The Great Epic of the Bhārata dynasty 13.97

Mahābhārata 13.97

Language: Sanskrit

13.97.1

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
yadidaṃ śrāddhadharmeṣu dīyate bharatarṣabha |
chatraṃ copānahau caiva kenaitatsaṃpravartitam |
kathaṃ caitatsamutpannaṃ kimarthaṃ ca pradīyate || 1 ||

"Yudhishthira said, 'O chief of Bharata's rare, by whom was the custom of giving umbrellas and sandals at obsequial ceremonies introduced? Why was it introduced and for what purpose are those gifts made? They are given not only at obsequial ceremonies but also at other religious rites. They are given on many occasions with a view to acquiring religious merit. I wish to know, in detail, O regenerate one, the true meaning of this custom!'"
Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1883, The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa

13.97.2

na kevalaṃ śrāddhadharme puṇyakeṣvapi dīyate |
etadvistarato rājañśrotumicchāmi tattvataḥ || 2 ||

13.97.3

bhīṣma uvāca |
śṛṇu rājannavahitaśchatropānahavistaram |
yathaitatprathitaṃ loke yena caitatpravartitam || 3 ||

"Bhishma said, 'Do thou, O prince, attentively listen to the details I shall recite in respect of the custom of giving away umbrellas and shoes at religious rites, and as to how and by whom it was introduced. I shall also tell thee in full, O prince, how it acquired the force of a permanent observance and how it came to be viewed as a meritorious act. I shall, in this connection, recite the narrative of the discourse between Jamadagni and the high-souled Surya. In ancient times, the illustrious Jamadagni, O puissant king, of Bhrigu's race, was engaged in practising with his bow. Taking his aim, he shot arrow after arrow. His wife Renuka used to pick up the shafts when shot and repeatedly bring them back to that descendant, endued with blazing energy, of Bhrigu's race. Pleased with the whizzing noise of his arrows and the twang of his bow, he amused himself thus by repeatedly discharging his arrows which Renuka brought back into him. One day, at noontide, O monarch, in that month when the sun was in Jyesthamula, the Brahmana, having discharged all his arrows, said to Renuka, 'O large-eyed lady, go and fetch me the shafts I have shot from my bow, O thou of beautiful eye-brows! I shall again shoot them with my bow.' The lady proceeded on her errand but was compelled to sit under the shade of a tree, in consequence of her head and feet being scorched by the heat of the sun. The black-eyed and graceful Renuka, having rested for only a moment, feared the curse of her husband and, therefore, addressed herself again to the task of collecting and bringing back the arrows. Taking them with her, the celebrated lady of graceful features came back, distressed in mind and her feet smarting with pain.
Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1883, The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa

13.97.4

yathā cākṣayyatāṃ prāptaṃ puṇyatāṃ ca yathā gatam |
sarvametadaśeṣeṇa pravakṣyāmi janādhipa || 4 ||

13.97.5

itihāsaṃ purāvṛttamimaṃ śṛṇu narādhipa |
jamadagneśca saṃvādaṃ sūryasya ca mahātmanaḥ || 5 ||

13.97.6

purā sa bhagavānsākṣāddhanuṣākrīḍata prabho |
saṃdhāya saṃdhāya śarāṃścikṣepa kila bhārgavaḥ || 6 ||

13.97.7

tānkṣiptānreṇukā sarvāṃstasyeṣūndīptatejasaḥ |
ānāyya sā tadā tasmai prādādasakṛdacyuta || 7 ||

13.97.8

atha tena sa śabdena jyātalasya śarasya ca |
prahṛṣṭaḥ saṃpracikṣepa sā ca pratyājahāra tān || 8 ||

13.97.9

tato madhyāhnamārūḍhe jyeṣṭhāmūle divākare |
sa sāyakāndvijo viddhvā reṇukāmidamabravīt || 9 ||

13.97.10

gacchānaya viśālākṣi śarānetāndhanuścyutān |
yāvadetānpunaḥ subhru kṣipāmīti janādhipa || 10 ||

13.97.11

sā gacchatyantarā chāyāṃ vṛkṣamāśritya bhāminī |
tasthau tasyā hi saṃtaptaṃ śiraḥ pādau tathaiva ca || 11 ||

13.97.12

sthitā sā tu muhūrtaṃ vai bhartuḥ śāpabhayācchubhā |
yayāvānayituṃ bhūyaḥ sāyakānasitekṣaṇā |
pratyājagāma ca śarāṃstānādāya yaśasvinī || 12 ||

13.97.13

sā prasvinnā sucārvaṅgī padbhyāṃ duḥkhaṃ niyacchatī |
upājagāma bhartāraṃ bhayādbhartuḥ pravepatī || 13 ||

[paragraph continues] Trembling with fear, she approached her husband. The Rishi, filled with wrath, repeatedly addressed his fair-faced spouse, saying, 'O Renuka, why hast thou teen so late in returning?'"
Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1883, The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa

13.97.14

sa tāmṛṣistataḥ kruddho vākyamāha śubhānanām |
reṇuke kiṃ cireṇa tvamāgateti punaḥ punaḥ || 14 ||

13.97.15

reṇukovāca |
śirastāvatpradīptaṃ me pādau caiva tapodhana |
sūryatejoniruddhāhaṃ vṛkṣacchāyāmupāśritā || 15 ||

"Renuka said, 'O thou that art endued with wealth of penances, my head and feet were scorched by the rays of the sun! Oppressed by the heat, I had betaken myself to the shade of a tree! Just this has been the cause of the delay! Informed of the cause, do thou, O lord, cease to be angry with me!'"
Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1883, The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa

13.97.16

etasmātkāraṇādbrahmaṃścirametatkṛtaṃ mayā |
etajjñātvā mama vibho mā krudhastvaṃ tapodhana || 16 ||

13.97.17

jamadagniruvāca |
adyainaṃ dīptakiraṇaṃ reṇuke tava duḥkhadam |
śarairnipātayiṣyāmi sūryamastrāgnitejasā || 17 ||

"Jamadagni said, 'O Renuka, this very day shall I destroy, with the fiery energy of my weapons, the star of day with his blazing rays, that has afflicted thee in this way!'"
Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1883, The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa

13.97.18

bhīṣma uvāca |
sa visphārya dhanurdivyaṃ gṛhītvā ca bahūñśarān |
atiṣṭhatsūryamabhito yato yāti tatomukhaḥ || 18 ||

"Bhishma continued, 'Drawing his celestial bow, and taking up many arrows, Jamadagni stood, turning his face towards the sun and watching him as he moved (in his diurnal course). Then, O son of Kunti, beholding him addressed for fight, Surya approached him in the guise of a Brahmana, and said unto him. 'What has Surya done to displease thee? Coursing through the firmament, he draws up the moisture from the earth, and in the form of rains he pours it down once more on her. It is through this, O regenerate one, that the food of human beings springs up,--food that is so agreeable to them! The Vedas say that it is food that constitutes the life-breaths. O Brahmana, hidden in the clouds and encompassed by his rays, the sun drenches the seven islands with showers of rain. O puissant one, the moisture, thus poured, diffusing itself into the leaves and fruits of vegetables and herbs, is transformed into food. O son of Bhrigu, the rites of nativity, religious observances of every kind, investiture with the sacred thread, gifts of kine, weddings, all articles in view of sacrifices, the rules for the governance of men, gifts, all sorts of union (between man and man), and the acquisition of wealth, have their origin in food! Thou knowest this well! All the good and agreeable things in the universe, and all the efforts made by living creatures, flow from food. I duly recite what is well-known to thee! Indeed, thou fully knowest all that I have said! Do thou, therefore, O regenerate Rishi, appease thy anger! What wilt thou gain by annihilating the sun?'"
Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1883, The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa

Translations (1)

The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa — Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1883, English

Other recensions (1)

Vulgate (Nīlakaṇṭha's text) — Sanskrit