The Ramcharitmanas 1
Page 39
Vishvakarma: A son of Brahma, and the chief architect and artist of the gods.
Vishvamitra: A celebrated sage, and the companion and counsellor of the young Ram. He was born a Kshatriya, and was the king of Kanauj, but through long and intense austerities, successfully elevated himself to the caste of Brahman and became one of the seven great Rishis. According to the Rig Veda, he was the son of a king named Kushika, because of which he is called Kaushik. Later sources make him the son of Gadhi, king of Kanyakubja and a descendant of Puru. He is therefore also called Gadhij, ‘born of Gadhi’ or, Gadhinandan, ‘Gadhi’s son’.
Vyas: Literally, ‘an arranger’, this title is common to many ancient authors, but is especially applied to Veda Vyas, the arranger of the Vedas. The name is also given to the compiler of the Mahabharata, and the arranger of the Puranas.
Yaksha: Yakshas are semi-divine beings who protect forests and other wild places, and are generally harmless, though they may, on rare occasions, be evil. They are the attendants of the god of wealth, Kuber.
Yayati: Son of Nahush, and the fifth king of the Lunar dynasty. He had two wives, Devyani and Sarmishtha. From Devyani was born his son Yadu, and from Sarmishtha his son Puru, the respective founders of the Yadavas and the Pauravas. In all he had five sons, the three others being Druhyu, Turvasu and Anu. Yayati was fond of women, and for his infidelity to Devyani, he was cursed with old age and infirmity by her father, Shukra. This curse Shukra consented to transfer to any of his sons who would agree to bear it. All refused, except Puru, who gave up his youth to his father and took on his curse of decrepitude. Yayati spent a thousand years enjoying the pleasures of the senses, after which he restored his youth to Puru and made him his successor. This story is told in the Mahabharata, as well as in the Vishnu Purana. The version in the Padma Purana is different. Yayati was invited to heaven by Indra, who sent his charioteer Matali to fetch him. On the way, they had a philosophical discussion, which had such an impact on Yayati that when he returned to earth, he, by his virtuous rule, made all his subjects free from passion and decay. Yama, the god of Death, complained that men no longer died. So Indra sent Kamdev, the god of love, and his daughter, Asruvindumati, to tempt Yayati with desire. They succeeded, and Yayati, deeply enamoured of the youthful Asruvindumati and in order to become a fit husband for her, asked each of his sons to exchange their youth for his old age. All refused, except Puru, who gave his manly vigour to his father and assumed his decrepitude. After some time, Asruvindumati persuaded Yayati to return to heaven, and he then gave Puru back his youth. According to the Mahabharata, King Yayati, at the end of his life, gave up his throne to Puru and retired to the forest to lead the life of an ascetic. There, the king lived on fruits and roots for some time, and practised austerities, attaining complete control of his mind and his senses. He also performed fire sacrifices to honour his ancestors and the gods, and followed every prescribed rite and tradition for one in the third or forest-dwelling stage of life (See four stages of life). He then lived on scattered seeds that he gathered for a thousand years, and then for another year observing the vow of silence and living upon air alone and without sleep. He passed another year practising the most severe austerities, with four fires burning around him and the sun above, and then, living upon air alone, stood upon one leg for six months. These austerities earned him a place in heaven. He lived in heaven for a long time, where he was held in great reverence by the gods and other celestial beings. One day, Yayati went to meet Indra, the king of the gods, and in the course of conversation, Indra asked him to whom he was equal in the austerities he had practised. Yayati’s boastful answer, that he did not, in the matter of austerities, behold any who was his equal amongst men, gods, Gandharvas and rishis, led to a diminishing of his virtues, and he was hurled from the heavens back into the world of men.
yojan: A measure of distance, equivalent to 4 kos or about 9 miles.
Acknowledgements
Many people have stood by me in the five long years it has taken to complete this translation. Of these, my thanks first and foremost to R. Sivapriya, who made this project possible, and to Ambar Sahil Chatterjee, who has seen this through from the very beginning to the end. My gratitude also, to Shantanu Rai Chaudhuri, for his patient and meticulous editing.
I would also like to thank my teacher, Mrs Chandrakanta Chandra, who first introduced me to the literary genius of Tulsidas and the wonders of medieval Hindi literature in school, and whose help, in resolving nuances of language or understanding points of Tulsi’s philosophy or ideology, has been invaluable to me on this journey of discovery and translation.
As always, my profound thanks to Dr Rupert Snell, my guru and guide, without whose encouragement I may not have had the courage to take up this project, and who has been ever present with help, advice, and support every step of the way.
My very special thanks to my daughters, Vipasha Bansal and Vidisha Jain, who bore the brunt of my obsession with this work. Vipasha patiently rescued me from innumerable tangles of grammar and syntax, and Vidisha was unfailing in her encouragement and support.
And finally, to my long-suffering family and friends—in particular Usha Bubna, Dr Asha Maheshwari, Anil Ratti and Shaiontoni Bose—for their patience and support, my undying gratitude.
THE BEGINNING
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