Mahabharat Katha:T#4; Part 52 On Pg 140

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wayward

@wayward

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Posted: 10 years ago

#531

Originally posted by: NehaSharma07
Very nice update...
I juz luv ur written ones

Thank you so very much Neha! I'm happy that you liked the update!

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wayward

@wayward

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+ 14

Posted: 10 years ago

#532

Part 46

Arjun said, "Vishwamitra and Vashishth were accomplished sages. Then how did the enmity between them emerge?" The gandharv said, "There was a king called Kushik, in Kanyakubja. He had a son called Gadhi. Gadhi's son was Vishwamitra.

One day, Vishwamitra went out for hunting. The King, following a deer, came to the ashram of Sage Vashishth. He was tired and thirsty. Sage Vashishth welcomed the King and offered him exquisite delicacies. His hunger and thirst having contained, Vishwamitra looked around the pleasant hermitage. The sight he saw was unbelievable. Sage Vashishth was kneeling down in front of a cow, and was uttering a prayer. Just as he opened his mouth to jeer, he saw that a beautiful cloth, along with its matching accessories appeared in front of the Sage.

Sensing the King's glance, Sage Vashishth looked back and smiled at him. He caressed the back of the cow as he said, 'This is Nandini, as dear to me as my daughter. She grants anything I want, the moment I ask for it. She is a kaamdhenu.' The King's eyes glistened with greed. He said in an affected tone, 'Sir! Take any number of cows as alms from me, or even my whole Kingdom if you so wish, but give me this cow!' Vashishth smiled, 'I am sorry Sir, I cannot give her to you. She is all I have, and I cannot discharge my earthly duties without her help.' Vishwamitra said, 'In that case, my Lord, I will be forced to carry her away without your consent.' Vashishth sighed, 'Do whatever your conscience permits you to.' and sat down to meditate.

The king then advanced towards the beautiful Nandini with a whip. The helpless cow ran straight up to Sage Vashishth. She stood in front of him with tears in her eyes. No matter how many times the whip struck her, she stood there unmoved. Vashishth said, 'I am a peace-loving weak Brahmin, what can I do to save you my dear?' Nandini said, 'Does that mean you do not want me anymore? If you have even a bit of love for me in your heart, no one will be able to take me away.' Vashishth smiled, 'I do not want you to go anywhere if you are not willing to. If you have the strength, then stay. Look! The King is pulling away your calf!' The kaamdhenu understood the Sage's wish, and turned to the King's forces with a ferocity. Fireballs originating in her tail flew in all directions. From various parts of her body, different lower castes like Dravid, Shak, Yavan, Kirat, Kanchi, Shavar, Paundra, Simhali, Barbar, Khash, Chibuk, Pulind, Chinese, Hunas et cetera. emerged. The soldiers of these clans took up their weapons and rushed towards the soldiers of Vishwamitra. All the soldiers fled in fear, and Nandini terrified them into surrendering.

Seeing such a wonder created by the power of penance, Vishwamitra decided that the life of a King and a Kshatriya was utterly futile, and that the real power lay with the Brahmins. Thus, he deserted his kingdom and performed a severe penance to change his caste. Finally at the end, he was able to achieve the position of a Brahmin, and drank the somras with Lord Indra."

He continued, "Arjun, once there was a king on earth called Kalmashpad. He was a member of Ikshvaku clan. Sage Vishwamitra had approached him for patronage.

Once this king had been out for hunting, when he met Sage Vashishth's son Shaktri on a narrow road. Both wanted to go first, and neither was ready to step back. Blinded by rage, King Kalmashpad took out his whip and struck the Brahmin. Shakri was horrified at this and he cursed the King, 'Because you whipped a sage like a mad demon, you would become a demon yourself, and devour human flesh!' Vishwamitra was about to stop the Sage when he identified Shaktri, and disappeared, knowing that Vashishth's son was as powerful as his father and more powerful than Vishwamitra. Later he requested another demon named Kinkar to infest the body of the King.

After this, when the King was leaving the forest, a hungry Brahmin approached him and expressed his desire to eat meat. The latter then asked the Brahmin to wait and went away. The King was reminded of his promise late at night, and he ordered the cook to prepare meat and take food to the Brahmin, but the cook did not find any meat anywhere. The King, under the influence of the demon insisted on cooking human flesh. The cook took the King's order to be absolute, gathered human flesh and took the food to the Brahmin. By virtue of his Brahmanical powers the Brahmin came to know the truth, and said, 'As the King has served me with this uneatable food, he will himself be compelled to become a man-eater. The curse of Shaktri be activated!' As the Brahmin uttered these words, Shaktri's curse became active, and the King lost all controls over his senses.

After sometime, the king saw Shaktri, and devoured him in a fit of rage. Seeing Shaktri dead, Vishwamitra ordered the demon inside the King to kill all other sons of Sage Vashishth. When Vashishth heard of the death of his hundred sons, he was overcome with grief. He forgave Vishwamitra, but could not bear to live anymore. He tried to kill himself, but no aspect of the earth was ready to become the cause of his death. At last, he decided against suicide and traveled around the world.

One day, he heard the beautiful music of the Vedas being recited from behind. He turned and asked, 'Who is there, reciting the holy Vedas with such perfection? You are reminding me of my son Shaktri!' A female voice said, 'I am Adrishyanti, your son Shaktri's wife. The son situated in my womb is reciting the Vedas. He is living there since the last twelve years.' Learning of his grandson, Vashishth came back to his ashram.

One day, he saw Kalmashpad roaming around in the forest. Seeing the Sage, the demon lost his temper, and rushed towards him. Vashishth smiled and sprinkled few drops of magical water over him and nullified the curse of Sage Shaktri. The King then begged for forgiveness from the Sage, and took him to his capital city of Ayodhya. Then he requested the Sage to bless him and his queen with a son. The sage blessed them with a son and returned to his own ashram. When the son was not born even after twelve years, the queen became impatient and teared her womb with a piece of stone. Then was born Rajarshi Ashmak, one of the greatest rulers of the Ikshvaku dynasty.

Continued in the next post.

Edited by Radhikerani - 10 years ago

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wayward

@wayward

Stunner

+ 14

Posted: 10 years ago

#533

Continued...

After this, Adrishyanti gave birth to a boy, who was named Parashar by Sage Vashishth. Parashar used to address Vashishth as his father, and Adrishyanti as his mother. One day, unable to control herself, Adrishyanti told Parashar about how the demon had killed his father. Enraged, Parashar decided to wipe off the whole community of demons. To pacify him, Sage Vashishth told him a story,

Once there was a king named Keertaveerya. He was the patron of the Bhargavs, the descendents of Sage Bhrigu. After his death, his successors, for some reasons were in need of money. They decided to take it from the Bhargavs. Afraid of the Kshatriyas, some of the Brahmins hid their wealth under the ground, and some gave away their wealth. One of Kshatriyas found the hidden wealth inside the cottage of one of the Brahmins. The audacity of the King angered the Bhargavs who severely humiliated the Kshatriyas. The furious Kings then lifted their weapons and killed all the Brahmins. They did not spare even the women and children.

One of the ladies, however, in order to save her unborn son from the Kshatriyas, had hid him inside her thigh. Another woman went and informed the Kshatriyas. Determined to finish off the dynasty of Bhrigu, they came close to the lady. Her child then came out, piercing her thigh. A bright light emerged from him which avenged the attempt on his life by snatching away the eyesight of all the Kings. The Kings now realized the gravity of their mistake. They went to the Brahmani and apologized, pleading that their eyesight be restored. The Brahmani smiled and said, 'But , I haven't deprived you of your eyesight, my son has. He has been enraged on seeing the murder of his father and uncles. Go to him. See if his anger has subsided. Because he's the only one who can restore your eyesight.' The Kshatriyas flocked to the boy and asked his pardon, thus regaining their eyesight.

The boy who had emerged from his mothers thigh (Uru) came to be known as Aurva. He had forgiven the slayers of his family, but his anger had not subsided. He decided then, to destroy the whole world to avenge his kinsmen. Seeing his rage, his ancestors appeared in front of him and said, 'Son, it is not as if we have been killed by the Kshatriyas against our will. Long life is boon, but also a bane if it does not end at all. Suicide has always been damned in the holy scriptures, so we had made these Kings mere instruments in our death. So, control your anger and refrain from committing such a grave sin.' Aurva replied, 'But Sire, if I do not vent my anger on something, then it will burn me throughout life, and that's one thing that I resent more than the murderers of my family.' His ancestors said, 'Son, throw the power of your anger in the sea, because the burning of water is equivalent to the burning of men, as men are primarily dependent on water.'

Vashishth said, 'Legend has it, that this fire of anger still burns the sea, and it is called Badvanal. So, my child, refrain from this path of destruction of the earth.' Hearing this, Aurva decided not to destroy the whole world, but as a punishment, he started a yajna to end the clan of the Rakshashas. as a result of which an epidemic attacked the demons, in which they were killed irrespective of whether they had sinned or not. Sensing the severity of this yajna, sages like Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu and Mahakratu appeared in front of him led my Sage Atri. They said that it wasn't his job to show his anger as his father had succumbed to his own anger and that the King who murdered his father now lived peacefully in heaven. Hearing this, the young sage stopped his yajna and threw his anger away on a mountain at the northern part of the Himalayas.

Since then, fire can be occasionally be seen on that mountain burning all forms of life and it is known as, Aagneyagiri i.e. a volcano."

Arjun asked, "I was just curious, Angarparna, why did King Kalmaashpaad, sent his queen to Sage Vashishth to get a son? And why did Vashishth encourage the move?"

The gandharv said, "My friend, once when Kalmaashpaad had been roaming as a demon, he came across a Brahmin couple consummating their marriage. Even as the wife cried and pleaded, he devoured the Brahmin. Seeing her husband dead, the woman cried, 'I, the daughter of Sage Angira, curse you, that you will lose your life the moment you wish to bless your wife with a child! Only the man whom you've deprived of his sons will be able to continue your lineage.' So, when the effect of the curse had worn away, the King sent his wife to Sage Vashishth requesting for a child."

Arjun said, "So Gandharv King, you are more knowledgeable than any of us, and thus suggest who can we employ as our purohit?" Angarparna replied, "Dhaumya, the brother of Sage Deval is busy in penance in Utkoch. Approach him if you wish." Arjun said, "Thank you so much for the suggestion, we will definitely go to Utkoch. Let the horses be with you for now, we'll take them when we need them." As the ruby of the sun was held up by the river Ganga, the Pandavs and the Gandharva couple parted ways.

After they had performed the necessary religious rites and selected Dhaumya as their purohit, the five brothers set out for Panchal with Mother Kunti, each wishing secretly for a glance of the divine princess.

Edited by Radhikerani - 10 years ago