by Anita Nair
‘How dare they?’ Vishwamitra roared and sent the king back.
There ensued a contest of wills. The sage sent the king up and the gods kicked him back over and over again. The poor king was stuck in between and, to make matters worse, he didn’t know if he was coming or going because he was still head down and feet up. Caught between heaven and earth, the king came to be known as Trishankhu, or he who is in limbo.
‘I don’t want to go to heaven. Please let me come back to the earth,’ Trishankhu pleaded but Vishwamitra had set his heart on this and wouldn’t let the king descend.
‘In that case, let me at least stand on my feet,’ poor Trishankhu pleaded, but Vishwamitra wasn’t listening and so Trishankhu continued to be tossed like a ball between heaven and the earth.
Finally the sage and the gods arrived at a compromise and Vishwamitra created a whole new heaven for Trishankhu where he lived as an immortal being in his own body amidst stars and other celestial beings.
How Vishwamitra Rescued Sunashepas
King Ambarish of Ayodhya was about to conduct a great sacrifice. Indra, who was scared that the sacrifice would make the king even more powerful than he was, decided to prevent the sacrifice. So he carried the sacrificial animal away.
‘What do we do now?’ King Ambarish asked his officiating priests sadly.
They shook their heads and said in a grim voice, ‘It saddens us to say this but the gods demand a greater price. Which means you have to make a human sacrifice, of a youth who is neither boy nor man, and someone who agrees to it without being forced into the decision. Nothing else will make up for what has happened!’
‘Where shall I find a youth willing to sacrifice himself?’ the king asked no one in particular. ‘We do not know,’ the priests said. ‘You will have to find him yourself.’
So the king set out on his search and finally found a brahmin named Richika who had three sons. The king approached Richika and said, ‘You have three sons. Give me one. This is for a worthy cause. In return, I shall pay you any price you want.’
Richika put his arm around his eldest son and said, ‘I can’t let my eldest son go. He is my favourite and he will continue my line.’
The mother clung to her youngest son and cried, ‘I can’t let him go either. He is my baby and I would die if anything happened to him.’
The middle son, Sunashepas, heard what his parents had to say and came forward with a sad face. ‘O king,’ he said, ‘since neither of my parents seems to want me, I offer myself to you. Give them enough riches to live well and I shall be your human sacrifice.’
So the family was given a hundred thousand cows, ten million gold pieces and heaps of jewels and the king went away with Sunashepas.
On the way to the palace, they met Vishwamitra. The sage was Sunashepas’s uncle and, when he saw the sorrow on the boy’s face, he asked him what the matter was. Sunashepas explained.
Vishwamitra listened to the boy’s tale in horror. ‘Let him go,’ he told the king. ‘No human should be sacrificed and it is unfair to put this kind of pressure on the boy or his family. Can’t this sacrifice be performed without murdering Sunashepas? Yes, that is what this is—murder. Cold-blooded murder!’
But the king refused to heed Vishwamitra’s words. So Vishwamitra offered the king one of his sons. But the sons stared at their father angrily and said, ‘How dare you propose to give one of us up in place of your nephew? We refuse to be sacrificed.’ When Vishwamitra saw that his sons had no intention of going with the king, he lost his temper and cursed them, ‘For disobeying your father, I curse you to become nomads with no home to call your own.’
Then he turned to his nephew and taught him two divine mantras. ‘Repeat these during the time of the sacrifice and no harm will come to you,’ he said.
At Ambarish’s palace, Sunashepas was tied to the stake to be immolated. As the priests began the process of the sacrifice, Sunashepas closed his eyes and began to recite the two mantras which propitiated Vishnu and Indra. He said them with such sincerity that both the gods were pleased and granted him a long life. So Sunashepas escaped death and was henceforth known as Devarata.
How Vishwamitra Became a Brahma Rishi
Despite the various distractions, Vishwamitra hadn’t given up his resolution to become a brahma rishi and continued to work towards that.
The gods decided to break his concentration. They sent a beautiful apsara called Menaka to distract him. Menaka was a dancer in Indra’s court. She was so beautiful that no man could resist her.
Vishwamitra too was smitten by her beauty and grace. He stopped his penance to be with her. However, after a while he realized that this was why the gods had sent her. He promptly sent her away and resumed his penance.
The gods then sent an even more beautiful apsara, Rambha, and Vishwamitra was so enraged that he cursed her to be a stone figure for ten thousand years.
A little later when Vishwamitra saw the stone statue, he felt sad for what he had done. He realized he had acquired great powers to only use them up for seemingly useless reasons. He thought of his past: his squabbles with Vashishta, fighting the gods to let Trishankhu into heaven, cursing his sons and other such mishaps spurred by rage and pride. He decided that henceforth he would not let anger cloud his vision. He would seek to find peace. He began his austerities again with a new resolve.
Vishwamitra retired to a secluded forest and began meditating. He didn’t speak, he didn’t eat, he didn’t even drink a drop of water and, at one point, breathed only a tiny wisp of air. For a thousand years, he meditated and the gods began to fear that his concentration would reduce the world to ashes. They asked Brahma to intervene.
Finally it was time for Vishwamitra to break his fast. He gathered some fruits and sat down to eat. Just as he was about to begin, a beggar arrived. ‘I’m hungry,’ he cried. ‘Please give me some food!’
Vishwamitra offered him all the food he had and said, ‘This is all I have. But it is yours. I only wish I could have given you more and something better.’
For the first time Vishwamitra had forgotten who he was and all his lofty ambitions. He had behaved like a true sage.
The beggar, who was really Brahma in disguise, now revealed his true form to the sage. With a benevolent smile, he said, ‘Through your hardship you have achieved what you sought. You deserve to be a brahma rishi, and henceforth you shall be known as one.’
Vishwamitra had finally achieved what he sought for so many years. But now he no longer had any desire to show his superiority to Vashishta. The two of them reconciled and became friends.
Later, Vishwamitra was to become one of the sapta rishis, a constellation that even to this day shines bright in the night sky.
How All Living Creatures Began to Blink
King Nimi of Mithila was preparing to have a grand sacrifice which would go on for a thousand years. At the end of the sacrifice, the doors of heaven would fling themselves open and Nimi would be welcomed by all the gods into the splendid world where no one grew old and weak or died.
In order to conduct such an important yagna, the king needed to find a great sage to perform it. After much thought, the king decided on Sage Vashishta.
However Vashishta was busy. He scratched his beard thoughtfully and spoke in a quiet voice, ‘I would very much like to conduct the sacrifice for you, King Nimi. But I have already allotted the next five hundred years of my time to Indra, the king of gods. So I will be free only after that.’
King Nimi was very disappointed. But he hid his disappointment and said, ‘I will wait until you are free. The sacrifice will not be perfect unless you conduct it.’
As the days passed and became years, King Nimi became impatient. Five hundred years seemed too long a time and he couldn’t bear to wait any more. One day, he approached Sage Gautama and pleaded with him to officiate at the sacrifice. The sage agreed.
The preparations for the sacrifice began. Forests were cut down for firewood. All the cows in the kingdom were
sent to the palace so that there would be adequate milk and ghee. Herbs were gathered in bundles and arranged in rows. Thousands of people gathered in Mithila to witness the great yagna.
The sacrificial fire was lit and huge billows of aromatic smoke blew up into the skies. Up in heaven, Vashishta felt the heat of the flames singe his eyes. He realized that King Nimi had begun the sacrifice without waiting for him.
Vashishta felt anger build within him like monsoon clouds turning the blue skies a dark grey and he rushed to the sacrificial spot.
King Nimi saw Vashishta arrive and hurried to welcome him. But Vashishta ignored the welcoming words and glared at the king. When he saw everyone gathered there and the extent of preparations, he grew even more furious and cursed King Nimi. ‘King Nimi, how dare you have someone else perform the sacrifice? How could you have been arrogant? It is your pride that has made you so arrogant … the pride that comes from being a powerful emperor. What is an emperor without a body? I curse that you lose this body that houses your insolence and pride!’
King Nimi heard the curse and felt his heart sink. He fell on his knees and pleaded with the sage, ‘Please forgive me. I never intended to insult you … Ple … ple … please take back the curse.’
But Vashishta was still angry and began to walk away. King Nimi was now angered by the sage’s behaviour and cursed Vashishta, ‘Just as I will lose my body because of your curse, you too shall lose your body because of your arrogance that you are a great sage!’
Both the king and the sage were great and righteous souls. So their curses would always be fulfilled. Nimi and Vashishta lost their bodies. The grand yagna was abandoned and confusion reigned in Mithila. What should have been a day of celebration turned into a day of mourning.
The god of day, Mithra, and the god of night and water, Varuna, decided to step in and resolve the mess. They fashioned a new body for Vashishta and his soul began to dwell in it once again.
King Nimi’s body was preserved from decay and it remained intact as if he were immortal. The gods wanted Nimi to return to his body and they said they would relieve him of the curse. But King Nimi declined. He said, ‘I know the anguish of being separated from one’s body. I do not ever want to go through that distress again.’
So the gods decided that Nimi would be a part of the eyes of all living creatures. And that was how Nimisha, the blink of an eye, came to be.
How the Island of Sri Lanka Came to Be
Mount Sumeru was the tallest mountain in the world. It rose into the clouds farther than the eye could see. Its slopes and terraces were the abode of various gods. Around its majestic form, the stars revolved.
One day, the sage Narada got into an argument with Mount Sumeru on who was more important. ‘Look at you,’ the mountain mocked. ‘You are just a sage. And I am the most important and tallest mountain. Even the sun, moon and stars revolve around me. As for the gods, even they choose to live on me.’
Narada walked away in a huff. But he wasn’t going to let the insult pass. So he hit upon a plan. He went to Vayu, the god of wind, and said, ‘Do you know what I heard the other day? The mountain Sumeru said there is no one more powerful than him. I said that was true except when it came to you. I said Vayu has the power to shake even you up. But he laughed …’
Vayu heard Narada’s words and felt a great anger. ‘How dare that mountain speak like that? I will have to show him who is more powerful!’
‘Do that,’ Narada said. ‘Break his summit and he will be humbled forever.’
Mount Sumeru heard about Narada’s mischief and prayed to Vishnu to protect him. Vishnu sent his bird, the mighty Garuda, to Mount Sumeru. Garuda shielded the mountain with his wings. Each time Vayu hurled forth a great blast of wind, he took the brunt of its force on his body. Vayu tried for many days, but he was unable to even ruffle a leaf on Mount Sumeru while Garuda protected him.
‘What shall I do?’ Vayu asked Narada. ‘This is an unequal contest. As long as Garuda protects him, I cannot even send a little pebble rolling down his side.’
Narada thought for a while and said, ‘I will think of a way to lure Garuda away. That will be your chance to show the mountain who is more powerful.’
So Narada pretended to be a devotee in distress and called out, ‘Narayana, Narayana, help me!’
Garuda heard someone call his master’s name and waited for Vishnu to go to him. But Vishnu didn’t and Garuda couldn’t bear to hear the cries any more. So he went in search of the man who was seeking help in such desperation.
As soon as Garuda left, Vayu blew several huge gusts of wind at Sumeru. So powerful were the gusts that the top of the mountain was torn off. It fell into the sea and became an island. Today, it is known as Sri Lanka.
How Pushan Became Toothless
Daksha was a mighty king and a sage. He was born from the right thumb of Brahma. His wife Aditi was born from Brahma’s left thumb. They had several daughters.
One of the daughters was called Sati. She fell in love with Shiva and wanted to marry him. However, Daksha disapproved of her choice and decreed that she should never meet Shiva again. But Sati had made up her mind and she married Shiva. Daksha was so angry by his daughter’s disobedience that he forbade her from entering his home again.
Some time later Daksha decided to conduct a major sacrifice to propitiate Vishnu. All the gods and sages were invited. But he refused to invite either his daughter Sati or her husband Shiva.
Sati was upset by this but she decided to go for the sacrifice. She asked Shiva to go with her. But he refused. ‘Don’t you have any shame? How can you go to a place where you have not been invited?’ he demanded of her.
But Sati shook her head and said, ‘I am sure it is a mistake. My father must have meant to send word to us. Besides, why do I need an invitation to go to my father’s home?’
When Sati reached Daksha’s palace, her father refused to let her enter. ‘How dare you show your face here?’ he snarled. ‘I haven’t invited you or your husband. Why have you come?’
‘Father,’ Sati began.
‘Don’t call me father. I am not your father. I don’t want to see you. Leave this place right now,’ he ordered.
The assembled gods and sages watched, aghast. Why was Daksha behaving like this, they wondered. Had he forgotten the might of Shiva’s wrath? But Daksha was in no mood to listen to reason.
Humiliated and weeping, Sati returned to her husband. But Shiva wouldn’t let her into their home. ‘You chose to go to your father’s house despite my asking you not to. Now you have no place in my home,’ he said coldly.
Sati pleaded for forgiveness but Shiva was much too angry to listen to her. In sorrow and desperation, Sati leapt into a fire and killed herself.
Hearing of her death, Shiva was deeply grieved. He had loved her very much. He sat and mourned her absence, and then started thinking of the manner of her death. He thought of how Daksha, his father-in-law, had insulted both him and Sati. He thought of how it had led him and Sati to quarrel. He thought of how Sati had killed herself. And as he thought of all this, his rage and grief reached a breaking point.
Shiva stormed off to Daksha’s palace, where the yagna still continued. In his wrath and deep sorrow, he lost all control of himself. How could they conduct a yagna when his wife had killed herself because of it?
Indra was knocked down flat on his back. Yama’s staff was broken into bits. The goddess Saraswati lost her nose and Mithra, the god of day, had his eyes gouged out. Bhrigu’s beard was ripped out and others were stabbed, trampled and even sat upon. As for Pushan, the god and nourisher of cattle, Shiva clenched his fingers into a fist and punched his teeth down his throat. Finally Daksha was decapitated and his head thrown into the fire and only then was Shiva’s anger spent.
Amidst the ruins of the yagna, all the gods fell at Shiva’s feet and begged for mercy. Now calm once again, Shiva restored them their lost or ruined body parts. However, Daksha’s head couldn’t be found and so it was replaced
with a ram’s.
As Pushan had swallowed his own teeth, he had to remain toothless. Since that day, worshippers offer only gruel and cooked ground food when they pray to Pushan.
How Taraka Became Indestructible
The moment Taraka was born, jackals howled, donkeys brayed, the skies darkened and owls hooted. All the people on the earth looked at each other in fear and asked, ‘What calamity is going to come upon us?’
Then a wise man said, ‘Vajranga, an asura whose name means limbs of diamond, has had a son who is going to wreak much havoc in this world.’
When Taraka grew up, he decided to perform a thousand years of penance to acquire strength and invincibility. He patiently performed the most demanding of austerities. For a hundred years, he stood on one toe with his arms raised and prayed. For another hundred years, he sat in the middle of a ring of fire. For another hundred years, he stood on his hands on a bare rock in the middle of a desert. The gods began to worry that his prayers would make him indestructible and rushed to Brahma to intervene.
So Brahma appeared before Taraka and asked him to put an end to his penance. ‘You have proved how strong your will is. Now ask me for what you want,’ he said.
Taraka said, ‘I want to be invincible.’
‘That is an impossible boon. I can’t grant you this boon till you set a timeframe to it. You have to say something like “invincible for a thousand years”, or some such period.’
Taraka thought for a while. With a sneer he said, ‘All right. I will stop my penance if you agree to give me a boon that no one should be able to defeat me except a son born to Shiva.’