by Bibek Debroy
Vaishampayana continued, ‘The best among the Kurus, Dharmaraja Yudhishthira, heard this. In his mind, he worshipped Purushottama Govinda. The king, and all his brothers, were astounded. So were the kings who had assembled there.’
Chapter 105
Janamejaya said, ‘O best among brahmanas! I wish to again hear the truth about the immeasurable deeds of the intelligent lion among the Yadus. I have heard that the immensely radiant one performed many deeds, innumerable that were divine and several that were also ordinary. O great sage! I am delighted at hearing about these diverse deeds. O father!1017 You should tell me everything about them.’
Vaishampayana replied, ‘I have told you about many wonderful deeds of the great-souled Keshava. O king! Hear about them again. O virtuous one! There is no end to his deeds and I am incapable of recounting them. O tiger among the Bharata lineage! I cannot describe the great-souled one’s deeds in detail. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! My words will certainly touch only a bit of them. Vishnu is infinite in his valour and is famous for his generous deeds. O king! I will describe them progressively. Listen with single-minded attention. The intelligent lion among the Yadus resided in Dvaravati. He agitated kings, the foremost among the kings and their kingdoms.1018 He killed the danava Vichakra, who sought to create dissension among the Yadus. The great-souled one then went to the city of Pragjyotisha. In the midst of the ocean, he slew the evil-souled danava, Naraka. He vanquished Vasava in an encounter and forcefully seized Parijata. In a pool in Lohita, the illustrious one defeated Varuna. Along the southern path, he killed Karusha Dantavaktra. When Shishupala completed one hundred sins, he killed him.1019 He went to the city of Shonita, protected by Shankara. Bali’s son, Bana, was immensely valorous and possessed one thousand arms. O great king! He defeated him in a great battle, but allowed him to remain alive. In the midst of the mountains, the great-souled one vanquished the fire god. He defeated Salva in an encounter and brought down Soubha.1020 He agitated all the oceans and obtained Panchajanya. He killed Hayagriva and other immensely strong kings. After Jarasandha was killed, he freed all the kings. On a chariot, he defeated the king of Gandhara and abducted his daughter. Deprived of their kingdom, the Pandavas were afficted by grief and he protected them. He burnt down Puruhuta’s terrible forest, known as Khandava.1021 He arranged for Agni to give Gandiva to Arjuna. O Janamejaya! At the time of the terrible conflict,1022 he acted as a messenger. This foremost among the Yadus made the lineage of the Yadus prosper. In front of Kunti, he took a pledge about the Pandavas. “When the Bharata war is over, I will return your sons to you.” He freed the immensely energetic Nriga from a terrible curse.1023 In a battle, he killed the one who was famous as Kalayavana. There were two immensely valourous apes, Mainda and Dvivida. He defeated them in a battle and also vanquished Jambavat, who was unassailable. O king! Sandipani’s son and your father1024 had come under Vaivasvata’s subjugation, but he used his energy to bring them back to life. He fought many terrible battles, leading to the destruction of the best of men. He slew all those kings and performed extraordinary deeds in battles. O Janamejaya! I have told you about this earlier.’1025
Chapter 106
Janamejaya said, ‘O supreme among brahmanas! I have heard the truth about the excellent accounts of the immeasurable deeds performed by the intelligent Vasudeva. You have earlier mentioned the great asura, Bana. O one rich in austerities! I wish to hear about this in detail. How did Vasudeva defeat Bana in a battle? The angry one wished to challenge him1026 in a duel. How did he escape with his life?’
Vaishampayana replied, ‘O king! Hear attentively to the account of the great battle that took place in this world of men between the infinitely energetic Krishna and Bana. Bali’s son was insolent in battles and was aided by Rudra and Skanda. However, he was vanquished and allowed to escape with his life. The great-souled Shankara granted him1027 a boon that he would always be near him and bestowed on him eternal lordship over the ganas.1028 He went to Rudra, bowed down before him and greeted him. Bali’s son asked the following question to the one who has the bull on his standard. “With your support and with my insolent pride and soldiers, I have defeated the gods, the Sadhyas and large numbers of Maruts. They are terrified at their defeat and have lost all hope of vanquishing me. They now dwell happily in the vault of heaven. Therefore, I despair of being able to fight again and do not desire to remain alive any more. If I cannot fight, my possession of these arms1029 is pointless. Hence, tell me if there is going to a battle again. O god! Without an encounter, I can find no delight. Show me your favours.” At this, the illustrious one, with the bull on his standard, laughed. He said, “O Bana! O danava! There will be a battle. Hear about it. O son!1030 Your standard is fixed in its appropriate place. When it is broken, there will be a battle.” Having been thus addressed, Bana laughed and was extremely delighted. With a happy face, he fell down at his feet and said, “It is good fortune that my possession of one thousand arms will not be in vain. It is through good fortune that, in a battle, I will again defeat the one with one thousand eyes.” The eyes of the scorcher of enemies filled with tears of joy. He joined five hundred pairs of hands in salutation and prostrating himself on the ground, worshipped the god.
‘Maheshvara said, “Arise! Arise! O brave one! You will obtain an unmatched encounter in a battle, one that befits your arms, your own self and your lineage.”’
Vaishampayana continued, ‘Bana was thus addressed by the great-souled Tryambaka. He arose with great delight and quickly bowed down before the one with the bull on his banner. Bana, the destroyer of enemy cities, took Shitikantha’s1031 leave and went to his own residence and to the chamber where his giant standard was kept. Seated there, he laughed and spoke to Kumbhanda. “I will tell you what has brought this delight to my mind.” He1032 laughed and spoke to Bana, who was unmatched in battle. “O king! What will you tell me? What will I find agreeable? O excellent one! Your eyes are dilated with wonder and you seem to be overjoyed. What have you got through Shitikantha’s favours and Skanda’s protection? Has the wielder of the trident instructed that you will obtain the kingdom of the three worlds? Scared of you, will Indra find refuge in the nether regions? Will Diti’s sons overcome their fear of Vishnu? Scared of the chakra, they have to reside in abodes in the water. When the one with the Sharnga bow, chakra and mace in his hands is stationed in a supreme battle, will the asuras no longer be scared and terrified of Vishnu? Resorting to your strength, will they be able to give up the nether regions and go somewhere else? Will the great asuras reside where the gods now dwell? O king! Your father, Bali, has been bound down because of Vishnu’s strength. Abandoning that bondage in the water, will he get his kingdom back again? O father!1033 Will we see your father, Virochana’s son, adorned in divine garlands and garments and smeared with celestial paste? O lord! Earlier, the three worlds were taken away in three strides. Having defeated all the residents of heaven, will we again get them back? The god Narayana possesses a gentle and deep voice and the blare of the conch shell precedes him. He is the conqueror of armies. Will we vanquish him? O father! Is the one with the excellent face, the one with the bull on his banner, pleased with you? Your heart is beating and I notice tears of joy. By satisfying the lord1034 and through Kartikeya’s favours, have you got back all our status on earth?” The bull among men was thus urged by Kumbhanda’s words. Bana, supreme among eloquent ones, loved to speak and said the following. “O Kumbhanda! For a long time, I have not had the opportunity to fight. That is what I cheerfully asked the powerful Shitikantha for. ‘O extremely great god! I desire a fight. How can I obtain an encounter that will please my mind?’ At this, Hara, the god of the gods and the slayer of enemies, laughed for an extremely long time. He then spoke these agreeable words. ‘O Bana! You will obtain an extremely great and unmatched encounter. O asura! When your standard, with the peacock on it, breaks, there will be a great battle.’ I was extremely delighted with what the illustrious one, the one with the bull on his standard, had sai
d. I bowed my head down before the god and came to you.” Having been thus addressed, Kumbhanda spoke to the king. “Alas! O king! I do not find what the god has said to be auspicious.” While they were conversing with each other in this way, the upraised standard fell down with great force, struck by Shakra’s vajra. The asura saw that the supreme standard had fallen down. Thinking that the battle was at hand, he was greatly delighted.
‘Struck by Shakra’s vajra, the earth trembled. From the interiors of the earth, rats began to howl. Vasava, the god of the gods, started to shower down. The city of Shonita was filled with blood everywhere.1035 Shattering the sun, giant meteors fell down on the surface of the ground. Since its own path was obstructed, the sun oppressed the earth. Hundreds and thousands of terrible streams of blood descended on sanctuaries and trees and the stars fell down. O lord of the earth! Though it wasn’t the right time, the sun was eclipsed by Rahu. Signifying a time for the destruction of the worlds, huge storms manifested themselves. A comet remained stationary in the southern direction. Extremely terrible winds began to blow incessantly. In the evening sky, the sun was covered by clubs with three colours—white and red at the ends and black-necked and tinged with lightning in the centre. Bana’s nakshatra at birth was Krittika. A retrograde Angaraka1036 entered it and seemed to censure it in every possible way. There was a chaitya tree with many branches, worshipped by all the daughters of the great-souled danavas. This fell down on the ground. In this fashion, there were many portents and ill omens. However, Bana, intoxicated with pride and insolence, did not understand the nature of these. Bana’s adviser, Kumbhanda, possessed foresight and was conscious of what was likely to happen. He described these many portents.
‘Happy, Bana had an excellent drink. Intoxicated with valour, he amused himself with the daitya and danava women. Overcome by thoughts, Kumbhanda went to the king’s residence. Having seen these unthinkable omens, he reflected on what they might mean. “The king is evil in his intelligence and intoxicated. The great asura hopes to be victorious. He desires a battle and because of his intoxication, does not see any of these omens. These great portents cannot be false. Will all these portents that have been seen be rendered false? The one with the three eyes1037 and the valiant Kartikeya are here. Will they help to overcome these taints and will we be able to avoid defeat? Because of the power of these portents, there can be a great destruction. It is my view that these portents will not be rendered false. There is no doubt that these omens will come to pass. Because of the oppression caused by the king, the danavas have been tainted. Bhava, the lord and creator of the universe and of large numbers of gods and danavas, and Kartikeya reside in our city. Bhava always loves Guha1038 more than his own life. That apart, Bana has always been specially loved by Bhava. Bana is aided by both Bhava and Kumara. That being the case, who is capable of approaching Bana in an encounter?” Kumbhanda, who knew about the truth, thought in this way. The great asura’s intelligence was always devoted to what would ensure benefit. Even if they perform auspicious deeds, those who obstruct the gods will confront destruction in a battle, just as Bali was bound up.’
Chapter 107
Vaishampayana said, ‘With the goddess,1039 once Bhava went to the beautiful banks of a river. The lord sported there with the beautiful one. In every direction, hundreds of apsaras played. The lords of the gandharvas were there, in a forest that had flowers from all the seasons. There were blossoming Parijata and santanaka flowers. In every direction, this fragrance wafted along the banks of the river. Thousands of flutes, veenas, drums and trumpets were played and the songs of the apsaras could be heard. Bards, minstrels and large numbers of apsaras praised the god of the gods, the one with an excellent garlanded body, attired in red garments. Adopting the form of the goddess,1040 Chitralekha, supreme among apsaras, pleased Bhava and the goddess laughed at this. With beautiful faces and adopting the form of the goddess, all the apsaras sported with him and the goddess laughed out loudly at this. In every direction, there were sounds of amusement and great joy and Bhava was delighted.
‘Bana’s beautiful daughter, named Usha, was present there and on the banks of the river, she saw the god sporting with the goddess. In Parvati’s presence, Usha articulated her desire. “A woman who sports with her husband is fortunate.” Discerning Usha’s wish, the goddess, the daughter of the mountain, gently spoke these words to Usha, causing her joy. “O Usha! Soon, you will also amuse yourself with your husband, just as Shankara, the slayer of enemies, is finding pleasure with me, the goddess.” When she was addressed by the goddess in these words, Usha’s heart was filled with thoughts. “When will I amuse myself with my husband?” At this, the daughter of the Himalayas smiled and spoke these words. “O Usha! O fortunate one! Listen. This is how the union will come about. In the palace, in the month of Vaishakha, in the evening of the twelfth lunar day, the person who will have intercourse with you in your dreams will become your husband.” Surrounded by maidens, the daughter of the daitya was addressed in this way. She joyfully retreated and roamed around happily. When day was over, having played and sported with Uma, all those women went away. Some left on horses, others on elephants and chariots. Some of them travelled through the sky. All of them happily returned to their own cities.
‘It became the month of Vaishakha. On the twelfth day of shuklapaksha, surrounded by large numbers of her friends, the beautiful one was lying down in the palace. A man arrived in Usha’s dreams and had intercourse with her. Though she wept, because of the words of the goddess, she was violated. She was violated in her sleep and became a woman. Covered with blood, she suddenly woke up in the night and started to weep. On seeing her crying in this way, Chitralekha,1041 her friend, was scared. However, in gentle words, she comforted her about this wonderful incident. “O Usha! Do not be frightened. Why are you weeping and lamenting? You are Bali’s son’s daughter and are also famous. O one with the beautiful brows! Why should you be frightened? For someone like you, there is no fear in the worlds. O one with the beautiful thighs! Since your father destroys the gods in battle, you are the one who should generate fear. Arise! O fortunate one! Arise! O beautiful one! Your sorrow is pointless. O one with the beautiful face! In this residence, there is nothing for you to fear. With all the gods, the lord of the gods, Shachi’s consort, was unsuccessful in invading this city and and was driven away by your father in an encounter. All these large numbers of gods are scared of your father in a battle.” Usha replied, “I am a virtuous lady and have been violated in this way. How can I be interested in remaining alive? What will I tell my father, the enemy of the gods and the slayer of enemies! My lineage is extremely energetic and I have polluted it in this way. I think it is better for me to die. It is not desirable that I should remain alive. I am known as a maiden. Having done this, how can I be interested in remaining alive? I have been known as a woman who was the best among the virtuous. However, I have polluted my lineage and brought disgrace to my family. I have no refuge now. How can I be interested in remaining alive?” Surrounded by large numbers of her friends, Usha, the lotus-eyed one, lamented for a long period of time in this way, her eyes full of tears. With all her friends, bereft of her senses, she wept like someone who was without a protector. All of them surrounded Usha, their eyes also full of tears, and said, “O queen! O one with the beautiful brows! If something is done with a wicked mind, there may be an auspicious or inauspicious consequence. However, in your mind, you did not do anything evil. O fortunate one! Since this intercourse occurred in your dream, there has been no deviation from your vows. O queen! There has been no transgression because of this act of intercourse. It is said on earth that a woman is tainted through a sin that occurs in one of three ways: the mind, words, and specially through deeds. O timid one! Your mind is always upright and has not been tainted. You have always followed brahmacharya. How can you be tainted by this sin? You were asleep. You are virtuous, pure in sentiments and spirited. If you have been brought about to this state, there is no destruction of dharma
in that. When a wicked mind first instigates a person to evil action, it is only then that a person is wicked. O beautiful one! You are virtuous. You have been born in a noble lineage. You are beautiful. You are controlled and follow brahmacharya. Yet, you have been brought about to this state. Destiny cannot be overcome.” Eyes filled with tears, Kumbhanda’s daughter1042 spoke the following supreme words to the one who was weeping. “O Usha! While you were thinking about your husband, the goddess spoke to you, in the presence of the god of the gods. O beautiful one! Remember those words. In the month of Vaishakha, in the night, on the twelfth day of shuklapaksha, while you are lying down in the palace and weeping, you will be made a woman. That brave person, the slayer of enemies, will become your husband. Recognizing your wish, the goddess had cheerfully told you this. The words spoken by Parvati cannot be false. O one with a face like the moon! That being the case, why are you weeping?” Bana’s daughter, the one with the auspicious eyes, was addressed in this way and remembered the words spoken by the goddess. She overcame her sorrow. Usha replied, “O beautiful one! When the goddess was sporting with Bhava, I now remember the words that she spoke. Everything that she said has come true in the grounds of this palace. The wife of the protector of the worlds told me about my husband. The task is to now decide how we find out who he is.” Kumbhanda’s daughter was skilled in discerning the truth and determining good policy. Having been addressed in this way, she again spoke these words. “O queen! With the exception of you, no one knows the truth about his lineage, his deeds or his manliness. O unblemished one! With the exception of what you saw in your sleep, no one has seen him or heard of him. O timid one! How will we know about the one who gave you that blazing pleasure? O friend! O dark-eyed one! O one who desired intercourse! While you wept, he used his valour to enter the inner quarters and enjoyed you. He cannot be an ordinary person. Otherwise, he would not have been able to single-handedly enter our city. He must be a slayer of enemies. The Adityas, the Vasus, the Rudras and the Ashvins, greatly energetic and terrible in valour, are incapable of entering the city of Shonita. This slayer of enemies has stepped over Bana’s head and entered the city of Shonita. He is a hundred times better than they are. O one with the auspicious eyes! Why should a woman who has a husband like that, who is accomplished in fighting, not be interested in remaining alive or enjoying herself? A woman with a husband like this is favoured and blessed. O one who wishes to satisfy her desires! You have obtained this through the favours of Parvati, the goddess. Without any fear, listen to what must be done. One must find out whose son he is, his name and his lineage.” Usha, consumed by desire, was addressed in these words. She affectionately replied to Kumbhanda’s daughter, Chitralekha, the apsara, “O friend! O friend! How will we find out?” Immersed in her thoughts, she spoke words that are extremely difficult to utter. “O friend! O beautiful one! Listen to my final words. O lotus-eyed one! If you do not bring my beloved husband here today, I will give up my beloved life. He is beautiful, with eyes like lotus petals. His valour is like that of a crazy elephant.” Chitralekha smiled and gently spoke these words to Usha. “O Usha! O beautiful one! O one who is excellent in her vows! I do not understand. How will we know? O friend! However, using my intelligence, this is what we are capable of doing. Listen to my words. That is the way you will obtain what you desire. O friend! O timid one! In the next seven days, I will draw pictures of all the gods, danavas, yakshas, the distinguished ones in powers, beauty and birth, the foremost beings among all those who exist everywhere and the best and famous people in the world of men. I will show them to you through my drawings and you will be able to identify your husband.” Having said this, in the next seven days, she drew all their pictures. The beautiful one drew pictures of these best of people.