Bhagavatapurana 4.10: atha daśamo'dhyāyaḥ

4.10.1

/0 maitreya uvāca
prajāpater duhitaraṃ śiśumārasya vai dhruvaḥ /
upayeme bhramiṃ nāma tat-sutau kalpa-vatsarau //

Maitreya said:
Dhruva indeed married the daughter of the Prajāpati Śiśumāra, / named Bhrami; her sons were Kalpa and Vatsara.

1. Maitreya said:—(Then) Dhruva married Bhrami, the daughter of the famous king Sisumara and she was delivered of two sons who were known as Kalpa and Vatsara.

4.10.2

ilāyām api bhāryāyāṃ vāyoḥ putryāṃ mahā-balaḥ /
putram utkala-nāmānaṃ yoṣid-ratnam ajījanat //

Through another wife, Ilā, the daughter of Vāyu, the very powerful one / fathered a son named Utkala and a jewel among women.

2. And by another wife called Iḷā the daughter of Vāyu King Dhruva of great power had a son called Utkala who was a jewel to women (to bear)—[and also an excellent daughter.]

4.10.3

uttamas tv akṛtodvāho mṛgayāyāṃ balīyasā /
hataḥ puṇya-janenādrau tan-mātāsya gatiṃ gatā //

Uttama, however, unmarried, was killed on a mountain / during a hunt by a powerful Puṇyajana, and his mother followed him to his fate.

3. But Uttama, while yet unmarried, was, in a hunting expedition, slain by a Yaksha on the (Himalaya) mountains [in a fight]; and his mother followed his course *i.e.*, met with a like fate (went in search of him and died.)

4.10.4

dhruvo bhrātṛ-vadhaṃ śrutvā kopāmarṣa-śucārpitaḥ /
jaitraṃ syandanam āsthāya gataḥ puṇya-janālayam //

Dhruva, hearing of his brother's slaughter, seized with anger, indignation, and grief, / mounted his victorious chariot and went to the dwelling of the Puṇyajanās.

4. Having heard of his brother's death Dhruva was filled with anger, revenge and sorrow, mounted his victorious chariot and marched against the home of the Yakshas.

4.10.5

gatvodīcīṃ diśaṃ rājā rudrānucara-sevitām /
dadarśa himavad-droṇyāṃ purīṃ guhyaka-saṅkulām //

Going to the northern region frequented by the followers of Rudra, / the king saw in a valley of the Himālayas a city crowded with Guhyakas.

5. Going towards the north the king (Dhruva) came to the city in the Himalayan valley dwelt in by the followers of Rudra and crowded with the Guhyakas (Yakshas.)

4.10.6

dadhmau śaṅkhaṃ bṛhad-bāhuḥ khaṃ diśaś cānunādayan /
yenodvigna-dṛśaḥ kṣattar upadevyo 'trasan bhṛśam //

The mighty-armed one blew his conch, resounding through the sky and directions, / by which, O Vidura, the wives of the demigods were greatly terrified, their eyes filled with alarm.

6. The stout-armed Dhruva blew his conch filling the sky, the cardinal points and the intermediate points with its sound; on hearing it, O Vidura, the yakshawomen were filled with great fear and looked bewildered.

4.10.7

tato niṣkramya balina upadeva-mahā-bhaṭāḥ /
asahantas tan-ninādam abhipetur udāyudhāḥ //

Then, marching forth, the mighty great warriors among the demigods,
unable to bear that sound, rushed forward with raised weapons.

7. Then the powerful warriors among the Yakshas, impatient at the sound they heard, issued from the city and proceeded against him with upraised weapons.

4.10.8

sa tān āpatato vīra ugra-dhanvā mahā-rathaḥ /
ekaikaṃ yugapat sarvān ahan bāṇais tribhis tribhiḥ //

As they charged, that hero of terrible bow and great chariot
struck each and every one simultaneously with three arrows each.

8. The great warrior of formidable bow hit every one with three arrows; and thus simultaneously he struck down all the Yakshas who came to attack him.

4.10.9

te vai lalāṭa-lagnais tair iṣubhiḥ sarva eva hi /
matvā nirastam ātmānam āśaṃsan karma tasya tat //

Indeed, with those arrows lodged in their foreheads,
all of them, considering themselves defeated, praised that feat of his.

9. With the arrows planted in their forehead they all saw themselves completely defeated and fell to praising his heroic work.

4.10.10

te 'pi cāmum amṛṣyantaḥ pāda-sparśam ivoragāḥ /
śarair avidhyan yugapad dvi-guṇaṃ pracikīrṣavaḥ //

Yet, unable to tolerate him—like serpents [unable to brook] the touch of a foot—
they pierced him with arrows simultaneously, eager to pay him back twofold.

10. And they too, wild with rage like serpents trodden under foot, simultaneously struck him with arrows, desirous of doing double what he did.

4.10.11

tataḥ parigha-nistriṃśaiḥ prāsaśūla-paraśvadhaiḥ /
śakty-ṛṣṭibhir bhuśuṇḍībhiś citra-vājaiḥ śarair api //

Then, with iron clubs, swords, darts, spears, and axes,
with lances, javelins, catapults, and arrows with variegated feathers,

11—12. Thereupon the lakh and thirty thousand warriors, fired with wrath and eager to return the injury, showered on him, his chariot and charioteer, various weapons and missiles, namely. Sakti, Rishti and Bhushindi.

4.10.12

abhyavarṣan prakupitāḥ sarathaṃ saha-sārathim /
icchantas tat pratīkartum ayutānāṃ trayodaśa //

enraged, they rained down upon his chariot and his charioteer—
thirteen ten-thousands [of them], desiring to retaliate for that.

4.10.13

auttānapādiḥ sa tadā śastra-varṣeṇa bhūriṇā /
na evādṛśyatācchanna āsāreṇa yathā giriḥ //

Then that son of Uttānapāda, under that vast shower of weapons,
could no longer be seen, covered as a mountain by a downpour.

13. At that hour the son of Uttānapāda was not to be seen, being completely covered with the thick shower of arrows just as a hill is hidden with volleys of rain.

4.10.14

hāhā-kāras tadaivāsīt siddhānāṃ divi paśyatām /
hato 'yaṃ mānavaḥ sūryo magnaḥ puṇya-janārṇave //

Right then, a cry of sorrow arose from the Siddhas watching in the sky:
“This descendant of Manu is slain! The sun is drowned in the ocean of Yakṣas!”

14. At once there arose a wild cry of ha ! ha ! (Alas! Alas!, from among the Siddhas who witnessed the scene from above.—"This human Sūrya has been struck down and he is down in the sea of Yakshas."

4.10.15

nadatsu yātudhāneṣu jaya-kāśiṣv atho mṛdhe /
udatiṣṭhad rathas tasya nīhārād iva bhāskaraḥ //

While the demons roared, celebrating their victory in battle,
his chariot suddenly emerged, like the sun from mist.

15. Then the Yātudhānas or Rākshasas fell to shouting and were proclaiming their own triumph as certain; (but) a while thereafter his chariot came into view as the sun from behind the mist.

4.10.16

dhanur visphūrjayan divyaṃ dviṣatāṃ khedam udvahan /
astraughaṃ vyadhamad bāṇair ghanānīkam ivānilaḥ //

Twanging his celestial bow, bringing dejection to his enemies,
he scattered that multitude of weapons with his arrows, as the wind scatters an army of clouds.

16. Twanging his divine bow and causing distress to his enemies he scattered them just as wind scatters the clouds.

4.10.17

tasya te cāpa-nirmuktā bhittvā varmāṇi rakṣasām /
kāyān āviviśus tigmā girīn aśanayo yathā //

Released from his bow, those sharp [arrows], piercing the armor of the rākṣasas,
entered their bodies like thunderbolts entering mountains.

17. The sharp arrows sent from his bow went cleaving their armours into their bodies even as the strokes of lightning pass down through mountains.

4.10.18

bhallaiḥ sañchidyamānānāṃ śirobhiś cāru-kuṇḍalaiḥ /
ūrubhir hema-tālābhair dorbhir valaya-valgubhiḥ //

With heads adorned with lovely earrings severed by broad-headed arrows,
with thighs resembling golden palm trees, and with arms adorned with charming bracelets,

18. When they were being cut down with the arrows called Bhallas, the fields of battle were covered with their heads adorned with ear-rings, with their thighs resembling golden palms, with their arms beautiful with bracelets; with the piecious strings of pearls, Keyuras, crowns and helmets; and those fields presented a spectacle most attractive to warriors.

4.10.19

hāra-keyūra-mukuṭair uṣṇīṣaiś ca mahā-dhanaiḥ /
āstṛtās tā raṇa-bhuvo rejur vīra-mano-harāḥ //

and strewn with necklaces, armlets, diadems, and costly turbans,
those battlegrounds shone, captivating the minds of heroes.

4.10.20

hatāvaśiṣṭā itare raṇājirād rakṣo-gaṇāḥ kṣatriya-varya-sāyakaiḥ /
prāyo vivṛkṇāvayavā vidudruvur mṛgendra-vikrīḍita-yūthapā iva //

The rest of the demonic hosts left alive by the arrows of the foremost Kṣatriya
fled from the battlefield, their limbs mostly severed, like herd leaders sports-played with by a lion.

20. Mostly the crowds of the Rakshasas who escaped the slaughter had some of their members cut off with the shafts of the foremost *kshatriya* (Dhruva) and fled from the field like the leading elephants put to flight by the lion, the king of beasts.

4.10.21

apaśyamānaḥ sa tadātatāyinaṃ mahā-mṛdhe kañcana mānavottamaḥ /
purīṃ didṛkṣann api nāviśad dviṣāṃ na māyināṃ veda cikīrṣitaṃ janaḥ //

Seeing no assailant in that great battle,
that best of humans, though wishing to view their city, did not enter; for one knows not the intentions of deceptive foes.

21–22. Now the foremost man found no ruffian staying on the great field; and though he was eager to see the city, he did not enter it being the abode of enemies; for no man can know what the crafty may do! So telling his charioteer the great kshatriya prince kept himself prepared suspecting another attack from the enemies; and he heard a noise as if it were of the sea and saw on all sides the dust raised by the wind.

4.10.22

iti bruvaṃś citra-rathaḥ sva-sārathiṃ yattaḥ pareṣāṃ pratiyoga-śaṅkitaḥ /
śuśrāva śabdaṃ jaladher iveritaṃ nabhasvato dikṣu rajo 'nvadṛśyata //

Speaking thus to his charioteer, he of the splendid chariot, alert and wary of a counterattack by his foes,
heard a sound like that of the surging ocean, and dust was seen in all directions.

4.10.23

kṣaṇenācchāditaṃ vyoma ghanānīkena sarvataḥ /
visphurat-taḍitā dikṣu trāsayat-stanayitnunā //

In an instant, the sky was covered on all sides by a mass of clouds,
with flashing lightning in all directions and terrifying thunder.

23. In a moment the sky was overcast with clouds from every side attended with fearful flashes of lightning and with threatening thunders rolling in every direction.

4.10.24

vavṛṣū rudhiraughāsṛk- pūya-viṇ-mūtra-medasaḥ /
nipetur gaganād asya kabandhāny agrato 'nagha //

Torrents of blood, gore, pus, feces, urine, and fat rained down;
headless trunks fell from the sky before him, O sinless one.

24-26. They (clouds) rained blood, phlegm, puss, excreta and fat and urine; O Sinless Vidura! before him fell headless trunks from the sky; then appeared a mountain in the air; and from all sides they rushed in with Gadā, Parighā, Nistrimsa, and Musala, showering stones; there came serpents breath-

4.10.25

tataḥ khe 'dṛśyata girir nipetuḥ sarvato-diśam /
gadā-parigha-nistriṃśa- musalāḥ sāśma-varṣiṇaḥ //

Then a mountain appeared in the sky, and there fell in every direction
maces, iron clubs, swords, pestles, along with a shower of stones.

4.10.26

ahayo 'śani-niḥśvāsā vamanto 'gniṃ ruṣākṣibhiḥ /
abhyadhāvan gajā mattāḥ siṃha-vyāghrāś ca yūthaśaḥ //

Serpents breathing thunderbolts, vomiting fire from eyes filled with rage,
and rutting elephants, lions, and tigers rushed forward in packs.

ing violent thunders, vomiting fire through their enraged eyes, mad elephants, tigers and lions rushing forth in herds;

4.10.27

samudra ūrmibhir bhīmaḥ plāvayan sarvato bhuvam /
āsasāda mahā-hrādaḥ kalpānta iva bhīṣaṇaḥ //

A terrible sea with its waves, inundating the earth on all sides,
approached with a great roar, dreadful like the end of a cosmic age.

27. And, terrific like the deep sea at the time of Pralaya now the sea came on all sides deluging the earth with its waves.

4.10.28

evaṃ-vidhāny anekāni trāsanāny amanasvinām /
sasṛjus tigma-gataya āsuryā māyayāsurāḥ //

Many such terrors to the faint-hearted
the demons of swift speed created by their demonic creative power.

28. Thus the Asuras practised in atrocities, by means of their Asura power of magic produced in rapid succession very many and different sights and things which fill the unthinking minds with fear and consternation.

4.10.29

dhruve prayuktām asurais tāṃ māyām atidustarām /
niśamya tasya munayaḥ śam āśaṃsan samāgatāḥ //

Hearing of that most insurmountable creative power employed by the demons against Dhruva,
sages gathered there and prayed for his welfare.

29. On seeing the insuperable Māyā employed by the Asuras against Dhruva, the sages came in and prayed for his welfare (protection).

4.10.30

/0 munaya ūcuḥ
auttānapāda bhagavāṃs tava śārṅgadhanvā $ devaḥ kṣiṇotv avanatārti-haro vipakṣān &
auttānapāda bhagavāṃs tava śārṅgadhanvā $ devaḥ kṣiṇotv avanatārti-haro vipakṣān &
yan-nāmadheyam abhidhāya niśamya cāddhā % loko 'ñjasā tarati dustaram aṅga mṛtyum //

The sages said:
O son of Uttānapāda, may the Lord, the bowman Śārṅgadhanvā,
God who removes the distress of the surrendered, destroy your adversaries—
by uttering and truly hearing whose name,
O dear one, a person easily crosses over insurmountable death!

30. The sages said:—"O son of Uttānapāda, the glorious Lord, the weilder of Śhārnga-bow, thy God, may destroy thy enemies—the Lord who removes the affliction of his suppliants," by the mention or hearing of whose name this world certainly overcomes the unconquerable death, O beloved Dhruva."