Section Four
Pouloma Parva
This parva has 153 shlokas and nine chapters.
Chapter 4: 11 shlokas
Chapter 5: 26 shlokas
Chapter 6: 16 shlokas
Chapter 7: 26 shlokas
Chapter 8: 22 shlokas
Chapter 9: 22 shlokas
Chapter 10: 8 shlokas
Chapter 11: 17 shlokas
Chapter 12: 5 shlokas
The meat of the Mahabharata doesn’t start in this parva, since one is still on the snake-sacrifice. Indeed, this parva is mostly about the Bhargava lineage, descended from the great sage Bhrigu. Bhrigu’s son was the famous Shukra or Shukracharya and so was the sage Chyavana. Bhrigu married Puloma and anyone descended from Puloma is called Pouloma. That is how this parva obtains its name. The chapters in this parva take us down Bhrigu’s lineage, through Chyavana, Pramati, Ruru and Shunaka.
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Lomaharshana’s son, the suta Ugrashrava, learned in ancient tales, was present at the twelve-year sacrifice of Kulapati Shounaka, held in Naimisharanya. Having spent a great deal of labour in learning the Puranas, he knew them well. He stood before the sages at the sacrifice, and with folded hands, addressed them, ‘What do you wish to hear? What shall I tell?’
The sages replied, ‘O son of Lomaharshana! We wish to hear, and you will tell us, those who are eager to listen, some excellent tales. But at the moment, the revered Kulapati Shounaka is busy in the room with the holy fire. He knows the divine tales about the gods and the demons. He also knows the stories of the men, the nagas and the gandharvas. O Souti! At this sacrifice, that learned Brahmana is the chief priest, capable, faithful to his vows and learned in all the sacred texts and the aranyakas. He is always truthful, a hermit strict in his austerities and vows, and calm. He is respected by all of us and we must wait for him. When he has taken the honoured seat meant for the preceptor, you will reply to what the best of the Brahmanas asks you.’
Souti replied, ‘So it shall be. When that great-souled preceptor has sat down, I shall narrate, as asked by him, all the sacred stories on a wide variety of subjects.’
After that, when that bull among Brahmanas had finished all actions in accordance with the proper rites and had prayed to the gods and offered water to the ancestors, he came to the place of sacrifice where Souti was seated, in front of that assembly of brahmarshis, inflexible and successful in their austerities. Then, when Shounaka was seated among the officiating priests and assistants, who were seated, Shounaka said the following.
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Shounaka said, ‘My son, in days long past, your father learnt all the Puranas. O son of Lomaharshana! Is it the case that you have learnt them too? In the Puranas are described divine stories and accounts of the wise of the original lineage. In the past, long ago, we have heard these from your father. From those tales, I wish to hear that of the Bhrigu lineage. Tell us that story. We are all eager to hear.’
Souti said, ‘That which was correctly learnt in ancient times by great-souled Brahmanas who were the best, that which was learnt and recited by the Brahmana Vaishampayana, that which was correctly studied by my father and from him learnt by me, O descendant of the Bhrigu race,2 hear that story of the Bhrigu lineage, revered by the gods, Indra, Agni and the Maruts.3 O chief and great sage, I shall recite to you the history of this lineage, and related stories, as it is recounted in the Puranas. Bhrigu gave birth to a beloved son, named Chyavana Bhargava. Chyavana had a righteous son named Pramati and Pramati, in turn, had a son named Ruru, from Ghritachi. From his wife Pramadvara, Ruru had a son named Shunaka. He was righteous and learned in the Vedas, he was your great-grandfather. He was devoted to asceticism, famous, learned in the shrutis, truthful, righteous, wise in knowledge of the brahman and always had control over his senses.’
Shounaka said, ‘O son of Suta, why was the great-souled son of Bhrigu known as Chyavana? I am asking you, tell me.’
Souti replied, ‘Bhrigu had a beloved wife, widely known as Puloma. She conceived from Bhrigu’s semen and a child formed in her womb. In time, when the equable and chaste wife Puloma was in that condition, one day, the famous and righteous Bhrigu went out for his ablutions. It was then that a rakshasa named Puloman came to his hermitage. Having entered the hermitage, he saw Bhrigu’s unblemished wife, and seeing her, he was filled with lust and lost his senses. On seeing that a guest had come, the beautiful Puloma served him with roots and fruits from the forest. O Brahmana, having seen her, the rakshasa burned with lust and wished to carry away the unblemished woman. He went to the room where the holy fire was blazing brightly and the rakshasa then asked the flaming fire, “O Agni! Tell me truthfully, under oath, whose wife is she? O Pavaka!4Tell me the truth, I am asking you. This beautiful lady was earlier engaged to be my wife. But later, her father gave her to Bhrigu, who thus committed a falsehood. Tell me truly if this beautiful lady can be called Bhrigu’s wife. Since I have found her in the hermitage, I wish to carry her away. My hurt burns with rage that Bhrigu should have obtained this slim-waisted woman who was my wife first.” Thus did the rakshasa repeatedly ask the flaming fire this uncertain question of whether the lady was Bhrigu’s wife. “O Agni! You are always there in every being as witness of their righteous deeds and evil ones. O wise one! Answer my question truthfully. The wrong-doer Bhrigu abducted her, though she was my wife first. I wish to hear the truth from you. When I hear the truth from you about whether she is Bhrigu’s wife or not, I shall carry her away from the hermitage in your presence. Therefore, O fire, tell me the truth.” Having heard these words, the seven-tongued fire was extremely distressed. He was afraid to lie because of the fear of a curse. At the same time, he was scared of Bhrigu’s curse.’
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Souti said, ‘O Brahmana, having heard Agni’s words, the rakshasa assumed the form of a boar and carried her away with the speed of the mind and of thought. Bhrigu’s child, who was in her womb, was angry at this violence and fell down from his mother’s womb. For this reason, he got the name Chyavana.5 On seeing the child fall from his mother’s womb, blazing like the sun, that rakshasa let go of her, but fell down, burnt to ashes. O Brahmana, O descendant of Bhrigu! Puloma, the lady with the beautiful hips, almost fainted with grief, but picked up Chyavana and walked away. Brahma himself, the grandfather of all the worlds, saw Bhrigu’s unblemished wife weeping, eyes filled with tears. The venerable Brahma, grandfather of all beings, consoled his daughter-in-law and a great river was formed from the tears that fell from her eyes. The river followed the footsteps of the famous Bhrigu’s wife. On seeing it follow the path of his son’s wife, the venerable grandfather of the world named it himself. He called it Vadhusara and it passed near Chyavana’s hermitage. Thus was Chyavana born, the mighty son of Bhrigu.
‘On seeing Chyavana and also the beautiful young lady there, the angry Bhrigu asked his wife Puloma, “Who told the rakshasa who was here about you, so that he wanted to carry you away? O lady of beautiful smiles! That rakshasa could not have himself known that you were my wife. Tell me who told him, because I wish to curse him in my anger. Who does not fear my curse? Who dared to transgress?” Puloma replied, “O Bhagavan! I was made known to the rakshasa by Agni. Then that rakshasa carried me away, crying like a female osprey. I was freed only through the extraordinary energy of your son. That rakshasa let go of me, fell down on the ground and was burnt to ashes.” Having heard this from Puloma, Bhrigu became very angry. Out of his anger, he cursed Agni that he would be an omnivore.’6
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Souti said, ‘Being thus cursed by Bhrigu, the angry Agni said, “O Brahmana! What do you mean by displaying this rashness today? I always try to stick to the righteous path and tell the truth impartially. On being asked, I told the truth. Where is my transgression? A witness who is asked and knows the facts, but testifies to that which is false, dooms both his ancestors and his descendants for seven generations. And he who knows the truth about an action, but knowingly does not speak, is certainly tainted by the s
ame sin. I am also capable of cursing you, but I hold Brahmanas in esteem. O Brahmana! Although these are known to you, I shall nevertheless recount them to you. Listen. Having multiplied myself through my powers of yoga, I am present in many forms, in agnihotras,7sattras8 and other sacrifices and rituals. When ghee is offered to me in accordance with the rituals prescribed in the Vedas, the gods and also the ancestors appear in it and are satisfied. The gods are the waters and the ancestors are also the waters. The gods and the ancestors have equal rights to perform darshas9 and pournamasas.10 Therefore, the gods are the ancestors and the ancestors are the gods. Depending on the stage of the moon, they are worshipped as one and also separately. The gods and the ancestors eat what is poured on me. I am therefore known as the mouth of the thirty-three gods11 and the ancestors. On the day of the new moon the ancestors, and on the day of the full moon the gods, are fed through my mouth the ghee that is offered to me. If I am their mouth, how can I become an omnivore?” After contemplating this problem for some time, Agni withdrew himself from everywhere, from the agnihotras of the Brahmanas, from sattras and other sacrifices. Being deprived of omkaras, vashatkaras,12svadhas13 and svahas,14 all the creatures became miserable.
‘Then, in great anxiety, the sages went to the gods and said the following words. “O faultless beings! Because of the loss of fire, the three worlds are confounded at having lost their sacrifices. Without losing any more time, please decree what is to be done.” The gods and the sages then went before Brahma. They told him about the curse on Agni and his withdrawal from all sacrifices. They said, “O illustrious one! Agni has been cursed by Bhrigu for some unknown reason. How can he who is the mouth of the gods and receives the first part of all sacrificial offerings and is also the acceptor of all offerings in all the worlds ever become an omnivore?” Having heard all this, the creator of the world summoned Agni to his presence. He addressed Agni, who is the creator of all the worlds, like him, and is also eternal, in gentle words. “You are the creator of all the worlds and you are their destroyer. You preserve the three worlds and ensure that all sacrifices and ceremonies are preserved. Therefore, O lord of the worlds! Act in a way that the rites thrive. O eater of the sacrificial ghee! How have you become thus deluded? You are always pure in this universe. You are the refuge of all living creatures. With your entire body, you cannot become an omnivore. O Fire, with a crest of flames! Only flames that are meant for accepting oblations will devour everything. Just as everything touched by the sun’s rays are rendered pure, anything that has been burnt in your flames will become pure. O Agni! You are the supreme energy. You have issued forth from your own energy. Through your own lustrous power, make the sage’s curse come true. Accept the gods’ share, and your own, when they are offered into your mouth.” Agni replied to the grandfather, “Let it be that way.” He went away to obey the instructions of the god Parameshthin.15 In great delight, the gods and the sages returned the way they had come. And the sages continued to perform all their sacrifices and ceremonies, as they had done before. The gods rejoiced in heaven, as did the many living beings on earth. Freed from the taint of the curse, Agni was also extremely happy. Such is the ancient history of the curse that was imposed on Agni, with the destruction of Puloman and the birth of Chyavana.’
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Souti said, ‘O Brahmana! Chyavana, the son of Bhrigu, then had a son from his wife, named Sukanya. Sukanya’s son was the great-souled Pramati, of resplendent energy. In turn, Pramati had a son named Ruru, from Ghritachi. Ruru had a son named Shunaka from his wife Pramadvara. O Brahmana! I will tell you all the accounts of Ruru, whose energy was resplendent. Listen to it in detail. In days long gone by, there was a sage named Sthulakesha. He possessed the power of austerities and learning and was known for devoting himself to the welfare of all creatures. O Brahmana! O sage! At this time, Menaka16 conceived a child through the king of the gandharvas, named Vishvavasu. O descendant of the Bhrigu lineage! When the time came, the apsara Menaka delivered her child near Sthulakesha’s hermitage. After leaving her child on the banks of the river, she went away. The great sage and great Brahmana, Sthulakesha, found the daughter abandoned on the banks of the river. He saw her to be blazing in beauty, like the child of an immortal. On finding her, the best of the sages was driven by compassion and adopted her. The beautiful and radiant girl grew up in that hermitage. Since she was superior to all the others in beauty and in every quality, the great sage gave her the name of Pramadvara.17
‘When Ruru saw Pramadvara in that hermitage of his,18 the righteous man, in control over himself, fell in love with her. Through his friends, he made his father Pramati, descended from Bhrigu, acquainted with his love. Thereupon, Pramati asked the famous Sthulakesha. Then the sage engaged Pramadvara with Ruru, fixing the date for marriage as one when the nakshatra19 Bhagadaiva20 would be in the ascendant. A few days before the date fixed for the wedding, when the beautiful girl was playing with her friends, her time having come and driven by destiny, she didn’t see a coiled snake and stepped on it with her foot. Driven by the requirements of destiny, the snake sunk its venomous fangs into the body of the careless girl. As soon as she was bitten by the snake, she suddenly fell down senseless on the ground. She, who was so beautiful when alive, became painful to look at when dead. Thanks to the snake’s venom, the slender-waisted girl looked more beautiful than when alive, as if asleep on the ground. Her father and other hermits who were there, saw her lying motionless on the ground, as beautiful as a lotus. Overcome with compassion, all the best of Brahmanas assembled there—Svastyatreya, Mahajanu, Kushika, Shankhamekhala, Bharadvaja, Kounakutsa, Arshtisena and Goutama, and also Pramati and his son and other inhabitants of the forest. They were overcome with compassion when they saw the maiden dead with the snake’s venom and wept. But in great pain, Ruru left.’
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Souti said, ‘When the Brahmanas were seated there in a circle, Ruru went into the deep forest and wept loudly. Overcome with grief, his lamentations were piteous. Thinking and remembering his beloved Pramadvara, he mourned. “She is lying on the ground, that slender-bodied beauty, increasing my grief and that of her relatives. What can be more painful than this? If I have ever given alms, performed austerities, if I have shown respect to my superiors, let those merits instil life into my beloved. If I have controlled myself from the day I was born, if I have stuck to the prescribed rites, let the beautiful Pramadvara rise up right now.” The messenger of the gods said, “O Ruru! The words that you utter in your grief can have no effect. O righteous one! Someone whose mortal time on this earth has run out, cannot come back to life again. The miserly life has run out for this daughter of the gandharva and the apsara. Therefore, do not yield even a little to grief. However, in advance, the great gods have devised an antidote. If you wish to implement this, you will get back your Pramadvara.” Ruru replied, “O traveller in the sky! Tell me the details of the means the gods have provided for in advance. I will implement what I hear. Your honour, grant me deliverance.” The messenger of the gods said, “O descendant of the Bhrigu lineage! Give up half of your life to the girl. O Ruru! Your wife Pramadvara will rise up again.” Ruru replied, “O best of the travellers in the sky! I give up half of my life to the girl. Let my beloved arise, in the form and adornment of love.” Then the supreme king of the gandharvas and the supreme messenger of the gods together went to Dharmaraja.21
‘They addressed him in these words. “O Dharmaraja! If you so think, let Ruru’s beautiful bride Pramadvara, who is now dead, arise with half of Ruru’s life.” Dharmaraja replied, “O messenger of the gods! If you so wish, let Ruru’s wife Pramadvara arise with half of Ruru’s life.” When he thus spoke, the beautiful lady Pramadvara, engaged to Ruru, arose as if from a slumber, endowed with half of Ruru’s life. It was later seen in the future that the illustrious Ruru gave up half of his long life for the sake of his wife and this shortened his own. Thereafter, on the designated day, their respective fathers gladly married them in accordance with the rites and the couple
passed their days, devoted to each other. Having obtained a wife who was so difficult to get, beautiful and radiant as the filaments of a lotus, the sage of firm austerities took a vow to destroy the snakes. Whenever he saw a snake, he was possessed with terrible anger. If it was near, he always killed it with a weapon.
Mahabharata Vol. 1 (Penguin Translated Texts) Page 8