SECTION –CCXXVIII
(Markandeya-Samasya Parva Continued)
"Markandeya continued, 'Skanda was adorned
with a golden amulet and wreath, and wore a crest and a crown of gold; his eyes
were golden-coloured, and he had a set of sharp teeth; he was dressed in a red
garment and looked very handsome; he had a comely appearance, and was endowed
with all good characteristics and was the favourite of the three worlds. He
granted boons (to people who sought them) and was brave, youthful, and adorned
with bright ear-rings. Whilst he was reposing himself, the goddess of fortune,
looking like a lotus and assuming a personal embodiment, rendered her
allegiance to him. When he became thus possessed of good fortune, that famous
and delicate-looking creature appeared to all like the moon at its full. And
high-minded Brahmanas worshipped that mighty being, and the Maharshis (great
rishis) then said as follows to Skanda, 'O thou born of the golden egg, mayst
thou be prosperous and mayst thou become an instrument of good to the universe!
O best of the gods, although thou wast born only six nights (days) ago, the
whole world has owned allegiance to thee (within this short time), and thou
hast also allayed their fears. Therefore do thou become the Indra (lord) of the
three worlds and remove their cause of apprehension.' Skanda replied, 'You
gentlemen of great ascetic wealth (tell me) what Indra does with all three
worlds and how that sovereign of the celestials protects the hosts of gods
unremittingly.' The Rishis replied, 'Indra is the giver of strength, power,
children and happiness to all creatures and when propitiated, that Lord of the
celestials bestows on all the objects of their desire. He destroys the wicked and
fulfils the desires of the righteous; and that Destroyer of Vala assigns to all
creatures their various duties. He officiates for the sun and the moon in
places where there is no sun or moon; he even when occasion requires it, acts
for (serves the purposes of) fire, air, earth, and water. These are the duties
of Indra; his capacities are immense. Thou too art mighty; therefore great
hero, do thou become our Indra.'
Sakra said, 'O mighty being, do thou make us
happy, by becoming our lord. Excellent being, thou art worthy of the honour;
therefore shall we anoint thee this very day.'
Skanda replied, 'Do thou continue to rule the
three worlds with self-possession, and with thy heart bent on conquest. I shall
remain thy humble servant. I covet not thy sovereignty.'
Sakra replied, 'Thy prowess is unrivalled, O
hero, do thou therefore vanquish the enemies of the gods. People have been
struck with wonder at thy prowess. More specially as I have been bereft of my
prowess, and defeated by thee, now if I were to act as Indra, I should not
command the respect of all creatures, and they would be busy in bringing about
dissensions between us; and then, my lord, they would become the partisans of
one or other of us. And when they formed themselves into two distinct factions,
war as before would be the result of that defection. And in that war, thou
wouldst undoubtedly defeat me without difficulty and thyself become the lord of
all worlds.'
Skanda replied, 'Thou, O Sakra, art my sovereign,
as also of the three worlds; mayst thou be prosperous! Tell me if I can obey
any commands of thine.'
Indra replied, 'At thy bidding, O powerful being,
I shall continue to act as Indra. And if thou hast said this deliberately and
in earnest, then hear me how thou canst gratify thy desire of serving me. Do
thou, O mighty being, take the leadership of the celestial forces accordingly.'
Skanda replied, 'Do thou anoint me as leader, for
the destruction of the Danavas, for the good of the celestials, and for the
well-being of cows and Brahmanas.'
Markandeya continued, "Thus anointed by
Indra and all other gods, and honoured by the Maharshis, he looked grand at the
moment. The golden umbrella 1 held (over his head) looked like a halo of
blazing fire. That famous god, the Conqueror of Tripura, himself fastened the
celestial wreath of gold, of Viswakarma's manufacture, round his neck. And, O
great man and conqueror of thine enemies, that worshipful god with the emblem
of the bull, had gone there previously with Parvati. He honoured him with a
joyous heart. The Fire-god is called Rudra by Brahmanas, and from this fact
Skanda is called the son of Rudra. The White Mountain was formed from
discharges of Rudra's semen virile and the sensual indulgences of the Fire-god
with the Krittikas took place on that same White Mountain. And as Rudra was
seen by all the dwellers of heaven to heap honours on the excellent Guha
(Skanda), he was for that reason reputed as the son of Rudra. This child had
his being by the action of Rudra entering into the constitution of the
Fire-god, and for this reason, Skanda came to be known as the son of Rudra.
And, O Bharata, as Rudra, the Fire-god, Swaha, and the six wives (of the seven
Rishis) were instrumental to the birth of the great god Skanda, he was for that
reason reputed as the son of Rudra.
"That son of Fire-god was clad in a pair of
clean red cloths, and thus he looked grand and resplendent like the Sun peeping
forth from behind a mass of red clouds. And the red cock given to him by the
Fire-god, formed his ensign; and when perched on the top of his chariot, it
looked like the image of the all-destroying fire. And the presiding deity of
the power which conduces to the victory of the god, and which is the director
of the exertions of all creatures, and constitutes their glory, prop and
refuge, advanced before him. And a mysterious charm entered into his
constitution the charm which manifests its powers on the battlefield. Beauty,
strength, piety, power, might, truthfulness, rectitude, devotion to Brahmanas,
freedom from illusion or perplexity, protection of followers, destruction of
foes, and care of all creatures,--these, O lord of men, are the inborn virtues
of Skanda. Thus anointed by all the gods, he looked pleased and complacent; and
dressed in his best style, he looked beautiful like the moon at its full. The
much-esteemed incantation of Vedic hymns, the music of the celestial band, and
the songs of gods and Gandharvas then rang on all sides. And surrounded by all
the well-dressed Apsaras, and many other gay and happy-looking Pisachas and
hosts of gods, that anointed (by gods) son of Pavaka disported himself in all
his grandeur. To the dwellers of heaven, the anointed Mahasena, appeared like
the Sun rising after extinction of darkness. And then the celestial forces
looking upon him as their leader, surrounded him on all sides in thousands.
That adorable being followed by all creatures then assumed their commands, and
praised and honoured by them, he encouraged them in return.
"The Performer of a thousand sacrifices then
thought of Devasena, whom he has rescued before. And considering that this
being (Skanda) was undoubtedly destined to be the husband of this lady by
Brahma himself, he had her brought there, dressed her with the best apparel.
And the vanquisher of Vala then said to Skanda, 'O foremost of gods, this lady
was, even before thy birth, destined to be thy bride by that Self-existent
Being. 1 Therefore do thou duly accept her lotus-like beautiful right hand with
invocation of the (marital) hymns.' Thus told, he duly married her. And
Vrihaspati learned in hymns performed the necessary prayers and oblations. She
who is called Shashthi, Lakshmi, Asa, Sukhaprada, Sinivali, Kuhu, Saivritti,
and Aparajita, is known among men as Devasena, the wife of Skanda. When Skanda
became united to Devasena in indissoluble bonds of matrimony, then the gods of
prosperity in her own personal embodiment began to serve him with diligence. As
Skanda attained celebrity on the fifth lunar day, that day is called
Sripanchami (or the auspicious fifth day) and as he attained his object on the
sixth, that lunar day is considered to be of great moment."
Footnotes
461:1 One of the ensigns of royalty in Hindustan.
462:1 Brahma.
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