Samskruthi

The Mad Narayana (concluding part)

2008-10-02T01:05:00.000-07:00

The Goddess that Failed

It was then that Goddess Kali made her appearance there with her entourage of the fearful ghosts. The time was fast approaching midnight and no humans roamed outside their houses, especially near cremation grounds, at that time. The goddess wanted to enjoy a dance with her friends around the funeral pyre as was her habit.

Goddess Kali was shocked to find our Narayana, a human, at that time there. She expected him, at least, to run away in panic at her sight. Nothing happened of that sort. Narayana ignored the sudden appearance of the unearthly beings and continued with the preparation for his simple dinner.

Kali had no other choice than to confront him. The easiest weapon at her disposal was her frightening features.

But, the Goddess was disappointed that she could not find even any hint of fear in the stooping figure near the fire. How to handle a strange case case like that? The presence of a human was the least welcome when divinities choose to enjoy themselves. So, Kali decided to talk sense to the human. “You may know that I am Goddess Kali and these are my companion ghosts. It is my habit to dance around funeral pyre in the middle of night. Human beings are not allowed in our presence, let alone witness our dance. So, you better leave this place immediately.”

But, Narayana did not care for such protocols. He replied. “Well, if that is your practice, then that is your problem. It is my habit that I cook my dinner wherever I get some water and fire . Today I found this convenient place and I am going to enjoy my meal here. It is up to you whether you dance here or leave this place.”

How impertinent of the human being to talk to the divinity in such a fearless and disrespectful tone. Kali thought of using her powerful and unfailing weapon, of creating terror in her human opponent. She said. “If you do not go, then I shall make you run “

Narayana replied. “Try your luck!”

Then, Kali and the ghosts took their most terrible forms with dishevelled hair and large blood shot eyes protruding out, and roaring in fearful sound that filled the air like thunder. Yet, Narayana did not even bat his eye lids once, but, broke into a gentle and mocking smile instead. That was the most humiliating defeat that the Goddess Kali had ever met. She changed into a benign smile and approached Narayana. “We, divinities avoid humans except in rare circumstances. If it happens, it is a rule for us that we either put a curse or give them a boon. I take you to be man of extraordinary faculties and I do not want to curse you. So, please tell me what boon I may grant you."

But, Narayana was not impressed even then. He said. “Sorry, I am not interested in any boon from you or from any one else.” That put Kali in a fix. She pleaded. “Please do not say so. Even as a favour, please accept a boon from me.”

The mad Narayana thought for a while and asked: “Well, can you please tell me how long I am going to live?”. The goddess did not have to think a lot to arrive at the remaining life of the human. She said: “You have thirty six years, six months, six days and a few hours left in your life.”. “If so, please grant me one additional day’s life ”. “Oh, no! That is something that I cannot promise. Nobody can do that.” “In that case, have mercy and end my life a day earlier!” The Goddess was in trouble even then. She admitted. “Sorry, even that is beyond me.” “That is why I refused to ask for any boons from you. If you cannot change my life even by a day, then what power do you have?”

But, Kali insisted that Narayana should ask for some other boon, something within her powers to bestow. Our man, with an amused smile asked. “You see my swollen left foot. Please have mercy on me and change that to my right .” He was being considerate to the divinity. It mattered little to him either way. But, Kali was pleased. She blessed him accordingly and left the place with her entourage leaving Narayana all to himself.

(Concluded)

The twelve children of a woman of low birth – 5

2008-09-26T09:01:00.000-07:00

“Mad Narayana”

All the eleven living children of Vararuchi may have been equally great. Their greatness was that they were evolved souls, not affected by the ways of the world. Most of them exhibited a sixth sense. It is said that they could see the future in store for themselves and for those with whom they moved. Most of the recorded stories surround five or six of the eleven. There may be more about them and about the others, told and retold locally, in the respective areas where they lived.

Among them the mad Narayana (Narayana Bhraanta) impressed me most. He was believed to be fostered by one sub-division of Brahmins, an Ilayath, though that is not so recorded. He was known more for his idiosyncrasies.

He was always dressed in rags and appeared in the most untidy way. He spoke little and had very little to do with others. He needed very little to maintain himself and survived only by begging.

What earned him the epithet, “mad”, was his strange daily routine. He used to start the day rolling a rock up a hill nearby. He would toil, in sun or rain, until he reached the top of the hill, rolling the rock up with all his strength. Once he reached the top he would roll the rock down the slopes of the hill and enjoy the sight. He would clap his hands and laugh loudly, as if appreciating his own achievement. Wise men have tried to explain the madness of Narayana saying that he tried to send the message that the path uphill was always difficult. And a fall from a lofty position earned the hard way was so easy.

Ten thousand gone, ten thousand yet to go

One of the trivial pursuits of Narayana was his pre-occupation with nature. He would watch arrays of ants passing so intently that it would appear that he was counting them. One day some one who passed by mockingly asked. “How many have gone?” Our Narayana, even without turning around, replied. “Ten thousand gone, another ten thousand yet to go.”

It was said that the man who asked the question was suffering from a severe stomach ailment. He had already spent ten thousand Rupees in treating his illness. Yet, he did not get cured. In fact, he had kept an equal amount aside for the purpose. The unexpected reply from the mad Narayana made him thinking. Even mad people often would make sensible statements. It was possible that Narayana, though mad, might have got an inkling of his future, that he would be cured by spending the amount he had earmarked for his future treatment. That was the thought that came to the mind of the passer by. It is said that finally the prediction of mad Narayana came true. The guy was cured of his ailment after he spent ten thousand more Rupees on treatment.

All alone in a cremation ground

Narayana, after spending the mornings in such frivolities, would start begging for food in the afternoons. His only worldly possession was his begging bowl which he also used for cooking his solitary meal of the day, at night.

He would go to a place where there was water in the evenings with whatever food, mostly a handful of rice, he collected by begging during the day. He would collect water in the bowl, make fire near by, cook his meal and enjoy the simple dinner. Then, he would sleep in the open near the fire till morning. If he got nothing he had no complaint. He could go without meal for days together.

Narayana had collected some rice for his dinner that day. He found fire in a cremation ground near the river. The relations of the dead person had left after performing the funeral rites. Normal persons never entered such places for any other reason, especially at night.

There are always ghost stories built around cremation grounds. It is believed to be the place where Goddess Kali entertained herself with her companion ghosts. Ordinary humans used to shudder at the very thought of cremation grounds and of the terrifying sights they might witness there, especially in the middle of nights.

Not so for our Narayana. He feared nothing and cared for none of the norms that bound ordinary humans. So, for him a cremation ground was as good a place as any other that suited him as a camping site. There was a huge fire that was burning from the pyre and there was a river nearby. Besides, the place was desolate giving him the much cherished peace.

So, he made an open oven with three rocks and pulled some logs off the funeral pyre to their middle. He placed his begging pot with rice and water on top and left it for cooking. Narayana had his left foot slightly swollen because of elephantiasis which he placed on top of one of the rocks for temporary relief. He started humming a melody and was drowsing off in between.

(We continue the story of Mad Narayana in the next episode)

The twelve children of a woman of low birth – 4

2008-09-23T09:46:00.000-07:00

Vararuchi started a happy married life with the wise girl from the Brahmin family. One day he was enjoying her close company in solitude. While he was stroking her lovely hair his hands sensed something rough on her scalp. On close observation he realized that it was a scar. “How did this happen?”, asked Vararuchi. His wife replied in a casual manner: “You know, I am not really a child born to my parents. My mother found me afloat on a raft while she was bathing in the river. She was childless. So, she pleaded with my father to keep me. My father was hesitant initially saying that he did not know of my birth. From the look of me he knew that I was a cast away in the river for some reason he would not know. But, my mother persuaded him saying that I was god’s gift to them. Finally, they decided to accept me. They removed an oil lamp that was stuck on my head which left this scar. My mother told all these things to me after I grew up”.

The irony of fate

Vararuchi heaved a sigh wondering at the power of fate. He told her all about her birth and about the prediction. He explained how he tried to protect himself and how he failed. He concluded saying, “we should not continue living in this land as before. Let us be on a pilgrimage from now on distancing ourselves from the society and its norms.” With the concurrence of his wife, whom we may simply call Parayi (born of the Paraya family) for no other reason than convenience, Vararuchi left the palace and the country and in her company started roaming around holy places in the neighbouring lands.

The story so far must have taken place outside Kerala, probably in and around Ujjain. There is reason to believe that further journey of the couple took them into various parts of the state.

Does the baby have a mouth?

Soon, the wife of Vararuchi got in the family way. When it was time for delivery they got into a nearby forest where the good lady delivered her first child. It was a boy. When Vararuchi heard the first cry of the baby he called out: “Does the child have a mouth?” “Yes, of course!”, replied the mother with excitement. “If God has given it a mouth, then He will provide for its food also. Leave him behind, just as you come out of the forest.”

The Parayi was sorry to lose her darling baby and abandon it at a forest, with no one to care for it. But, Vararuchi started walking away even without turning back. So, she had to follow him keeping her deep sorrow to herself.

She bore another child, to another boy, and the same question was asked by her husband after delivery: “Was the child born with a mouth?” If so, leave the child behind. The Lord who gave him a mouth shall feed him as well. This was repeated eleven times. Only one was a girl. All others were boys. All were left behind, in the hands of the God who bestowed it with a mouth.

The one without a mouth

The Parayi bore a child the twelfth time also. It was a boy. This time when the same question was asked, she replied though with hesitation: “No, my husband, it does not have a mouth”. She hoped that she would be given permission, in that case, to keep the child. Vararuchi came near and inspected the baby. What a wonder, it did not, indeed, have a mouth! It is said that the words of the truly devoted (Pativrata) wives come true. How will a child without a mouth survive? So, Vararuchi carried it to a nearby hill and installed it as deity on top of it. Thus, the twelfth child born to the couple became an instant divinity. The villagers from nearby and even far away lands continue to visit the temple of the god without a mouth on a hill (vaayillaakkunnil appan).

The eleven siblings

The other eleven were picked up by kind villagers, all belonging to different castes, whoever found them. The first was a Brahmin. The boy grew up and later performed one of the rare rituals, called an Agnihotra, and came to be known as an Agnihotri. Another was adopted by a carpenter and he grew up to become one of the best known artisans in the land (perunthaccan). One, named Narayana, behaved so extraordinarily that people took him to be mad from birth. He was known by the name,“ the mad Narayana (narayana bhaanta)”. Nothing more is known of Vararuchi or his devoted wife later.

All the eleven children exhibited extraordinary traits even from their childhood. Many of their stories are told and retold even today throughout Kerala. Quite a few of them are interesting in one way or other. We may pick a few and go through them through the next episodes. The families of the eleven surviving children are traced even to this date.

After the death of Vararuchi the eleven surviving children started getting together in the house of the eldest brother, the Brahmin, for the annual remembrance ritual for their father. That practice was revived recently by the families who claim to be the true descendants of the Parayi.

(To be continued)

The twelve children of a woman of low birth – 3

2008-09-21T05:11:00.000-07:00

Vararuchi had won back the confidence of the king in him. Yet, he could not breathe easily. There was one disconcerting thought that haunted the mind of the gentle Brahmin day and night.

True, the conversation among the deities in the forest had given him the clue to the riddle. Yet, they were the very words that made his mind restless. They had said that the girl born on the eventful night to the woman of low caste was to be married by him.The rules of the land did not allow the marriage of a Brahmin with a woman of low birth. If that happened, he would definitely be thrown out of his caste. The king, in that case, would have to abandon him, not for 41 days, but for ever. Such disturbing thoughts continued to torment the otherwise pure mind of Vararuchi.

The impending danger

The change in mood of his friend did not escape the notice of the king. He once asked. “I have a feeling that there is something that is bothering you. Do not hesitate to tell me about it. I am sure that I can find a solution, some way or the other.”

Vararuchi replied. “Your Highness! I do not know how to put this to you. I am aware of a great disaster that is going to fall on this country. That has been tormenting my mind all these days.”

It was the turn of Vikramaditya to feel concerned this time. “Tell me all about it and, if there is a way I can prevent that.”

Vararuchi mentioned the birth of the Paraya girl giving the date and the approximate place. He simply said that the girl was the cause for the disaster looming over the kingdom. “Your majesty, if it pleases you, please do not spare any efforts to find the girl at the earliest and arrange to destroy her without delay.”

The way out

Vikramaditya was in two minds. He had no reason to suspect the truth in the words of his friend. But, killing an innocent child was a sin of the greatest order. He called his ministers and men of learning for consultation into his court. After discussing the issue at length they reached a consensus and a plan. The child was to be placed on a raft and left on the river that flowed through the country into the neighbouring lands. As was the custom, an oil lamp was to be stuck on the head to indicate the status of the child, that it was a caste away. The child, in that way, was placed in the hands of the god. With god’s will, the child would survive. Else, it would perish. Either way, the king could live with a clear conscience. The soldiers had no difficulty in finding the child and executing the king’s orders without delay.

The fate in store

Vararuchi was a happy man. The impending danger in his life was over. He lived happily in the palace reciting poems to the king and engaging in discussions on matters of the world and mind.

Several years passed in that manner. Once, Vararuchi was on a visit to a far away land. It was noon and he was lucky to find the house of a Brahmin just in time for lunch. As was the custom, the Brahmin received Vararuchi with due curtsies. He informed the guest that he could finish his bath (as was the custom, as a way of purification) by which time lunch would be ready.

Vararuchi suddenly got into a mischievous mood. He said. “I have a few conditions to place so that I can accept your hospitality.” “What can they be? If they are within me, I shall try to meet them.”

Then, Vararuchi spelt out what sounded like near impossibilities. “I want a garment made of special silk for change after bath. Then, I want myself to feed one hundred people. I also want 108 dishes for my meal.” They were all very difficult, but, the Brahmin could stretch himself and try to meet them. It was then Vararuchi came out with what sounded like a bombshell. “After meal, I want to eat three people as is my custom. Then four men should hold me up while I take a short nap”.

The host was shocked by the ridiculous conditions. Was he out of his mind? When the Brahmin was trying to recover from his shock there was a voice from inside the house. “Father, tell him that all shall be arranged as per his wish”. (Women and adolescent girls do not appear in front of men who are not related by blood.)Vararuchi also heard the words coming from his host’s daughter. He proceeded to have his bath wondering who could be the girl, so wise as to understand his needs, spoken in riddles.

The stiff conditions

The host was perplexed. He had high regards for the wisdom of his daughter. But, what she undertook to accomplish was beyond his imagination. He accosted her. :”Are you out of your minds to agree to those senseless conditions?” The girl replied. “Father, what our guest wanted is not difficult. It is only that he put them differently. He wants the customary piece (kaupeenam) of cloth (undergarment) to change after bath. It is simply given the name of the special silk. Then, he wants to appease the gods with the usual offerings (vaishvadevam) as Brahmins do before food. It is considered to be equal in merit to feeding one hundred people. He would be satisfied with a dish of curd mixed with ginger to go with rice. Is that not called the ‘108 curry’, as it is thought to be equally good? He, then, wants to chew betel leaves with lime and areca nut. You know, yourself, that it is jokingly called, eating three. Finally after meals, he wants to rest a while on a bed. A bed is, as though held high by four men. Is that not so? In short, what he asked for is nothing out of the ordinary.” The Brahmin was impressed by the wisdom of his daughter.

So was Vararuchi. He was thinking all along while bathing. Was the Brahmin’s daughter so exceptionally intelligent as implied by her reply, in understanding his cleverly put conditions? But, when he finished bath, he got the piece of cloth to change into. He found all the arrangements for making the usual offering to gods. He could get the special dish of curd with rice and was satisfied with his lunch. He found a plate with betel leaves, lime and areca nuts to chew near the bed made ready for him. He was truly satisfied.

Vararuchi was so impressed that he wanted to ask for the hands of the girl. He had remained a bachelor all those years. When the matter was brought up the Brahmin asked for the background of his guest. It was then that he realized that his guest was none other than the famous Vararuchi, the close associate of emperor Vikramaditya. Age was not of much concern in marriage alliances those days. Thus, the proposal was accepted. Vararuchi married the wise daughter of the Brahmin on an auspicious day in a simple ceremony.

(To be continued)

The twelve children of a woman of low birth – 2

2008-09-20T05:58:00.000-07:00

It was the fortieth day after Vararuchi had left the palace of Vikramaditya in search of an answer for the riddle: what was the best verse in Ramayana? Needless to say, that no satisfactory answer was found to that intriguing question of the king.

Vararuchi had roamed over the breadth and width of the country and even outside, meeting scholars of repute. None could give a good enough answer. If he could not return to the king next day with a proper answer what would happen to him?

That day the poor Brahmin could not find any house where he could satisfy his hunger and get the much needed rest. When night came the poet found himself within a forest. It was too dark to get to the nearest village. He was tired from long walks, and from hunger and thirst. He lied down under a palm tree and tried to get some sleep. But, as was customary, first he prayed to the guardian deities of the forest (vana devata) for protection.

Yet, sleep escaped from the tormented mind of the Brahmin. He lay down with thoughts of his bleak future. He had lost hopes of life itself. Slowly, because of exhaustion, the poor Brahmin drowsed off.

The clue

He was woken up in the middle of night by a conversation. The voices came from the top of the tree. “Welcome, friends. What brought you here?” “We are on a visit to the hut of the Paraya (of low birth) family in the next village. The woman is due to give birth. We are on our way, as it is our duty to visit the house and bless the child. Won’t you join us?” “Unfortunately, not. This Brahmin has prayed for our protection before he went to sleep. We cannot move away from this place until he wakes up. Do come this way on your return and tell us about the delivery.”

Vararychi was intrigued by the conversation. Obviously it was between the deities of forests, the hosts being the ones to whom he prayed for protection. His vast learning must have included the language (and sound) of non-human beings as well. Vararuchi, soon got into a light sleep again.

He was woken up later, towards early morning by similar voices coming from up the palm tree. This time the conversation went like this: “Are you already on your way back? What was the baby like?” “The Paraya woman has delivered a pretty little girl.” “That is wonderful. Who is going to marry her?” “This Brahmin, who does not know ’know me (maam viddhi)’ ”.

There was silence from the top of the tree after that . But, those brief words flashed the desperately sought verse in Ramayana in Vararuchi’s mind. “maam viddhi ? Of course, that indicates to the stanza in Ramayana which goes:”

“Think of Rama as (your father,) Dasaratha
Know me to be Seetha (actually, know Seetha to be me, because of the two nouns in the accusative case, me and Seetha)
Think of Ayodhya as the forest
My son! Go well”

(raamam daSaratham viddhi
maam viddhi janakaadmajaam
Ayodhyaam ataveem viddhi
gaccha taata yathaa sukham)

Those were the famous parting words of Sumitra spoken to her son Lakshmana (the brother of Rama) when he went to his mother to bid good bye. Dasaratha was the king and Rama was the eldest brother and the favourite of the king for the throne. He had two step mothers and three brothers. Kaikeyi was the youngest of the three queens and the the most beautiful. Because of her ambition in favour of her own son, Bharata, Rama was asked to go in exile into the forest at the instance of his father, Dasaratha, for fourteen years. Rama’s other brother, Lakshmana, wanted to accompany him and Seetha (Rama’s wife) to the forest. What Sumitra meant was that her son would survive the hardships of life in forest by thinking of Rama and Seetha as his parents and the forest as his palace, Ayodhya.

The clue given by the deities helped the wise Vararuchi to immediately arrive at the long sought answer to the king’s query. Of course, Vararuchi thought, this verse could be treated as the most important one in the entire Ramayana. He wondered why neither he nor any of the other scholars he had approached could think of it earlier.

Soon, it was dawn. Vararuchi could not wait any longer to rush to his king and report his chanced discovery on the very last day of the permitted period.

Meanwhile, Vikramaditya had been spending his days in palace with a heavy heart. There had been no news of his dear friend all those days. Finally, the last day of the time given to find an answer came. Vikramaditya was waiting anxiously in his court. Then he saw his poet friend arriving hurriedly. The king guessed from the beaming face of his friend that he was successful, at last, in his search.

The king asked. “Did you find out which verse is the most important?” Vararuchi recited the verse and explained the meaning and its implication. He further clarified that the most important phrase in the verse was “Think of Seetha as me (your mother)”, indicated by the “Maam Viddhi”. The king was very pleased and showered valuable gifts on the great scholar.

(To be continued)

A story from the folk tales of Kerala

2008-09-16T12:39:00.000-07:00

We begin a new story in Samskruthi (www.kunjunny.blogspot.com). The story taken from the collection of folk tales of Kerala runs into several episodes.

The twelve children of a woman of low birth

2008-09-16T12:37:00.000-07:00

Introduction

This is based on the famous book, Aitihyamaala (A Garland of Folktales), by Kottaratthil Sankunni. The original is in Malayalam. I am not aware, if any complete translation exists in English.

The stories, just over 120 of them on a few less than 900 printed pages, are based on folklore originating in Kerala. None of them are likely to be mere works of imagination. Traces can be found even now of the some of the characters in each story.

This is particularly true of the above story. It is an amazing tale of twelve families, each belonging to a different caste, all of whom, strangely originating as children of the same parents.

The story talks about a king, Vikramaditya, and a Brahmin poet in his court by name Vararuci. There were several other Vikramadityas. But, it was the Vikramaditya of Ujjain in the Madhya Pradesh State of India, who had nine famous poets, termed as the nine jewels (nava ratnas), among whom the name of Vararuci finds mention. (Kalidasa was the most famous among them.) Because of this we assume that the Vikramaditya is the famous emperor based in Ujjain. This Vikramaditya is recorded in Indian History as having lived in the 1st century BC.

We have two main characters in the story, a high born Brahmin and a woman of low caste, known by the name of Paraya. Members of that caste make a living by selling articles woven out of bamboo stem and reeds.

We want to get into Ramayanam, soon. The following story has some bearing on the famous works of Valmiki, considered to be the first among early poetry.

Poet Vararuchi

King Vikramaditya was the ruler of the land. He was himself highly learned and was a patron of scholars and artistes of various types. One among the scholars in his court was a poor Brahmin by name Vararuchi. The king used to enjoy scholarly debates with this highly learned friend of his. True to his fame, Vararuchi was well versed in various fields of science and proficient in all the important works of ancient learning.

The great puzzle

One day the king suddenly had a thought. True, Ramayana is to be considered the best among early poetry. But then, which particular verse among the 24,000 stanzas in Ramayana (the famous work of Valmiki) stands out among all? The king lost no time in asking his dear friend, the best among scholars, Vararuchi.

The poor Brahmin was perplexed. The whole of Ramayana is to be considered equally good. Is there any part in it that can be considered better than the rest? He expressed his thoughts aloud, by way of a reply to the king.

That was not the type of answer king Vikramaditya had expected from the scholarly Brahmin. The king’s disappointment turned into instantaneous anger. He retorted in a loud voice. “I give you 41 days. You may go anywhere and ask anyone you please. But, do not think of coming back without finding a satisfactory answer.”

The exile

Once the king had spoken, there was no argument about it. May be, because of the close friendship between the two, Vararuchi could have lingered on until the king’s anger cooled down. But, he was too proud to beg for pardon. Moreover, his scholarship was in question. So, Vararuchi wasted no time to step out of the palace.

But, where could he go? He was so used to the good days in the palace that he knew nothing of life outside. He had learnt no other way of livelihood, except by the patronage of the king. Vararuchi started moving in search of great scholars of the land and even outside. Walking was the only method of getting from place to place. He would go looking for scholars from morning till noon. Then, he would go to the nearest house of Brahmins and hope to get some food for lunch. Then, again, he would continue with his search for learned men until dark. Then, he would retire to the house of any Brahmin nearby. He would eat whatever dinner that was offered and sleep there until next morning.

Vararuchi, thus, went from place to place and asked many of the men of learning of the time. “Which verse, you ask? Why, are not all the verses of Ramayana equally important?” Of course, that was what Vararuchi also had thought, until his king had asked that question. Then, right or wrong, he had to find an answer that would appeal to the mind of his mentor king.

The agony

Forty days passed this way. As the days progressed Vararuchi became more and more distressed. He had travelled far and wide for the purpose and had met a large number of noted scholars. Yet, he could get no satisfactory answer. What would happen to him? How would he continue to live, without the royal patronage?

Vikramaditya was, in the meanwhile, equally tormented in mind. It was too rash on his part to order the poor Brahmin out. How was he surviving outside the palace? What was going to happen to himself without the enjoyable daily debates and discussions, if Vararuchi failed to return?

(To be continued)

The story of Daksha

2008-05-12T20:11:00.000-07:00

Daksha, the ‘creator’

The story of Daksha as in Mahabharata is very brief. What is given below is the more popular version based on other epics.

Daksha was one of the sons of Brahma born during the initial time of creation, who was deputed by the creator of the world for the proliferation of life on earth (Prajapati). He, accordingly, procreated a large number of children in several wives. The first batch, of five thousand sons, was known by the name of Haryasva (haryaSva).

There is an interesting story on the Haryasvas. They, being obedient children, started searching for suitable places to settle down and set up families of their own. The fun loving sage, Narada, wanted to play mischief on them. He asked them to find out the length and breadth of the entire land before deciding on the best place to live in. It is said that the innocent Haryasvas took the sage’s words seriously and were soon lost wandering, searching for the end of the spherical earth.

Without being able to trace the whereabouts of his first batch of sons, Daksha produced another batch of one thousand and named them Sabalaasva (SabalaaSva). They were, in a similar fashion, lead astray by Narada.

A curse on Narada

It is said that Daksha soon learnt about the trick played by Narada on his children. He was infuriated by the frolics of the sage and cursed him. “May you also be on the move always! If you remain at a place for long, may your head burst up into pieces instantly !’ Sage Narada was pained when he realized that what was meant to be a practical joke had landed him up in serious trouble. If he could not remain at a place, how was he to meditate on his favourite god, Vishnu, and attain salvation? Vishnu, it is said, came to his rescue. Thenceforth, the merit of meditation, of those who chanted Mantras without counting (without concentration), would go to sage Narada! That was how Narada started accumulating merits and qualify for Moksha (salvation).

Sati, the daughter of Daksha

The main story of Daksha is built around his daughters. He produced several of them. The twenty seven ‘stars’ (constellations or Nakshatras named aswini, bharaNi, etc.) were said to be his daughters married to the moon.

One of his daughters born later was called Sati. She had made up her mind on Lord Siva from her early childhood days. But, Daksha was dead against the idea and tried to reason out with his ‘immature’ daughter.

Siva’s ways

Siva was reputed to be dressed with leopard skin and had serpents entwined all over his limbs. He had matted hair and used to smear his body with ashes. Dressed in such a fashion the Lord went from place to place begging for alms. How could he be a prospective son in law for Daksha who was like an emperor of the world? But, Sati was adamant. Other gods also stood by her saying that Siva, in spite of his appearances, was the Lord of the entire universe. Finally, Daksha gave in.

The quarrel

Soon after the marriage of his daughter Daksha wanted to pay her a visit. The time was noon and the Lord was having his afternoon siesta. Hence, it is said that the keepers of Siva’s abode (said to be mount Kailas in the Himalayas) did not want to disturb their master at the untimely hour. Daksha felt humiliated. He took it that Siva did that on purpose. From that day Daksha declared Siva to be his worst enemy.

The sacrificial ritual

Daksha wanted to perform a sacrificial ritual (yajna) soon after that. His main purpose was to settle score with his arch enemy who was none other than his son in law. He made elaborate arrangements for a pompous ceremony and invited all who counted for the function, but, not his son in law. Daksha also proclaimed that he would not allocate any portion of the offerings to Siva, though he was entitled to, along with other divinities of his status.

Sati came to know about the event and was in two minds. How could she miss such a grand affair in her father’s house where all her brothers and sisters would gather? But, she was not invited. Would it be right to go uninvited? Then, she thought, did she need an invitation to her own house? She decided to speak to her husband first.

Siva knew what was in the mind of his wife. He tried to discourage Sati with reasons. If she was dishonoured in front of other guests by Daksha, would she be able to tolerate that?

Sati was not able to counter the arguments of her husband. Yet, she was bent on attending the ceremony in her father’s house, with or without invitation.

The tragedy

Sati went, finally, without getting the consent of her husband. But, she hoped that everything would turn out for the better. After all, she was going to her father.

As expected, the palatial house of Dakhsa was decorated colourfully for the grand ritual. All the important personalities on earth and in heaven, except for Siva, were present there. Sati was in high excitement.

But, that was unfortunately, short lived. The moment Daksha spotted her, he started ridiculing her. Why did she come? Who had invited her? Daksha, then, started putting down Siva for all his queer ways and for sending his wife for a ceremony where the two were not invited.

Sati tried to pacify her father with her own reasoning. But, that only made Daksha even more furious. He started rebuking Siva for insulting him when he tried to pay him a visit last.

That was too much for Sati. She could have ignored insults on her. But, belittling her lord in front of the celebrities! Unable to take the insults any more, Sati jumped into the sacrificial fire when every one stood watching in utter disbelief.

The fury of Siva

Siva soon learnt about what happened. He was furious beyond measure. It is said that he created two ferocious deities, Veerabhadra and Bhadrakali, and ordered them to destroy all they found at the sacrificial venue of Daksha. They were warned not to harm sages and Brahmins.

Accordingly, the two went about their business in all earnestness creating panic at the sacrificial place of Daksha. He, himself, was killed in the process. The whole place was ransacked. That was how the sacrificial ritual of Daksha ended up in great tragedy.

Epilogue

It is said that Sati was reborn as Parvati, as the daughter of the mountain Himalaya. Her meditation on Siva and her eventual marriage with the Lord have inspired several works of art and literature. The most famous among them is the epic poem of Kalidasa, on the birth of Subrahmanya (Kumara or Skanda) to the divine pair, under that name, ‘Kumara sambhavam’. We have briefly mentioned this earlier elsewhere.

The Killing of Vritra

2008-05-06T07:58:00.000-07:00

Vritra was a demon (Asura). The story about Indra, the king of god, killing him is very popular in the ancient Indian epics. It is so old that we can find mention of it even in the Vedas. The story is basically too simple to arouse any interest. Its importance is primarily because of its antiquity and the fact it is told again and again.

There are different versions of the story. In one version Vritra was the son of sage Kasyapa and in the other, of sage Twashta (twashTa). In all versions his mother was a demon.

There is reference to this story at least on three different occasions in Mahabharata. The first was in the chapter of ‘Pilgrimage (Teerthayatra Parvam)’ of the ‘Book of Forest Life (Vanaparvam)’. The second is in the chapter of ‘Army Deployment (Senodyoga Parvam)’ of the ‘Book of war preparations (Udyogaparvam)’. And finally, in the chapter of ‘Steps towards Salvation (Moksha dharma anuSasana parvam) of the Book of Peace (Saanti parvam)’

Vritra joins the demons

Vritra, though of mixed birth, had his affinity with demons, his mother being one of them. So, it is said that he went about fighting against the gods and destroying the sacrificial rituals in which offerings were made to them.

In the popular version, the demon meditated on Brahma and won a powerful boon. By that he could not be killed, during the day or at night, by any weapon made of metal.

A weapon made of bones

The gods under the leadership of Indra fought several battles against Vritra. The demon was so powerful and the boon he got so potent that he remained invincible. It was Brahma who suggested to Indra that a special weapon, Vajra (literally meaning a diamond or the thunderbolt), be made with human bones. He further said that a sage by name Dadheeci (dadheeci) was spending his days in deep meditation with the singular aim of attaining salvation. He would gladly give his bones for the purpose. (Not clear why the bones of a living person were required).

When Indra approached the sage he was only too happy to give up his life for a noble cause. That was how the powerful Vajra was made of the bones of sage Dadheeci.

The encounter

Vishnu gave the idea to Indra that the king of gods should attack the demon at dusk, to avoid both the day and night times. Indra did accordingly. The weapon made of bones, which was not metallic, and the time of the setting sun found the loop holes in the boon the demon had obtained. Indra dispatched the powerful Vajra against Vritra and brought his head down for the relief of all gods.

The sin that inflicted Indra

It is said that by killing Vritra who was the son of a Brahmin Indra was vulnerable to the sin called Brahmahatya. Indra got so frightened that he hid himself inside the stalk of the lotus flower on which Brahma usually sat. Nothing would make him to come out of his place of hiding. The whole world suffered as a result, he being the king of gods. So, Brahma pleaded with four elements found in the nature, like fire and water, to equally share the sin and thereby rid Indra of the malady. The elements of nature agreed to accept the sin on condition that those who pollute nature get a share of it. For example, one who pollutes water gets a small share. Brahma, thus, could rid Indra of the sin of killing Vritra.

The three interpretations

Many of the stories found in the epics and Vedas are interpreted at three different levels: the physical or the worldly level (aadhibhautikam), the heavenly or the divine level (aadhi daivikam) and the spiritual or the intellectual level (aadhyaatmikam). This is possible, because the root of the words Indra and Vritra permits different interpretations.

At the physical level Vritra is the cloud and Indra the rainmaker. The Vajra, the weapon of Indra, was the lightning or the thunder. The rainbow is called the bow of Indra (Indradhanus). The killing of Vritra is simply the rain bursting out of the cloud.

At the divine level the god, Indra, kills the demon called Vritra as the story is normally told.

At the spiritual level, Vritra means darkness, caused by ignorance. Indra is enlightenment. Enlightenment removes the cover of ignorance that engulfs human mind. There is one school of thought that upholds this interpretation of the story in the context of the Vedas.

The one with bellyful of ‘and’s

2008-04-14T22:31:00.000-07:00

There is an anecdote that is told about poet Kalidasa. It is widely accepted that he was highly inspired by the works of Vyasa and that he had great admiration for his predecessor. But, he was also very proud of his own accomplishments, especially, after he became famous.

Vyasa was considered so great that he was revered as a sage and even worshipped. There are a few temples, not many though, where the poet is the main deity. It is said that Kalidasa, one day, came across such a temple.

It is customary to worship deities in temples with suitable prayers which are either short stanzas of poem or even a phrase called a Mantra. Kalidasa was at a loss for a suitable Mantra to pray to Vyasa in the temple. So, he quickly made up one – “I pray to that one whose belly is filled with the conjunction ‘and’ (cakaara jaTharaaya namah)”. There was a dig in that prayer at the sage for using innumerable ‘and’s (ca) in his works. We find so many ‘and’s in works like Mahabharata, especially while listing many characters like the hundred sons of Dhritarashtra. Often poets use even nouns which do not add much meaning to the stanza. The need to stick to the meter of the poem demanded them.

Satisfied with his imaginative Mantra the poet was about to step out of the temple. At that moment he was accosted by a stranger. The visitor addressed Kalidasa. “I have heard a lot about you and I request you for a favour. Please make a small poem on today’s weather”. May be, he wanted to take the poem to the king nearby. That was no problem for Kalidasa. He quickly made one stanza and chanted it aloud to the visitor. The stranger listened to the poem and innocently asked, “why, I pray, the use of ‘and’s (cakaaram kimartham)?” Kalidasa was dumbfounded by the unexpected question. True, there were three or four ‘and’s in a stanza of four lines. He realized that the stranger was none other than Vyasa trying to drive a point. Vyasa wanted Kalidasa to realize that there was no surprise that the long poems, like Mahabharata of a hundred thousand stanzas especially with hundreds and thousands of characters, contained very many conjunctions.

It is said that Kalidasa fell at the feet of Vyasa and asked for forgiveness.

The birth of Parasurama

2008-04-03T04:33:00.000-07:00

We have briefly narrated the story of Parasurama (Rama with the axe as weapon) in Samskruthi. The following is the interesting story of his birth as told by Krishna to Yudhishthira as they traveled to meet Bhishma lying on his bed of arrows.

There was a king by name Kusika (kuSika), a descendant of Yayati in the lunar dynasty. He had a son by name Gathi (gaathi). The latter had a daughter by name Satyavati.

Rceeka was a Brahmin who was a descendant (great grandson) of the famous sage, Bhrigu. This Bhrigu was one of the sons of Brahma, the creator. Gaathi married his daughter, Satyavati, to Rceeka acknowledging the powers from meditation of the young Brahmin. The sage was pleased with the devotion he received from him wife and wanted to bless her with a son. He made an offering in fire by chanting suitable Mantras and gave the left over (Caru) to his wife. He told her. “You partake this and you shall be blessed with a son with great meditative powers”.

As was the life style in those days, his mother-in-law, Satyavati, was also young enough to bear children. Rceeka wanted to pay tribute to his mother-in-law through a similar reward. The sage prepared a separate Caru by invoking different Mantras this time and gave it to his wife, saying, “you take this to your mother. She shall, in due course, beget a child who will become a powerful warrior of great repute”. The obedient wife did accordingly.

But, Satyavati must have thought that Rceeka had used a better recipe in preparing the Caru for his wife and cleverly interchanged hers with that of her daughter. The two ladies soon got in the family way.

Rceeka observed his wife one day and remarked. “I can see just looking at your belly that you are going to give birth to a son full of valour. He will rise to the rank of a world renowned warrior by waging several great wars and cruel killings. He will have none of the composure (satva guna) of a Brahmin. There must have been some mix up. I have no doubt about it. How did this happen?”.

Satyavati was perplexed and approached her mother. She finally got the secret of the exchange from her mother and reported that to Rceeka. She pleaded with her husband. “I have no role in this exchange. Kindly forgive me. I do not want a warrior son. You have the powers to change the whole world. Please give me a son who will be more like you. ”

Rceeka thought for a while and said. “I cannot nullify the effect of the powerful Caru. But, I can keep its action pending. Let it be your grandson who will be born with the effect of the Caru”.

Viswamitra

Sage Gathi soon got a son by name Viswamitra. He became a great sage in due course and rose to the rank of a Vedic seer. The most famous of the Mantras, the Gayatri of the sun (Savita), is attributed to Viswamitra. Every time it is chanted the name of the sage (Rishi) is remembered as Viswamitra, the son of Gathi (Gathino Viswamitrah rishih). Viswamitra is also referred often as the descendant of Kusika (kauSika viSwamitra).

The birth of Jamadagni and Parasurama

Satyavati gave birth to Jamadagni who became a reputed sage in time. Jamadagni married Renuka who gave birth to the celebrated Parasurama. We have already learnt many of the pursuits of Parasurama.

We know how closely linked is the main story of Mahabharata with that of the powerful Rama with the axe.

Kalidasa’s famous simile

2008-03-14T22:47:00.000-07:00

Kalidasa was one of the most famous among the ancient Sanskrit poets. His works, especially, the play called “Abhijnana Sakuntalam” is world renowned. He became famous after he wrote the great poem “the dynasty of Raghu (Raghu Vamsam)”.

Kalidsa shines in several aspects of poetry. His narrations of nature are superb. Probably, he is best known for his similes.

Simile comes so naturally to him that there is one in almost every stanza in Raghuvamsam. Almost all of them can be quoted for their beauty and imagination. But, the one which earned him the adjective of “torchlight (deepaSikha) Kalidasa” is the most famous.

The wedding of princess Indumati

The poem starts the narration of kings in the dynasty in Raghuvamsam with king Dileepa. His son was named Aja. He was one of the invitees at the time of the wedding of the princess Indumati of Vidarbha. As was the common practice in those days among the royals, Indumati could make her free will (Swayamvara), while choosing a prince from those assembled as her groom.

The Simile

The arrangement used to be to seat the invited kings on suitable thrones around a marriage hall. The princess, then, would be taken around by her friends. As the party neared a particular king the friends of the bride would go into the qualities of the prospective groom. They would narrate the history of the dynasty with details of some famous kings in that. They, then, would go into the merits, including the wars won, of the prospective groom.

The king on his part would have already known about the beauty and other accomplishments of the bride. Naturally, each among those assembled would have lost his heart for the princess. As the procession leading the princess in front approached a king even from a distance, his face would light up with expectation. The nearer the princess came the brighter would be the face of the king. If the princess rejected him and proceeded ahead without placing the garland of acceptance around his neck, his face would naturally fall. This mood is what is described in the following four lines by Kalidasa.

“sancaariNee deepaSikhaiva raatrou

yam yam vyateeyaaya patimvaraa saa

narendra margaatta iva prapede

vivarNabhaavam sa sa bhoomipaalah”

Moving like a torch light at night, she (Indumati), that suitor of a husband, (the face of ) each (king) whom she left behind and went ahead, like a house along the royal arcade (on the approach of the burning torch), turned bleak. (The face brightening up earlier on her approach is thereby implied)

The simile was so acclaimed that Kalidasa became famous as “deepasikhaa Kalidasa” or Kalidasa of Deepasikha fame.

The Indian calendar (solar)

2008-03-13T06:20:00.001-07:00

India follows both the lunar and solar calendars. Both use the actual movement of the moon or the sun during the current year. That is, the start of the month and the number of days, have to be calculated afresh each year. The traditional system was lunar. The religious ceremonies, even now, are mostly based on that. Some parts of India, still, follow it socially also.

The Solar calendar

Luckily, the question is on the Malayalam calendar followed in Kerala.

Indians use the signs of the Zodiac, called “raaSi” for astrological purposes. This is, of course, solar. We, in Kerala, follow the “raaSi” for the calendar.

This solar system uses the twelve signs of Zodiac. The names of constellation as known in the west are given below. The Sanskrit names with the meaning are given in brackets: Aries (Mesha – ram), Taurus (rshabha – bull), Gemini (mithuna – twins), Cancer (karkitaka – crab), Leo (simha – lion), Virgo (kanya – maiden), Libra (tula – scales), Scorpio (vriscika – scorpion), Sagittarius (dhanus – bow), Capricorn (makara – shark or crocodile), Aquarius (kumbha – water pot), Pisces (meena – fish) .The meaning differs somewhat in English and in Sanskrit. E.g. Virgo = woman (kanya – maiden). Sagitarius = archer (dhanus – bow). Capricorn = horn of goats (makara – shark or crocodile), Aqvuarius = figure of water carrier (kumbha – pot)

The name of months as used in Kerala is close to the Sanskrit name of “raasi”, but, not exactly the same.

New Year

The day in summer on which the sun came right on top of the equator (the spring equinox) was taken to be the start of the year. Thousands of years ago that happened on the start of Aries (mesha) which was around the middle of April. Later astrologers (astronomers) have realized that the calendar needed correction (by about a month). But, the old system prevails.

One king in Kerala, 1183 years ago, arbitrarily decided to shift the new year to the first of Leo (“sinha”). So, the new calendar starts with “sinha”, but, the new year remains as the 1^st of “mesha”.

Several other places in India, understandably, base their calendar on the same system. But, the name of months is different. The start of the year also changes by a few days. The difference must only be due to the difference in calculating the movement of the sun.

Variable days

There is something peculiar about this system. Months have days varying between 28 and 32 and the number of days can differ from year to year. This is because the calendar is not one that is fixed arbitrarily. Instead, the actual position of the sun (and hence, of the earth) with respect to the twelve constellations is calculated afresh every year.

One advantage of the system is that it does not have to bother about the complexity of leap year. The correction on that account is absorbed in the number of days in months each year.

It goes without saying that this system will never meet the Julian calendar. There is almost a fixed difference in the start of the year.

I am trying to get information on the solar calendar followed elsewhere in India. The lunar calendar shall be posted separately.

The significance of various numbers in Ancient Indian Knowledge

2008-03-11T02:22:00.000-07:00

There is an interesting comment by one of the readers, posted to Arshajnanam, in the context of the story of the sixteen kings. The question is about the significance of the number sixteen and whether it has any relation to the number, four, signifying various concepts like the four Vedas and the four stages in life. The answer to that question, probably, is “no”.

The number four is important, no doubt about it. So are many of the others as given below. As far I understand the reason for picking up sixteen kings is not because of the four Vedas or the four epochs. There are so many other issues with sixteen. For example, there are sixteen purification ceremonies (for Brahmins) – the shoDaSa samskaaraas - starting from conception of the embryo till death. The moon is supposed to have sixteen (and not fifteen) phases (Kala) which is reflected in many of the Tantric rituals.

Most of the numbers starting from 1 (and even zero) have significance associated with them in the ancient Indian sciences. In a philosophical discussion, if some one mentioned the number 1, it may be interpreted as signifying one god or the one absolute truth. Two could mean the two aspects of god, one being the reflection of the other, like the temporal (of humans or the “jeevaatma”) and the absolute (of the ultimate god or the “paramaatma”). Three signifies the three worlds, the three fires in rituals and so on.

Associating concepts with numbers is used widely in ancient Indian knowledge like astronomy and mathematics. Poetry was the medium to record and transmit knowledge. Words meaning elements in nature and concepts in philosophy fit in better than numbers in poems. The following two stories, though esoteric, demonstrate the significance of numbers.

The story of Ashtavakra

We had covered the story of the great scholar with eight bends on his body (Ashtaavakra) in Samskruthi. We mentioned, in that context, a philosophical discussion he had with an opponent by name Vandi. We did not go into the details. Let us go a bit into that now.

Vandi started. “One is the fire which burns in different forms, one is the sun that alights the whole world, …”

To that Ashtaavakra responded. “Two are the gods – Indra and Agni, two are the heavenly sages – Narada and Parvata, ….”

Vandi refuted. “……There are three offerings – savanam- in Yajnas , there are three worlds and ….”.

It went on and on, one upping the other with the significance of the next number. When Ashtaavakra reached thirteen Vandi accepted defeat.

A parody for the story

There is an amusing story which sounds like a parody of the above. It is widely told and retold, but, we are not sure of its origin.

As in the case of Ashtaavakra a great scholar announced his arrival at the palace of a king and challenged all in the kingdom to meet him on a scholarly debate. It was the custom for such scholars to go around, challenge opponents, defeat them and win gifts and fame in the process.

The reputation of the visitor was such that no one in the host kingdom dared to face him in a verbal duel. If they got beaten which was highly likely, they would get into the bad books of the king. The scholars of the land went into quick consultations on the possible way out. Finally, they came up with a plan. They caught hold of the greatest fool around and gave him strict instructions to follow. The first rule was that he should not open his mouth at all. What all he needed to do was to raise one finger more than what was shown by the opponent, in response.

The Debate

Then, they went to the king and revealed their arrangement to him. They convinced the king that that was the only way to face the opponent and retain the prestige of the kingdom. The king realized the situation and gave his approval. Then, they announced in the assembly that the scholar of their choice was, unfortunately, in his period of silence (Mauna Vratam). But, there was no problem. He would meet the visitor in a debate. He would listen to the arguments and respond appropriately by raising his fingers. It used to be quite a normal practice those days for people to observe periods of silence. It even carried a certain respect for such people. The guest was impressed with the arrangement. But, he was confident that he could beat any opponent, silent or not. Against a silent opponent what was the need to talk? He was quite capable of arguing a point through gestures.

The debate started. The visitor raised his finger, probably meaning that god was one. As arranged, the defender looked at the raised ringers with a grim expression and, after giving the right time gap raised his two fingers.

The challenger was not worried with the response. He could easily interpret the response as “the ultimate god may be one, but, is manifested as two – the Jeevaatma and the Paramaatma”. He thought for the appropriate argument against it and raised three of his fingers. He might have meant to say that the real manifestation is as the triumvirate – Brahma, Vishnu and Siva or that the two are manifested throughout the three worlds. It made no difference for the defender.

After a short “studied” pause four fingers of the defending scholar were raised. The visitor looked at the fingers and thought. “Surely he is saying that the god is manifested as three, but, we know about them through the four Vedas”. He was impressed. How profound!

How to refute that argument? He thought deeply and raised five fingers. Soon enough, he was refuted by six raised fingers of his defender. The debate went on and on like that. Each response from the defending scholar made the challenger go deeper and deeper into thought, pondering over all the sciences and scriptures. His respect for the defender increased every time he was refuted ‘appropriately’ by him. Finally, he gave up. He accepted defeat. It was a great privilege for him to meet such a brilliant scholar, well versed in all fields of knowledge!

The king was happy. He rewarded both the challenger and defender with lavish gifts. He did not leave out the supporters of the great scholar. It was not a small matter that the prestige of the whole country was held high by the silent scholar.

The story of Sakuntala (Part 2)

2008-03-09T21:17:00.000-07:00

Sarvadamana was six years of age when sage Kanva thought that it was time for Sakuntala to go to Dushyanta with her son. He asked his disciples to accompany the pair to the king.

The meeting

The party announced their arrival to the king as was the custom and then entered the royal court. Dushyanata received the visitors seated on his throne. He did not give out any hint of recognizing his wife, wedded by mutual consent (Gandharava Vidhi).

Sakuntala bowed before the king and announced herself and her son. “King, here is your son whom you have promised to make the heir apparent. Please accept him and keep your word”.

Dushyanta feigned ignorance and spoke words that would have hurt the feelings of any woman in that situation. He said. “I do not recognize you nor do I remember giving any such words. You must be a cunning woman appearing in the guise of a hermit. I refuse to accept you or your son. You may leave or remain as you like”.

Poor Sakuntala was shocked with the turn of events which was so unexpected. She stood hanging her head down and sending angry side glances towards the king. She could not speak for a few moments.

Then she spoke going into the details of her birth, how she was adopted by sage Kanva, how Dushyanta happened to meet her in the hermitage, how they got into marriage and finally how the boy was born as a result. She concluded asking “why do you pretend ignorance of things that you surely know about? The sun, the moon and other elements of nature stood witness to our affairs”

Dushyanta went a step further to insult Sakuntala saying, “if that was how you were born, I am not surprised that you made this false allegation against me”.

There were some hot exchanges between Sakuntala and Dushyanta, each giving the other lessons on moral codes. The king maintained his stand till the very end. Finally Sakuntala said. “If you refuse to honour your words I shall leave with my son. But, remember, this son of yours is destined to rule the entire world when he grows up”.

It is said that at the very instant a voice was heard from heaven which said. “Dushyanta, what Sakuntala said is true. Accept her and her son who is yours as well. He shall rule your land and become famous by the name of Bharata (one who rules admirably)”

Dushyanta accepts Sakuntala

Dushyanta heard the words and turned to all present in the court including the priests and elders of the society. “Did you all hear the words from heaven? I knew the truth of Sakuntala’s words even earlier. But, if I had accepted her merely on her words without any convincing evidence, doubts might have lingered in some of your minds. The lineage of the future monarch of this country should never be in question. That is why I had to pretend ignorance at the beginning even at the cost of hurting my legally wedded queen”.

Thus, Sakuntala was accepted by the king along with her son. Sarvadamana grew up to become the monarch of the vast kingdom and earned the name of Bharata as prophesied. India, and the epic Mahabhaaratam, got the name because of him.

Kalidasa’s Sakuntalam

Kalidasa makes the story a lot more interesting through a couple of twists in the plot. He introduces a curse on Sakuntala from the mercurial sage, Durvasa, that Dushyanata would fail to recognize her when she went to him. That was because Sakuntala, lost in thought of Dushyanta, failed to notice the visiting sage. When pacified, the sage toned the curse down saying that any identification would help the king to get back his memory. Hence the name, “of Sakuntala with the signet for identification (Abhijnana Sakuntalam)”

Kalidasa’s Sakuntala was sent to Dushyanta while she was still pregnant. She had taken with her the royal signet that the king had given her before parting (in Kalidasa’s Sakuntalam). Unfortunately, that was lost in the river on the way. No one noticed the loss at that time. Naturally, Dushyanata refused to recognize Sakuntala, genuinely in Kalidasa’s version. She tried to remind the king quoting events of their honeymoon in the hermitage. That did not help him either. In utter despair, Sakuntala appealed to mother earth to take her into her fold, away from the king. The poet says that a divine person appeared there at that time and carried Sakuntala away from the scene. She was taken to the hermitage of sage Mareeca where she delivered a boy and lived happily.

The ring was swallowed by a fish which happened to be caught by a fisherman. Soldiers hearing about the incident took the fisherman along with the ring to the king. The sight of the ring brought back the lost memory of Sakuntala to Dushyanta. He started repenting for not recognizing and accepting Sakuntala.

Later, while on an expedition to fight against a demon, Dushyanta reached the hermitage where Sakuntala lived with her boy. The happy re-union of the king with his wife and son took place there.

Extra characters

Kalidasa has introduced a few additional characters for effectiveness. The king was accompanied by his court jester (Vidooshaka) most of the time in the play. Sakuntala has two friends in the hermitage of Kanva with whom she was close. There was also a deer that was her pet. These characters added a lot more life to the story in the play, especially in the parting scene.

Kalidasa’s poetry and drama

The whole play by Kalidasa is packed with drama brought out by poetry of extreme beauty. The very first act has one stanza which is worth quoting. The king’s entry to the hermitage is highly dramatic, chasing a deer in his chariot. He describes the movements of the escaping animal to his jester thus:

“Look at the deer. He is running ahead constantly turning his back to me fearing my arrow. Thus, his head appears to be broken at the neck, as though. The half chewed grass is being dropped all along his path. He is taking such long leaps into the air that he hardly touches the ground in between”. It is a three dimensional and highly dynamic picture that the four lines of poetry so deftly portray.

At that very time there is a voice from the background, “this is a hermitage and everything around this place, including this animal, is part of it. No killing here, please!”

Dushyanta’s first meeting with Sakuntala is another good example of Kalidasa’s poetic excellene. She was plucking flowers for use by the hermits and is being harassed by a bee. At the same time she is aware of the arrival of the king with his companion on the scene, but, pretends ignorance. She is darting her glances slyly here and there with exaggerated movement of her eye lashes. She is also taking steps from one flower to the other, at the same time preventing the attack of the bee. On the whole she was moving “like a danseuse without the accompaniment of (drum) music”.

Let us go to the scene after the king recovered from the curse and recollected his days with Sakuntala. He was highly nostalgic and wanted to paint the scenes in the hermitage. He talks with his court jester.

“I want to paint the river (Malini by name) that flows gently, along with the pair of swans which usually takes rest on its sandy banks. I want to include the hill which rises behind that with its gentle slopes. There is that old tree which stands bare after it has pealed its skin off its trunk. Resting under the tree is the usual pair of deer. The female is gently rubbing its eye against the horn of its partner and there by is trying to get relief from the itching. (There is so much peace and mutual trust)”

There is no end, if we try to go into the highly dramatic scenes in the play. Sakuntala’s farewell to the in-mates of Kanva’s hermitage is worth mentioning. Sage Kanva who was a recluse exclaimed. “The thought of Sakuntala’s departure fills my eyes with tears, chokes my throat and turns my mind blank. If that is my state who has abandoned all worldly ties, what will be the condition of householders in the same circumstance?”

It is so frustrating and almost ridiculous to try to narrate Kalidasa’s world famous play in a few lines. Yet, we have to do what is possible for the sake of comparison.

(concluded)

The story of Sakuntala

2008-03-04T22:19:00.000-08:00

King Dushyanta

It is said that Dushyanata presided over an empire that spread as far as the oceans on all sides. He was a just king and ruled the land strictly by the law. There was plenty everywhere and the people lived happily without fear of robbers and thieves.

The hunting expedition

The kings in those days frequently used to go hunting. It was partly for the fun and partly to protect hermits from wild animals, and demons who harassed them. One day Dushyanta set on such an expedition. An army of assistants accompanied the king with hunting equipment and taking with them horses and dogs to chase game animals. The citizens watched with pride as their king march through the land and were all in his praise looking at his handsome figure.

The party hunted in a forest not too far away from the palace throughout the day and was soon overwhelmed with thirst and physical exhaustion. They started looking for water and found a clearing which drew the attention of the king. He asked the people behind him to move with caution and went ahead to explore the place.

The hermitage of a great sage

What lay ahead was a place of heavenly beauty and absolute peace. Green meadows were interspersed with trees in full blossom. Flowers that fell from the trees made patterns over the meadows. Birds of various types sang with an abandon. Bees sat on tree trunks and helped themselves lavishly on honey that was in plenty. Vedic hymns gently resonated out of a few hermitages that were concealed behind the thick growth of trees. There was a river that quietly flowed behind the row of the hermits’ huts. Perfect tranquility prevailed over the entire terrain.

The king entered the area warning his companions not to disturb the peace of the hermitage at any cost. As he advanced, a gentle breeze blew carrying the intoxicating fragrance from the flowering trees with it. Dushyanta thought that it must be a sage of great penance who lived in such a place cut off completely from human habitation.

A sweet welcome

Finding no one around, Dushyanta announced himself politely, as was the custom, and asked for the hosts who lived there. He was surprised to find a damsel emerging out of a hut who, to the eyes of the young king, did not fit in the harsh living conditions of a hermitage. She simply and sweetly spoke the words of welcome and offered her guest a seat, and water to wash his feet as per the tradition. Then she asked. “What can I do for you, your excellency?”

Dushyanta replied. “I am king Dushyanta of the dynasty of Purus. I came hunting and arrived at this place by accident. Now I want to pay my respects to the sage who lives here. Who are you, fair maiden? You do not seem from your appearance to belong to this place.”

Sakuntala’s Story

In reply, the sweet young girl introduced herself. She was the daughter of sage Viswamitra born of the celestial damsel, Menaka. The sage was performing long years of penance performing a number of sacrificial rituals (Yajna) that terrified Indra, the king of gods. There is a tradition that one who performed one hundred such rituals qualified himself to the heavenly throne. Indra wanted to disturb the meditation of Viswamitra by whatever means at his disposal. The first and easiest choice fell on Menaka, one of the most beautiful and talented among the celestial damsels. That was normally an unfailing tool in the hands of the king of gods.

Menaka was apprehensive of the sage and his powers from meditation. Indra assured her of her safety. That was how the heavenly lady set out on her mission. Menaka sang sweetly and danced seductively and waited for the sage to open his eyes. When it was time for sage Viswamitra to open his eyes a gentle breeze blew, apparently instigated by Indra, to expose the curves of Menaka. Indra did not go wrong in his calculation.The pent up emotions of sage Viswamitra was roused at the sight of the pretty and voluptuous Menaka. The result was their union and the birth of a pretty female baby. It is said Menaka abandoned her at birth, as nursing the baby was not part of the deal. Viswamitra’s only concern was to get back to his penance and make up for all the damage that was done to it by his not so pious adventure. The hapless baby found only the company of some little birds that perched around and took care of her.

Sage Kanwa happened to pass by the scene and stumbled upon the abandoned child. He adopted the baby out of kindness and left it under the care of his good lady. The baby was named Sakuntala as she was saved by the little birds known by the name, Sakunta.

A marriage of consent

Dushyanta had already fallen in love at the very first sight of the sweet Sakuntala. The knowledge that she was the daughter of Viswamitra who was originally a king himself, assured the king that she was one of his kind. The king proposed a marriage of mutual consent (Gaandharva Vidhi) which was widely accepted as one suitable for the royalty. Sakuntala was apprehensive in the beginning, though she was charmed by the looks of the young king. Dushyanta assured her that he would make her his queen in due course. Sakuntala asked for a better commitment from the king. If a male child was born to them, he should be made the future king. Dushyanta was willing to give his word on that.

The two accepted each other as husband and wife. Only the birds and trees of the hermitage stood witness for the unusual marriage. The king left in due course without waiting for sage Kanwa to return. He did promise to send his emissaries to take his queen to the palace in due course.

Soon, Kanwa returned. Sakuntala’s mind was in turmoil thinking about the reaction of his guardian when he would hear about the recent events that took place in his absence. But, she had to boldly tell him the truth. The sage was not upset on hearing the story. He was not against the alliance as he knew that the right place for his adopted daughter was a palace.

Sakuntala gave birth to a son in due course. Kanwa performed all the ceremonies that were due for a royal child from birth onwards. The boy grew playing with the wild animals that roamed near the hermitage and soon was acclaimed to be one of extraordinary strength and courage. Accordingly, he was named Sarvadamana or one who subdued all around him.

(To be concluded in the next episode)

Balarama’s Pilgrimage (Part 7)

2007-11-29T19:53:00.000-08:00

Balarama travelled with his group to the hermitage of sage Bakadaalbhya along river Saraswati next. The sage had become famous from an encounter with Dhritarashtra. The sage was living in the hermitage when Balarama visited the place.

Bakadaalbhya

Sage Bakadaalbhya wanted to perform a twelve year long sacrificial ritual (Satra). This was done even before the one that was conducted in the Naimisha forest by Janamejaya. He wanted to get the cows to give away as Dakshina (gift) from Dhritarashtra. It is said that the king offered several dead cattle and said. “If you like, take these away for your ritual!” This was spoken in the open royal assembly in which several eminent guests were seated.

The sage got very angry for the rudeness on the part of the king. He could have refused

to give any. That was a different matter. What he did was an insult. It is said that the sage went back with the dead cattle. He, then, performed a sacrifice with the meat intending the destruction of the kingdom of the Kurus.

Soon, Dhritarashtra found that his kingdom started decaying for no apparent reason. He tried several remedies, but, nothing worked. He, then, consulted some astrologers. They found out about the disastrous ritual that was done by the sage.

Dhritarashtra felt sorry for what he had done. He went to the sage taking with him a large number of excellent cattle and other gifts. The king apologized to the sage profusely and offered all the gifts he had carried with him. Apparently, the sage was pacified. He, then, conducted a different ritual, this time for the well being of the Kauravas. The land of the Kurus prospered from that time onwards.

Balarama took a holy dip in the river, performed charities at that place and went to the holy waters of Saraswati where king Yayati had performed rituals.

(I find it very hard to make meaningful stories from the rest of Balarama’s pilgrimage. Hence, we return to Arshajnanam and continue with the battle between Bhima and Duryodhana).

Balarama’s Pilgrimage (Part 6)

2007-11-27T20:11:00.001-08:00

Balarama continued with his journey visiting places of great spiritual heritage along the banks of the river, Saraswati. Where he stopped next had its fame because several great sages had performed deep penances there. One was AarshtisheNa who gave up studying the Vedas finding no end to what remained to be learned. It is said that he went to that spot and meditated deeply for a long period. At the end, it is reported that all the Vedas appeared to him in a vision. The sage felt extremely pleased with his achievement and blessed the place with holiness. He proclaimed. “Those who take a dip in Saraswati here shall earn enough merit as though they have performed a horse sacrifice (ASwamedha)”. Then, he ascended to heaven.

ViSwaamitra

ViSwaamitra was a Vedic seer. He was born in a royal family as the son of king Gaathi. He ascended the throne at the death of his father. The sage appears in the story of RaamaayanNa.

During those days the demons (Raakhshasas) used to terrify the land of ViSwaamitra. The king once went on a hot chase of the demons with a vast army. He soon ended up in a forest. Unwittingly his army had ransacked the very same forest in which the great sage Vasishtha had his hermitage. The sage became very angry with the rude intrusion.

Vasishtha had a divine cow which was capable of fulfilling every wish of the sage (Kaamadhenu). He asked his cow to produce an army and destroy the soldiers of ViSwaaqmitra with its help.

Soon ViSwaamitra found a large number of hunters appearing from nowhere and annihilating his own army in front of his eyes. He also could see the sage standing nearby unarmed and unperturbed, giving cool orders against his men.

It was a great revelation to the king that his powers as the supreme monarch of the land was nothing compared to what the frail looking sage acquired through penance. It was also a challenge to him, to meet his adversary on equal footing.

ViSwaamitra gave up his throne and his entire royal belongings. He went to a forest and started meditating. His sole aim was to match the powers sage Vasishtha. Gradually, the king increased the intensity of his penance, giving up all food and drinks.

Soon, Brahma appeared before him ready to grant boons. What would the monk want? Wealth, powers, good life? ViSwaamitra asked for Brahminhood, nothing less. It is said that the god conferred the status to the king at the end.

It is said that two other sages, Sindhudweepa and Devaapi, born into non-Brahmin communities attained Brahminhood through meditation at the very same place .

There are several stories associated with him, especially, about his quarrel with the sage Vasishtha which is the theme of this story. The latter also happens to play a central role in RaamaayaNa, being the chief priest of Rama’s royal family.

Before we continue with the pilgrimage of Balarama let us return briefly to the main story of Mahabharatam. Henceforth, we may follow that pattern of making a little head way with the war along with the stories of pilgrimage of the great Yadava prince.

Balarama’s Pilgrimage ( Part 5 )

2007-11-26T21:57:00.000-08:00

Sukra Teertham (The sacred waters of Sukra)

Balarama’s next halt was at the holy place of sage Sukra. He is considered to be the chief priest of the demons (Asuras). There is a celebrated treatise on moral codes attributed to the sage (Sukra Neeti) which is said to have been compiled at that place. There is a story of sage Mahodara (one with a big belly) who got a big relief from serious trouble there. As requested by Janamejaya, sage VaiSampaayana narrates the story.

The skull that was stuck

He story is linked to the RamayaNa epic. Rama was staying in the “danDaka” forests killing ferocious demons (Raakshasas) to protect the rituals of sages. When sage Mahodara passed through the forest the skull of one of the demons got stuck on his foot. The skull penetrated into the sage’s foot and created a deep wound. The sage tried all sorts of remedies. Nothing worked. He tried meditation. He also visited all the famous pilgrimage centres as advised by other sages. The skull remained stuck on his foot.

Finally, sage Mahodara reached the holy place of Sukra. As soon as his foot touched the sacred waters there the skull came off. The wound also healed within no time. The sage was greatly relieved. Because of this the place became famous under the name of Kapaala mocanam (relief from the skull).

Balarama paid homage to the sages there, honoured the Brahmins who had assembled and proceeded further.

Rushangu Teertham

The next visit of the Yadava chief was to the hermitage of sage Rushangu. The sage in old age was looking for a suitable place to end his life. That was an accepted custom those days to take voluntary death (Swacchanda Mrutyu). He asked his sons to take him to a place where there was plenty of water. His sons brought him to the shores of river Saraswati. The sage found the place so holy that he embraced death there. Before dying he told his sons. “Those who end their lives here shall not have to take re-births any more”.

Balarama performed the ritual bath and made the people assembled there happy with food and gifts and proceeded to the holy place where sage Viswamitra attained Brahminhood.

Balarama’s Pilgrimage (Part 4)

2007-11-26T02:39:00.000-08:00

The pilgrims lead by Balarama reached the place called “the seven Saraswatis” (sapta saaraswata teertham)”. Janamejaya wanted to hear the story behind the seven Saraswati rivers and of sage MankaNaka who was associated with them. VaiSampaya, accordingly, started describing the origin of the rivers.

The sage recounted the name of the seven rivers as Suprabha, Kaancanaakshi, ViSaala, Manorama, Oghavati, SureNu and Vimalodaya. All of them made their appearance at the call of celebrities.

1. Suprabha

The first was associated with the Yajna of Brahma, himself, at a place called Pushkara. It was a long ritual, called Satra, lasting several years. All the gods and a large number of famous sages were present at that time. The Gandharvas sang and the Apsaras danced in the assembly of the guests. It was a wonderful ceremony in all respects.

Yet, the Brahmins commented. “The sacrifice is not that great. We do not find river Saraswati”. When Brahma came to know of the remarks from the learned he meditated and the holy river appeared at the place immediately. It was named Suprabha, the one with an excellent glow of light.

2. Kaancanaakshi

A large number of celebrated sages assembled once in the place called Naimisha on another occasion. They also had started a Satra as done by Brahma. They spent their leisure time discussing Vedic matters and narrating various moral stories. There the sages meditated on Saraswati and immediately the sacred river appeared bearing the name Kaancanaakshi (one with golden eyes).

3. ViSaala

The famous king, Gaya, conducted a Yajna in the land, also named after him, where he prayed to the river to make her divine presence. Saraswati answered the prayer and made her appearance with the name ViSaala (one with a wide span).

4. Manorama

Uddaalaka was another celebrated sage. He held a great sacrificial rite at Kosala. When he worshipped the river in his mind the river appeared at that place which later became famous as Manorama (pleasing to the mind)

5. Oghavati

King Puru of Mahabharata fame conducted a Yajna in which sage Vasishtha was the main priest. Saraswati made her appearance there as desired by the sage. She, later, came to be known as Oghavati (one that creates floods).

6. SureNu

River Saraswati came to know as SureNu (one with good sand) where she appeared at the great sacrifice of Daksha at the foot of the Himalayas. The river came in response to the prayer of the sage.

7. Vimaloda

Saraswati appeared as Vimaloda (one with clear water) where Brahma, himself, conducted a Yajna near the Himalaya valley.

Sage MankaNaka

MankaNaka was a sage of great penance. Once, he saw an Apsara woman bathing naked in the river Saraswati. The sage lost his self control. The result was the birth of the seven great sages (“saptarshi”), said to be in the waters of the same river.

There is another story told about the same sage MankaNaka. His finger was once cut by the KuSa grass which is used extensively in rituals. But, instead of blood, what flowed from his fingers was something like water, as if a piece of vegetable was cut. The sage thought that it was because of his power from penance and was highly excited. He was beyond himself with happiness that started dancing.

The gods reported the matter to Lord Siva who appeared before the sage. The Lord asked the sage what the matter was. When he reported his experience Siva cut his own finger. Ashes appeared on his finger in place of blood. The sage felt humbled. He prayed to the Lord for forgiveness for his haughtiness. Siva was pleased. He left saying that the waters of the seven Saraswatis was so sacred that any one praying to him at the place shall reach salvation.

Balarama stayed one night at the holy place, keeping a fast. He prayed to the sage MankaNaka there and made various gifts Brahmins and left the following morning to his next destination.

(There is confusion whether the seven rivers is at the same or different places. The narration suggests differently at different times. This is being pursued for future clarification)

Balarama’s Pilgrimage (Part 3)

2007-11-24T21:00:00.000-08:00

In this part we get a brief description of a few other holy places along the river Saraswati visited by Balarama. There is no story relating to any of these holy places as retold in Mahabharatam.

VinaSanam

The first was called VinaSanam (destruction). It got the name because the river just disappeared, may be underground, at that point. It is heard that the reason was the river’s anger to some tribes of people who must have misbehaved with the river. There is no more detail available about the disappearance. Balarama touched the water of the river before it disappears at that point.

Subhhomikam

The next holy place the Yadava prince visited was called Subhoomikam (good earth). It is said that Apasara women enjoy themselves in the water discarding all their modesty. Balabhadra found a large number of Gandharva and Apsara women assembled there. The Yadava chief took his bath and offered valuable gifts to Brahmins there.

Gandharvateertham

He next went to the pilgrimage centre called Gandharva Teertham (the holy place of Gandharvas). Balarama found several Gandharvas, both men and women, singing and dancing there. Visvaavasu, the great Gandharava sage, was with them. Balarama offered cows and other gifts o Brahmins there before proceeding ahead.

Gargateertham

Then, he reached the Teertha of Garga. Garga was a sage of great learning, especially in astronomy. He observed the movement of celestial objects at the bank of river Sarasvati there. Hence, the place got that name. Balarama gave valuable gifts to the sages assembled and food to Brahmins there.

Sankhateertham

The place Balarama went next was called Sankhateertham. There was a tall mountain in the shape of a white conch shell at the bank of river Sarasvati near there. There was also a sacred fruit bearing tree next to that. Yaksha, Vidyaadhara, PiSaacas and Raakshasaas meditated there, eating only the fruit of the tree for days together. (All are celestial beings below the rank of the gods. The first two are of benign nature and the other two are demons). It is said that they all attained salvation as a result. Even to this day, pilgrims, including celestial beings, visit the place and observe fast eating only the fruit of that tree.

Saaraswatateertham, Dwaitavanam

The Yadava pilgrimage reached Saaraswatateertham next and then to Dwaitavam (the forest called Dwaitam). Balarama performed various austerities at those places.

Naagadhanvateertham

The next holy place along the route was called Naagadhanvateertham at a great distance from there. It is said that the serpent, Vaasuki, lives there. The gods went there and made him the king of serpents with appropriate installation ceremonies. It is said that fourteen thousand sages live there at all times. There were a few other holy places along the route that Balarama visited as advised by the sages in his group.

Saraswati turns eastward

After a few days Balarama reached a place where the river turns eastwards. The story behind it is as follows. In the first epoch, called Krita, sages performed a great sacrificial ceremony called Satra that lasted twelve years in that place. Pilgrims arrived for the Satra in hundreds and thousands. Among them were celebrated sages known by the name of Baalakhilya, ASmakutta, Dantolookhali and Samprataakhya. Some among them fasted eating only leaves. Others stayed merely by drinking the river water. Yet others sustained themselves on air alone.

Those who came late started camping further and further to the east finding no place near the river bank. It is said that the river took pity on them and took a diversion eastwards passing through the places they encamped. Later, the river returned westwards and continued with its northward journey.

Balarama gave food and various gifts to all who were assembled there. He, then, proceeded to the holy place called Sapta Saaraswata Teertham (centre of the seven Saraswati rivers) which we shall cover in the next part.

Balarama’s Pilgrimage (Part 2)

2007-11-23T22:03:00.000-08:00

Trita’s well

Balarama’s pilgrimage took him next to a holy well along the banks of the river Saraswati. VaiSampaayana narrated the story behind the place as requested by Janamejaya. These stories are worth reading as they tell us a great deal about the rich cultural traditions of the land.

Sage Trita

Sage Goutama was a seer of Rigvedic period. He had three sons (besides others). They were called Ekata, Dwita and Trita. All the three had performed long years of hard penance and thus attained great fame. Sage Goutama, highly pleased with their achievements, went to heaven in due course.

The kings who used to worship sage Goutama for his austerities now turned to his noble sons for guidance. Trita was the best among the three, both in his Vedic knowledge and in its application to rituals.

The Brahmins, generally, remained poor without any worldly possessions. They made a living through the rewards they received for performing various rituals. One day the three brothers decided to perform a Yajna ritual. They approached kings and other rich people who used to patronize sage Gautama . A great ceremony was held at the end of which the three received generous gifts of cattle and other wealth.

Trita and his two brothers were on their way back after the successful completion of the ceremony. They had to pass through a dense forest on their way home. In the midst of the thick forest a wolf chased them. Trita ran for his life and fell down in a deep well. Both Ekta and Dwita were lucky to escape. Trita cried out loudly for help. His brothers heard him. But, they thought. “Let Trita look after himself. Without him, we can enjoy his share of the gifts. If he escapes, he is capable of earning gifts like with his knowledge of Vedas.

A Yajna from the bottom of well

Meanwhile, Trita was left to his fate in the deep well. Only the gods would help him. The sage wanted to pray in his special way, performing a Yajna. But, he was in the bottom of a well. The Yajna needed the special “soma” creeper. The juice extracted from it, considered to be a divine wine, was the essential offering to the gods. He also needed ghee to be offered into fire .What to do?

Trita thought of a plan. He found a wild creeper hanging down into the well. He imagined that to be “soma”. He crushed the creeper on the boulders in the well and extracted “soma”. The water in the well was his special ghee. He created fire in his imagination. Then, he started chanting the relevant Vedic texts and performing his imaginary Yajna. Only his extreme devotion was real.

The gods appear

Such Yajnas have the share of the offerings earmarked for the important gods. The gods appear personally and receive them. That is the custom and that determines the success of the Yajna. If correctly done, the gods get the message by the ripple it creates in heaven. If the gods delay, both heaven and earth are heated by the mantras chanted at the Yajna. The participants consume what is left over of the “soma” and earn enough merit to go to heaven.

Soon, the gods in heaven sensed Trita’s Yajna. They said. “Trita is performing his Yajna in his special way. We better go and partake of our share of the offerings. Else, he may even create new gods to replace us and make the offerings to them. He is so powerful.

So, the gods came down and accepted the “soma”. They said. “We are very pleased with your Yajna. What boons can we offer you?”

Trita said. “First, I want to get out of this well first. Then, let the water of this well turn sacred. Those who drink this water should get the same effect as drinking the “soma”.

The gods blessed him accordingly. Suddenly, river Saraswati gushed from underneath the well and carried the sage up the well in the thrust of its current. The sage looked around. His brothers had disappeared with the gifts. So, he uttered a curse on his brothers. “You have been greedy like a wolf. May you two and your children turn into wolves”.

It is said that the curse of the sage took immediate effect. The progeny of the two sages has been roaming the surface of earth as wolves from that day.

The water of the well turned sacred. Pilgrims have been visiting the well and drinking its water ever since. Balarama drank the well water and offered various gifts to Brahmins and to the poor. He, then, proceeded ahead with his entourage.

Balarama’s pilgrimage (Part 1)

2007-11-22T21:33:00.001-08:00

The Indian Calendar

The story below has a connotation to Indian astrology. 27 constellations, which are considered to be relatively fixed in the sky because of their great distance from earth, were of great significance in Indians right from ancient days. They are called stars for convenience and are named “aSwini”, “bharaNi” and so on. The earth, in its rotation around the sun, passes past each of them in turn. The moon, going round the earth at the same time, also passes by the same stars. During this journey the moon waxes and wanes. Indian astrology crucially bases its calculations on the relative position of the sun, moon and earth with respect to these stars. This astrological phenomenon is poetically told in the story below.

Astrologers consider that the moon is strongest in its effect when it is near the star, “rohiNi” which is also hinted in the poetic imagery in the story.

Incidentally, the ancient Indian lunar calendar is based on this path taken by the earth and the moon. The time taken for a full cycle (that is one year), is divided into 12 equal parts and are taken to be the months. Thus, 2 and 1/4 of the stars are covered in a month. The month is given the name of that star (constellation) near which the moon becomes full. For example, in the first group the full moon appears when the earth passes past the star, “aSwini”. Hence, the month is called “aaSwina” and so on.

The Prabhaasa Teertham

The word Theertham means a pilgrimage centre, where generally, there is a holy river or lake for bathing. Prabhaasa is a holy place along the river Saraswati in the present day Gujarat, near to Krishna’s abode, Dwaaraka.

Balaraama

Balaraama was the son of Vasudeva (Krishna’s real father) born of Rohini. He was upset with the impending war between the two of his allies, Kauravas and Pandavas. So, he decided to go on a pilgrimage to avoid the war that was, according to him, immoral.

He ordered for elaborate preparations for his pilgrimage. A large caravan of animals and men was made ready as ordered by the Yadava chief. The group included Brahmins of great learning to perform rituals at the pilgrimage centres. A large number of milch cows with their horns covered in gold or silver was included in the group. They were meant to be gifts to deserving Brahmins. Food in abundance was also carried to offer to the poor all along the way.

Balaraama started northwards along the bank of the river, Saraswati. His first visit was to Prabhaasa along the holy river. Janamejaya, at that point, wanted to hear the importance of the holy place. Accordingly, sage VaiSampaayana narrated the story of Daksha Prajaapati (the latter word meaning the father of the human race). It was the time of the first Creation. Daksha was one of the first to be created by Brahma, the God of Creation. He was then given the task of procreating other living beings in the world. He produced 27 daughters (besides others) who were named “aSwini”, “bharaNi”, etc. He married them off to “soma” (the Moon).

All the daughters of Daksha were wide eyed and beautiful. But, prettiest of them was “rohiNi”. Hence, Soma was attracted more towards her. He spent all his time with this daughter of Daksha which made the other daughters angry and jealous. They went and complained to their father about it. Daksha called his son-in-law and asked him not to be partial to any. Soma agreed. But, he could not change his old ways.

Again the girls complained about it and again Daksha ordered his son-in-law to behave. This happened three times. Each time Soma agreed to change his ways, but, failed to do so once he was with his darling “rohiNi”. After the third offence Daksha uttered a curse on Soma. “May you suffer from the debilitating consumption!” The curse of the powerful Prajapati took immediate effect. Soma started getting pale day by day. He tried all sorts of cures including special prayers and rituals. Nothing worked. The gods went on a delegation to Daksha to save Soma from his malady. Daksha called Soma aside and said. “My words have to take effect. You must start spending time with your wives equally. For atonement, take a holy dip in the sacred river Saraswati. Then, you shall recover your health. But, as a reminder, you shall be inflicted with the malady half the time in each month. Henceforth, young man, do not humiliate women!”.

Soma, accordingly, took a dip in the holy river at Prabhaasa and started getting better day by day until he recovered fully and became his old self. But then, the curse of Daksha had to take effect. So, he started getting paler day by day for the next fifteen days. It is said that this, his holy dip, getting better and then the curse taking effect for the next fifteen days, has been going on ever since then. It is also said that Soma has been spending equal time with all of his wives ever since.

Balaraama and his entourage spent one night at Prabhaasa and continued northwards next morning.

The one who read combining words

2007-10-12T23:12:00.000-07:00

Reading of the great epics like Mahabharata out to the public was given great emphasis throughout India, especially in Kerala. Learned men were appointed just for that task in the major temples throughout the state.

One such place was called Ampalappuzha. The ruler of the principality was known by the star of his birth, “Pooraatam”, and was reputed for his erudition. The temple had one scholar by name Neelakantha Deekshitar specifically for the daily reading from the Mahabharatam. The king had the habit of listening to the verses without fail.

One day Deekshitar was away on business. The king was greatly worried that he would miss his daily dose of Mahabharatam. It was then that he noticed a Brahmin seated in front of the deity doing his prayers. He was a stranger to the place and appeared to be of humble origin.

The king was not sure whether the visitor could handle the job, at least for the day. He decided to accost him with the question, “can you read from the Mahabharatam combining words together?” The king was trying to establish whether the newcomer was literate enough to read Sanskrit verses fluently and correctly. But, the actual words also implied, literally, whether the guy knew how to add something of his own to the original. The terse reply from the visitor was that “he would try”.

The reading started where it was left on the earlier day. The war was in full swing. Bhima was in great form thrashing the Kaurava army with his formidable mace. At that point, the Brahmin, innocently read a stanza:

“Then, the army of Duryodhana, thrashed by the mace of Bhima, took refuge under Karna, as the hair of a bald man does around his ears

(Tada Bheema gadaa trastaa Duryodhana varoothinee
Sikhaa khaarvaatakasyeva Karnamoola mupaagataa)”

The king was quite bald. The word Karna also means ear. Hence, the simile. The king had the whole of Mahabharatam on his finger tips. It was that his royal status demanded some one else reading the text out to him.

So, quick to catch the interpolation, he asked. “Is it in the original text?” The reader calmly and politely replied. “No, your Majesty! I added it”, as though that was what the king expected out of him.

The king promptly asked whether the visitor was Narayana Bhattathiri of Meppattoor. The reply was in the affirmative.

The story has an interesting background to it. The visitor was one of the greatest Sanskrit poets of the time who had just completed his renowned work called “Narayaneeyam”. The king was waiting eagerly for an opportunity to meet the poet. He, on his part, had heard about the learned king who welcomed poets and scholars with open hands. The poet came, specifically, for meeting the king. That was how their meeting took place. It is said that the poet stayed with the king for a while and composed an important poem on Sanskrit grammar, called “Prakriyaa Sarvasvam”.

Duty is supreme

2007-04-02T07:06:00.000-07:00

Introduction

The Vedas appear in a language (form of Sanskrit) and style (symbolic) beyond easy comprehension. It is said that the epics have been written to convey the messages hidden in the Vedas. The main message is Dharma or the right path and conduct in life. What that is, depends on the adopted profession.

Many of the stories in the epics seem to suggest that following the Dharma in its letter and spirit gives human kind the ultimate goal in life, salvation. The following story tells something more.

There is something that pervades the entire universe, transcending both matter and force. What sages achieve through long years of penance seems to be the key to this substance that unifies the universe. Once that stage is achieved, then man is no more restrained by both space and time.

The following story is of a Brahmin, a housewife and a butcher. (The word used for the butcher is Vyadha which means a hunter. But, hunting was his way of collecting meat. His livelihood was by selling it. Hence, we use the word butcher in the story.) All the three follow their respective Dharmas. The Brahmin’s Dharma is the most difficult and he did not attain perfection in following his path. The other two did and, as a result, attained superior levels in spirituality.

Sage Markandeya told the following story to Yudhishthira in reply to the question on Dharma, especially, of a woman devoted to her husband.

The Brahmin

There was a Brahmin by name Kausika. He was once meditating under a tree. A crane was perched on one of the branches and its dropping fell right on the head of the meditating Kausika. He was upset and looked at the bird angrily. The poor bird was turned to ashes in the next instant by the Brahmin’s power from meditation. The Brahmin did feel sorry for the bird, but, at the same time was proud of his power.

The housewife

The Brahmin went to a housewife one day asking for food as was his custom. The lady received him with due respect and asked him to take seat. She would soon come back to him with food.

She was getting ready to serve the visiting Brahmin. Her husband arrived home in the meanwhile. The lady turned all her attention to him. She started helping him with his bath. She then served him food without even bothering about the waiting guest.

The Brahmin was getting furious. He called the lady and spoke. “Why are you ignoring me like this? I came hungry and you promised to serve me soon. Now, it looks like you have forgotten me. Are you not afraid of my wrath?”

The lady laughed and replied. “Don’t think I am like the crane that you burnt down with your anger. My supreme duty is to serve my husband. Everything else comes next. I do not think that your anger will work against me. I would have earned enough merit to make up for any shortcoming in serving a distinguished guest like you.”

She, then, went into the virtue of following one’s Dharma. She pointed out to the Brahmin that he did not follow his duty fully. As a Brahmin he should have overcome anger instead of punishing an innocent bird for a mistake it made unwittingly. She said that she was busy serving her husband. The Brahmin should visit the butcher in Mithila who was called a Dharma Vyadha or the righteous butcher to know more about one’s Dharma.

The Brahmin was surprised. How did the lady come to know what happened to him and the bird? She was so sure of what was right and wrong. There was something very convincing in the way she asked him to see the butcher. So, the Brahmin thanked the lady and left in search of the butcher.

And the Butcher

The butcher lived in the city of Mithila as the lady told him. The famous king Janaka was the ruler of Mithila at that time.

Dharma Vyadha was widely known for his wisdom. The Brahmin, Kausika, had no difficulty getting directions to the place where he worked. The butcher was busy cutting meat and serving his clients when the Brahmin reached him. Kausika was disgusted seeing the way carcasses were cut into meat.

The butcher spotted his guest from a distance and welcomed him as the one sent by the housewife. That came as the next surprise to the Brahmin. How did he and the lady get the sixth sense to know what happened elsewhere?

Dharma Vyadha took the Brahmin to his house as the butchery was not the right place to receive a distinguished guest. The Brahmin could not hide his repulsive feeling finding the wise man in the butchery.
The butcher replied. “For each man doing his duty properly is what is important. This was the profession of my father and all the other ancestors. If you are worried about the killing, try to understand that you cannot live in this world without that. You take lives even when you eat vegetables or fruit”.

Then, he went into the secret of his superior spirituality. He looked after his aged parents diligently and made an honest living by hunting and selling the meat.

He gave a long lecture to the Brahmin on Dharma. Veda Vyasa has nearly five hundred stanzas of poetry covering the advice given by the Dharma Vyadha. At the end the butcher asked the Brahmin to go to his parents and take good care of him. Meditation should take only the next place.

The Brahmin bowed before the Vyadha and took his leave. He returned to his parents and started looking after them with dedication.

Ashtavakra

2007-04-02T07:02:00.000-07:00

Introduction

Ashtavakra was a child prodigy who rose to become one of the great philosophers of ancient times. He lived at the time of king Janaka of Videha who was the father of Sita of Ramayana fame. Janaka was himself a highly learned man. A philosophical work attributed to Ashtavakra, called the Ashtavakra Geeta, is considered by many as great as the famous Bhagavad Geeta. This Geeta is by way of a session in which king Janaka raises his doubts and Ashtavakra clarifies the points. Quite a few English translations are available of this Geeta on the Net. Sri Sri Ravishankar of The Art of Living has given a series of lectures on this.

Sage Lomasa pointed out the place where hermitage of Ashtavakra stood to Yudhishthira during their pilgrimage and narrated the story of the sage to the Pandava.

Born with eight bends

There was a famous Brahmin by name Uddalaka who had a son by name Swetaketu, daughter, Sujata and a disciple called Kahoda. Uddalaka was very pleased with his disciple, Kahoda, and gave his daughter Sujata in marriage to him.

Sujata soon became pregnant. It is said that the child, while in his mother’s womb, corrected the mistakes his father committed in chanting the Vedas. Kahoda got angry with his son for what he took to be his impudence. He cursed the child to be born with eight bends on his body.

Untimely death of Kahoda

Sujata was worried about their poverty when she knew about her pregnancy and that soon she would have to bring up a child. She pleaded with her husband to raise, somehow, some money. What Kahoda had with him as asset was his vast knowledge. He decided to approach king Janaka of Videha, who was himself a great scholar, for help. He was widely known for his generosity to learned men.

It was the custom those days for kings to set up debates among participating scholars and reward the winner by giving gifts of wealth. Often, there was also punishment for those who were defeated. When Kahoda reached the palace there was a great scholar there by name Vandi, who was the son of Varuna, the god of oceans. He was also ruthless in his dealings with his opponents in debates. He kept a stiff condition that those who lost should be thrown into the sea.

Kahoda had to accept the challenge as he was desperate for money. Unfortunately, he was defeated and was drowned in the sea by the king’s soldiers.

Ashtavakra learns the truth

The child was born to Kahoda only after his death. He had eight bends on his body exactly as cursed by his father. But, he was a genius from birth. The boy picked up all the Vedas and Sastras (sciences) in his early childhood.

Swetaketu lived in the hermitage along with his sister and nephew. Sujata tried to hide the truth about her husband’s untimely death from the boy. One day, Ashtavakra learnt the truth from his uncle Swetaketu. He was only in his teens at that time. Yet, he wanted to avenge the death of his father and went to king Janaka. Vandi was still living in great honour with king Janaka.

Too young for debate

But, Ashtavakra was denied entrance to the palace by the gate keepers. They told him that he was too young to challenge a great scholar like Vandi. There was a long argument between Ashtavakra and the sentry. The king’s gate keepers soon realized that they were in the presence of a boy of exceptional intelligence and learning. But, the king’s orders would not let the boy through. Finally, the gate keepers slipped him through pretending ignorance of his arrival.

In the presence of the mighty scholar

King Janaka was surprised finding a small boy arriving unannounced. The boy also had the audacity to ask for a debate with Vandi who was the greatest of all living scholars. Janaka tried to send the boy back and got into a debate with him in the process. The king soon realized that the boy was a child prodigy and indeed a match for the great Vandi in intelligence and scholarship. He was curious to know how he would fare against Vandi.
The debate between the two did not last long. The senior scholar had to accept defeat and the impending punishment. But, Vandi laughed and said that he would not drown in any ocean as he was the son of Varuna, the god of oceans. Instead, he promised to bring Kahoda back to life by appealing to his father, Varuna. True to his words, Kahoda rose from the ocean at the very instant, sent back by the god of oceans.

Ashtavakra regains form

Ashtavakra returned home to his mother with his father. Lomasa pointed the river called Samanga to Yudhiswhthira and said that Ashtavakra had regained the form of his body free from the bends by dipping into that river. Such was the power of its waters. Lomasa advised the Pandavas to take a holy dip and continue with their journey.

The hawk and a pigeon

2007-03-24T00:30:00.000-07:00

This story was told first by sage Lomasa and again by Markandeya to Yudhishthira. Lomasa was explaining the significance of each place he visited in the company of the Pandavas. It was when they reached the river Vitasta near Yamuna that Lomasa told the story of the two birds.

There was a king by name Sibi. His father’s name was Useenara and hence, Sibi was also called Ouseenara. He had performed a large number of Yajnas. His fame spread far and wide and reached even heaven.

A refugee

One day Sibi was seated in his assembly hall attending to the affairs of state when a pigeon flew in and dropped down into his lap crying out for help. There was a hawk right behind, apparently chasing the pigeon. The hawk spoke. “Your Highness! This bird is my prey. Please leave it for me”. The king replied. “No, it came asking for help. It is my duty to save it at all costs”.

The hawk said. “But, it is nature’s way that birds like me live by eating pigeons. If you do not let me have my prey, I shall starve and die. The sin will haunt you for ever”.

Sibi said. “Leave this bird to me. I shall give you anything else that you choose to eat. I can give you any number of animals like oxen to last for the rest of your life”.

But, the bird would not budge. It said. “I do not eat such meat. If you do not let me have this pigeon, I shall die”.

The king was in a fix. He asked the hawk. “What can I give you to spare the life of this little bird?”
The hawk replied. “If you are so keen to save it, then give me flesh from your body in equal weight o this pigeon”.

Royal flesh in exchange

Sibi was willing for such a sacrifice. The little pigeon was placed on a balance. The king cut a piece of flesh from his thigh and placed it on the other. But, the little bird weighed heavier. Sibi cut another large piece and added that to balance against the pigeon. But, mysteriously, the pigeon weighed more even then. The king continued cutting more and more pieces from his body, but, the little pigeon weighed heavier than all those pieces together. Then, with a final resolve the king placed himself on the balance.

Sibi was ready to die for the little bird that came for help and was waiting for the hawk to start eating his body when he heard its voice. “King, open your eyes. I am not a hawk, but, Indra who came to test your spirit of charity. This pigeon is Agni, the god of fire. You have passed our test on you in flying colours. I offer you a place in heaven now itself. Your fame will last for all generations to come”. So, saying Indra disappeared with Agni from the scene.

This story is being told as the best example for sacrifice (Daanam).

The story of Sukanya

2007-03-07T17:59:00.000-08:00

Introduction

Two characters in this story are the twin gods called the Aswini Devas. They are the physicians in heaven.
We have talked about Yajnas which are rituals in which various articles, like milk, ghee and an intoxicating drink called Soma are offered in the fire meant for many divinities. The gross body of the article is burnt. The god of fire carries the essence (of the offered article) to the respective gods.
In each Yajna there is a rule as to whom all, among gods, are entitled to their share. It is said that the Asini Devas were never entitled to any until the time of this story.

Sage Chyavana

Chyavana was one of the sons of the renowned Bhrigu. This sage spent all his time meditating. His penance was so deep that he remained standing at one place and lost track of time and his surroundings. He became a support for creepers in the forest. Gradually ants built a mound around him. Through the covering of the ant hill, it is said, that only his two powerful eyes shone like torch light.

There was a king by name Saryati ruling the land. He had several wives, but, only one child, one beautiful princess by name Sukanya. One day the king came to the forest with his army. Sukanya also came along in the company of her maids. She enjoyed herself plucking wild flowers and fruit and came to the ant hill covering the sage. The princess was surprised to find two shining objects beneath the ant hill. Out of childhood curiosity she pricked them with a thorn. She heard a groan from beneath and ran away in fright.

The king was having his bath in a nearby river at that time. Suddenly, all the soldiers of the king started complaining about acute pain in the stomach. Their bellies started swelling to suffocation in no time and they were in agony. The king was surprised. He asked every one whether there was any incident that could have caused their malady. None of them were aware of any.

A mismatched marriage

Then, Sukanya came running and told the king about her experience. The king rushed to the spot and discovered the sage beneath the ant hill with his bleeding eyes. The king profusely apologized to the sage for what his daughter did out of ignorance. He was willing to do anything to remedy the harm done.
Sage Chyavana spoke. “King, it is true that your daughter acted out of ignorance. But, she was rash at the same time. The only way you can redeem the situation is by marrying your daughter to me”.
The king took that as an order and gave his daughter in marriage to the sage.
Sukanya lived happily with sage Chyavana for many years. She looked after her old husband with full devotion.

Pursued by gods

Once, the Aswini Devas happened to see Sukanya moving alone in the forest. She appeared more beautiful than the best of the goddesses even in her rags. The Aswini Devas accosted the damsel and asked her who she was. Sukanya introduced herself to the divine visitors. Then, the twin gods spoke. “Fair lady, your aged husband does not deserve a beauty like you. You may choose one of us and live happily in heaven henceforth”. But, Sukanya politely refused the offer, confirming her devotion to her husband. The gods spoke again. “You should know that we are the physicians of heaven. We have a deal for you. We shall make your husband young and handsome and looking exactly like one of us. You must then choose one among the three”. Sukanya was willing to stand such a test.

A fair deal

Then, the gods asked her to bring her husband to the nearby river. The sage and the two gods immersed in the water at the same time. When they rose up Sukanya found three identically looking handsome youths. The pious lady meditated for a while and chose her own husband among the three.
Sage Chyavana was very pleased with the gods for giving him youth and good looks and wanted to offer them something in return. He spoke. “I am very pleased for this service you rendered to me. I shall make the two of you entitled for your share in all Yajnas henceforth”.

Thanks giving

King Saryati heard the happy news that sage Chyavana had been blessed with youth and beauty by the gods. He came to meet his daughter and son in law. The sage, then, asked the king to perform a Yajna by way of thanking the gods for their service. The king was quite happy to do that.
Chyavana was the chief priest at the ritual. He made an offering in between, addressed to the Aswini Devas. Lord Indra was angry that the sage was setting a bad precedent. He thought that the Aswini Devas never deserved a share. He appeared before the sage and tried to stop the offering to the Aswini Devas. But, the sage stood firm.
Furious that his command has been ignored, the king of gods invoked his irresistible weapon, the Vajra. But, the sage was unmoved. He chanted a Mantra and Indra’s hand holding his Vajra was paralyzed.

Man versus god

Chyavana wanted to put pressure on Indra. He created a demon from the sacrificial fire called ‘addiction’. He was an embodiment of what his name stood for. The demon filled the earth and sky and was more fearsome than what anyone had seen before.
He started chasing Indra at the command of sage Chyavana. Indra panicked. His hand holding the powerful Vajra was paralyzed. The king of gods bowed before the sage. He promised the sage that thenceforth the Aswini Devas would be eligible for a fare share of Soma and other offerings at Yajnas.
Chyavana was satisfied. It is said that he divided the demon into four parts and imbibed them into four objects – alcohol, women, gambling and hunting.
We now return to Arshajnanam to be with the pilgrims’ progress.

The story of Parasurama

2007-03-06T05:21:00.000-08:00

Introduction

There are three famous characters in Indian epics with name Rama. All the three are included among the ten important incarnations of Vishnu. They are all famous for their skill in warfare, too. The first was Parasurama or Rama with the axe (Parasu) as weapon. The other two are Sree Rama of Ramayana. The last is Balarama who was the elder brother of Krishna.

Parasurama was born to sage Jamadagni in Renuka in the family of Brahmins. He belonged to the lineage of the renowned sage Bhrigu. Because of this, he is also known as Bhargava Rama.
Our Rama with an axe was considered an authority on all the fields of warfare, especially in the science of archery. Several characters of Mahabharata, for example Drona and Karna, were disciples of this sage. One may wonder why he ended up being a warrior in spite of being born in an illustrious family of Brahmins. The following story throws some light on this point.

Another important character in our story is a Hehaya king by name Arjuna. He was the son of Kritavirya and hence is known as Kartavirya Arjuna. It is said that he meditated on sage Dattatreya and got one thousand arms with his blessings.

An obedient son

Jamadagni had five sons in Renuka, the last being Rama. One day, Renuka went to the nearby river for bath. She happened to watch a king by name Chitraratha enjoying himself in the company of his wives in the same river. The good lady, Renuka, was infatuated with the king and forgot herself for a while watching him. When she came to her senses she quickly returned to the hermitage. But, sage Jamadagni’s watchful eyes noticed the change in mood in his wife and knew the reason with his special powers. He was enraged. He ordered his sons to kill his wife for this impropriety. The first four refused to do such a heinous crime. Jamadagni was angry with his sons and cursed them that they would lose their senses and become like animals.
Rama did not think twice and chopped the head of his mother with his axe. Jamadagni was pleased with his youngest son. By then, his anger had also left him.

The sage asked his son, Rama, for a boon. Parasurama promptly asked for the life of his mother. The Maharshi (sage) asked Rama to ask for another boon. Rama requested his father that his brothers get back to their normal senses. Jamadagni blessed Rama by way of the third boon that he would become the best in the world in warfare.

An encounter with Kartaveeryarjuna

One day sage Jamadagni had gone out. At that time the Hehaya king, Arjuna, came to the hermitage with his soldiers. Renuka received the king cordially. Sage Jamdagni had a special cow which served all the needs of the sage for his rituals. Arjuna was impressed with the extraordinary gifts of the cow and forcefully carried the animal away.

Soon Rama arrived, hearing the cry of the cow on the way. His mother told him all that happened. Parasurama was furious. He rushed to Kartaviryarjuna and challenged him for a battle. Parasurama chopped all the one thousand arms of the powerful Arjuna. Then, he pierced the breast of the king of Hehaya with his arrows and killed him.

The soldiers of Arjuna took flight unable to face the onslaught of Rama. They met sage Jamadagni collecting firewood for his daily rituals on the way. They took revenge for the killing of their king with the life of the unsuspecting sage.

Parasurama’s vow

Rama was deeply saddened to know about the killing of his father. He thought that the entire Kshatriya (royal) community had become arrogant beyond limit. He took an oath that he would teach them a lesson. It is said that he went around and killed all the kings whom he could find. This he did to twenty one generations of kings. He came to a place called Samanta Pancaka in between and washed his axe there in homage to his dead father. It is said that five rivers of blood started as a result from that place. (The Mahabharata war took place near there)

We now return, again briefly, to Arshajnanam to keep track of the progress of the Pandavas’ pilgrimage.

Rsyasrunga – the rainmaker

2007-03-05T03:18:00.000-08:00

Sage Lomasa told the story of Rsyasrunga to the Pandavas when they reached the hermitage of sage Kasyapa during their pilgrimage. Rsyasrunga was actually born to Kasyapa, but, brought up by sage Vibhandaka. Vibhandaka was very strict with his son and never let him out of the surroundings of the hermitage. He was made to spend all his time in meditation right from his young days. Because of this, Rsyasrunga had not met any one other than his father, let alone any from the fair sex.

No rain in king Lomapada’s land

The story unfolds with the great king of Anga by name Lomapada. The king, once, happened to offend some Brahmins who lived in the palace to perform the rituals. The whole community of Brahmins was enraged by the king’s behaviour and left the palace en bloc in protest. The king did not take them seriously at that time.

(But, nature has its own ways to punish the guilty and reward the worthy). Lord Indra was not too pleased with the king as he was not getting his fare share from the rituals (Yajnas). He showed his displeasure by holding back rain in the entire Anga land. Famine set in and the king was worried. He consulted his ministers. They told him. “Lord Indra must be placated as soon as possible. We must get a capable Brahmin to performe the Yajna rituals. There is none as competent as Rsyasrunga for the purpose. But, it will not be easy to get the young sage as his father would never let him out his hermitage”.

Rsyasrunga to make rains

The king heard various suggestions on getting the young Rsyasrunga to the palace. The young sage was innocent of the ways of the world. But, how was one to get him past the watchful eyes of his father, the formidable Vibhandaka? The king offered rich rewards for those who accomplished the task. Many were tempted to try, but, did not dare to provoke the old sage, Vibhandaka.

There was an old courtesan in the palace who was willing to try. There was a stream that flowed through the Anga territory and passed by the hermitage of Vibhandaka. The old courtesan set forth to the forest in a canoe with a team of her young apprentices and made a secret camp near the hermitage. Within a couple of days the young ladies took note of the movements of the elder sage. He, normally, completed his morning rituals and then went out in search of food and materials for the next day’s sacrificial rites.

A handsome guest at the hermitage

The very next day Rshyasrunga found a young ascetic coming in the direction of his hermitage. His father had just gone out. So, the young sage undertook the task of receiving the visitor. He had never met someone who attracted his eyes so much. The visitor must surely have reached very high levels of meditation to appear so radiant and captivating. “His” matted hair was extraordinarily long. Rshyasrunga enjoyed the very smell that filled the air wherever the visitor stood. The visitor wore scanty clothes of extra nice material and moved gracefully towards the hermitage. Rshyasrunga thought that the visitor would have years of meditation to achieve such unusual powers to attract his heart.

He addressed the visitor. “Who are you and where is your hermitage? There is something special about you. Tell me more bout you and your people.”

The visitor, the young courtesan, did not try to contradict the words of praise from the young sage. She only told her host about the strange ways of her lot. They did not greet one another by bowing or prostrating. They embraced the other person and even made contact with one another’s lips. She demonstrated her special way of greeting by hugging Rshyasrunga. She also planted a gentle kiss on the young Rishi’s (sage’s) mouth. Rshyasrunga felt happiness which he had never before experienced. He was drawn to the visitor in a way that he never felt before.
The young courtesan spent time singing and dancing before the sage. She made sure that Rshyasrunga was completely won over by her charms. Then, she took leave promising to return soon to take him to her ‘hermitage’.

Vibhandaka returns

When the elder sage returned he found his son in a totally different mood. He appeared lost in thoughts and had even forgotten to perform his daily chores. Rshyasrunga told his father about the special visitor and how he was impressed by ‘his’ looks and accomplishments. Vibhandaka felt that there was some evil force at play. It could be some devil dressed as a saint who came to distract his son’s penances. He warned his son not to receive any such unwelcome visitors in future.

The elder sage left next morning as usual for his normal duties. He did not forget to warn his son to be extra watchful.

The young courtesan came back to Rshyasrunga soon after that. She agreed to take Rshyasrunga to her ‘hermitage’ as promised. The very sight of the special visitor made Rshyasrunga forget the warning words of his father. The young courtesan lead her eager host to the waiting canoe in which her accomplices were waiting. They rowed the canoe fast to the palace of king Lomapada. It is said that the moment Rshyasrunga set foot on the land of Anga rain started pouring down. The king was very pleased. He received his young visitor with deep reverence and offered him all the hospitality that was due for such a high ranking ascetic. The king had already made elaborate arrangements for a grand Yajna. He requested the young sage to start the ritual at his earliest convenience.

The king knew that the old sage would come looking for his son. So, rest houses were set up all along the way with all arrangements for offering hospitality to the sage.

As expected, Vibhandaka was worried when he found his son missing. He meditated for a while and learnt from his sixth sense that his son had been taken away to the king of Anga. So, he immediately started for the palace of Lomapada in an angry mood.

But, he was pleased with the hospitality he received along the way. He learnt about king Lomapada and why the king wanted his son in the palace. He mentally pardoned the underhand ways of the king in drawing his son to the palace.

The sage, finally, reached the palace. He was greeted by his son and the king, himself. He was pleased to hear that his son brought the much needed rain to the land of Anga.
Lomapada made his ultimate move to appease the old sage. He brought his daughter, Santha to Vibhandaka and offered her as wife to young Rsyasrunga. Vibhandaka was very pleased with the gesture and found the young princess a suitable bride for his son.

The story ends with the successful completion of the Yajna ritual and the happy marriage of the princess with the young sage, Rsyasrunga.

We return to Arshajnanam briefly and get back here for more stories.

The Story of Bhageeratha

2007-03-03T08:28:00.000-08:00

King Sagara performs the great horse sacrifice

There was a king in the dynasty of Ikswaku by name Sagara. He was a great ruler who fought and won many battles over all the neighbouring kingdoms.

He had two wives and a number of children in them. The sons of Sagara were extremely powerful and arrogant. They went in all nooks and corners of the earth fighting with each and everyone who came across their way.

Sagara ruled over his vast kingdom for several years and decided that it was time for him to perform the Horse Sacrifice (Aswamedha) and become an emperor. His sons roamed about the earth leading the horse as a sign of regal supremacy over all kingdoms. They marched also over the ocean which was turned dry by sage Agastya. There they lost track of the sacrificial horse. The princes searched everywhere for the animal and found no trace of it. The sons of Sagara returned to the king and reported the matter to him. Sagara said. “Sons, you must somehow locate the horse and bring it back. You know that I have taken the vow to conduct the ritual and complete it without a hitch. The presence of the horse is crucial for the ceremony. So, do not return without the animal”.

A fatal encounter

So, the princes continued their search all over the earth. Finally, they found a big hole on the dry bed of the ocean. The valiant princes wanted to explore beneath the ocean and dug into the hole making it large enough for them all to enter.

Their perseverance was amply rewarded by the sight of their horse peacefully grazing near a hermitage. It was the hermitage of sage Kapila (who was said to be one of the minor – not one of the ten- incarnations of Vishnu). The sage had a halo around him resulting from years of penance. the sons of Sagara found the sage in deep meditation. The haughty princes did not bother about the sage or his meditation. They held their weapons high and ran to the horse like an invading army, shouting “here it is!”

The sage was disturbed in his meditation and opened his eyes in fury. Such was his power that his anger burned the hapless princes into ashes in an instant.

Sagara laments

The wandering sage Narada reported the misfortune of his sons to Sagara. The king was anguished hearing the tragic end of his dear sons. There was nothing that he could do for them. He had taken the vow and could not even move out until the horse was, somehow, brought back.
There was only a grandson for the king who was left behind. His name was Amsuman. He told the young prince about the tragedy of his father and uncles. The king asked the boy to trace the path travelled by his father and know more about the tragedy. If possible, he should get the sacrificial horse back, too.

Amsuman did not hesitate to start immediately. He followed the direction of sage Narada and reached the hermitage of sage Kapila. He found the sage in the same meditative posture and prostrated before him. He stood in deep reverence in front of the sage and waited patiently for the sage to open his eyes.

Sage Kapila was very pleased with the conduct of the young prince and told him so. He asked the boy to choose any boon. Amsuman begged the sage to release the horse. The hermit gladly did so and encouraged Amsuman to ask for another one. The prince asked for the salvation of his dead father and uncles this time.

The sage said. “I grant you this boon too, but, not immediately. You will have to bring the waters of the holy river Ganga from heaven to this place where your ancestors lie. Only your grandson will succeed in doing that”.

Amsuman returned to the palace with the horse and told his grand father about the boon he received from the sage. King Sagara was pleased and completed the ritual. He installed his grandson as the king in due course and retired to a forest to meditate.

Amsuman got a son by name Dileepa who went to the Himalayas and spent years in meditation with the hope of pleasing the heavenly Ganga. But, he died without success.

Bhageeratha

Dileepa had a son by name Bhageeratha. The prince heard about his mission early in his childhood. So, he set out to the Himalayas while he was still very young.

He spent years in deep meditation, praying to the holy Ganga. Finally the river appeared as goddess before him and agreed to flow down to earth. But, there was a problem. Her force would be such that nothing would withstand the fall of water from heaven. It needed someone powerful enough to receive the stream falling down from heaven and hold it. The goddess, herself, suggested the name of Lord Siva for the purpose.

So, Bhageeratha started meditating on Siva. The Lord appeared in due course and agreed to receive Ganga falling from heaven in his matted hair. Bhageeratha had to pray to Ganga, again, and request her to flow down to earth.

The heavy down pour of the sacred river then started, all the way from heaven to the matted hair of Lord Siva. Ganga was proud of her force and was not that sure how the Lord would withstand her onslaught. Lord Siva sensed what the haughty Ganga was thinking and stood firm with the result that not even a drop of water came out of Siva’s head!

Bhageeratha was the one who suffered because of the show of strength between the divinities. He had to spend years, again, praying to Siva to release at least some water for his purpose. The Lord was, no doubt, pleased with Bhageeratha and lifted some locks of his hair.

The water that fell from the Lord’s hair started flowing as the mighty Ganga. The river asked Bhageeratha to show her the way to his ancestors. So, Bhageeratha sped fast on his horse ahead, asking the river to follow him.

(Some of the Puranas report another obstacle on the way. A sage by name Jahnu was in meditation along the path of the mighty Ganga. He was infuriated when the river flooded his hermitage and drank the whole river dry. It took years of meditation for Bhageeratha to please the sage. The sage, pacified, let the river flow out of his ears. Ganga has an epithet, Jahnavi, because of this. Vyasa does not mention this incident in Mahabharatam.)

The river finally reached the dry bed of the ocean and filled it up to its former level. Bhageeratha moved further down into the underground where the ashes of his ancestors lay scattered. The contact with the holy river purified the sons of Sagara and gave them immediate salvation.

(All oceans have inherited the epithet of Saagaram because of this story. Lord Siva is depicted as having two wives, the wedded spouse, Parvathy, on his lap and his paramour, Ganga, on his head. The two divine ladies are said to be always quarrelling with each other.)

Let us get back briefly to Arshajnanam and return for the story of the innocent sage, Rishyasrunga, in the next episode.

The Vindhya bows down to Agastya

2007-03-02T20:41:00.000-08:00

It is said that the mountain known by the name of Meru is so tall and huge that both the sun and the moon go round it after they rise in the east, set in the west and rise again next day. The Vindhya mountain used to watch that and was getting jealous of Meru for the special treatment.
One day the mountain spoke to the sun. “Why are you going round Meru and not me? Am I any less important?” The sun replied. “Meru is so tall that I have no other go. Besides, this has been the practice since creation”.

Vindhya thought that the height was the key issue for status. So, he decided to grow until his importance was recognized. He started becoming taller and taller day by day thereby blocking the rays of sun from reaching the earth. The whole world plunged into darkness day and night and the gods were worried. They were helpless against the might of the Vindhya. Only one person could talk sense to the mountain, sage Agastya. So, they told Agastya of the grave problem the world was facing.

Agastya went to the mountain and spoke. “Vindhya, you are now so tall that I find it difficult to cross over you. I have business to attend to, on your south side. So, better bend down low enough so that I can cross you without difficulty”.

Though proud, Vindhya knew that he had to be careful in dealing with a powerful sage like Agastya. So, he agreed and stooped down low for the sage to pass. Agastya crossed over to the south and commanded. “Now, remain like this until I return”. The mountain thought that he should better follow that order from the sage, too. After all, it would be a matter of days for the sage to return.

But, it is said that Agastya never returned. He settled down in the south permanently. Vindhya was compelled to remain low waiting for the return of the sage which never happened.

(Agastya is known to be a sage of the southern part of India, and is an author of a few celebrated works. Vindhya is situated in the centre of India and mostly has a low plateau. Meru is a mythical mountain. Some say that it was part of the Himalayas. )

We get to the story of Bhagiratha, next, who brought the river Ganga from heaven to earth, which ended up filling the ocean that was dried up by Agastya.

Thirst for an ocean of water

2007-03-01T08:20:00.000-08:00

The killing of Vritra

One of the formidable foes of the gods was a demon by name Vritra. (The story is very old and even the Rik Veda refers to it.) He continuously harassed the gods in the company of the Kalakeyas. (The Kalakeyas are the ones whom Ajuna annihilated later on). The gods lead by Indra went to Brahma for guidance. Brahma said. “You need to make a special weapon to kill Vritra, made of human bones. There is an ascetic by name Dadheeca whom you could approach for the purpose. He is one who will not hesitate even to give up his life for such a noble cause”.
Accordingly, the gods went to Dadheeca. The hermit did not think twice when he heard that his body would be of great use for the gods. He welcomed death gladly leaving his body for the benefit of the gods. Brahma created the special weapon, called Vajra, out of the bones of the dead sage, Dadheeca and gave it to Indra.

The king of gods fought a fierce war against the invading Vritra and killed him. The Kalakeyas lost their valiant leader as a result. So, they went under the ocean and built a city for them to hide.

The demons are the most powerful and the gods are weak at night. Using this loophole, the Kalakeyas continued harassing the gods at night. During the day they would hide in their city under the ocean water. There was no end to the suffering of gods even after Vritra’s death.
The gods went to Vishnu and informed him of the threat from the Kalakeyas. Vishnu was aware of the problem and knew the way, though difficult, to end their threat. Somehow, the ocean must be drained of all water. There was only one person who was capable of accomplishing such a near impossible task. He was the son of Varuna, the guardian deity of the West and of all oceans. His name was Agastya who had acquired unparalleled powers from penance.
The gods decided to request the sage to come to their rescue. Agastya agreed and went to the ocean. He went into deep meditation on Varuna and started drinking the ocean waters. It is said that in one breath he drank the entire ocean dry.

The demons were exposed when the water was gone. The gods attacked them with full force and killed most of them in a fierce battle. The remaining ones escaped to the world below, to Patala.

Having their task accomplished, the gods went to sage Agastya, again, requesting him to release the water back to the ocean. But, Agastya said. “Oh, that is now beyond me. I have digested all the water by now. You will have to try other means to fill the ocean again.We shall get to that story after learning about another one on Agastya in the next episode

The story of sage Agastya

2007-02-26T22:19:00.000-08:00

Agastya was a great sage. He remained celibate all his life and spent his time in deep meditation.
One day he found some ghosts hanging from some branches of a tree with their head facing down. The sage asked them who they were. They replied. “Son, we are your forefathers. We are stuck here in this condition because of you. Only when you produce children we get release from this bondage and reach the world above”.

Lopamudra

The king of Vidarbha had a daughter by name Lopamudra. She was exceptionally beautiful and of excellent character. Sage Agastya heard about the princess and approached the king for his daughter’s hand in marriage.

The king was in two minds. He was reluctant to give his darling daughter to a sage living in forest. At the same time, he feared the wrath of the powerful sage. Lopamudra sensed the dilemma of her father. She told the king. “Father, do not worry on my account. I shall gladly be the wife of this sage”.

Thus, Agastya got the pretty princess of Vidarbha as wife. He asked his wife to cast away all her rich clothes and precious jewellery. They were going to live in a forest where such expensive costumes would have no meaning. Lopamudra obeyed her husband without a murmur.
The two lived several years doing penance. Lopamudra took excellent care of her husband with all her heart.

No children

But, the sage was worried that his wife did not bear any children for him. He asked her for the reason. Lopamudra replied. “Dear husband, our way of life does not suit me to bear children and bring them up. If you want children, get me a decent place to live and wealth for their upbringing”. Agastya told her of his poverty. Where could he get the money for a house and other expenses?

Lopamudra reminded her husband that he had attained great powers through penance. He could get anything he wanted with that. But, the sage feared that years of penance would be wasted, if he spent them to gain material wealth. His good wife did not want him to make such a sacrifice for her sake and continued with her ascetic life.

In search of wealth

But, the sage wanted to get children badly. So, he set out begging for money. He approached a king and pleaded for help. The king replied. “Sage, I would have been only too pleased to give you anything you ask for. But, please look at my books account. See for yourself that what I collect as taxes are spent fully for the cause of people. Nothing is saved. If you insist, I will have to collect more taxes”. But, the sage did not want ordinary people burdened on account of him.
The king suggested another monarch of great wealth. The two approached the second ruler together. They got the same reply there. Then, Agastya went to a third king with the other two who was famous for his charities. But, the condition there was no different.

Then, one of the kings suggested the name of a demon (Asura) by name Ilvala who had amassed huge ill-gotten wealth. The sage decided to approach the demon and try his luck. The three kings also accompanied the sage.

Ilvala and Vatapi

Ilvala once requested a Brahmin to bless him for getting a son as powerful as Indra, the king of gods. The Brahmin refused the request right away. That made the demon angry. He wanted to take revenge on all Brahmins because one of them refused to grant him his wish.

He had a younger brother by name Vatapi. Being demons, the two had special powers. They came up with a plan to take revenge on Brahmins. Ilvala would turn his brother into a goat. He would invite any passer by, especially Brahmins, for a grand feast at his house. He would cut his brother, turned goat, into pieces and cook a delicacy with it. He would offer the guest this special meat dish. After meal he would call his brother out, “Vatapi”. His brother would respond from the belly of the visitor and come out alive in one piece. In the process the guest would be killed. The two demons, later, would enjoy a curry made of human flesh. All the valuables in the possession of the visitor would go into their treasure.

Agastya’s apetite

Agastya and the kings had heard about the trick played by the demon brothers. The kings were apprehensive. But, the sage was unnerved. As usual, Ilvala offered the special dish of goat meat. Agastya ate the dish to his fill. The kings did not touch the meat.

The meal was over and the demon was ready for the kill. He called, “Vatapi”. No reply. Probably, his brother did not hear him. “VATAPI”, called the demon aloud. Still, there was no response from the belly of the sage. By then, the elder demon was in panic. He shouted aloud looking at the belly of the sage, “VATAPI, COME OUT!”.

Sage agastya smiled and said. “Whom are you calling? If you expect anything to come out of my belly, then you are mistaken. I have digested all that I have eaten!”.

Ilvala was aghast. He played his trick once too often. Not only had he lost his brother, he now had a man in front whose power was beyond his imagination. He fell at the feet of the sage and begged for mercy for his action.

Agastya said. “What has happened has happened. We have come as we are in need of money. May be, you can help us”. Ilvala was ready to do anything to get rid of his visitors. The sage asked for enough wealth to keep his wife and his companions happy and returned the way he came.Lopamudra gave birth to a son in due course. Agastya could, thus, bring salvation to his ancestors through his son.

Happy ending

2007-02-25T06:40:00.000-08:00

Damayanti was now certain that the charioteer of Rituparna who came assuming the name of Bahuka was none other than her husband, Nala. She did not know, as yet, how the Nishadha king managed to appear so completely different. She also needed permission from her parents before confronting her husband directly.

She went to her mother and said. “Mother, I have tested the charioteer thoroughly. There is no doubt in my mind that he is Nala. I need to find out why and how he is in such a disguise. Please speak to father about it. I need to have a long chat with my husband and get a few missing details”.

The re-union

The queen got the necessary nod from her husband. Then, Damayanti went to the place where Bahuka was staying. The confidence she gained through her clever tests that the charioteer was indeed Nala in disguise did not prepare her for the shock of meeting some one who looked so different. The person who was supposed to be the handsome Nala appeared with matted hair and wearing saffron clothes. He looked dirty and was ugly beyond description. Yet, she took courage and asked. “I am told that you call yourself Bahuka. Have you met my Nala who abandoned me in forest? Have I done any harm to him in my childhood? Did I not choose him in marriage ignoring all other suitors, including the ones from heaven? Did he not swear in front of fire at marriage that he would take care of me?”

Nala could not conceal his real identity any longer. He replied. “Try to understand that it was not my free will that worked when I gambled away all my possessions. I was not myself when I left you behind in the forest and disappeared. The cruel Kali had possessed me in revenge for your marrying me. But, that rascal of Kali was all along being tormented inside me by your curse. He, finally, had to leave me completely when I learnt the secret of dice from king Rituparna”.

Nala continued. “I came with the desire to see you just once. Your messengers are all over the world inviting kings for your second marriage. I also came to find out how you could even think of such a course of action”.

To that accusation Damayanti replied. “Please do not mistake me. The talk of my second Swayamvara was a mere ploy to get you here. No one other than you would have managed to cover the distance of eight hundred miles ( 100 Yojanas) in a day. I swear that I speak the truth”. A loud voice was heard from heaven at that very instant. “It is true that your chaste wife has not erred, in thought, speech or action”. This was followed by gods playing on divine drums (Dundubhi) and showering flowers on the pair by way of blessing.

Nala was pleased to learn the truth. He took out the cloth gifted by the serpent Karkotaka and wore it around him. Then, Damayanti saw the original form of her handsome husband and rushed to his outstretched arms.

The two exchanged their stories following their separation in the forest. The sorrows each suffered were washed away in the happy tears of their new found union.

A Grand royal welcome

Nala and Damayanti spent that night together and went to meet the king next morning. Bhima was greatly pleased to receive Nala appearing in his old radiant form. News passed around the kingdom that Nala has returned from his exile. The citizens of Vidarbha were overjoyed with the news. They decorated the streets and came in large numbers to receive the illustrious king who married their princess. Nala and Damayanti received the citizens graciously.
Nala went to Rituparna with Damayanti next. He tried to apologize to the king for any of his lapses while under his service. The large hearted king of Ayodhya cut him short and spared no words to appreciate the years the two spent happily together. Rituparna did not forget to bless the couple for a long and happy married life.

Back to his own country

Nala lived happily in the company of Damayanti in her father’s kingdom for a few days. Then, he decided that it was time for him to return to his own land. He took leave of his in-laws and drove his own chariot carried by his favourite horses to Nishadha taking Damayanti and the children with him. He went to Pushkara and said. “Brother, I have earned enough wealth while in exile. I offer all that, including myself, as stake and challenge you to a fresh game of dice. I want you to wager on the entire kingdom including your own life. If you refuse, then you should meet me in a duel. I am afraid that you have to choose between the two”.

Pushkara showed surprise to find his brother back. He was happy to play and was sure that he would win again. The two played and this time, to Pushkara’s dismay, he lost.

Nala said. “Brother, now the entire kingdom and even your life are at my disposal. I can do anything that I want with you. But, I do not blame you for what was done to me in the past. I do not want to punish you for it. You may take half the kingdom that is due to you and go”. With those words Nala sent Pushkara away and ruled his land as an ideal king for long, long years. He lived happily in the company of Damayanti and the children.

The sage, Brihadasva, concluded telling the story of Nala to Yudhishthira with this happy note.

The second marriage

2007-02-24T05:20:00.000-08:00

Bahuka held the reins expertly and the horses galloped fast. It appeared to Rituparna that they were flying in the air. The other charioteer was seated next to Bahuka. He wondered who this Bahuka was, being so good with the horses. Was he Matalai, the charioteer of Indra? Or was he Nala?

Exchange of knowledge

The air rushed past him with such a force that the king found even breathing difficult. Suddenly, the garment which he wore around his chest flew off. He asked Bahuka to stop immediately so that he could fetch it. Bahuka said, “Your Excellency! Your garment is behind us by eight or ten miles by now”.

Rituparna was thrilled finding his horses galloping at unbelievable speed. He wanted to impress Bahuka with his own learning. He said. “Bahuka, look at that tree far in front of us. I can tell you exactly how many leaves it has”. Then, he gave the number. He asked Bahuka to stop the chariot when they reached near it. When they stopped the king said. “Now you break that particular branch and count the leaves on it. You multiply what you get by the number of branches. You shall arrive at my figure”. Bahuka was surprised that the king was absolutely right. He wanted to learn how he did it. In exchange he promised to teach the king his knowledge of horses.

Rituparna said. “I did my calculation using the science called Akshahridaya or the secret of dice. I shall teach you also how you can apply it in the game of dice. Once you know the secret there will be none who can beat you in that game”. Nala was, no doubt, interested. He remembered the words of the serpent, Karkotaka.

(Indian Statisticians observe that the principles of Statistics and Probability theory lie behind the science of dice as king Rituparna stated it. It is the basic theory of averages which the king applied. Of course, the theory of Probability plays a big role in the game of dice).
Bahuka started the chariot with renewed speed. The two, king and his charioteer, then taught each other their respective area of knowledge. It is said that it was at that moment that Kali completely left the body of Nala.

Arrival in Vidarbha

It was near sunset. The residents of Vidarbha heard a terrifying rumbling sound. They looked out and found a chariot arriving at a tremendous speed. Everyone wondered who would be coming. Damayanti was expecting Nala and came out into the open terrace of the palace to observe whether her dear husband finally arrived. She found the king, Rituparna, stepping out. The charioteer who sat in front also stepped down. He looked ugly and shabbily dressed and bore no resemblance to her handsome Nala.

Who was he? The sound of the chariot was exactly as though Nala, himself, was at the reins. But, who is this ugly man? Was it possible that Nala taught him his secret knowledge of horses? She decided to find out and sent her maid to the charioteer.

King Bhima surprised

The Vidarbha king wondered what would have brought Rituparna to his land. After receiving the king courteously Bhima asked his host what could be his mission.

Rituparna was equally confused. The Swayamwara was supposed to be the very next day. That was why he impressed upon his charioteer to use all his skill and reach the land of Vidarbha in such a hurry. But, he found no sign of any wedding arrangements. Nor did he find any other king at the palace. It would be highly embarrassing, if there was any confusion about the invitation he received. So, he replied that it was just a courtesy call on his part.

The Vidarbha king was even more puzzled with that reply. A mere courtesy call by some one from a distance of eight hundred miles! But, he outwardly showed no signs of surprise and lead Rituparna to a quarter of the palace that was hurriedly arranged for his comfortable stay.

Damayanti’s tests

Meanwhile, the maid sent by Damayanti accosted the charioteer, Bahuka. She repeated the words of Damayanti addressing her husband why he left her all alone in the forest. Bahuka shed tears and repeated the same words which he spoke earlier in reply to that question.

Damayanti’s suspicion grew stronger this time. She wanted to test the charioteer further. She knew some of the gifts of Nala that no other human beings could perform. Only raw meat and vegetables were supplied for dinner for the visitors. Damayanti made sure that there was no fire in the kitchen to cook the food. There was no water either. The maid was asked to hide and watch what would happen next.

The maid was greatly surprised to find that the charioteer was nonplussed by not finding water and fire. He seemed to be in prayer for a while and water filled the cooking pots automatically. He prayed again facing the setting sun and fire lit the wood in the oven instantaneously. Several steaming and sweet smelling dishes were made ready in no time by the charioteer. The maid managed to bring some sample of the dishes to her mistress. Damayanti was certain after tasting them that the cook was none other than her husband.

As a final test she sent her children to the charioteer. He embraced them with tears flowing down his cheeks and took them into his lap.

Damayanti was by now sure that the charioteer was none other than Nala. But, how did he look so different? We shall learn about it in the next, concluding, part of the story.

Search for Damayanti

2007-02-22T23:16:00.000-08:00

Bhima of Vidarbha was greatly worried hearing about the tragedy that sent his daughter and her husband into the forest. The king thought that the two must be suffering and roaming about in forests with no help in sight. The immediate task was, somehow, to trace them. So, he sent Brahmins in all directions with promise of generous rewards.

One of them was Sudeva, a friend of Damayanti’s brother. He reached the kingdom of Chedi and came upon the maid attending on the queen. The Brahmin found that her resemblance to Damayanti was particularly striking. She was as beautiful, but dressed modestly. Her looks were that of a woman in distress. After carefully weighing in various possibilities, the Brahmin decided to confront her directly.

He addressed her. “Daughter of king Bhima, I am Sudeva, your brother’s friend. I came looking for you as ordered by your father. Your parents, brother and children are all keeping well and are anxiously waiting for your return”.

Damayanti started weeping hearing those words. She, in turn, enquired about her children and all other relations.

Princess Sunanda thought it strange that her friend should be so much in tears after meeting a stranger. She reported the matter to her mother.

The queen came immediately where Damayanti was talking with the visiting Brahmin. She asked Sudeva whether he knew her earlier.

Back in Vidarbha

Sudeva told the queen all about Damayanti, her marriage to Nala and the tragedy which deprived the Nishadha king of his land. The queen was, no doubt, taken by surprise with the revelation. She was keeping a princess as her maid all along, though unwittingly. Besides, Damayanti was her direct niece, her mother being the queen’s sister. The queen embraced her niece with the new found relationship.

Damayanti then took leave of the queen and her friend, Sunanda. She accompanied the Brahmin and reached her father’s palace in due course. Every one in the palace was happy beyond words to receive her. They all shared her grief when Damayanti narrated how she suffered in various forests and how fortunate she was to escape to Chedi palace.

In search of Nala

Damayanti , then, told her parents that she did not want to live long without Nala. Hearing those words, her mother wept and kept quiet. The king issued fresh orders for the Brahmins to renew the search for Nala.

Damayanti, somehow, sensed that Nala might not identify himself to strangers. So, she left a message with the Brahmins addressed to Nala. “You disappeared with half the piece of cloth I was wearing. You left me behind, helpless, while I was asleep in deep forest. You know what is right and what is wrong. Is it not the duty of a husband to look after his wife? Remember, your wife and children are awaiting your return”. Damayanti asked the Brahmins to repeat those very words in all public places wherever they go.

Just a hint

After a few days, one of the Brahmins returned from Ayodhya and reported a strange encounter there. He repeated the same words in the court of Rituparna. Neither the king nor those who were assembled spoke anything in reply. But, when he came out the charioteer of Rituparna approached him privately. He did not at all fit the description of Nala. On the contrary, he looked positively ugly. But, he appeared to be deeply in sorrow. He said. “Is it not the duty of a chaste wife to bear all shortcomings of her husband? If her husband happened to leave her and go, because of some misfortune, she should not get angry on him”.

Damayanti was certain that the person who spoke those words was certainly Nala. How he managed to change his own identity was a puzzle. She was determined to bring him out of his hiding. There must be a clever device to entice him to come into the open. She took her mother into confidence in the matter. Damayanti requested her mother not to let even her father know of their plan.

A second marriage

Damayanti made a mental calculation that an expert like Nala, and only one like him, would reach the Vidarbha palace from Ayodhya in a day by chariot. With this in mind she made a plan. She asked Sudeva, her brother’s friend, to take an invitation personally to Rituparna. But, this was done in complete secrecy, even without telling her own mother. The message said that Damayanti wanted to marry again as her first husband was not to be traced anywhere. It would be a Swayamwara like before. Naturally, no other kings were invited.

Rituparna was excited hearing the good news. He had heard about the exceptional beauty of Damayanti. There might be other suitors. But, time was short. Many would find it hard to reach the Swayamwara with such a short notice. But, he had confidence in his charioteer, Bahuka. So, with high hopes he asked the charioteer to start immediately.

Bahuka’s mind was in turmoil hearing that his wife was going to marry again. He thought. “True, I cheated her. She must have left all hopes of finding me later. Yet, how could she do this to me?” Outwardly, Bahuka was pleased with the news and was ready to start immediately.
He went to the stable and chose four horses of the best breed and of the most agile. The king was greatly angered looking at the lean horses. There were many others which were healthier. But, Bahuka assured him that those horses would take him to his destination in time.

We shall learn about their journey in the next episode.

Damayanti finds refuge

2007-02-21T17:50:00.000-08:00

Damayanti reached the palace of Chedi in the company of Brahmins of the caravan. By then, even the single piece of cloth she wore was shabby and torn. Her whole body was covered with dust. Her matted and disheveled hair came down covering part of her face. No wonder that she was taken to be a mad woman by vagabonds on the road. By the time she reached the palace gate there was a group of urchins following her shouting “mad woman!”

The queen noticed the group from a distance. She was captivated by the serene beauty of Damayanti in spite of her appearance. She remarked to her maid. “Look at that woman coming in our direction. She moves like a mad woman, but, see how noble she looks in spite of her rags. Her radiance is such that it, as though, illuminates this palace. Go and get her to me immediately.”

Damayanti was duly brought to the august presence of the queen. The queen asked her in kind words who she was and why she moving about in that manner. The queen of Nishadha, then, told her story without revealing her royal birth and upbringing. She simply said that she was an attendant in the royal chambers (Sairandhri).

The queen said. “Fair one, do stay with me. You are of the age of my daughter, Sunanda. You will be a good companion to her.”

Damayanti was willing, but, on some conditions. “I shall not eat food left over from others meal and shall not do menial jobs. I shall not speak to any male members. Brahmins will be an exception. I may need their help to continue searching for my missing Nala.” The queen was gracious enough to let her stick to those rules.

Nala’s predicament

After leaving his wife Nala wandered here and there in the forest. He had no particular aim. Neither did he know where to turn for help.

Then, he observed that the forest right in front was being encircled by fire. He also heard some voice addressing him by name for help. What he found was a serpent coiled in the middle of the fast approaching fire that was calling out, “Nala, help me out!”

When he was near the serpent it spoke. “I am the king of serpents by name Karkotaka. I have lost my ability to move by a curse from sage Narada. I pleaded with him for pardon. Then, he made a concession that I would be free when you would come and save me. I beg you to carry me out of this death trap”.

Nala did not think twice and picked up Karkotaka and brought it out of the danger area. Karkotaka, then spoke. “I am indeed grateful to you. Please do me one more favour. Turn back and take a dozen steps.” Nala was puzzled, but, did as he was told. He was shocked when he was stung viciously on the ankle by the serpent. He turned blue in no time by the deadly poison of Karkotaka and thought that he was going to die the next instant. Then, he heard the serpent speak further.

“Please do not be afraid. My poison shall not affect you. I know that your body is haunted by Kali. He will find living inside your body unbearable henceforth because of my poison, and leave you. That is why I did this to you.”

Nala also found that the poison not only turned his colour black, but, also changed his appearance completely different. His handsome figure turned instantaneously into one with ugly features.

Karkotaka continued. “This change in you is not permanent. This will help you to live in disguise. Take this clothe as my gift. If you wear it, you will get back your old graceful features. Go to the king Rituparna of Ayodhya. You are the most proficient in the science of horses (Aswa Hridaya). You also have exceptional skills in cooking. Offer these skills in service to the king. In due course, you shall learn the science of dice (Aksha Hridaya) from him and win your lost kingdom back. You will also be re-joined by your dear queen. Because of my poison no other poison will have an effect on you in future.” So saying, the serpent, Karkotaka, disappeared.

Nala with Rituparna

Nala went to King Rituparna as asked. He called himself Bahuka and offered his services in cooking for the king and looking after his horses. The king was very pleased to learn that the visitor had special skills with horses. He found his charioteer wanting in that aspect. He was also happy to get a new cook. So, he employed Bahuka (Nala) in his kitchen and made him in the charge of his horses, too.

Bahuka started a new life in the palace of Ayodhya. Kali had left him completely by then. With his exit, thoughts of his dear wife rushed back to his mind tormenting him all the time.
Other servants found Bahuka lost in thoughts when left alone. They often heard him whispering in a sad tone. “Where will that dear one be living now, whom I left all alone, in hunger and thirst?” To their question, Bahuka once told them of his life’s story without revealing his identity.

We shall learn about the fate of Nala and Damayanti in the next episode.

Damayanti’s escape

2007-02-20T17:38:00.000-08:00

The gentle Damayanti was desolate in the terrifying forest where wild animals roamed freely. She had heard about ghosts of various kinds which lurked in darkness for their favourite dish of human flesh. Damayanti wailed, “my husband, who promised to be by my side until death, where are you now? How could you leave me all alone in this dense forest with no hope for escape?”

Caught by a python

Damayanti moved aimlessly here and there with her thoughts wandering in search of her missing Nala. Already terrified by her loneliness, she was horror stricken realizing that a python had grabbed her foot and was slowly sucking her into its mouth. She started crying aloud for help, repeating the name, “Nala”. Luckily, a hunter happened to hear her and came rushing. He slit the python from head to tail and saved Dmayanti from her agony.

But, worse was in store for the hapless queen. The hunter was enchanted by the enchanting looks of the lady whom he happened to save. Desire provoked the primitive man to draw Damayanti to himself in spite of her protests. The queen of Nishadha was terrified at first. Fear changed to anger when her objections were ignored. She had led so chaste a life that she never even thought about any other man in her life. That gave her the courage to curse her tormentor with the words, “you have violated my person by your mere touch. May you perish this very instant by the power of my chastity”. As soon as she those words were spoken, as though by a miracle, the hunter fell down dead.

Seen Nala ?

Escape from the mouth of the python and from the clutches of the hunter did not end Damayanti’s misery. Where was Nala? Where to look for him? Who to ask in that desolate forest?

She went from tree to tree and from mountain to streams looking for Nala. When tired she would sit on a rock and continue wailing about him. She would imagine his handsome figure and think of his noble qualities. Will she ever set eyes on him again?

She found a tiger passing by. By then she had turned almost mad in mind even to be aware of fear. She addressed the tiger, “you have been wandering all through the forest. Have you found my loving husband?”

Getting no reply she approached a mountain with a tall peak. “You are standing tall in this forest. You see far and wide from where you stand. Did you notice my Nala passing by?” She next asked a stream whether it passed by the Naishadha in its wanderings through the forest.

Words of hope

Damayanti searched for days after days for Nala who left her without a word. Then, she located a hermitage not far away in front. All her sufferings and fear vanished finding the place where saints meditated in tranquility. Peace loving animals grazed in the surroundings. A gentle stream flowed near by.

Damayanti prostrated before the hermits. They received her with all kindness and asked her who she was and why she was moving all alone in the forest. Damayanti introduced herself and narrated how she ended up in the forest with her husband. Now her husband is missing. She spoke not even a word blaming her husband for her predicament.

The sages then spoke consoling her. “Fair lady, do not worry about your future. You will soon get over all your present troubles. You will meet your husband and he will regain his lost kingdom. We foresee all that through the power of our penance.” So speaking, the sages disappeared from sight with their hermitage and its surroundings, as though in a dream.

With a caravan

Damayanti continued her search, but, now with her mind at ease. But, she appeared like a mad person with her matted hair, torn piece of cloth and dust covered body. Soon, she came across a caravan of traders. They were travelling to the kingdom of Chedi (became famous later for Sisupala) to sell their precious commodity and buy fresh stock from there. Damayanti approached and told them all about herself and her misfortune. She wanted to know whether any one of them happened to meet her husband on the way. They had not, but, did not mind her joining them on their way to Chedi.

Damayanti thought that she could find refuge with the queen of Chedi and launch a search for Nala from there. Thinking so, she joined the group.

But, misfortune befell the caravan soon. They were riding several tame elephants carrying their goods. Attracted by the pachyderms, some wild elephants attacked the group from all sides. All their elephants were killed and even many of their members were crushed by the invading mammals. The surviving traders thought that Damayanti was a devil who invited disaster to their company. So, they left her behind and moved on. Luckily, there were a few Brahmins in the group who felt pity and took her with them to the kingdom of Chedi.

We shall continue with her life at Chedi in the next episode.

Testing Times

2007-02-19T17:38:00.000-08:00

Nala was very pleased that Damayanti chose him even over the gods. He promised that he would take good care of her as long as he lived. The Vidarbha king, Bhima conducted the marriage of his daughter with the Naishadha with great festivities. Every one thought that the two found perfect match in one another. The two lead blissful married life for about twelve years. Meanwhile, Damayanti gave birth to a son and a daughter.

Trouble ahead

Kali, personification of evils, had not forgotten what he took as an insult at the Swayamvara. He could not forgive Nala for denying him the chance to marry Damayanti. He would have tolerated, if the princess chose Indra or one of the other suitors from heaven. He left the meeting of gods swearing revenge on Nala. The gods warned both Kali and Dwapara not to cause any harm to Nala. He was blameless in all respects. They would be inviting trouble, if they provoked Nala to put a curse on themselves.

But, Kali was so obsessed with thoughts of revenge that he ignored all warnings. What he needed now was just an opportunity to haunt the body and mind of the king. The Naishadha lived a life of such purity in thought and deeds that he never made a slip for Kali to go anywhere near him.

Then, one day, the chance came. Nala was in a hurry and forgot to follow some of the strict rules of cleanliness before performing the daily ritual of chanting the Gayatri Mantra. That was the opportunity Kali was looking for and he haunted the king, in body and mind.

Next, Kali approached Nala’s brother, Pushkara. He promised the young prince that he would help him to grab the entire kingdom from his brother, Nala. Pushkara simply had to invite his elder brother for a game of dice. Kali had a way to haunt the dice such that it would always turn up against the fortune of the king.

The tragic game

Pushkara was tempted. He went and challenged his brother for a game. The effect of Kali in him made Nala to forget the dangers ahead. He accepted the challenge and the two started playing.

Nala started staking his gold, palaces and chariots. He lost them one by to Pushkara. Kali made sure that the losses made Nala more spirited to play on. Damayanti sensed trouble and pleaded with her husband to give up. Nala would not listen to her. His ministers and even ordinary citizens were worried that their dear king was losing all sense of right and wrong. They came all together to dissuade the king. Nala did not even bother to meet them.

Safe custody for the children

The game went on for days and nights without end. Only the two, Nala and Pushkara, remained in the room with their dice. Everyone else had left Nala to his own fate. Every move ended in Nala losing more. He was more and more in despair, but, so obsessed with the game that he would never give up. Damayanti would go and watch for a while. Then, she would return with a sigh of despair. She lost interest in food. Sleep left her altogether.

She tried once again, in vain, to persuade her husband to give up with the help of ministers. Then, she decided that it was time that she left the children in safe custody. She called the charioteer and asked him to take the children to her father.

The exile

Nala lost everything in due course. Pushkara tried to provoke Nala further. “You are now only left with your wife. If you dare, stake her and play.” The king simply got up and left the palace wearing a single piece of cloth. Damayanti also followed him wearing just the dress she had on her. Everything else was staked and lost to Pushkara. The two left the palace at night.

Pushkara had issued a warning to all citizens that if anyone offered help of any sort to Nala the offender would be put to death. So, nobody dared to offer even shelter to their beloved king and queen.

The couple spent three days in the outskirts of the palace with no food except for water, and sleeping on the ground. Then, they moved to a forest nearby, thinking that they would at least find some fruit for survival.

Nala tried to persuade Damayanti to go to her father. She would not think of leaving her husband in that condition.

Even that single piece of cloth

After a few days, hunger became unbearable to the couple. Food was not easy to collect. One day Nala found a few birds on the ground in the forest pecking food. He thought that they would survive for a few days with their meat. He tried to cast a net over the birds with his only piece of cloth. The birds, suddenly, rose all together carrying his cloth with them. Nala was left completely naked. He had to tear the only piece Damayanti was wearing into two and use one half to cover his own nakedness.

Damayanti abandoned

The two travelled long distances in the forest in search of food and shelter. They found nothing for days together. One night Damayanti was in deep sleep with exhaustion. Nala remained awake thinking about his fate and that of his wife. He reasoned that she was suffering on his account. If left alone, she might return to her parents and thus escape from further suffering. Kali continued to blur his thinking and prompted him to leave his sleeping wife behind. He prayed to gods to protect his innocent wife and disappeared.

Damayanti in distress

Damayanti woke up next morning and missed her husband. Had he left early in the morning looking for food without telling her? She started calling him, first softly and then aloud. She could hear only her own voice as echoed by the distant hills. She, then, started moving here and there looking frantically searching for him.

Let us leave the two in their separate ways for now and learn more in the next episode.

The story of Nala

2007-02-18T17:41:00.001-08:00

Introduction

Vyasa at this stage narrates the celebrated story of Nala in more than 1000 stanzas (4000 lines) of poetry. One sage by name Brihadasva visits the Pandavas in the forest while Arjuna was away in search of weapons. Yudhishthira laments about his fate resulting from the game of dice. He asks the sage whether he has ever heard of a worse tragedy. In reply Brihadasva narrates the story of Nala. It has no other relevance to the main story of Mahabharatam. But, the story in itself is very touching and is one of the most widely known among Indian epics. It is quoted in some of the Vedic literature pointing out its antiquity. One of the five great classics in Sanskrit poetry, “Naishadham” by Sriharsha, is based on this story. Kathakali has one of the most popular plays on this. Hence, it may be worthwhile going into it, probably in five or six episodes.

There are four epochs (Yuga) in traditional Indian knowledge. They are, Kruta, Treta, Dwapara and Kali. Presiding deities of the last two appear in the story. It is said that moral decay gradually takes place as time passes to the second, third and fourth epochs. Kali Yuga is considered to be the period in which it reaches the climax. The four epochs repeat themselves in cycles until the great deluge put an end to creation.

There is enough reason to believe that we are in the sixth millennium after Kali set in. Krishna was born towards the end of Dwapara. The Mahabharata war took place in the beginning of Kali. It is said that great calamities befell on the earth whenever a new epoch set in.

The character Dwapara in the story has a passive role, merely that of an onlooker. Kali plays an active and evil role, consistent with the character of the epoch he represents.

The kingdom, Vidarbha, in the story is part of modern Maharashra. Nishadha of Nala is believed to be adjacent to it, probably to the north.

Brihadasva starts the narration with the birth of Nala.

Birth of Nala and Damayanti

There was a king of the Nishadha by name Virasena. He had a son who was named Nala. The prince was extremely handsome and became well known for his excellent character, learning and skill in warfare.

King Bhima ruled the land of Vidarbha at that time. He had a daughter by name Damayanti. She had all that one looked for in a woman, beauty, accomplishments and strength of character.
Nala grew up hearing about the qualities of Damayanti in the court of Nishadha. Gradually, soft feelings developed in the heart of the prince towards the Vidarbha princess. Similarly, Damayanti also used to hear about the handsome Nishadha prince and his accomplishments. Bhaimi (the daughter of Bhima) kept thinking of Nala right from hr childhood.

An Unusual go-between

Nala one day found several golden swans of astonishing beauty in the palace lake. He took a fancy to catch a few and managed to get hold of one. To his surprise he heard the swan speaking to him in human voice.
“Prince of Nishadha, what do you gain by keeping me in bondage? If I am set free, I may be of some service to you!”.
Nala asked, out of curiosity, “in what way?”.
The swan said. “There is a beautiful princess by name Damayanti in the land of Vidarbha. I shall go and talk to her in such a way that she would fall for you with all her heart”.
Of course, Nala was interested. He set the bird free.

The swan with Damayanti

In the garden of the Vidarbha palace the swans had a motive. They moved with special grace inviting the attention of the princess and her maids. It took no effort for the Bhaimi (Damayanti) to catch the most beautiful of the lot, the messenger from Nala. The princess was in all attention hearing the bird speak with human voice. It talked at length about the masculine grace of the Nishadha prince and of his exceptional character. What was merely a soft feeling in the heart of the princess for Nala now took firm root as deep love.

Damayanti struck with love sickness

Thoughts of her beloved obsessed the princess day and night. Gradually, she grew pale and thin. This was brought to the notice of Bhima, her father. The king thought that it was time that he got a handsome prince to marry his beautiful daughter. As was the custom, he wanted Damayanti to choose a prince of her choice (Swayamvara) from all those who would be invited.

Seekers from heaven

The marriage of Damayanti by Swayamvara was announced far and wide. Her fame was such that princes even from remote lands rushed to Vidarbha with hopes of winning her hands.
King Devendra (Indra) heard about the event from the wandering sage, Narada, in heaven. He talked about it with his colleagues, deities of the other directions, Agni (Fire, of the South East), Yama (South) and Varuna(West). All wanted to try their chances.

The gods meet Nala

Nala was on his way to the Vidarbha palace. He heard about the Swayamvara and had high hopes that his beloved would choose him. The golden swan would have accomplished the task as promised. He was thinking only about his sweet heart when he was interrupted in the middle by strangers. There were four of them. One spoke. “King of Nishadha, we need your help. You are famous for your word. Please promise that you will help us.”
Nala promised that he would do his best. Then, he asked, “who are you and what is my mission?”
The visitor spoke. “I am Indra. These are my friends from heaven, Agni, Yama and Varuna. We came seeking Damayanti’s hands in marriage. Please ask her to choose from one of us in the Swayamvara.”
Nala was in trouble. He replied. “This is unfair. I am already in love with the princess. I understand that she loves me, too. How can I ask her to marry one of you when our hearts desire otherwise?”
Indra said. “You cannot break your word given to us”
Nala asked, “how can I get to her, first of all, breaking through all the hurdles to the place where I can find her alone?”
The god replied that with his blessing he would accomplish just that.

Nala alone with Damayanti

Nala was surprised that he could enter all the way into Damayanti’s chambers without anyone blocking his way. Damayanti was pleasantly surprised to see her beloved in person alone in her front. Nala, then, conveyed the message from the divinities to her. Damayanti protested. “How is this possible? My heart is already given to you.” Nala tried to persuade her pointing out how better she would be as wife to a god as against being a queen to an ordinary mortal king. But, Damayanti stood firm in her resolve. She said. “Bowing to all gods, I shall choose you as husband”.

The Swayamvara

The time for Swayamvara came. Rulers from all known kingdoms were seated in suitably decorated thrones in the hall. Damayanti was lead by her maidens one by one in front of each of the suitors. Ignoring everyone else she proceeded ahead looking for her beloved. Then she was arrested by an unexpected sight. There was Nala right in front, not one, but five of them. All looked exactly alike. She remembered the message Nala carried to her from the heavenly suitors and decided that they must be putting her to test. She closed her eyes in prayer directed to the same Indra, Agni, Yama and Varuna.

When she opened her eyes she found a slight difference among the five Nalas. Four of them did not quite touch the ground where they stood. They stood blinking, without closing their eye lashes. They did not sweat at all and no dust would settle on them. Damayanti remembered that these are the qualities of divinity. She, in that way, could make out the real Nala. She gently placed the garland around his neck.

Gods’ blessing

The four gods were pleased that Nala had kept his word. They were also impressed with Damayanti that she did not waver in her mind even in their presence. So, they blessed the couple, especially Nala for help at appropriate time, and disappeared.

The angry suitors

Kali and Dwapara arrived too late for the Swayamvara. They had designs of winning the princess. It was from the returning gods that they heard that Damayanti already chose Nala as husband. They were disappointed. Kali was furious. How did Nala dare to carry the princess off when the likes of Indra came for her? He wanted to teach Nala a lesson for his impunity.
We shall learn about it in the next episode

Story of Yayati and Pooru

2007-01-26T05:14:00.000-08:00

We left Sarmishtha, the princess of demons, at the service of the proud daughter of Sukra, their chief priest. This was done voluntarily by her to save the race of demons from the dire consequences of losing their high powered priest for ever.

A Strange Marriage

Sarmishtha was no more the highly spirited princess who once fought with Devayani. Days and weeks had passed after the incident which reduced her to the status of a mere servant. Once Devayani was in a nearby forest and was enjoying the attention she received from Sarmishtha and her other one thousand maids. It was then Yayati, the king of the lunar dynasty came that way. Devayani recognized the king who had pulled her out of the well. She addressed the king and requested him to marry her.

Yayati was surprised. It was an odd marriage proposal and, anyway, not customary for a king like him to marry the daughter of a Brahmin. Moreover, Sukra was famous for his special powers. No wonder that the king feared the wrath of the Brahmin for knowingly committing such an offence.

Devayani reminded him of their first encounter. The king had held her right hand at that time and had thereby performed the most important part of the marriage ritual. There was no need for worry on account of her father. Sukra would not stand in her way in this or in any other situation.

The king was not convinced. He promised to abide by her request provided he got her father’s permission. Accordingly, Yayati went to meet the Sukra. The Acharya did not object to the relationship, though against the tradition, but, on one condition. The king should never have an affair with any other woman. Yayati gave him the promise and married his daughter.

Sarmishtha's longing for motherhood

Yayati and Devayani started living together in the palace. Sarmishtha was all the time in the palace serving at her side. She started thinking of her own fate. She was the daughter of the powerful king of all demons. In the normal course she would have been in the place of Devayani, but, for her rash action at the spur of a moment. Instead, she was serving Devayani as her slave. Fate had been truly unkind to her.

Devayani delivered a son in due course who was named Yadu. The birth of a son to her made Sharmishtha’s longing for motherhood all the more intense. She found the king Yayati as the object of her love. Once, while alone in the company of the king, she approached him and pleaded with him to accept her as his, though second, wife. After all, marriage by mutual consent (Gandharva Vidhi) was not only accepted, but even highly respected, for the royals. There she was, qualified in all respects to be his wife, pleading openly for his favours. It was unchivalrous for a king like him to turn her down.

Yayati was in anguish. He conceded that Sharmishtha had a point. But, how would he face Devayani and the anger of her powerful father, if they found out. Sharmishtha promised their secret would be a closely guarded one. Accordingly, Yayati accepted Sharmishtha as his second wife secretly.

Birth of Pooru

Sharmishtha bore a son to the king in due course and was named Druhyu. When Devayani came to know of it she questioned Sharmishtha who the father of the boy was. There was a great sage who had been visiting her, Sharmishtha assured her mistress, during his wanderings. The boy was born out of that union. Devayani did not bother to question her any further on the matter.
Devayani delivered one more boy and Sharmishtha gave birth to two more in due course. They were named Turvasu, Anu and Pooru in that order. The five boys grew up together in the palace.

Their mutual resemblance did not escape the notice of Devayani for long. Further more, they all looked like the king. One day she was watching the five playing together. It was then that it occurred to her how closely they all resembled the king. This thought disturbed her and she asked the sons of Sharmishtha who their father was. They simply pointed to the king and continued with their games.

A curse on Yayati

Devayani was in tears. Her husband had been cheating her all the while. She announced to Yayati that she was going back to her father not to return. Yayati was scared. He followed her closely and was ready to fall at the feet of her father.

Sukra was naturally angered by the news from his daughter. The king had broken his promise. He cursed him immediately that he would lose his virility and youth forthwith.

Yayati was in a pitiable condition. He was still young, at least at heart, and had not enjoyed life to his fill. He pleaded with the Acharya. Was there any escape for him from the curse ? Sukra was sympathetic. He told the king that he could exchange his pre-mature old age with the youth of any as a voluntary exchange. Sukra would make that possible. He even blessed a long glorious innings as a monarch whoever might agree to such an exchange.

Desire that is never satiated

Yayati was hopeful. He approached his eldest son, Yadu. The king asked him whether he donate his youth to his father for a limited period ? He would gladly give it back after enjoying love life for a while longer. Yadu would not even think of turning grey at such a young age. He did not bother to become a king. He would rather remain young and enjoy life.

Three of his younger brothers took the same stand. They all loathed old age. But, Pooru, the last son, was sympathetic to his father. He said he would gladly donate his youth to his father and let him enjoy life as long as he wanted.

Yayati was delighted. He thought of Sukra in his prayer. Then, as if by a miracle, Yayati became young as before and his son, Pooru, appeared old with grey hair and shriveled skin.

Yayati enjoyed life with Sharmishtha for many years. He realized finally that desire was something that would never be satisfied by enjoyment. Its intensity only grew further. He then accepted his old age back and returned the youth to his son.

The reward to Pooru

He , then, announced that Pooru would inherit the kingdom from him as promised. But, the citizens of the kingdom objected. It was customary to make the eldest prince the heir apparent. How could he break that? Then, Yayati explained all that happened to them. He also reminded them of the words of the great Acharya. Finally, they agreed and Pooru was anointed as the Yuvaraja or heir apparent.

Yayati then retired to forest to spend the rest of his life in penance. Pooru ruled the country admirably and became one of the most famous in the lunar dynasty.

The Plight of Sarmishtha

2007-01-23T02:25:00.000-08:00

We have seen how Kacha, the son of the priest of gods, learnt the secret of reviving the dead (Mrita Sanjeevani) from Sukra, the priest of demons. He left the daughter of Sukra, Devayani , who was in love with him, high and dry.

The king of demons was called Vrishaparva. He had a daughter by name Sarmishtha. One day she went to enjoy herself in a nearby forest. She was in the company of her maids. Devayani was also with them.

A Quarrel

The damsels had their upper garments kept aside while engaging in various games. In the middle of their fun making a strong wind blew and carried the garments to a distance. The ladies went after their own clothes. In the confusion it so happened that Sarmishtha picked the clothes of Devayani.

Devayani was angry at this slip and made fun of the princess. She was, after all, the daughter of the chief priest. Everyone else, including Sarmishtha, were below her in rank. Why did she ignore all that etiquette and wear her clothes?

Sarmishtha was the proud daughter of the king. She could not tolerate being ridiculed in front of others. So, she did not mince her words in putting down Devayanai. Who did she think she was? Sukra, after all, made a living by praising the king who was Sarmishtha’s father. In return, her father doled out a living to Sukra. Hence, her father and Devayani both lived like beggars in the palace of Vrishaparva.

Devayani in peril

Those words made Devayani angry. She tried to grab her clothes by force which the princess wore. Sarmishtha went mad with rage and pushed Devayani into a well. Thinking that she must have died in it the princess returned to her palace.

Yayati, one of the early kings of the lunar dynasty (Soma Vamsa) happened to come that way shortly after. He was a predecessor to Puru and Bharata . He was hunting and was in the lookout for water to quench his thirst. He located the well and was wondering how to get some water out of it. It was then that he heard wails coming out of its depths. Yayati quickly got some ropes into the well and helped Devayani climb up. When she reached the top the king extended his right hand to hers and pulled her out.

Devayani introduced herself to him and thanked him for his help. The king quenched his thirst and went his way.

Left to herself, Devayani became furious thinking of all the insults and injury caused by Sarmishtha. She remained where she was and sent word to her father, Sukra Acharya.

Devayani’s revenge

Sukra wasted no time to rush to his dear daughter. Then, Devayani told him about all that happened. She also repeated the humiliating words of Sarmishtha and said that she would not return to the palace to live as a beggar. Sukra tried to pacify her without success.

So, the priest of demons returned to the king and reported the matter. He wanted permission to leave his service and find refuge elsewhere.

Vrishaparva was in deep trouble. He knew that without his mentor, Sukra, the entire race of demons would soon perish. He wanted to know how he could make amends for the wrongs committed by his daughter. Sukra had one single aim, how to keep his daughter happy.
So, the king approached Devayani and profusely aplogised for all that happened. He wanted to know what would make her happy. The proud daughter of Sukra put one straight condition. Sarmishtha should serve her as her maid accompanied by one thousand servants from the king’s court.

Vrishaparva was in a fix. It was the worst that could happen to his daughter, for that matter, to any princess.

Sarmishtha heard about all the consequences of her thoughtless action. She went to Devayani and promised her that she would gladly do what was asked of her.

From that day onwards the princess of demons served the proud daughter of their high priest as maid , day and night, wherever she was.

Kacha and Devayani

2007-01-21T07:10:00.000-08:00

Gods are considered to be immortal. That is because they got an elixir by churning the milky ocean. We now go into a story that happened much before that.

The gods and demons waged wars even in those days and killed each other in large numbers. The bone of contention was the supremacy over the three worlds. The demons had a Brahmin, by name Sukra, as their chief priest (Acharya). Sukra knew a secret Mantra called Mrita Sanjeevani. By invoking that Mantra a dead person would come alive as though from sleep. The Acharya used its potency to bring back all those demons who were killed by gods in battles.
The gods had no such means to revive their dead. Hence, their numbers started gradually dwindling. This made the gods a worried lot. They discussed the issue among themselves and came up with a plan.

To learn the secret

The Acharya of Gods was Brihaspati. He had a handsome son by name Kacha. They requested the youth to approach Sukra and somehow learn the Mrita Sanjeevani from him. They also gave him some tips on how to go about it.

Sukra had a daughter by name Devayani. Kacha should look for every opportunity to please her while he was engaged in serving her father. The secret was that Sukra was very much attached to his daughter. He would do anything to please her.

Kacha agreed and went to Sukra Acharya. He prostrated before the Acharya and introduced himself. Kacha’s father was a highly respected Brahmin. So, Sukra could not refuse to take him in as disciple.

Days and months passed. Kacha did everything he could to please his teacher and his daughter. Both were highly pleased with him. Devayani gradually fell in love with the handsome youth.

A fatal encounter

Kacha’s duty included taking his teacher’s cattle to nearby forests for grazing. The demons soon came to know of Kacha’s mission. One day they confronted the youth in the forest. Who was he and what was his mission ? When Kacha admitted that he was the son of god’s priest they cut him into pieces and fed him to wolves.

That evening the cattle returned without the herdsman. Devayani was worried that her darling Kacha would have faced some misfortune. She went to her father with a worried look. When asked for the cause she reported that Kacha had not returned home.

The Mantra at work

Sukra, through is divine vision, could see what happened. He invoked the magic Mantra and Kacha came back to life bursting open the stomach of every animal that ate him. He returned home later and reported all that happened to his teacher and his daughter.

The demons thought of a better way to dispose off their enemy next time. They burnt Kacha alive when he was on his mission and washed his ashes in the ocean. But, the Mantra of the great Acharya was powerful enough to give life to the dead even in that condition.

The ultimate trial

The demons thought for a better way. Days passed and Devayani found her lover missing one day. She was apprehensive and went to her father. It was then that Sukra realized that the demons had played smart that time. Kacha had been reduced to ashes and mixed with wine for him to drink. Sukra could, still, make Kacha alive. But, then he, himself, would die. He asked Devayani to make her choice. She would be left either with her father or her lover. Whom would she choose ?

But, Devayani loved both and was not ready for a deal. It did not matter to her how, but, she wanted both of them alive.

Sukra then thought of a plan. He chanted the Mantra aloud. Kacha became alive in his stomach. At the same time he also learnt the Mantra. Sukra died when Kacha tried to come out of his teacher’s belly. But, he chanted the newly learnt Mantra and made his teacher alive again. The Acharya decreed that day that Brahmins, thenceforth, are forbidden to drink wine or any other type of alcohol.

Kacha’s mission was accomplished. But, he stayed on with his teacher for a while longer. Then, he wanted to leave. Sukra blessed him and gave him permission. But, Devayani would not let him go without her. She wanted him to marry her.

Kacha had no such intention. He said that Sukra, being his teacher, was like a father to him. Moreover, he came out of his belly in his second life. In that sense Devayani was like his sister. He loved her, but would not even think of her as his fiancée.

Devayani was totally disappointed. Her repeated requests did not change Kacha’s resolve. Finally, she cursed Kacha that he would not succeed in using his newly learnt Mantra to bring any dead to life. Kacha wondered whether all his efforts went in vain. But, he thought of a way out. He would teach the Mantra to another and that way achieve the same results.He reached the abode of Gods and received a joyous welcome there. We shall learn more about Devayani later.

The birth of Bharata

2007-01-14T20:25:00.000-08:00

There is reference in Mahabharata to three great ancestors of the Pandavas and Kauravas. The first mention is of Bharata. He was born as the son of Dushyanta to Sakuntala. Poet Kalidasa wrote his famous drama Abhijnaana Saakuntalam (“The story of Sakuntala revolving around a signet”- we use A.S for short)

Dushyanta was a great ruler. One day he went hunting with a huge army to assist. After days of hunting he wanted to rest and found a hermitage. He met the beautiful Sakuntala, alone, there. (Kalidasa gives a dramatic effect to their first meeting)

Dushyanta fell in love with Sakuntala on the very first sight. He introduced himself and told her about his love. When asked, Sakuntala told her story.

She was born to sage Viswamitra in the celestial damsel, Menaka. Indra got worried by the intense penance of Viswamitra fearing that the sage might amass enough credit to stake a claim for his throne. So, he sent Menaka to stop Viswamitra from further penance. Menaka succeeded to seduce the sage. A girl was born to them. The two left the scene afterwards leaving the helpless girl in the care of some birds (Sakunta; hence, Sakuntala). Sage Kanwa happened to find the girl and took her in his care.

Viswamitra was born in the warrior class. So, Dushyanta argued with Sakuntala that marriage by mutual consent was permitted for the two. Sakuntala found the king attractive enough. Besides, the king offered to return later to take her to the royal palace with full honour. He also promised to make the son born to Sakuntala the future king.
(In A.S the king gave her his signet ring to seal the marriage).

The two got married by the Gaandharva (mutual agreement) system and the king left her with a promise to come for her later.

When sage Kanwa returned he came to know what happened . He was happy that his daughter accepted a suitable king for husband.

Soon, Sakuntala became pregnant and in due course gave birth to a son. He was strong and showed signs of valour right from childhood. Hence, he was named Sarvadamana . (Became famous as Bharata later).

(A.S gives dramatic twists here. Sakuntala spends all her time thinking about her lover and fails to notice the short tempered sage, Durvasa arriving. The Maharshi curses her with the words that whoever that she is thinking about will fail to recognize her. Her friends, noticing the exit of the sage in a rage, goes after him and pacifies him. He modifies the curse that if the king finds any object to remind him of the past, he will recognize her)

When Bharata grew up to be a boy sage Kanwa asked his desciples to take her to king Dushyanta. The king recognized her (did not, in A.S), but, pretended not to. Sakuntala was hurt and tried to give details of their meeting. Still, the king did not budge. Absolutely dejected, Sakuntala was about to return. Then there was a voice from heaven (Asareeri – meaning, a voice without a source). The voice said that Sakuntala was truly the king’s wife and Bharata, his son. Dushyanata was satisfied. He later explained that, as the king, he had to convince the public that he was taking in a legal heir to the throne.

(In A.S Sakuntala thinks of her mother to give her refuge. Menaka comes and takes Sakuntala and her son to heaven. She is left in the care of sage Kasyapa. There is a lot of drama about her losing the signet in the river to be recovered later by a fisherman. Finally, the ring reaches the king. He then remembers her . He is repentant. Years later, on his trip to heaven he meets Sakuntala in the hermitage of sage Kasyapa. He receives Sakuntala and Bharata with profound apologies)

This Bharata became one of the most famous kings of his dynasty. The ancient name , Bhaarata, for India was also due to the same king.

The Serpent Sacrifice of Janamejaya

2007-01-13T11:45:00.000-08:00

We have kept one important story aside for no particular reason. That has something to do with the context in which the story of Mahabharata was told.

We have heard how the lone surviving prince of the Bharata war was killed by the bite of serpent Takshaka. His son, Janamejaya, was only a child when that happened. He was installed as king of the vast Kaurava empire while he was still young. He ruled the land with the able guidance of his ministers.

It was from his ministers that he heard the story of his father’s untimely death. He developed a feeling of vengeance to all serpents, especially to Takshaka as a result. How his father would have escaped if only Takshaka did not prevent the Kasyapa Brahmin from giving the antidote to the snake’s deadly poison made the young prince even more revengeful.

Janamejaya consulted his ministers on how to avenge the killing of his father. They advised him to get able Brahmins to perform a serpent sacrifice. Such a sacrifice would draw all serpents by the power of the chanted mantra into the sacrificial fire. It was not possible to isolate Takshaka alone.

Janamejaya searched for Brahmins with the highest power from meditation and offered the best possible rewards. Many turned the request down for fear of the serpents. It was also known that Takshaka was a close friend of Indra, the king of gods whom they did not want to displease.

Finally, Janamejaya found a few qualified Brahmins to perform the sacrifice. A great platform was made for the purpose as prescribed by the traditional architectural. Several other Brahmins and kings came to attend the great ritual.

Soon the sacrificial fire was lit and offerings were made into the fire with the chanting of powerful Mantras. The power of Mantras was such that snakes from far and near were drawn to it as though pulled by some unknown power. They arrived in large numbers and fell into the flames with no hope for escape.

Stronger serpents resisted the pull for a while. But, soon they also were drawn into the fire to be consumed by the high flames.

King Janamejaya had only one aim, to get Takshaka into the fire. Meanwhile, the great serpent tried to hide here and there. But, the power that was pulling him was such that he found it hard to resist. Finally, he rushed to his friend and mentor, Indra. The king of gods offered him refuge in heaven. But, Takshaka felt the pull even from heaven drawing him gradually towards the sacrificial fire.

In the land of serpents, king Vasuki was in a similar situation. When it was too much for him to bear he rushed to his sister, Jaralkaru. She was married to a Brahmin by the same name. They had a son called Aastika. Young Aastika had spent years in deep meditation and had developed a glow of divinity around him. Jaralkaru, Vasuki’s sister asked her son to save his uncle. Accordingly, the young Aastika set out to the sacrificial ground of Janamejaya.

It was the custom for Brahmins to attend sacrificial rituals like the one performed by Janamejaya. It was also a tradition on the part of those who performed to receive such visiting Brahmins and offer them special seat as per their social standing. When Aastika reached the sacrificial ground all who were present were attracted by the divine glow of the Brahmin and automatically stood up in reverence. Janamejaya thought it be his privilege that such an eminent person sanctified the occasion with his presence. Soon, Aastika entered the sacrificial platform praising the manner in which the ritual was performed. He did not omit to give due credit to the Brahmins who performed it so correctly according to the Sastra (science of rituals) and to the king who arranged all that.
Janamejaya was greatly pleased. He asked the young Brahmin to ask for any gift. Janameja persisted with his request saying that he would consider it an honour to give whatever the Brahmin desired most that was within the king’s powers to offer.
Then, Astika spoke. The only gift that would make him happy was that the sacrifice must stop immediately. By then Takshaka had already appeared in the sky and was about to fall into the fire. Janamejaya was shocked . All his efforts would go waste. He tried to persuade the Brahmin to ask for anything else however valuable that might be. But, Aastika would not budge from his demand. Janamejaya had given his word and he was committed. He also feared the power of the Brahmin to curse him and cause great harm. So, the serpent sacrifice was stopped immediately just before Takshaka fell into the fire.
Vedavyasa had made an appearance at the sacrifice in the beginning. He requested his disciple, Vaisampaayana, to narrate the story of Mahabharata to all who had gathered there. Another disciple of Vyasa by name Soota was also present at the time.

Soota visited various places of pilgrimage from there and finally reached the forest called Naimisha. Many sages were performing a twelve year sacrifice called Satra there. Those assembled asked Soota about the places he had visited and all that he had heard. When Soota mentioned the serpent sacrifice of Janamejaya and the story of Mahabharata that was told there the assembled sages asked him to narrate the story in detail. That was how it was being handed over from one generation to another, as a narration by Soota of what he heard from Vaisampaayana.

The Story of Sunda and Upasunda

2007-01-11T07:34:00.000-08:00

Narada narrated the story of two Asuras (demons) by name Sunda and Upasunda. They were born in the family of the demon king Hiranyakasipu who was killed by Vishnu having taken birth as man-lion.

Sunda and Upasunda loved and cared for each other so much that they were always in each other’s company. Together they fought the gods and won great victories. Their ultimate aim was to win over the three worlds. For that they went to the Vindhya mountain and started meditating keenly on Brahma. Their penance was so intense that all the worlds were getting heated up as a result. The gods tried various tricks to tempt them and to divert their minds to worldly pleasures, but, without success.

Finally, Brahma had to appear before them and find out what they wanted as blessing. They asked for nothing short of immortality. With that in their kit they could pursue their aim of winning the entire earth, Patala (the World below) and heaven with none to oppose. Brahma asked them to choose something else because immortality was something he could not afford to offer.

They thought for an instant for an alternative that was almost the same. So they said that the only way any one of them would die must be by the other. Brahma agreed and blessed them accordingly.

With the added confidence from the new boon the pair started turning the three worlds upside down. All the rituals would help their arch enemies, the gods. So, they would obstruct any type of rituals performed on earth or in heaven. The gods were in serious trouble as a result. But, they could do nothing against the two demons.

Finally, Brahma himself thought of a plan. He called Viswakarma, the specialist builder of heaven to create a damsel of such beauty that all beings would vie with each other and fall at her feet. That was how the celestial damsel, Tilottama, came to being. She was immediately given the task of enticing the two demons.

It is said that even Lord Siva, who spent all his time meditating, found her attraction irresistible. He wanted to look at Tilottama in whichever direction she went with the result that he developed three new faces, now one for each of the four directions. Indra was so interested that he developed a thousand eyes !

Tilottama wasted no time and went to meet Sunda and Upasunda. The demons spotted her, scantily dressed and plucking flowers in the most enchanting manner. The two were mesmerized by her so much that they forgot everything else. One immediately grabbed her left hand and the other , her right. She was being pulled in each direction and soon the Asuras started fighting against each other. The fight became so serious that they ended up being killed by one another.

Narada told the story to give the message that one woman in the company of many men could cause great trouble.

Yudhishthira points out the obscurity of Dharma

2007-01-09T07:07:00.000-08:00

Yudhishthira was arguing with Drupada that the five Pandavas had to follow the wish of their mother and the five would marry Draupadi together. Drupada questioned him on the basis for making such a strange proposal. Then, the wise Pandava said :

“sookshmo dharmo mahaaraja naasya vijno vayam gatim
Poorveshaa maanupoorvyeNa yaatam vartma anuyaamahe”

Great king ! (The essence of) Dharma is obscure. We often do not find its path. What all we can do is to travel along the path followed by great men.

This is told famously in the Panchatantra (Five strategies) :

“tarko apratishtha: srutayo vibhinna:
naiko munir yasya matam pramaanam
dharmasya tatvam nihitam guhaayaam
mahaajano yena gata: sa panthaa: ”

The foundation for logical reasoning is weak; numerous and varied are the scriptures; so many are the sages and so whose words we can take for authority ? The essence of Dharma is hidden in caves. Hence, follow such a path that has been used by great people.

The Story of Parikshit

2006-12-27T06:55:00.000-08:00

We are now jumping to the end of the Mahabharata story for a reason. We shall learn the context in which the two epics, Srimad Bhagavatham and Mahabharatam, were first narrated. This has some relevance to a query by Jayanthan on the time period of the great epics.
The war had ended. Only one prince, born to the son of Arjuna, survived; that too by a miracle. He had also inherited the throne of the Kurus . He was a gifted warrior like his father and grand father, especially, in archery.

Once he went hunting in a nearby forest. His unfailing arrow hit a deer, but, the animal disappeared out of his sight. He went after it, being sure that his arrow would have found the mark. Deep inside the forest, he saw a sage in deep meditation. The name of the sage was Sameeka. Parikshit was in an excited state and was thinking only of his quarry. He asked the sage whether he found the animal.

Sameeka was unmindful of what was happening around him. He said nothing in reply to the king’s query. That made Parikshit very angry. He found a dead snake nearby, picked it up with his bow and threw it on the sage so that it fell as a garland around his neck. With that the king returned to the palace. Sameeka did not even notice that.

The sage had a son by name Sringi who had achieved great powers from years of meditation. He was , at the same time, very short tempered. Some one reported the insult done to his father to Sringi and started making fun of him. Why should he be so boastful of his achievements when his father wore a dead snake around his neck ? That made Sringi lose his temper altogether. He came to know that it was King Parikshit who humiliated his father. So, he put a curse on the king that he would die of bite by the great snake, Takshaka, within seven days !

He, then, went to his father and reported the matter to him. Sage Sameeka was extremely sorry for the king and for his son who metered out such a harsh punishment for what was a small offence. He asked his son at least to inform the king of the danger so that the king could take whatever precaution possible to prevent the calamity.

Sringi, accordingly, went to king Parikshit and told him what happened. The king was extremely sorry for his mistake and was worried about the impending danger. He consulted his ministers on what best could be done. They decided to make a special place for the king to live in for the next seven days. The house would stand on one single pillar. There would be strict watch all around and none would be allowed in without being thoroughly checked. It was, as though, even the air that entered the palace was scrutinized in advance !

It is said that sage Suka, the son of Vedavyasa, narrated the story of Srimad Bhagavatham, as was told to him by his father, to king Parikshit during those seven days.

Now, the curse was like an order for Takshaka from the sage. He had to accomplish the task at any cost. Else, he feared that the angry sage would curse him. So he started on his errand in the company of some of his trusted serpent friends of divine power. On his way he came across a Brahmin by name Kasyapa travelling in the same direction. When asked, the Brahmin said that he was going to King Parikshit . His mission was to save the king from the snake bite with his power of Mantra.

Takshaka was intrigued. Did the Brahmins have so much power that he could nullify the effect of his poison, one of the most deadly on earth or heaven ? He wanted to test the Brahmin.
Accordingly, the great serpent struck a huge tree that was on the way with his fangs. The tree which had thick branches and rich foliage immediately dried up and started going up in flames with the effect of his poison. Then, Takshaka asked Kasyapa to try his luck .

Kasyapa was nonplussed. He took some water, chanted Mantras and sprinkled the water on what was a tree a few seconds back. To the surprise and great disappointment of Takshaka the tree started sprouting and grew to its old splendour in no time . Takshaka now knew that his power was nothing compared to that of the Brahmin. His only hope was to turn the Brahmin away from his errand. So, he offered the Brahimn enough gifts more than he hoped to get from the king . He also managed to convince Kasyapa that the fate of the king was already sealed the moment the great Sringi pronounced the curse. Thus, Takshaka managed to send the Brahmin back. Then, the great serpent continued on his mission.

Let us now shift the focus to the king . He already spent six days in his secure palace. It was almost dusk on the seventh day. The king heaved a sigh of relief and felt relaxed. It was at that time some sages brought in a tray of fruits. Parikshit picked up one and found that there was a small black worm peeping its head out of it. So, the king announced jokingly : “The time stipulated by the sage is over. It looks that I am safe. So, let the sage have his consolation and let this worm bite me, instead.”

So saying the king placed the fruit with the protruding worm near his neck. The very next moment the worm grew in size and took the shape of Takshaka. He struck at the king ferociously. The king turned blue by the venom of the snake and fell down dead instantaneously.That was how the lone survivor of the Mahabharata war met with his untimely death. We shall learn next the revenge of his son, Janamejaya, on serpents.

2006-12-23T07:03:00.000-08:00

When Duryodhana was born several bad omens were noticed around the palace. Wise men, including Vidura said that the boy must be discarded quoting the following verse :

"Tyaje-dekam kulasyaarthe graamasyaarthe kulam tyajed
Graamam janapadasyaarthe aatmarthe prithiveem tyajed"

English

May one person be sacrificed for the sake of the family, a family for the sake of a village and a village to save an entire nation. Yet, the entire earth may be sacrificed to save oneself.

Note

Here it is the interest of the kingdom of Kurus was at stake. Hence, Duryodhana, whose birth caused ill portents must be sacrificed . The last clause is applicable from the point of view of an individual in danger.

The Strange Chain called ‘Aashaa’ (desire or greed)

2006-12-20T22:21:00.000-08:00

There is a sloka in Sanskrit which reads thus :

Aashaa Naama Manushyaanaam (People have by name Aashaa)
Kaachidaascarya Srunkhalaa (a strange chain )
Tayaa Bandhaah Pradhaavanthi (Those tied up with it run around,)
Mukthaah Thishthanthi Kutrachid. (those released, stand still at one place)

Meaning

Normally, a chain is used to tie someone or something down to a place. But, there is a strange chain called desire. The moment people are tied to it (caught in its web), they starts running here and there in an attempt to fulfil the desire.

It is not easy to get released from such a chain. But, once a person is freed from its bond, he does not run around any more. He, or rather his mind, remains steady and calm and, hence, settles down at one place.

It looks that most people in modern world are tied up with this strange chain. That is why they all run hither and thither, first to earn money and then to spend it on goods they do not need.

Ancient Indian Wisdom on Creation

2006-12-19T05:34:00.000-08:00

Today’s “Hindu” newspaper (19/12/2006) reports that two scientists from the University of Washington have found a primitive microbe in the Pacific ocean that adds further support to the notion that life on earth began within the deep, dark ocean …..

The Vedas talk extensively on creation, unfortunately in a symbolic and figurative language. Nevertheless, it is fascinating to go through the glimpses, the ancient sages had on creation and many other things .

Below are given two quotations, first from the Mahabharatha and the other from the works of the great poet Kalidasa on the above idea .
I am not implying that ancient Indians knew all that modern science has discovered. But, it seems that they had knowledge on many things !

Mahabharatham, the first Parva, Sloka 29

Nishprabhesmin niraloke
Sarvathah tamasaavruthe
Brihadandamabhoodekam
Prajaanaam beejamavyayam

English

(Something like ) a big egg took shape in this world, which was immersed fully in darkness, that turned out to be the unfailing seed for the (entire) human race

Kalidasa, in Kumarasambhavam

Yadamoghamapaamantah
Uktham beeja maja, tvayaa
Adascharaacharam sarvam
Prabhaavasthasya geeyathe

English

My Lord (one without birth or death), you sowed an unfailing seed deep inside water. It is said (sung) that the entire world resulted from it.