by Bibek Debroy
‘“Upamanyu answered, ‘Why does one have to think of reasons as to why Isha is the cause behind all causes? We have not heard of the gods worshipping anyone else’s signs. If we leave aside Maheshvara, who is the other one whom the gods worship in all his signs? Has any such person been worshipped earlier? If you have heard this, tell me. You, Brahma, Vishnu and the other gods always worship his signs. Therefore, he is the supreme one. O Koushika!151 Therefore, I desire a boon from him and am ready to be destroyed otherwise. O Shakra! O slayer of Bala! Stay or go, as you wish. I desire to have a boon, or a curse, from none other than Maheshvara. I do not desire it from any other god, even if it brings all the fruits of desire.’
‘“Upamanyu continued,152 ‘Once I had said this to Indra of the gods, my senses were overcome with grief. Why has Rudra not been pleased with me? That is what I thought. In a short instant, I again saw Airavata.153 It transformed itself into a bull that was as white as a swan or jasmine, as radiant as the stalk of a white lily and like the ocean of milk itself. It was huge in size and its tail was black. Its eyes were reddish brown, like honey. Throughout, the horns were ornamented with molten gold. Its eyes were red and it had large nostrils. Its ears and waist were excellent. Its flanks were excellent and it possessed a huge neck. It was handsome and beautiful to behold. The dazzling hump covered the entire shoulder. It was like the snowclad summit of a mountain, or the crest of a white cloud. With Uma, the illustrious god of the gods was seated on it. Mahadeva was as resplendent as the lord of the stars154 on a full-moon night. The flames of his energy were like lightning tinging the clouds. It was as if one thousand suns had enveloped everything. The immensely energetic Ishvara was like the fire of destruction that arises at the end of a yuga and consumes all creatures. Since that energy pervaded everything, it was difficult to see anything. My heart again became anxious. I thought “what is this?” In a short while, that energy pervaded the ten directions. However, through the maya of the god of the gods, it also became pacified in an instant. I then saw the illustrious Sthanu Maheshvara stationed there. He was astride Surabhi’s descendant155 and was as peaceful as a fire without smoke. Parvati, beautiful in every limb, was with Parameshvara. The great-souled Nilakantha is the store of the energy of detachment. Sthanu possessed eighteen arms, adorned with all the ornaments. The god was attired in white garments. He had white garlands and unguents. The unassailable standard was white. His sacred thread was also white. His divine companions were like him in valour. They surrounded him, singing, dancing and playing on musical instruments. A white crescent moon was his diadem, arising like the moon in the autumn. The three eyes blazed and looked like three suns that had arisen. The god dazzled, wearing a garland that was white in complexion. It was made out of molten gold and strung with lotuses and decorated with gems. O Govinda! On the infinitely energetic Bhava’s person, I also saw the embodied forms of weapons, all of them radiating energy. The great-souled one’s bow possessed a thousand colours, like that of the rainbow. This is famous as Pinaka, but is actually a giant serpent. It is giant in form and has seven heads. Its fangs are sharp and its poison is virulent. With a giant neck, it was stationed in a man’s embodied form, with the bowstring wound around it. The arrow was like the sun and was as resplendent as the fire of destruction. This was the great and extremely terrible divine weapon, the Pashupata. It was unmatched, impossible to describe and fearful to all creatures. It was gigantic in size, with sparks, and seemed to spout out fire. It possessed a single foot and giant teeth.156 It had one thousand heads and one thousand stomachs. There were one thousand arms and one thousand eyes, and these seemed to spout out fire. O mighty-armed one! It is superior to Brahma, Narayana, Aindra, Agneya and Varuna weapons and is capable of countering all weapons. O Govinda! In ancient times, Mahadeva sported around and with this single arrow, in an instant, consumed and reduced Tripura to ashes. There is no doubt that if it is released from Maheshvara’s arms, in an instant, it can consume the entire universe and the three worlds, with their mobile and immobile objects. There is nothing in the worlds that cannot be slain with it, even Brahma, Vishnu and the gods. O son! I saw that extraordinary, wonderful and supreme weapon there. There was another mysterious and supreme weapon, equal or superior.157 This is famous in all the worlds as the spear of the one who wields the trident. It is capable of shattering the entire earth and drying up the giant ocean. When it is released from the hand of the one who wields the trident, it can destroy the entire universe. Yuvanashva’s son, Mandhata, was an immensely energetic king who became an emperor by conquering the three worlds. In ancient times, Mandhata and all his soldiers were struck down by this.158 O Govinda! He was immensely strong and immensely valorous and was like Shakra in his prowess. However, the rakshasa Lavana released it from his hand and struck him down. That trident is sharp at the points. It is extremely terrible and makes the body hair stand up. It seems to be stationed, ready to strike, as if its forehead is creased into three furrows. It is dark and is like a fire without smoke, like sun when it arises at the time of destruction. That trident is impossible to describe. Its handle is a snake. It is like the Destroyer with his noose. O Govinda! Near Rudra, I saw that weapon. In ancient times, Mahadeva was gratified and gave Rama159 a battleaxe that was sharp at the edges. This was used to destroy the kshatriyas. It was also used to slay Emperor Kartavirya in a great battle. Using this, there were twenty-one occasions when kshatriyas were exterminated from the earth. O Govinda! Jamadagni’s son, Rama of the unblemished deeds, accomplished this. It flamed at the edges and was extremely terrible. This was also near the wielder of the trident, who had a snake strung around his neck. It looked like the blazing flames of a fire. The intelligent one also possessed numerous other divine weapons. O unblemished one! I have only recounted the main ones. Brahma, the grandfather of the worlds, was stationed on the god’s left flank. He was astride a celestial vimana, yoked to swans that possessed the speed of thought. Narayana was also stationed on the left flank. He held a conch shell, chakra and club and was astride Vinata’s descendant.160 Astride a peacock, Skanda was near the goddess. Grasping a spear and a bell, he looked like a second fire.161 Nandi could be seen, stationed in front of the god. Stationed with a spear in his hand, he looked like a second Shankara. The rishis, with Bhrigu at the forefront, born from Svayambhu’s mental powers, were there and so were all the gods, with Shakra at the forefront. In every direction, they surrounded the great-souled one and worshipped him. The gods praised Mahadeva with many kinds of hymns. Brahma praised Bhava by uttering the rathantara. Narayana praised the lord of the gods with the jyeshtha Sama hymn. Shakra praised him with the excellent shatarudriya, which is about the supreme brahman.162 Those three, Brahma, Narayana and Koushika, the king of the gods, were radiant around the great-souled one, like three fires. In their midst, the resplendent god Shiva was resplendent. He was like the rays of the autumn sun, freed from the clouds.
‘“‘I followed excellent vows and worshipped the god through chants. “I bow down before the one who is the god of everything. I bow down before Mahadeva. You are Shakra. You are in Shakra’s form. You are in Shakra’s attire. I bow down before the one with the vajra in his hand. You are tawny. You are red. You always hold the Pinaka in your hand. You hold the sword and the trident. I bow down before the one with the dark garments, the one who has dark and curly hair. A black antelope skin forms your upper garment. You are the one who is worshipped on krishnashtami.163 You are white in complexion. You are white. You are attired in white garments. You are smeared in white ashes. You are engaged in white deeds. Among all the gods, you are Brahma. Among all the Rudras, you are Nilalohita. You are the soul of all creatures. In sankhya, you have been spoken of as Purusha. You are the bull164 among all things that are sacred. Among yogis, you are the Shiva who is indivisible. You are garhasthya among the ashramas. You are the lord Maheshvara. Among all the yakshas, you are Kubera. You are Vishnu among sacrifices.165 Among mountains, you are the great Meru. Among nakshatras, you are the
moon. You are Vasishtha among the rishis. You are said to be the sun among planets. Among forest animals, you are the lion. You are Parameshvara. Among domesticated animals, you are the bull. You are the illustrious one who is worshipped in the worlds. You are Vishnu among the Adityas. You are Agni among the Vasus. You are Vinata’s descendant among the birds. You are Ananta among the serpents. Among the Vedas, you are Sama Veda. In the hymns of Yajur Veda, you are shatarudriya. You are Sanatkumara among the yogis. Among the exponents of sankhya, you are Kapila. O god! You are Shakra among the Maruts. Among the ancestors, you are the king of dharma.166 Among the worlds, you are Brahma’s world. Among all destinations, you are said to be moksha. Among oceans, you are the ocean of milk. Among mountains, you are the Himalaya mountains. You are brahmanas among varnas. Among brahmanas, you are brahmanas who have been initiated. You are the origin of the worlds. You are the destroyer who destroys everything. You are everything that is said to constitute superior energy in the worlds. You are the illustrious one who is everything. That is my firm view. O illustrious one! O god! I bow down before you. O one who is affectionate towards devotees! I bow down before you. O lord of yoga! I bow down before you. O origin of the universe! I bow down before you. Show your favours towards one who is devoted towards you. I am miserable. I am distressed. I am without prosperity. O Bhava! You are the eternal destination. O Parameshvara! O lord of the gods! I may have committed crimes in my ignorance. Since I am your devotee, you should pardon all these. O lord of the gods! I was confused because of the form you assumed. O lord of the gods! I did not offer you arghya and padya.”167 Thus, with devotion, I worshipped Ishana and offered him padya and arghya. I joined my hands in salutation and offered everything to him. O son! A shower of auspicious flowers descended on my head. They were sprinkled with cool water and possessed divine fragrances. The servants of the gods sounded celestial drums. An auspicious breeze started to blow. It was pleasant and bore sacred scents.
‘“‘With his wife, Mahadeva, the one with the bull on his banner, was pleased with me. Delighted with me, he spoke to the gods who were present. “O all the gods! Look at the great-souled Upamanyu. His single-minded devotion towards me is divine and supreme and he has no other sentiment.” O Krishna! The one with the trident in his hand spoke in this way to the gods. All of them joined their hands in salutation. They bowed down before the one with the bull on his banner and said, “O illustrious one! O god! O lord of the gods! O protector of the worlds! O lord of the universe! Thanks to you, this excellent brahmana will obtain all the fruits that he desires.” All the gods, with Brahma at the forefront, spoke in this way to Sharva. The illustrious lord Shankara seemed to smile at me. He said, “O Upamanyu! O child! I am pleased with you. O bull among the sages! Look at me. Your devotion towards me is firm. O brahmana rishi! I wished to test you.168 I am extremely delighted at your great devotion. Therefore, I will now give you everything that you wish for.” This is what the lord Mahadeva told me there. My eyes filled with tears of joy and my body hair stood up. In a voice that was full of joy and devotion, I spoke these words to the god. I sank down on my knees and repeatedly prostrated myself before him. “O god! It seems to me as if I have been born today. My austerities have become successful today. O Mahadeva! I have seen you in person. You are stationed in front of me, pleased with me. I have seen the one who is worshipped, the infinitely valorous one whom even the gods cannot see. Having seen that god, who is more fortunate than me? Learned ones meditate on him as the supreme and eternal truth. He is famous as the lord of attachment. He is supreme of the supreme. He is the one without decay. He is the illustrious god who represents all that is true. He is without beginning and without destruction. He is the one who knows about all truth and ordinances. He is the lord who is the foremost Purusha. He is the one who created Brahma, the creator of the worlds, from his right flank. He is the lord who created Vishnu, for the protection of the worlds, from his left flank. When the end of a yuga arrives, he is the lord who creates Rudra from his limbs. Rudra destroys everything in the universe, mobile and immobile. He is the immensely energetic Destroyer, the fire of destruction. This god, Mahadeva, is the creator of everything in the universe, mobile and immobile. At the end of a kalpa, it has been said that everything is withdrawn into him. You go everywhere. You are the soul of all creatures. You are Bhava, the creator who creates the creator of beings. You always go everywhere, but are incapable of being seen by all the gods. O lord! O Shankara! If you are gratified with me and wish to grant me a boon, let me have eternal devotion towards you. O lord! O supreme among the gods! Through your favours, let me possess the intelligence so that I know everything about the past, the present and the future. Let me and my relatives be able to enjoy an inexhaustible supply of food cooked with milk. May your supreme self always reside near me, in my hermitage.” The illustrious one, revered by the worlds, agreed to this.
‘“‘The lord Maheshvara, the immensely energetic preceptor of everything mobile and immobile, said, “Be without old age and without death. Be free from misery. Be full of good qualities. Know everything and be handsome. May you possess eternal youth. May you possess an energy that is like that of the fire. O sage! Wherever you desire, there will be an ocean of milk. As you desire, that store of milk will always be near you. Enjoy that ocean of milk, with amrita mixed in it. With your relatives, always think of worshipping me. O supreme among brahmanas! I will always be with you, in your hermitage. O child! Reside wherever you wish. You should have no anxiety. O brahmana! Whenever you remember me, I will always show myself to you.” The illustrious one was as resplendent as one crore suns. Having granted me the boon, Ishana disappeared from that spot. O Krishna! Thus, through my meditations, I saw the god of the gods. I obtained everything that the intelligent one had mentioned. O Krishna! Behold. You can directly see the siddhas who reside here. There are the rishis, the vidyadharas, the yakshas, the gandharvas and the apsaras. Look at the trees that are always beautiful and full of flowers and fruit. There are flowers everywhere. There are pleasant leaves and excellent branches. O mighty-armed one! Everything has a celestial ring to it.’”’
Chapter 1696(15)
‘“Upamanyu said, ‘The great Hara has favoured many thousand others. O Madhava! Why will the illustrious one not show you his favours? Such an assembly of the gods is to be praised, especially by someone like you, who is faithful, devoted to brahmanas and non-violent. I will grant you the japa,169 through which, you will be able to see Shankara’”
Krishna said,170 “I told him, ‘O brahmana! O great sage! Through your favours, I will see the lord of the gods, the one who crushed the large numbers of Diti’s sons.’171 On the eighth day, following the rites, I was initiated by the brahmana. I received the staff and shaved my head. I held the kusha grass and dressed myself in rags. I sprinkled myself with clarified butter and wore a girdle made out of grass. For one month, I lived on fruits. For a second month, I subsisted on water. For the third, fourth and fifth months, I only subsisted on air. I single-mindedly stood on one foot, raising my arms upwards. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! I saw the energy of one thousand suns in the firmament. O descendant of the Pandu lineage! In the midst of that energy, I saw a cloud that was decorated by an array of cranes. It looked like a blue mountain and there were rainbows all over it. Garlands of lightning seemed to form a window inside it. The illustrious and extremely radiant one was seated there, together with the goddess. With his wife, he blazed because of his austerities, energy and beauty. There, with the goddess, the illustrious Maheshvara looked resplendent. It was as if the sun was located inside that cloud, together with the moon. O Kounteya! My body hair stood up in delight. My eyes dilated in wonder. He is the refuge of the large numbers of gods. He is the dispeller of all affliction. I saw Hara. He wore a crown. He held a club and a trident in his hands. He was attired in tiger skin. His hair was matted and he held a staff in his hand. He held the Pinaka and the vajra. His teeth were sharp. He wore sparkling bracelets and his sa
cred thread was a snake. A celestial garland, with many colours, adorned his chest. It was so large that it hung down, right up to his ankles. I saw him and he looked like the moon in the evening, when the rains are over. Large numbers of demons172 surrounded him on every side. He was difficult to see, as dazzling as the autumn sun. He was seated on a bull and there were eleven Rudras around him. They sought to praise the deeds of the one who is the performer of auspicious deeds. The Adityas, the Vasus, the Sadhyas, the Vishvadevas, the Ashvins praised the god who is the lord of the universe. Everything in the universe chanted his praise. Shatakratu and the illustrious Vishnu, both sons of Aditi, and Brahma were near Bhava, praising him with the rathantara Sama hymn. O Yudhishthira! There were many lords of yoga, ancestors and preceptors who knew about yoga, brahmana rishis and their sons, devarshis, the earth, the firmament, the nakshatras, the planets, the fortnights, the months, the seasons, the nights, the years, the kshanas, the muhurtas, the nimeshas, the yugas in due order, the divine branches of knowledge, all the directions, Sanatkumara, the Vedas, itihasa, Marichi, Angiras, Atri, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu, the seven Manus, soma, the Atharvans, Brihaspati, Bhrigu, Daksha, Kashyapa, Vasishtha, kashya,173 the metres, diksha, sacrifices, dakshina, the fire, oblations, the embodied forms of all the articles required at sacrifices, all the guardians of the worlds, the rivers, the serpents, the mountains, all the mothers of the gods, the wives and the daughters of the gods and thousands, tens of thousands and billons of sages. They, and the mountains, the oceans and the directions, bowed down before the lord of tranquility. There were gandharvas and apsaras, accomplished in singing and the playing of musical instruments. They sung divine and wonderful praises to Bhava. O great king! The vidyadharas, the danavas, the guhyakas, the rakshasas and all the beings, mobile and immobile, bowed down before the lord, in speech, thoughts and deeds. Sharva, the lord of the gods, manifested himself before me. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! On seeing that Ishana was in front of me, the universe, with Prajapati and Shakra, glanced towards me. However, I did not possess the strength to look towards Mahadeva.