The Puffin Book of Magical Indian Myths

by Anita Nair

  Soon thereafter, Agastya heard about the trouble with the Vindhya mountain.

  The mountain stood at the centre of the country, and was very proud of its height and bearing. It was so proud that it wouldn’t let anyone go past it unless they paid suitable homage.

  It was all right for the gods and the demons who possessed extraordinary powers and could find a way to fly above the mountain. But all others were at the mountain’s mercy. Agastya heard from the other sages that Vindhya’s arrogance grew by the day and he decided to teach the mountain a lesson. So he set forth on a journey to the southern part of the country.

  When he came to the foot of the Vindhya mountain, he stood there and cleared his throat. From its great height, the mountain peered and saw that it was Agastya. Now the mountain knew that while Agastya might be a short man, his powers were immense and that, if he chose to, he could destroy the universe with his curse. So the mountain hastened to pay his respects to the sage. He prostrated himself before the sage and said, ‘What can I do for you, O great sage?’

  Agastya looked at the mountain that lay at his feet and said, ‘I would like you to remain in this position till I return from my travels in the southern part of the country.’

  The mountain agreed, thinking that the sage would be back soon. But Agastya had made up his mind to never return to the north. He settled down in a new ashram on Mount Kunjara and became the chief of all the sages in the south.

  As for the Vindhya mountain, it still remains crouched. It has become a range of hills that are so low they can be easily climbed.

  How Agastya Killed the Rakshasas

  From his ashram on Mount Kunjara, the sage Agastya kept the demons under control. He let them roam freely wherever they wanted but as soon as they tried to conquer a region or its people, he would step in and destroy them.

  The rakshasas Vatapi and Ilwala were brothers. They lived in the Dandaka forest. The wily brothers, who possessed many special powers, frequently tried many tricks on sages and other human beings, but Agastya always saw through them and punished them.

  One night Ilwala and Vatapi were sitting under a tree. ‘This is so terrible,’ Ilwala grumbled. ‘We are supposed to be rakshasas but we might as well be sheep. That Agastya has such a tight control over us that we can’t do a thing.’

  ‘What do you want to do?’ Vatapi asked, amused by his brother’s woebegone expression.

  Ilwala smacked his lips, rubbed his hands and said, ‘I’d like to kill a few hermits and I’d like to see every sage in the forest quake in fear when they hear our names.’

  Vatapi thought for a while and said, ‘I have an idea.’

  The next day Ilwala disguised himself as a rich merchant and, leading a handsome ram, went to a hermitage. ‘Noble sages,’ he said, bending low and speaking in a very respectful tone, ‘I would like to gift this ram to you. He is the finest ram in my herd and it would please me greatly if you were to accept him. He is worthy of a sacrifice … look at him. See how his horns curl so elegantly. Look at his eyes, they seem ready to face anything. There is neither fear nor stupidity there.’

  The hermits examined the ram and decided to use the animal for their sacrifice. ‘We are very thankful to you,’ they said. ‘You will be blessed for this generous gesture. What can we do for you?’

  Ilwala looked at his feet and said, ‘I do not need anything. Except that you let me stay here till the end of the sacrifice.’

  The hermits agreed and went to prepare for the sacrifice. Soon the ram was led to the altar. After the sacrifice, it was usual to cook the ram and eat it as part of the ceremonial food.

  Ilwala stood quietly, watching the hermits eat. When the last morsel was consumed, he clapped his hands. ‘Brother Vatapi,’ he called, ‘please make your appearance.’

  Vatapi, for it was he who had taken the form of the ram, tore through the stomachs of the hermits and came forth. As he emerged, all his different parts magically joined together again so that he was whole.

  Ilwala and Vatapi looked at the dead hermits and rolled on the ground in glee.

  ‘Vatapi, you are so clever!’ Ilwala giggled.

  ‘Oh, what did I do?’ Vatapi said blinking his eyelids coyly. ‘How can you blame me if the hermits had a spot of indigestion …’

  Ilwala giggled some more, ‘But I never knew indigestion could kill.’

  Vatapi sighed and said, ‘Now you know. What is it they say—you learn something new every day.’

  Again and again, the two brothers tricked the hermits and killed them.

  One day Vatapi said, ‘This is getting to be boring. These hermits, despite being so learned, are quite foolish and are tricked easily. I think it’s time we found someone who’s a little smarter than these nincompoops. Let’s try the trick on Agastya and rid the world of him.’ Ilwala scratched his head and said, ‘Are you sure? He is not like the others …’

  ‘If you are such a coward then we won’t,’ Vatapi said.

  ‘It’s not that …’ Ilwala began.

  ‘Then don’t make a fuss.’

  So the next day Ilwala dressed as a nobleman and went to Agastya’s hermitage leading a ram. As usual, he made a present of the ram to Agastya, who received it with a smile.

  When the sacrifice was performed and Agastya had eaten the meat of the ram, Ilwala clapped his hands and said, ‘Brother Vatapi, please come out.’

  But there was no sign of Vatapi.

  Ilwala clapped again and called in a louder voice. There was still no response.

  Ilwala began to get nervous. He yelled out his brother’s name. But Vatapi still didn’t appear.

  By now Ilwala was really scared and he called again in a trembling voice, ‘Bbrrother Vvvattapi … ccome out.’

  Agastya patted his round stomach and said, ‘I don’t think you realize how strong my gastric juices are. Even as I eat, my food is digested. Perhaps that is why I never have indigestion. Though I must confess that the taste of the meat I just ate makes me want to never eat ram again.’

  Ilwala looked at him horrified. Agastya continued to rub his stomach and said, ‘You think you are so clever but I knew what you were up to the moment you appeared at my doorstep. Your brother will never play his trick again. Do you hear me? Your brother has been digested!’

  Ilwala lost his temper at that and raised his leg to kick the sage and trample him. But Agastya raised his eyes and opened them wide and stared at Ilwala. The fire from his eyes burnt Ilwala to a little heap of ash.

  Thus the Dandaka forest was rid of the rakshasa brothers.

  How Sivi’s Generosity Was Tested

  Sivi was the king of Usinara, a kingdom near Gandhara in the north-west part of the country. Sivi was a fine and noble king and his generosity knew no limits. In fact, his fame spread even to the heaven and the gods looked at each other in surprise. ‘Could there really be someone who is so generous?’ they asked.

  ‘It is easy to be generous when you are the king of a rich kingdom,’ Indra said.

  ‘That isn’t true,’ Agni the fire god said. ‘He is generous not because he is rich, but because he likes to help others. I have seen him give away millions of gold coins and they say there are no beggars or hungry people in his kingdom.’

  ‘I’m sure he performs a great number of sacrifices which is why you have only nice things to say about him,’ another god said.

  ‘You know what?’ Indra said. ‘I think I am going to check the truth for myself. I will agree that he is truly generous when he gives more than mere material riches. Who will go with me?’

  Agni offered to go along. The fire god was not too fond of Indra and wanted to see him eat his words.

  ‘If we go as we are, he’ll give us anything we want. So we need to go in a form in which he won’t recognize us,’ Indra said.

  So Agni took the form of a pigeon and Indra became a falcon. The falcon began to pursue the pigeon and the pigeon flew into King Sivi’s palace and into his bosom. King Sivi held the bird, which was
trembling with fear, and stroked it gently. ‘Do not worry, little pigeon, I shall take care of you,’ he said.

  Just then the falcon flew into the king’s presence. ‘Please let the pigeon go,’ the falcon said. ‘You are depriving me of my dinner and I have heard that no one ever goes to bed hungry in your kingdom.’

  ‘Is that all?’ the king laughed and said. ‘I shall have my attendants serve you a fine dinner.’

  ‘No, that’s not all,’ the falcon shook its head. ‘I do not eat cooked food. I like my meat to be warm with life as I eat it. I like to taste the flavour of warm blood.’

  ‘In that case, I shall bring you fresh meat,’ the king said.

  ‘That won’t do either. I do not like others hunting my prey. I like to do it myself. So let the pigeon go,’ the falcon said, bristling with anger.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ the king said. ‘That is not possible. The pigeon has sought refuge with me and I cannot betray it and let it go.’

  ‘Now I know that everything I heard about you is false. Your generosity is lopsided. You would deprive me of a meal to save another,’ the falcon screeched in anger.

  ‘That isn’t true. I will give you whatever you desire except the pigeon’s life,’ King Sivi said, trying to placate the angry falcon.

  ‘Would you give me some of your flesh? I do not need more than the pigeon’s weight but I will be satisfied only if it’s the flesh of your body,’ the falcon said.

  King Sivi nodded and called for a pair of weighing scales and a knife. Then he chose the meatiest portion of his body and cut a huge piece from his right thigh. The pigeon was placed on one scale and the lump of flesh on another. But the bird was heavier.

  King Sivi cut another piece from his left thigh and placed it in the bowl of the scale but the same happened. King Sivi began to slice flesh from his arms, his chest, even his neck … Soon there was no flesh left to cut and the king placed himself on the scales. Finally the scales tipped and the falcon flew away.

  Agni then took on his real form and healed the bleeding king. He blessed Sivi and went back to heaven.

  ‘What do you have to say now?’ Agni asked Indra.

  Indra shook his head and said, ‘I agree he is generous to the point of giving up his life, but what of the ones he loves?’

  ‘Why can’t you accept the truth when you see it?’ Agni asked, irritated with Indra. And soon they began squabbling.

  Vishnu heard their quarrel in his distant universe and sighed. If he didn’t mediate and settle this quarrel, there would be chaos. So he called Agni and Indra to him and said, ‘I will verify the truth for myself. But this will be the last time and afterwards the king is to be left alone. Do you understand?’

  Indra agreed and Vishnu went to Sivi’s kingdom disguised as a hermit.

  Vishnu made his way to the king’s palace. The king greeted him and asked, ‘What can I do for you?’

  The hermit cleared his throat and said, ‘I haven’t eaten for more than seven years and I would like to be fed.’

  ‘What would you like to eat?’ the king asked.

  ‘I would like the flesh of a young boy, someone who has been killed and cooked by his own father. Could you provide me that?’

  Sivi looked at the ground aghast. What kind of a request was this? What father would kill and cook his own son? Who would agree to that? Besides, how could he ask that of anyone? His subjects were like his children and it was his duty to protect them.

  But he also had a duty to honour the hermit’s desire. The king strengthened his mind, wiped his tears away and summoned his son. Then he killed the boy and cooked his flesh. He laid the table and invited the hermit to eat.

  The hermit sat down and then said, ‘What is this? I cannot eat alone. I would like you to share this food with me.’

  ‘I am not hungry,’ the king said quietly. He felt as if his heart was breaking.

  ‘Even if you are not hungry, it is your duty as a host to listen to your guest,’ the hermit said.

  The king felt bile crawl up his throat but he swallowed it down and prepared to eat his son’s flesh. With hands that shook, he raised a handful of food to his mouth. Suddenly the hermit raised his hand and said, ‘Stop! Your test has come to an end. Let all the worlds know that there is no king as generous or devoted to duty as you are.’

  Then Vishnu restored Sivi’s son’s life and vanished from sight. Indra and the other gods never felt the need to test Sivi after this.

  How the World Was Drained of Water

  Utathya was a brahmin who lived in a hermitage deep in a forest. When it was time for him to get married, he chose Bhadra, a very beautiful woman. Bhadra was happy to wed Utathya who was a good man, even though he lived very simply.

  Varuna the water god had always nurtured a passion for Bhadra, but because of her father, Soma the moon god, he was much too scared to go anywhere near her. Now that she was away from her father’s protection, Varuna decided to abduct her. So one morning when Bhadra went for a bath in the river, he swept her away and took her to his palace.

  Meanwhile Utathya waited for his wife to return and when she didn’t, he began to get worried. What has happened to her, he wondered.

  He walked to the riverbank and there he found her clothes and jewellery. Now he knew for certain that Varuna had carried her off. ‘I shall not tolerate this. I will bring her back,’ he said. But to go to Varuna’s palace demanding his wife back would be much too humiliating so he decided to send a messenger.

  Utathya sent for the sage Narada, who was allowed entry into every world and home. ‘O Narada,’ Utathya said when Narada arrived at his hermitage. ‘Varuna has abducted my wife and he has made her a prisoner in his palace. I would have gone myself to demand that she be released but what if he says no; then I will have to fight him and I am only a brahmin. I do not know the science of warfare. Please go there and ask him to let her go. I cannot be parted from her and neither will she be able to live without me.’

  Narada was touched by Utathya’s words and desire to prevent unnecessary bloodshed. So he went to Varuna’s palace but Varuna refused to let Bhadra go.

  When Utathya heard this, he felt anger build in him. How dare Varuna behave so badly? What makes him so arrogant? So Utathya, by the power of his penance, drank up the ocean. But Varuna was not perturbed and refused to let Bhadra go.

  Then Utathya went to the lake of Varuna, which was the source of all water, and drank that up too. Then he cursed Varuna, ‘Let this land become a desert and everything here will dry up and die. Only then will Varuna learn his lesson.’

  One by one the rivers and tanks, seas and streams disappeared and the land became dry and fallow. Varuna knew he was defeated and went to beg forgiveness and restore Bhadra to her husband. Utathya was so pleased to see his wife that he forgave Varuna. He took back the curse and water and life was restored on earth.

  Why the Cock Crows in the Morning

  When Yama, the god of death and dharma, was a young boy, he was rather rude and arrogant. Though his mother tried very hard to make him behave better, Yama continued to be a nasty little boy.

  One day, Yama’s father, Surya, asked Chhaya, his handmaid, to fetch Yama from the palace. Chhaya went to the palace where Yama was playing with his pet buffalo. Chhaya said, ‘Your father wants you.’

  But Yama pretended not to hear her. So Chhaya spoke again. But Yama continued to pretend that he hadn’t heard her. Chhaya lost her temper and she went towards Yama, shooing the buffalo away. ‘Can’t you hear me? I said, your father wants you.’

  Yama stared at Chhaya angrily. ‘How dare you shoo my pet away?’ he shouted and kicked Chhaya.

  Chhaya fell to the ground and was so hurt by Yama’s insolence that she began to cry. The more she cried, the more upset she became and finally she cursed him, ‘You have to be punished. I curse that the leg you kicked me with be afflicted with sores and worms. That’ll teach you to treat people better.’

  As Yama watched in horror, his leg became a mas
s of sores and worms and maggots came crawling from it. The leg itched and hurt, and worse, it stank so nastily that Yama wanted to throw up. He burst into tears.

  Meanwhile Surya, who was waiting for his son, came looking for him. He saw Yama’s leg and understood what had happened. Then he saw Yama’s tears and said, ‘Will you behave better from this day?’

  Yama, who had learnt his lesson well, nodded. So Surya said, ‘As long as I am awake, your leg will be all right. But when I’m asleep, your leg will ooze and so here is a cock that will pick out the worms and maggots and relieve the pain and itch.’

  Every night when Surya was asleep, the cock would appear at Yama’s bedside and keep his leg clean. When it was tired, the cock would crow loudly and the sun would rise and Yama’s leg would be healed for the day.

  That is why the cock crows at dawn every morning, so that the sun god does not sleep late and cause Yama’s leg to fester again.

  Why the Moon Waxes and Wanes

  Soma the moon god rose to the surface during the churning of the ocean and he was the guardian of sacrifices, penances and healing herbs. He married the twenty-seven daughters of the rishi Daksha and took them to his palace. At first, all was happy and well. But soon trouble began.

  Soma discovered that he liked his fourth wife, Rohini, more than the others. So he spent all his time with her and gave her magical potions to make her even more beautiful. He took her everywhere he went and showered her with gifts.

  The other wives grew jealous and one day they accosted Rohini, ‘You are being selfish in keeping him with you all the time. He is our husband too,’ they said.