Bhagavatapurana 9.6: atha ṣaṣṭho'dhyāyaḥ

9.6.1

/0 śrīśuka uvāca
virūpaḥ ketumān chambhurambarīṣasutāstrayaḥ /
virūpāt pṛṣadaśvo 'bhūt tatputrastu rathītaraḥ //

Śrī Śuka said: / Virūpa, Ketumant, and Śambhu were the three sons of Ambarīṣa; / from Virūpa was born Pṛṣadaśva, and his son was Rathītara.

1. Sri Suka said:— Virupa, Ketuman and Sambhu were the three sons of Ambarisha; of Virupa was born Prishadasva and his son was Ratheetara.

9.6.2

rathītarasyāprajasya bhāryāyāṃ tantave 'rthitaḥ /
aṅgirā janayāmāsa brahmavarcasvinaḥ sutān //

When Rathītara was childless, Aṅgiras, requested to produce offspring upon his wife, / fathered sons possessed of the brilliance of Brahman.

2. By the wife of Ratheetara who was childless, Angiras, when prayed to for an issue to continue the line, produced sons who were glowing with divine glory.

9.6.3

ete kṣetraprasūtā vai punastv āṅgirasāḥ smṛtāḥ /
rathītarāṇāṃ pravarāḥ kṣetropetā dvijātayaḥ //

Born of the wife's field, they were also traditionally regarded as descendants of Aṅgiras; / they are the foremost of the Rathītaras, twice-born endowed with the qualities of both fields.

3. These born of the wife of Ratheetara were however spoken of as Angiras, as foremost among Ratheetara's descendants who were brahmins with Kshatriya energy in them.

9.6.4

kṣuvatastu manorjajñe ikṣvākurghrāṇataḥ sutaḥ /
tasya putraśatajyeṣṭhā vikukṣinimidaṇḍakāḥ //

From Manu's sneeze, through his nostril, was born his son Ikṣvāku; / his hundred sons had Vikukṣi, Nimi, and Daṇḍaka as the eldest.

4. When Manu was blowing his nose, his son Ikshwaku issued from it and of his hundred sons Vikukshi, Nimi and Dandaka were the eldest.

9.6.5

teṣāṃ purastādabhavannāryāvarte nṛpā nṛpa /
pañcaviṃśatiḥ paścāc ca trayo madhye 'pare 'nyataḥ //

Twenty-five of them became kings in the eastern part of Āryāvarta, O king, / twenty-five in the west, three in the center, and the others elsewhere.

5. Out of these hundred, twenty-five sons became kings in the east (country) known as Aryavarta and twenty in the west, three in the middle and the rest in the other directions, north and south.

9.6.6

sa ekadāṣṭakāśrāddhe ikṣvākuḥ sutamādiśat /
māṃsamānīyatāṃ medhyaṃ vikukṣe gaccha mā ciram //

Once, for the Aṣṭakā-śrāddha, Ikṣvāku instructed his son: / "Fetch sacrificial meat, Vikukṣi; go without delay!"

6. Once for the sake of an Ashtaka ceremony Ikshvaku ordered his son "O Vikushi get me the ffesh of some hallowed beast, go without dealy".

9.6.7

tatheti sa vanaṃ gatvā mṛgān hatvā kriyārhaṇān /
śrānto bubhukṣito vīraḥ śaśaṃ cādadapasmṛtiḥ //

Saying "So be it," he went to the forest, killed deer fit for the rite, / and, exhausted and hungry, the hero ate a hare, heedless [of the injunction].

7. In obedience to his father's command he went to the forest, killed the animals fit for religious function; but fatigued and hungry, the warrior ate of a hare in an unconscious mood.

9.6.8

śeṣaṃ nivedayāmāsa pitre tena ca tadguruḥ /
coditaḥ prokṣaṇāyāha duṣṭametadakarmakam //

He offered the remainder to his father; and urged by him to consecrate it with water, / the preceptor said, "This is defiled and unfit for ritual use."

8. He brought the remainder to his father: when the father requested the priest to sprinkle it with sacred water for offering, his guru, the priest, said it was defiled and unfit for religious offering.

9.6.9

jñātvā putrasya tat karma guruṇābhihitaṃ nṛpaḥ /
deśān niḥsārayāmāsa sutaṃ tyaktavidhiṃ ruṣā //

Learning of his son's deed told by the preceptor, the king / in anger banished from the country the son who had abandoned the rule.

9. Having asertained that, as told by the priest, his son had committed that fault, the king in anger banished from the country his son who had violated the rule.

9.6.10

sa tu vipreṇa saṃvādaṃ jñāpakena samācaran /
tyaktvā kalevaraṃ yogī sa tenāvāpa yat param //

Having engaged in discourse with a wise brāhmaṇa, / that yogin cast off his body and attained the supreme state through it.

10. But he, Ikshvaku, conferred with the preceptor Vasishta, and performed righteous duties and then he, a yogin, cast off his body and attained to the highest Brahman.

9.6.11

pitaryuparate 'bhyetya vikukṣiḥ pṛthivīmimām /
śāsadīje hariṃ yajñaiḥ śaśāda iti viśrutaḥ //

When his father passed away, Vikukṣi returned and ruled this earth, / worshiping Hari with sacrifices, renowned as Śaśāda, the hare-eater.

11. On the demise of his father, Vikukshi returned, ruled this earth and worshipped Hari with sacrifices and became celebrated as Sasaada in the world.

9.6.12

purañjayastasya suta indravāha itīritaḥ /
kakutstha iti cāpyuktaḥ śṛṇu nāmāni karmabhiḥ //

His son was Purañjaya, called Indravāha, / and also named Kakutstha; hear his names according to his deeds.

12. And his son was Purañjaya who is said to have had Indra as his bearer and (therefore) known as Kakutstha: listen to the epithets (surnames) he earned by his deeds.

9.6.13

kṛtānta āsīt samaro devānāṃ saha dānavaiḥ /
pārṣṇigrāho vṛto vīro devairdaityaparājitaiḥ //

There was a fatal battle between the gods and the Dānavas; / defeated by the Daityas, the gods chose the hero as their rear-guard.

13. At the close of Krita age there was a war between the gods and Danu's sons and this warrior (Puranjaya) was invited to be their ally by the gods who had been defeated by Diti's sons.

9.6.14

vacanāddevadevasya viṣṇorviśvātmanaḥ prabhoḥ /
vāhanatve vṛtastasya babhūvendro mahāvṛṣaḥ //

By the word of the Lord, the God of gods, Viṣṇu, the soul of the universe, / Indra became a great bull, chosen as his mount.

14. According to the instruction of Vishnu, the most powerful Lord and Ruler of all and God of gods, Indra was desired to be the bearer of Puranjaya and so he became a great bull.

9.6.15

sa sannaddho dhanurdivyamādāya viśikhān chitān /
stūyamānastamāruhya yuyutsuḥ kakudi sthitaḥ //

Armed, taking a divine bow and sharp arrows, / praised by all, he mounted it desiring to fight, standing upon the hump.

15. Having accoutred himself and taken a divine bow and sharp arrows, being praised (applauded) by the gods, he rode sitting on the hump of the bull when proceeding to fight.

9.6.16

tejasāpyāyito viṣṇoḥ puruṣasya mahātmanaḥ /
pratīcyāṃ diśi daityānāṃ nyaruṇat tridaśaiḥ puram //

Strengthened by the splendor of Viṣṇu, the exalted Person, / he blockaded the city of the Daityas in the western quarter along with the gods.

16. Strengthened (filled) with the glorious spirit of Vishnu, the perfect and highest Person, he (with the gods) laid seige to the city of Daityas in the west.

9.6.17

taistasya cābhūt pradhanaṃ tumulaṃ lomaharṣaṇam /
yamāya bhallairanayaddaityān abhiyayurmṛdhe //

Between him and them took place a fierce battle that made the hair stand on end; / with broad-headed arrows he dispatched to Yama the Daityas who advanced against him in fight.

17. With them he had to fight a close, hand to hand and terrible battle, (which causes one's hair to stand on end) and with his Bhallas sent to Yama those Daityas who came to attack him in battle. (D. fought).

9.6.18

tasyeṣupātābhimukhaṃ yugāntāgnimivolbaṇam /
visṛjya dudruvurdaityā hanyamānāḥ svamālayam //

Unable to face his barrage of arrows, which was dreadful like the fire at the end of the cosmic age, / the Daityas fled, being struck down, leaving for their abode.

18. Having avoided the line of Puranjaya's attack, which with the shower of (V. Piercing darts) burning arrows was terrific like the fire of Pralaya, and being thoroughly beaten, the (V. other) Daityas ran away to their home (Patalaloka).

9.6.19

jitvā paraṃ dhanaṃ sarvaṃ sastrīkaṃ vajrapāṇaye /
pratyayacchat sa rājarṣiriti nāmabhirāhṛtaḥ //

Having conquered all the superior wealth along with the women, he delivered it / back to the wielder of the thunderbolt; thus that royal sage is addressed by these names.

19. Having taken the city and seized all its wealth and splendour, the great king gave it all to the wielder of Vajra; and he was himself honoured with epithets as Puranjaya, Kakutstha and so on.

9.6.20

purañjayasya putro 'bhūdanenāstatsutaḥ pṛthuḥ /
viśvagandhistataścandro yuvanāśvastu tatsutaḥ //

Purañjaya's son was Anenas; his son was Pṛthu; / from him came Viśvagandhi, then Candra, and his son was Yuvanāśva.

20. Puranjaya had a blameless son whose son was Prithu; and his son was Visvarandhi (V. Visvagandha); his son Chandra: his son Yuvanasva.

9.6.21

śrāvastastatsuto yena śrāvastī nirmame purī /
bṛhadaśvastu śrāvastistataḥ kuvalayāśvakaḥ //

Śrāvasta was his son, by whom the city of Śrāvastī was built; / Bṛhadaśva was the son of Śrāvasta, and from him came Kuvalayāśva,

21. His son was Savastha (Savasti) by whom the city of Savasti was built; Savastha's son was Brihadasva of whom was born Kuvalayasva.

9.6.22

yaḥ priyārthamutaṅkasya dhundhunāmāsuraṃ balī /
sutānāmekaviṃśatyā sahasrairahanadvṛtaḥ //

who, mighty and surrounded by twenty-one thousand of his sons, / killed the asura named Dhundhu for the sake of pleasing Utaṅka.

22. This Kuvalayasva being powerful and surrounded by his twenty-one thousand sons, slew an Asura called Dhundhu for the satisfaction of the sage Utanka (Udanka) (for the delight of Mukunda).

9.6.23

dhundhumāra iti khyātastatsutāste ca jajvaluḥ /
dhundhormukhāgninā sarve traya evāvaśeṣitāḥ //

He became famous as Dhundhumāra; and those sons of his burned / all in the fire of Dhundhu's mouth, only three remaining.

23. And he became celebrated as Dhundhumara; and all those sons were burnt by the fire that issued from the mouth of Dhundhu and only three were left alive.

9.6.24

dṛḍhāśvaḥ kapilāśvaśca bhadrāśva iti bhārata /
dṛḍhāśvaputro haryaśvo nikumbhastatsutaḥ smṛtaḥ //

[They were] Dṛḍhāśva, Kapilāśva, and Bhadrāśva, O descendant of Bharata. / Dṛḍhāśva's son was Haryaśva, and Nikumbha is remembered as his son.

24. And they are Dridhasva, Kapilasva and Bhadrasva, O Bharata. Dridhasva's son was Haryasva and his son was called Nikumbha.

9.6.25

bahulāśvo nikumbhasya kṛśāśvo 'thāsya senajit /
yuvanāśvo 'bhavat tasya so 'napatyo vanaṃ gataḥ //

Bahulāśva was Nikumbha's son, Kṛśāśva was his, and then his Senajit. / Senajit's [son] was Yuvanāśva; childless, he went to the forest.

25. & 26. Nikumbha's son was Barhanasva (Barhinasva) whose son was Krisasva; and his son Senajit (Sainijit) and his was Yuvanasva who had no issue and therefore in disgust went to the forest with his hundred wives and the merciful Rishis, possessed

9.6.26

bhāryāśatena nirviṇṇa ṛṣayo 'sya kṛpālavaḥ /
iṣṭiṃ sma vartayāṃ cakruraindrīṃ te susamāhitāḥ //

Dejected despite a hundred wives, the compassionate ṛṣis / performed a sacrifice for Indra on his behalf with great concentration.

of perfect control of mind, conducted for him a sacrifice dedicated to Indra.

9.6.27

rājā tadyajñasadanaṃ praviṣṭo niśi tarṣitaḥ /
dṛṣṭvā śayānān viprāṃstān papau mantrajalaṃ svayam //

Thirsty at night, the king entered the sacrificial arena; / seeing the brāhmaṇas asleep, he drank the consecrated water himself.

27. At midnight the king became thirsty and entered into the sacrificial sanctorium and, seeing all the brahmins asleep, he himself drank the water which had been consecrated with mantras.

9.6.28

utthitāste niśamyātha vyudakaṃ kalaśaṃ prabho /
papracchuḥ kasya karmedaṃ pītaṃ puṃsavanaṃ jalam //

When they arose, O lord, and saw the pitcher empty of water, / they asked: “Whose deed is this? Who drank the water that begets a male child?”

28. When they awoke they saw the pitcher empty of water, O king, and enquired whose work it was that the water consecrated for Pumsavana (birth of a son) was drunk.

9.6.29

rājñā pītaṃ viditvā vai īśvaraprahitena te /
īśvarāya namaścakruraho daivabalaṃ balam //

Understanding that it was drunk by the king, impelled indeed by the Lord, / they bowed to the Lord: “Ah, the power of destiny is power indeed!”

29. Then they came to know that it was drunk by the king prompted by the Supreme Deity: they all offered their salutation to the Lord, saying, ‘the power of Providence is the true strength (and insuperable)’.

9.6.30

tataḥ kāla upāvṛtte kukṣiṃ nirbhidya dakṣiṇam /
yuvanāśvasya tanayaścakravartī jajāna ha //

Then, when the time came, tearing through the right side of the belly, / a son was born to Yuvanāśva who would become a universal monarch.

30. Then as the due time came, a son was born of Yuvana, splitting open the right side of his stomach and he was born an Emperor.

9.6.31

kaṃ dhāsyati kumāro 'yaṃ stanye rorūyate bhṛśam /
māṃ dhātā vatsa mā rodīritīndro deśinīmadāt //

“Whom will this child suckle? He cries bitterly for breast-milk!” / “He will suckle me, child, do not weep!”—saying thus, Indra offered his forefinger.

31. Whom would this princely babe suckle?—the child crying for milk, Indra said, “Mam dhata” (he will suckle me), O child, (D. O child that wilt suckle me) do not cry; so saying Indra extended to him his first finger.

9.6.32

na mamāra pitā tasya vipradevaprasādataḥ /
yuvanāśvo 'tha tatraiva tapasā siddhimanvagāt //

His father did not die, by the grace of the brāhmaṇas and the gods; / then Yuvanāśva attained perfection right there through ascetic penance.

32. And his father did not die, through the grace of brahmins and the gods; thereafter Yuvanasva (also) attained to heaven by tapas in that very place.

9.6.33

trasaddasyuritīndro 'ṅga vidadhe nāma yasya vai /
yasmāt trasanti hyudvignā dasyavo rāvaṇādayaḥ //

Indra gave him the name Trasaddasyu, my dear, / because from him robbers such as Rāvaṇa fled in terror.

33. O son, Indra gave him another name ‘Trasaddasyu’ (he who terrifies thieves), because rogues like Ravana and others tremble at the name of Mandhata and are filled with fear.

9.6.34

yauvanāśvo 'tha māndhātā cakravartyavanīṃ prabhuḥ /
saptadvīpavatīmekaḥ śaśāsācyutatejasā //

Then Yuvanāśva’s son Māndhātā, the universal emperor, a master, / alone ruled the earth consisting of the seven continents through the potency of Acyuta.

34. In the usual course (then) Mandhata, son of Yuvanasva, of great might and imbued with the spirit of Achyuta, ruled the world of seven Dvipas as the one supreme lord.

9.6.35

īje ca yajñaṃ kratubhirātmavidbhūridakṣiṇaiḥ /
sarvadevamayaṃ devaṃ sarvātmakamatīndriyam //

And he who knew the Self worshipped with sacrificial rites accompanied by abundant gifts / the God who comprises all gods, who is the Self of all, beyond the senses,

35. The king had true knowledge of Paramatman and [by means of sacrifices with liberal dakshinas] worshipped the Supreme Deity, Yajna, who is in the form of all the gods and the Antaryamin of all, yet beyond the range of the senses.

9.6.36

dravyaṃ mantro vidhiryajño yajamānastathartvijaḥ /
dharmo deśaśca kālaśca sarvametadyadātmakam //

for of whose very nature is all this: the substance, the mantra, the rite, / the sacrifice, the sacrificer, and the priests, the dharma, the place, and the time.

36. Substance (materials), Mantras, Rules, sacrificial action in general, the sacrificer and priests, Dharma, place, Time,—all this is constituted of Him.

9.6.37

yāvat sūrya udeti sma yāvac ca pratitiṣṭhati /
tat sarvaṃ yauvanāśvasya māndhātuḥ kṣetramucyate //

As far as the sun rises, and as far as it sets, / all that is called the domain of Yuvanāśva's son Māndhātā.

37. From the point from which the sun starts to the point where he stops (breaks his journey), all that under the sun is called the land of Mandhatri, son of Yuvanasva.

9.6.38

śaśabindorduhitari bindumatyāmadhān nṛpaḥ /
purukutsamambarīṣaṃ mucukundaṃ ca yoginam /
teṣāṃ svasāraḥ pañcāśat saubhariṃ vavrire patim //

In Bindumatī, the daughter of Śaśabindu, the king fathered / Purukutsa, Ambarīṣa, and the yogi Mucukunda; / their fifty sisters chose Saubhari as their husband.

38. By Bindumati, daughter of Sasabindu, the king had three sons named Purukutsa, Ambarisha, Muchukunda the yogin and their sisters, fifty in number, chose Saubhari for their husband.

9.6.39

yamunāntarjale magnastapyamānaḥ paraṃ tapaḥ /
nirvṛtiṃ mīnarājasya dṛṣṭvā maithunadharmiṇaḥ //

Submerged in the waters of the Yamunā performing supreme austerity, / he observed the delight of the king of fish engaged in copulation.

39. Immersed in the waters of the river Yamuna and engaged in great tapas, this virtuous sage observed the happy state of a great fish in his sexual relation.

9.6.40

jātaspṛho nṛpaṃ vipraḥ kanyāmekāmayācata /
so 'pyāha gṛhyatāṃ brahman kāmaṃ kanyā svayaṃvare //

Desire aroused, the brāhmaṇa asked the king for a single maiden; / he too replied: “Accept her at will, O brāhmaṇa, in a maiden's self-choice.”

40. Infected with that desire the brahmin went to the king and asked for a girl; he too said, "O Brahmin, thou mayest have one in swayamvara", _i.e._, (thou mayest marry any one who might of her accord choose thee).

9.6.41

sa vicintyāpriyaṃ strīṇāṃ jaraṭho 'hamasanmataḥ /
valīpalita ejatka ityahaṃ pratyudāhṛtaḥ //

He reflected: “Unpleasing to women, I am old, disesteemed, / with wrinkles, gray hair, and trembling head; thus have I been turned away.

41. The brahmin thought, 'I am (tactfully) refused by the king who considers me disagreeable to women, as far advanced in age, covered with grey hair and wrinkles, with an unstable-head.

9.6.42

sādhayiṣye tathātmānaṃ surastrīṇāmabhīpsitam /
kiṃ punarmanujendrāṇāmiti vyavasitaḥ prabhuḥ //

I will make myself desirable even to celestial women, / what to speak of the daughters of rulers of men!” thus the master resolved.

42. & 43. 'I shall make myself so beautiful as to be courted even by celestial damsels; then what need be said of (my being lovely in the eyes of) human princesses?' When he had thus made up his mind, the hermit of great virtue was allowed by the king to go into the rich harem where his daughters were; lo! that *one* individual was solicited to be their husband by all the fifty princesses!

9.6.43

muniḥ praveśitaḥ kṣatrā kanyāntaḥpuramṛddhimat /
vṛtaḥ sa rājakanyābhirekaṃ pañcāśatā varaḥ //

The sage was escorted by the attendant into the opulent inner quarters of the princesses; / that single groom was chosen by all fifty of the king's daughters.

9.6.44

tāsāṃ kalirabhūdbhūyāṃstadarthe 'pohya sauhṛdam /
mamānurūpo nāyaṃ va iti tadgatacetasām //

A great quarrel arose among them over him, casting away sisterly love, / their minds captivated by him: “He is suitable for me, not for you!”

44. For this sake great was the dispute among them and they forgot their natural love to one another, when the heart of every one of them was set on him and every one said to the rest, "He is created a match, by form and beauty, only to me, not to you".

9.6.45

sa bahvṛcastābhirapāraṇīya tapaḥśriyānarghyaparicchadeṣu /
gṛheṣu nānopavanāmalāmbhaḥ saraḥsu saugandhikakānaneṣu //

That Ṛgvedic sage, through the inexhaustible splendor of his penance, / in houses filled with priceless furnishings, in diverse gardens, lakes of pure water, and fragrant groves,

45. & 46. That sage versed in the Rigveda spent his time delightfully with those princesses in mansions decorated with invaluable tapestries, furnished by his unlimited powers of tapas, in pools of crystal water in the middle of various parks and gardens, and in the gardens of saugandhika flowers, furnished with very valuable beds, seats, dress, ornaments, baths, pigments, eatables and flowers, in places where men and women well decked in ornaments and dress met, where birds and bees sang like bards.

9.6.46

mahārhaśayyāsanavastrabhūṣaṇa snānānulepābhyavahāramālyakaiḥ /
svalaṅkṛtastrīpuruṣeṣu nityadā reme 'nugāyaddvijabhṛṅgavandiṣu //

with costly beds, seats, garments, ornaments, / baths, unguents, dishes, and garlands, / among well-adorned women and men, constantly took delight / while birds, bees, and bards sang along.

9.6.47

yadgārhasthyaṃ tu saṃvīkṣya saptadvīpavatīpatiḥ /
vismitaḥ stambhamajahāt sārvabhaumaśriyānvitam //

Beholding his householder's life, the sovereign of the seven continents / was astonished and cast away his pride in possessing the glory of an emperor.

47. On observing that state of the householder's life, the king of seven continents was astonished and gave up his obstinate view

caused by his imperial fortune.

9.6.48

evaṃ gṛheṣv abhirato viṣayān vividhaiḥ sukhaiḥ /
sevamāno na cātuṣyadājyastokairivānalaḥ //

Thus delighting in the household, enjoying sense objects / with diverse pleasures, he was never satisfied, like fire with drops of clarified butter.

48. Having thus given his mind and heart to the householder's life and enjoying objects in various courses of pleasure, he found no satisfaction like fire with drops of ghee.

9.6.49

sa kadācidupāsīna ātmāpahnavamātmanaḥ /
dadarśa bahvṛcācāryo mīnasaṅgasamutthitam //

Once, sitting quietly, that master of the Ṛgveda saw / the loss of his selfhood arising from attachment to the fish:

49. On a certain day when he was sitting up the great Brahmana versed in the Rig-Veda noted how he had consigned his self to oblivion as the result of his association with the fish.

9.6.50

aho imaṃ paśyata me vināśaṃ tapasvinaḥ saccaritavratasya /
antarjale vāricaraprasaṅgāt pracyāvitaṃ brahma ciraṃ dhṛtaṃ yat //

“Alas! Behold this downfall of mine, an ascetic who observed the vow of good conduct; / submerged in the water, from contact with an aquatic creature, that Brahman long maintained has fallen away!

50. Ah! Look at my fall, though I was a tapaswin of rigid vows, pious conduct, brought on by association with the acquatic creature under water! The light of Brahman which I had long enjoyed is lost.

9.6.50.p1

saṅgaṃ tyajeta mithunavratīnāṃ mumukṣuḥ $ sarvātmanā na visṛjedbahirindriyāṇi &

One who desires liberation should completely abandon association with those committed to copulation, / and never send the senses outward.

51. He who seeks after release from Samsara ought by all means to avoid association with those that are given to family life and ought not to allow their senses to wander outside; he should be alone in seclusion and fix his mind on the unlimited Lord and betake himself only to the righteous who are devoted to Him, if at all there should be any association.

9.6.51

ekaścaran rahasi cittamananta īśe % yuñjīta tadvratiṣu sādhuṣu cet prasaṅgaḥ //

Wandering alone in solitude, one should fix the mind on the infinite Lord; / if there must be association, it should be with saintly devotees devoted to Him.

9.6.51.p2

ekastapasvyahamathāmbhasi matsyasaṅgāt $ pañcāśadāsamuta pañcasahasrasargaḥ &

I was a solitary ascetic in the water; then, through attachment to a fish, / I became fifty, and then produced five thousand offspring.

52. I was alone, engaged in tapas; but by association with the fish under water, I became fifty as it were with fifty wives, and five thousand with five thousand sons; I do not see the end of my wishes relating to this and that world, as my judgment is lost under the force of the gunas of Maya and I am made to think that the gross objects are the (great) things to be attained.

9.6.51.p3

ekastapasvyahamathāmbhasi matsyasaṅgāt $ pañcāśadāsamuta pañcasahasrasargaḥ &

I was a solitary ascetic in the water; then, through attachment to a fish, / I became fifty, and then produced five thousand offspring.

9.6.52

nāntaṃ vrajāmyubhayakṛtyamanorathānāṃ % māyāguṇairhṛtamatirviṣaye 'rthabhāvaḥ //

My intellect captivated by the qualities of material nature, regarding sense objects as reality, / I reach no end to the desires for deeds in both worlds.”

9.6.53

evaṃ vasan gṛhe kālaṃ virakto nyāsamāsthitaḥ /
vanaṃ jagāmānuyayustatpatnyaḥ patidevatāḥ //

Living thus at home for some time, he became dispassionate, adopted renunciation, / and went to the forest; his wives, to whom their husband was their deity, followed him.

53. After thus spending sometime in domestic life (in the Gruhasthasrama) he felt a disgust for all worldly things, renounced them and betook himself to the forest; aud his wives regarding their husband their deity followed.

9.6.54

tatra taptvā tapastīkṣṇamātmadarśanamātmavān /
sahaivāgnibhirātmānaṃ yuyoja paramātmani //

Practicing intense austerities there, achieving self-realization, self-controlled, / he merged his self, along with his sacred fires, into the Supreme Self.

54. There he performed very austere tapas with control over his mind so as to reduce his body; and he united his self with Agnis to Paramatman.

9.6.55

tāḥ svapatyurmahārāja nirīkṣyādhyātmikīṃ gatim /
anvīyustatprabhāveṇa agniṃ śāntamivārciṣaḥ //

Seeing the spiritual attainment of their husband, O great king, / they followed him by his power, as flames follow a fire that has been extinguished.

55. Those princesses observed the attainment of their husband to Brahman by virtue of his own powers and followed him like flames with the fire that subsides.