Mahabharata Vol. 1 (Penguin Translated Texts) (38 page)

‘He told the famous Kunti, his lawful wife, “A union to obtain offspring is supported. O Kunti! The sacred texts say that the worlds are established by offspring. The learned ones who know eternal dharma say this. Offerings, gifts, austerities, self-control—it is said that none of these free a childless man from his sins. O one with the sweet smiles! Knowing this, since I am without offspring, I think and can see that I will never attain the bright worlds. O timid one! Since I was addicted to cruelty and viciousness, through the deer’s curse, I lost my powers of procreation before my desire was satisfied. O Pritha! The religious texts speak of six kinds of sons who are both heirs and relatives and six kinds of sons who are neither heirs, nor relatives. Listen—the son born from one’s own self, the son presented,
the son purchased, the son born from one’s widow, the son born through one’s wife before marriage and the son born through a loose wife.
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The others are the son gifted, the son bought, the son who is obtained artificially, the son who comes on his own, the son who comes with marriage, the son who is born of unknown semen and the son who is born from an inferior womb.
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One should try to obtain sons from the first downwards and so on. One always desires to obtain a son from a better man. O Pritha! The self-created Manu has said that the righteous who have no offspring can ensure the fruits of dharma outside their own semen. O famous one! Since I am myself incapable of procreation, I will ask you to obtain sons through my equals or betters. O Kunti! Listen to the story of Sharadandayani, the wife of a warrior. She was instructed by her superiors to obtain a son. O Kunti! When her season came, she bathed. In the night, she went to a place where four roads met and welcomed an accomplished Brahmana. For the sake of obtaining a son, she poured oblations into the fire. After performing this rite, she lived with him and three maharatha sons were thus born, Durjaya being the eldest. O fortunate one! On my instructions, you should also quickly obtain a son through a Brahmana who is superior to me in austerities.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘O king! Having been thus addressed, Kunti told Pandu, bull among the Kurus, lord of the earth and her husband, “O one who is learned in the law! O one with eyes like those of a blue lotus! You should not speak in this way to me. I am
your wife under the law and am always devoted to you. O mighty-armed one! O descendant of the Bharata lineage! According to dharma, you should yourself father valourous sons on me. O tiger among men! I will go to heaven with you. O descendant of the Kuru lineage! You should unite with me to obtain offspring. Not even in my thoughts will I go to any other man but you. Which man on earth is superior to you? O one with large eyes! O one with dharma in your heart! Listen to this story from the Puranas. I heard this and I am now recounting it for you.”

‘Kunti said, “In ancient times, it is said that there was a king by the name of Vyushitashva. He extended the Puru lineage and was extremely righteous. The gods with Indra and the devarshis came to a sacrifice that this mighty-armed and righteous one performed. At the sacrifice of the great-souled rajarshi Vyushitashva, Indra was intoxicated with soma juice and the Brahmanas with their fees. O king! Thereafter, Vyushitashva was radiant beyond everything on earth, beyond all living beings and even beyond the sun, after dew has fallen. O supreme among kings! The king conquered all the kings of the east, the north, the middle and the south. At this great horse sacrifice, the powerful Vyushitashva, with the strength of ten elephants, became the king of all other kings. Those who know the Puranas sing a verse. ‘Vyushitashva has conquered the entire earth till the boundaries of the ocean. He protects all the varnas, just as a father protects his own sons.’ He performed many great sacrifices and gave riches to the Brahmanas. Collecting jewels, he later performed great sacrifices. Extracting a lot of soma juice, he performed the sacrifice known as
somasanstha
.

‘“O lord of men! His beloved wife was named Bhadra, the daughter of Kakshivat. Because of her beauty, she was unparalleled on earth. It has been heard that they desired each other a lot and addicted by desire for her, he became a victim of consumption. After some time, he went away like the setting sun. When that king of men died, his wife was afflicted with grief. O tiger among men! O lord of men! It has been heard that she lamented. ‘O, supreme among those who know dharma! A woman without sons lives a life of misery, if she lives without her husband. O bull among the Kshatriyas!
Without her husband, it is better for a woman to be dead. Please take me with you. I wish to go where you are going. Without you, I will not be able to bear life for an instant. O king! Show your grace to me and take me quickly away. O king! I will always follow you like a faithful shadow and will always be obedient towards you. O tiger among men! I will always do that which is pleasurable for you. O king! O one with the eyes of a lotus! From now, a disease that dries up the heart will overcome me, since I will be separated from you. O king! I am unfortunate. In earlier bodies, I must have separated companions or separated a couple that was united. O king! That evil act from an earlier body has now come upon me and I am suffering this pain as a result. O king! From today, I will lie on a bed of kusha grass. I will give up all happiness and think only of seeing you. O tiger among men! Show yourself to me and make me happy. O lord of men! I am overcome with grief, miserable, unprotected and lamenting.’ Embracing the corpse, she lamented again and again. Then an invisible voice addressed her. ‘O Bhadra! O sweet-smiling one! Arise and leave. I will give you a boon. I will father offspring on you. O one with the beautiful hips! After you have bathed after your season, on the eighth or fourteenth lunar day, I will lie with you on your own bed.’ At these words, Queen Bhadra, who was devoted to her husband and wished to obtain sons, did as she had been asked to do. O lord of men! O supreme among those of the Bharata lineage! The queen gave birth to sons through the corpse—the three Shalvas and the four Madras. O bull of the Bharata lineage! You too will be able to have sons on me, through the powers of yoga your mind possesses.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Having been thus addressed, the king who knew dharma and was always devoted to dharma, addressed the queen again in these supreme words. “O Kunti! O fortunate
one! What you have said is true. In ancient times, Vyushitashva did act this way. But he was like a god. Let me tell you what the ancient and great-souled rishis, learned in dharma, have laid down as dharma. O one with the beautiful eyes! In ancient times, women went around uncovered. They roamed around where they wished and were independent. O one with the beautiful hips! O fortunate one! From the time when they became maidens, they were not faithful to their husbands. This was not regarded as against dharma, because that was the dharma of those ancient times. Without desire and anger, this ancient dharma is still followed by those of inferior birth.
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The practice of this ancient dharma is sanctioned by the maharshis. O one with thighs like that of a plantain tree! This is still practised in the northern Kuru region. This eternal dharma is favourable to women. O one with the beautiful smiles! The present practice of the world was only laid down later. Listen when I tell you completely when it was established and by whom.”

‘Pandu said, “We have heard that there was a maharshi named Uddalaka. He had a hermit son named Shvetaketu. We have heard that he laid down this rule for humans, in a fit of anger. O one with eyes like lotus petals! I will tell you why. In ancient times, in the presence of Shvetaketu’s father, a Brahmana came and grasped his mother’s hand and said, ‘Let us go.’ At this, the rishi’s son was angry and indignant when he saw his mother being taken away, as if forcibly. On seeing him angry, Shvetaketu’s father said, ‘O son! Do not be angry. This is the eternal practice. Women of all varnas are uncovered on earth. All beings are established in their own varnas, like cattle.’ Shvetaketu, the rishi’s son, did not accept this dharma. He established the present rule for men and women on earth. O immensely fortunate one! This is for humans, not for animals. We have heard that since then this rule has been established. ‘From that day onwards, a woman who is not faithful to her husband will commit a sin that is equal to that of foeticide and be miserable. He who seduces a virgin, one who follows brahmacharya, or a wife who is devoted to her husband will also commit a sin on earth. A wife who is appointed by her
husband to conceive a son, but refuses to do so, will also commit the same sin. O, timid one! In ancient times, thus did Uddalaka’s son Shvetaketu forcibly establish the present practice of dharma. O one with thighs like that of a plantain tree! We have also heard that Sudasa’s son appointed his wife Madayanti to obtain a son and she went to the rishi Vashishtha. O beautiful one! Through him, she obtained a son named Ashmaka. Kalmashapada’s
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wife did this act so as to please her husband. O lotus-eyed one! You are acquainted with the story of our birth. O timid one! We were begotten through Krishna Dvaipayana, so that the lineage of the Kurus might be extended. O unblemished one! On seeing all these reasons, you must do what I am asking you to do and this is dharma. O princess! Those who are learned in dharma say that at the time of her season, a wife who is strict in her vows must seek her husband. This is dharma. However, at other times, the woman is free to choose. Righteous ones who know dharma say that this was the ancient practice. O princess! But those who know dharma have also said that it is the duty of a wife to do what her husband instructs, be it in favour of dharma or against dharma. O one with an unblemished form! This is especially the case if one is hungry for sons, but is unable to procreate on one’s own. I am like that, longing to set my eyes on a son. O beautiful one! I am joining my hands, like lotus leaves with red fingers, and raising them above my head. Be propitiated. O one with the beautiful hair! Because of my instructions, give birth to sons who have all the qualities, through Brahmanas who are ascetics. O one with broad hips! Through your act, I will tread the path of those who have sons.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Pandu, the conqueror of enemy cities, thus addressed Kunti, the one with the beautiful hips. She loved to please her husband and said, “When I was a child in my father’s house, I was appointed to look after the guests. There I satisfied, with all attentiveness, a fearsome Brahmana rigid in his vows. He had his senses under control and was learned about the secret nuances of dharma. He is known as Durvasa. Pleased with my service, the
illustrious one gave me a boon and taught me a mantra. Any god that I summon through this mantra will come to me and be subservient to me, whether he desires it or not. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! This is what he told me in my father’s house. O king! The words uttered by a Brahmana are never false and the time has come. If you permit, I can summon a god. O rajarshi! O lord! Through that mantra, we can have offspring. O supreme among those who know the truth! Which god shall I summon? Know that I am waiting for your command, so as to act.” Pandu replied, “O beautiful one! O one with the beautiful hips! You must act today itself, in the proper way. Summon Dharma, because he is the one who partakes of what is sacred. That which is not dharma is never united with that which is dharma. O one with the beautiful hips! The worlds will now think that what we have done is dharma. There is no doubt that one who is devoted to dharma will be born into the Kuru lineage. Since he will be given by Dharma, there will never be anything that is not dharma in his mind. O sweet-smiling one! Therefore, always set dharma before you and summon him. Worship Dharma through your offerings and rituals.” At these words of her husband, the most beautiful of woman agreed. With his permission, she circumambulated him.’

Vaishampayana said, ‘O Janamejaya! Kunti summoned the undecaying Dharma for conception, after Gandhari had been with child for a year. The queen swiftly made offerings to Dharma and followed the rites that had earlier been given to her by Durvasa. Through his powers of yoga, Dharma assumed form and she united with him. Consequently, the one with the beautiful hips obtained a son who was the best of all living beings. This was a sacred tithi,
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widely worshipped. It was the eighth hour of the day and the sun
was in the middle of the sky. It was the auspicious moment known as
aindra
, when the moon was in conjunction with Abhijit.
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When it was time, Kunti gave birth to a famous son. As soon as he was born, an invisible voice was heard. “There is no doubt that he will be supreme among those who uphold dharma. Pandu’s first-born son will be famous by the name of Yudhishthira. He will also be a famous king, renowned in the three worlds—endowed with fame, radiance and adherence to vows.” Having obtained this virtuous son, Pandu again said, “It is said that the best thing for Kshatriyas is strength. Therefore, ask for a son who has great strength.” Having been thus addressed by her husband, she invoked Vayu
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for a son. Through him, she obtained the mighty-armed Bhima, whose strength was terrifying. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! As soon as this immensely strong one was born, an invisible voice was heard. “This son will be the strongest among all those who are strong.” An extraordinary event occurred as soon as Vrikodara
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was born. Falling down from his mother’s lap, he shattered a mountain into fragments with his body. Kunti was asleep and suddenly awoke, frightened by a tiger and forgetting that Vrikodara was asleep in her lap. The son, whose body was as hard as vajra, fell on the mountain. As he fell, he shattered the mountain into a hundred pieces with his body. On witnessing the mountain break in this way, Pandu was astounded. O supreme among those of the Bharata lineage! O lord of the earth! Duryodhana was born on the very same day that Bhima was born.

‘When Vrikodara was born, Pandu again began to think. “How can I obtain a supreme son who will be the best in all the worlds? This world depends on destiny and on human action. But as decreed, destiny is only obtained over a period of time. We have heard that Indra is the king and the best of the gods. He has immeasurable strength and endeavour and he is valorous and unlimited in radiance. By pleasing him with austerities, I can obtain a son who is immensely strong. The son that he will give me will be the best. I shall therefore
perform the greatest of austerities in mind, deeds and speech.” Thereupon, after consulting with maharshis, the immensely energetic Pandu of the Kuru lineage instructed Kunti to observe a sacred vow for one year. The mighty-armed himself stood on one leg for a year, performing severe austerities and immersed in supreme meditation. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Wishing to propitiate the god who is the lord of the thirty gods, the one with dharma in his heart worshipped the sun. Indra responded after a long time. “I will give you a son who will be famous in the three worlds. He will ensure the welfare of gods, Brahmanas and relatives. I will give you a son who will destroy all his enemies.” After the great-souled Vasava
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had spoken to the king of the Kuru lineage, the one with dharma in his heart spoke to Kunti, remembering the words of the king of the gods. “O one with the beautiful hips! O sweet-smiling one! Devoted to morality, great-souled, radiant as the sun, invincible, action-oriented, extremely wonderful to look at and endowed with Kshatriya energy—this is the son we will receive through the grace of the king of the gods. Summon him.” At these words, the famous one summoned Shakra.
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