful form. And his waist was slender to a

degree and his navel neat; and smooth also was the region about his ribs.

Then again there shone a golden string from under his cloth, just like

this waist-string of mine. And there was something on his feet of a

wonderful shape which give forth a jingling sound. Upon his wrists

likewise was tied a pair of ornaments that made a similar sound and

looked just like this rosary here. And when he walked, his ornaments

uttered a jingling sound like those uttered by delighted ganders upon a

sheet of water. And he had on his person garments of a wonderful make;

these clothes of mine are by no means beautiful like those. And his face

was wonderful to behold; and his voice was calculated to gladden the

heart; and his speech was pleasant like the song of the male blackbird.

And while listening to the same I felt touched to my inmost soul. And as

a forest in the midst of the vernal season, assumes a grace only when it

is swept over by the breeze, so, O father! he of an excellent and pure

smell looks beautiful when fanned by the air. And his mass of hair is

neatly tied up and remains adhering to the head and forehead evenly

sundered in two. And his two eyes seemed to be covered with wonderful

Chakravaka birds of an exceedingly beautiful form. And he carried upon

his right palm a wonderful globur fruit, which reaches the ground and

again and again leaps up to the sky in a strange way. And he beats it and

turns himself round and whirls like a tree moved by the breeze. And when

I looked at him, O father! he seemed to be a son of the celestials, and

my joy was extreme, and my pleasure unbounded. And he clasped my body,

took hold of my matted hair, and bent down my mouth, and, mingling his

mouth with my own, uttered a sound that was exceedingly pleasant. And he

doth not care for water for washing his feet, nor for those fruits

offered by me; and he told me that such was the religious observance

practised by him. And he gave unto me a number of fruits. Those fruits

were tasteful unto me: these here are not equal to them in taste. They

have not got any rind nor any stone within them, like these. And he of a

noble form gave me to drink water of an exceedingly fine flavour; and

having drunk it, I experienced great pleasu e; and the ground seemed to

be moving under my feet. And these are the garlands beautiful and

fragrant and twined with silken threads that belong to him. And he,

bright with fervent piety, having scattered these garlands here, went

back to his own hermitage. His departure hath saddened my heart; and my

frame seems to be in a burning sensation! And my desire is to go to him

as soon as I can, and to have him every day walk about here. O father,

let me this very moment go to him. Pray, what is that religious

observance which is being practised by him. As he of a noble piety is

practising penances, so I am desirous to live the same life with him. My

heart is yearning after similar observances My soul will be in torment if

I see him not,'"

SECTION CXIII

"Vibhandaka said, 'Those are, O son! Rakshasas. They walk about in that

wonderfully beautiful form. Their strength is unrivalled and their beauty

great And they always meditate obstruction to the practice of penances.

And, O my boy, they assume lovely forms and try to allure by diverse

means. And those fierce beings hurled the saints, the dwellers of the

woods, from blessed regions (won by their pious deeds) And the saint who

hath control over his soul, and who is desirous of obtaining the regions

where go the righteous, ought to have nothing to do with them. And their

acts are vile and their delight is in causing obstruction to those who

practise penance; (therefore) a pious man should never look at them. And,

O son! those were drinks unworthy to be drunk, being as they were

spirituous liquors consumed by unrighteous men. And these garlands, also,

bright and fragrant and of various hues, are not intended for saints.'

Having thus forbidden his son by saying that those were wicked demons,

Vibhandaka went in quest of her. And when by three day's search he was

unable to trace where she was he then came back to his own hermitage. In

the meanwhile, when the son of Kasyapa had gone out to gather fruits,

then that very courtesan came again to tempt Rishyasringa in the manner

described above. And as soon as Rishyasringa had her in sight, he was

glad and hurriedly rushing towards him said, 'Let us go to thy hermitage

before the return of my father.' Then, O king! those same courtesans by

contrivances made the only son of Kasyapa enter their bark, and unmoored

the vessel. And by various means they went on delighting him and at

length came to the side of Anga's king. And leaving then that floating

vessel of an exceedingly white tint upon the water, and having placed it

within sight of the hermitage, he similarly prepared a beautiful forest

known by the name of the Floating Hermitage. The king, however, kept that

only son of Vibhandaka within that part of the palace destined for the

females when of a sudden he beheld that rain was poured by the heavens

and that the world began to be flooded with water. And Lomapada, the

desire of his heart fulfilled, bestowed his daughter Santa on

Rishyasringa in marriage. And with a view to appease the wrath of his

father, he ordered kine to be placed, and fields to be ploughed, by the

road that Vibhandaka was to take, in order to come to his son. And the

king also placed plentiful cattle and stout cowherds, and gave the latter

the following order:

"When the great saint Vibhandaka should enquire of you about his son, ye

must join your palms and say to him that these cattle, and these ploughed

fields belong to his son and that ye are his slaves, and that ye are

ready to obey him in all that he might bid.' Now the saint, whose wrath

was fierce, came to his hermitage, having gathered fruits and roots and

searched for his son. But not finding him he became exceedingly wroth.

And he was tortured with anger and suspected it to be the doing of the

king. And therefore, he directed his course towards the city of Champa

having made up his mind to burn the king, his city, and his whole

territory. And on the way he was fatigued and hungry, when he reached

those same settlements of cowherds, rich with cattle. And he was honoured

in a suitable way by those cowherds and then spent the night in a manner

befitting a king. And having received very great hospitality from them,

he asked them, saying, 'To whom, O cowherds, do ye belong?' Then they all

came up to him and said, 'All this wealth hath been provided for thy

son.' At different places he was thus honoured by that best of men, and

saw his son who looked like the god Indra in heaven. And he also beheld

there his daughter-in-law, Santa, looking like lightning issuing from a

(cloud). And having seen the hamlets and the cowpens provided for his son

and having also beheld Santa, his great resentment was appeased. And O

king of men! Vibhandaka expressed great satisfaction with the very ruler

of the earth. And the great saint, whose power rivalled that of the sun

and the god of fire, placed there his son, and thus spake, 'As soon as a

son is born to thee, and having performed all that is agreeable to the

king, to the forest must thou come without fail.' And Rishyasringa did

exactly as his father said, and went back to the place where his father

was. And, O king of men! Santa obediently waited upon him as in the

firmament the star Rohini waits upon the Moon, or as the fortunate

Arundhati waits upon Vasishtha, or as Lopamudra waits upon Agastya. And

as Damayanti was an obedient wife to Nala, or as Sachi is to the god who

holdeth the thunderbolt in his hand or as Indrasena, Narayana's daughter,

was always obedient to Mudgala, so did Santa wait affectionately upon

Rishyasringa, when he lived in the wood. This is the holy hermitage which

belonged to him. Beautifying the great lake here, it bears holy fame.

Here perform thy ablutions and have thy desire fulfilled. And having

purified thyself, direct thy course towards other holy spots,'"

SECTION CXIV

(Tirtha-yatra Parva continued)

"Vaisampayana said, 'Then, O Janamejaya, the son of Pandu started from

the river Kausiki and repaired in succession to all the sacred shrines.

And, O protector of men, he came to the sea where the river Ganga falls

into it; and there in the centre of five hundred rivers, he performed the

holy ceremony of a plunge. Then, O ruler of the earth, accompanied by his

brothers, the valiant prince proceeded by the shore of the sea towards

the land where the Kalinga tribes dwell."

"Lomasa said, 'There is the land, O Kunti's son, where the Kalinga tribes

dwell. Through it passeth the river Vaitarani, on the banks whereof even

the god of virtue performed religious river, having first placed himself

under the protection of the celestials. Verily, this is the northern

bank, inhabited by saints, suitable for the performance of religious

rites beautified by a hill, and frequented by persons of the regenerate

caste. This spot (in holiness) rivals the path whereby a virtuous man,

fit for going to heaven, repairs to the region inhabited by gods. And

verily at this spot in former times, other saints likewise worshipped the

immortals by the performance of religious rites. And at the very spot it

was that the god Rudra, O king of kings, seized the sacrificial beast and

exclaimed, 'This is my share!' O chief of the descendants of Bharata,

then when the beast was carried away by Siva, the gods spake to him

saying, 'Cast not a covetous glance at the property of others,

disregarding all the righteous rules.' Then they addressed words of

glorification of a pleasing kind to the god Rudra. And they satisfied him

by offering a sacrifice, and paid him suitable honours. Thereupon he gave

up the beast, and went by the path trodden by the gods. Thereupon what

happened to Rudra, learn from me, O Yudhishthira! Influenced by the dread

of Rudra, the gods set apart for evermore, the best allotment out of all

shares, such as was fresh and not stale (to be appropriated by the god).

Whosoever performs his ablutions at this spot, while reciting this

ancient story, beholds with his mortal eyes the path that leads to the

region of the gods.'

"Vaisampayana said, 'Then all the sons of Pandu and likewise the daughter

of Drupada--all of whom were the favoured of Fate--descended to the river

Vaitarani, and made libations to the names of their fathers.'

"Yudhishthira said, 'O Lomasa, how great must be the force of a pious

deed! Having taken my bath at this spot in a proper form, I seem to touch

no more the region inhabited by mortal men! O saint of a virtuous life, I

am beholding all the regions. And this is the noise of the magnanimous

dwellers of the wood, who are reciting their audible prayers.'

"Lomasa said, 'O Yudhishthira, the place whence this noise comes and

reaches thy ears is at the distance of three hundred thousand yojanas, to

be sure. O lord of men, rest thou quiet and utter no word. O king, this

is the divine forest of the Self-existent One, which hath now come to our

view. There, O king, Viswakarma of a dreaded name performed religious

rites. On the mighty occasion of that sacrifice, the Self-existent One

made a gift of this entire earth with all its hilly and forest tracts, to

Kasyapa, by way of gratuity, for ministering as a priest. And then, O

Kuru's son, as soon as that goddess Earth was giving away, she became sad

at heart, and wrathfully spake the following words to that great lord,

the ruler of the worlds, 'O mighty god, it is unworthy of thee to give me

away to an ordinary mortal. And this act of gift on thy part will come to

nothing; (for) here am I going to descend into the bottom of the nether

world.' Then when the blessed saint Kasyapa beheld the goddess Earth,

despondent and sad, he, O protector of men, performed a propitiatory act

calculated to appease her wrath. And then, O Pandu's son, the Earth was

pleased with his pious deed. And she uprose again from within the waters,

and showed herself in the form of a sacred altar. This, O king, is the

spot which distinctly manifests the form of an altar. O great monarch,

ascend over it, and thou wilt gain valour and strength. And, O king, this

is the very altar which reaches as far as the sea, and rests itself upon

its bosom. May good luck be thine, do thou mount hereupon, and of thyself

cross the sea. And while thou this day mountest upon it, I shall

administer the ceremony for averting all evil from thee; for this altar

here, as soon as it gets a mortal's touch, at once enters into the sea.

Salutation to the god who protects the universe! Salutation to thee that

art beyond the universe! O Lord of gods, vouchsafe thy presence in this

sea. O Pandu's son, thou must recite the following words of truth, and

while so reciting, thou must quickly ascend this altar, 'The god of fire,

and the sun, and the organ of generation, and water, and goddess and the

seed of Vishnu, and the navel of nectar. The god of fire is the organ

that generated the (ocean); the earth is thy body; Vishnu deposited the

seed that caused thy being and thou art the navel of nectar.' Thus, O

Pandu's son, the words of truth must be audibly recited, and while so

reciting, one must plunge into the lord of rivers. O most praiseworthy of

Kunti's son, otherwise this lord of waters of divine birth, this best

storehouse of the waters (of the earth), should not be touched, O son of

Kunti, even with the end of a sacred grass.'

"Vaisampayana said, 'Then when the ceremony for averting evil had been

completed in his behalf, the magnanimous Yudhishthira went into the sea,

and having performed all that the saint had bid, repaired to the skirts

of the Mahendra hill, and spent the night at that spot.'"

SECTION CXV

"Vaisampayana said, 'The protector of the earth spent there a single

night, and with his brothers, paid the highest honours to the religious

men. And Lomasa made him acquainted with the names of all of them, such

as the Bhrigus, the Angiras, the Vasishthas, and the Kasyapas. And the

royal saint paid visit to them all and made obeisance to them with joined

palms. And then he asked the valiant Akritavrana, who was a follower of

Parasurama, when will the revered Parasurama show himself to the

religious men here? It is desired on that occasion to obtain a sight of

the descendant of Bhrigu.'

"Akritavrana said, 'Thy journey to this spot is already known to Rama,

whose soul spontaneously knows everything. And he is in every way

well-pleased with thee, and he will show himself readily to thee. And the

saints who practise penances here, are permitted to see him on the

fourteenth and the eighth day of the lunar course. On the morrow at the

end of this very night there will set in the fourteenth day of the lunar

course. On that occasion thou wilt have a sight of him, clad in a sable

deerskin, and wearing his hair in the form of a matted mass."

"Yudhishthira said, Thou hast been a follower of the mighty Rama,

Jamadagni's son; thou must, therefore, have been the eye-witness of all

the deeds achieved by him in former days. I, therefore, request thee to

narrate to me how the members of the military caste were vanquished by

Rama on the field of battle, and what the original cause of those

conflicts was.'

"Akritavrana said, 'With pleasure shall I recite to thee that excellent

story, O Bharata's son, O chief of kings, the story of the godlike deeds

of Rama, the son of Jamadagni, who traced his origin to Bhrigu's race. I

shall also relate the achievements of the great ruler of the Haihaya

tribe. That king, Arjuna by name, the mighty lord of the Haihaya tribe

was killed by Rama. He, O Pandu's son, was endued with a thousand arms;

and by the favour of Dattatreya he likewise had a celestial car made of

gold. And, O protector of the earth, his rule extended over the entire

animated world, wheresoever located on this earth. And the car of that

mighty monarch could proceed everywhere in an unobstructed course. And

grown resistless by the virtue of a granted boon, he ever mounted on that

car, trampled upon gods and Yakshas and saints on all sides round. And

all the born beings wheresoever placed, were harassed by him. Then the

celestials and the saints of a rigidly virtuous life, met together, and

thus spake to Vishnu, the god of gods, the slayer of demons, and

possessed of prowess that never failed, saying. 'O blessed and revered

lord, for the purpose of preserving all the born beings, it is necessary

that Arjuna should be killed by thee.' And the mighty ruler of the

Haihaya tribe placing himself on his celestial car, affronted Indra,

while that deity was enjoying himself with Sachi, his queen. Then, O

Bharata's son, the blessed and the revered god (Vishhnu) held a

consultation with Indra, with a view to destroying Kartavirya's son. And

on that occasion, all that was for the good of the world of beings, was

communicated by the lord of gods; and the blessed god worshipped by the

world, to do all that was necessary, went to the delightful Vadari wood

which was his own chosen retreat for practising penances. And at this

very time there lived on the earth a mighty monarch in the land of

Kanyakuvja, a sovereign whose military force was exceedingly great. And

his name of Gadhi was famous in the world. He, however, betook himself to

a forest-life. And while he was dwelling in the midst of the wood, there

was born to him a daughter beautiful as a nymph of heaven. And Richika,

the son of Bhrigu, asked for her to be united with himself in marriage.

And then Gadhi spake to that Brahmana, who led a rigidly austere life,

saying. There is a certain family custom in our race; it hath been

founded by my ancestors of a bygone age. And, O most excellent of the

sacerdotal caste, be it known to thee that the intending bridegroom must

offer a dowry consisting of a thousand fleet steeds, whose colour must be

brown and every one of whom must possess a single sable car. But, O

Bhrigu's son, a reverend saint like thee cannot be asked to offer the

same. Nor can my daughter be refused to a magnanimous saint of thy

(exalted) rank.' Thereupon Richika said, 'I will give thee a thousand

fleet steeds, brown in hue and possessing a single sable car; let thy

daughter be given in marriage to me.'

"Akritavrana said. Thus having given his word, O king, he went and said

to Varuna, 'Give me a thousand fleet steeds brown in colour, and each

with one black ear. I want the same as dowry for my marriage.' To him

Varuna forthwith gave a thousand steeds. Those steeds had issued out of

the river Ganga; hence the spot hath been named: The horse's landing

place. And in the city of Kanyakuvja, the daughter of Gadhi, Satyavati by

name, was given in marriage; and the gods themselves were of the party of

the bride. Richika, the most excellent of the sacerdotal caste, thus

procured a thousand steeds, and had a sight of the dwellers of heaven and

won a wife in the proper form. And he enjoyed himself with the girl of

slender waist, and thus gratified all the wishes and desire that he ever

had. And when the marriage had been celebrated, O king, his father Bhrigu

came on a visit to see him and his wife; and he was glad to see his

praiseworthy son. And the husband and wife together paid their best

respects to him, who was worshipped by all the gods. And when he had

seated himself, they both with joined palms, stood near him, in order

that they might to his bidding. And then the revered saint, Bhrigu, glad

at heart, thus spoke to his daughter-in-law, saying, 'O lovely daughter,

as for a boon I am ready to grant thee any object of thy wish.' And there

upon she asked for his favour in this, that a son might be born to both

herself and her mother. And he vouchsafed the favour thus asked for.'

"Bhrigu said, 'During the days that your season lasts, thou and thy

mother must take a bath, with the ceremony for bringing forth a male

child. And ye two must then separately embrace two different trees--she a

peepal tree, and thou a fig tree. And, O dutiful girl, here are two pots

of rice and milk, prepared by me with the utmost care. I having ransacked

the whole universe to find the drugs, the essence whereof hath been

blended with this milk and rice. It must be taken as food with the

greatest care.' And saying this, he vanished from sight. The two ladies,

however, made an interchange both in the matter of the pots of rice, and

likewise as regards the trees (to be embraced by each). Then after the

lapse of very many days, the revered saint, once more came. And he came

knowing (what had happened) by his attribute of divine knowledge. Then

Bhrigu possessed of mighty strength, spake to Satyavati, his

daughter-in-law, saying, 'O dutiful girl! O my daughter of a lovely brow,

the wrong pot of rice thou tookest as food. And it was the wrong tree

which was embraced by thee. It was thy mother who deluded thee. A son

will be born of thee, who, though of the priestly caste, will be of a

character fit for the military order; while a mighty son will be born of

thy mother, who, though by birth a Kshatriya will assume a life suitable

to the sacerdotal order. And his power will be great, and he will walk on

the path trodden by righteous men.' Then she entreated her father-in-law

again and again, saying, 'Let not my son be of this character; but let my

grandson be such.' And, O Pandu's son, he replied, 'So let it be!' And

thus he was pleased to grant her prayer. Then she brought forth on the

expected day a son by name Jamadagni. And this son of Bhrigu was endowed

with both splendour and grace. And he grew in years and in strength, and

excelled he other saints in the proficiency of his Vaidik lore. O

chieftain of Bharata's race, to him, rivalling in lustre the author of

light (the sun), came spontaneously and without instruction the knowledge

of the entire military art and of the fourfold missile arms.'"