Skandapurana 4.1

Homage to glorious Gaṇeśa.

We venerate that great lord, the beloved child of Maheśāna,

Gaṇeśa, whose face is like the leader of elephants, free from all affliction. (1)

Though standing on earth, it is not part of this world; though situated below, it is higher than heaven; / though bound to the earth, it grants liberation; and creatures who die in it become immortal.

It is constantly served by the gods on the bank of the river that purifies the three worlds: / may that Kāśī, the royal city of Tripura's foe, protect the universe from calamity! (2)

Homage to that Maheśa, on the pretext of the three twilights,

before whom the lords of the three worlds constantly come and go. (3)

The author of the eighteen Purāṇas, the son of Satyavatī,

narrated this tale that removes sin before Sūta. (4)

Glorious Vyāsa said:

Once the illustrious Nārada, having bathed in the waters of the glorious Narmadā

and worshiped the glorious Oṃkāra, who gives everything to all embodied beings, (5)

as he walked, beheld before him the Vindhya mountain,

which removes the distress of worldly existence and is adorned by the waters of the Revā, (6)

making this earth—both in its stationary form and its moving form—

truly merit its name of 'possessor of wealth' (vasumatī) by virtue of its abundant splendor: (7)

an abode of sweetness with mango trees, dispelling sorrow with aśoka trees,

adorned everywhere with palmyra, tamāla, hintāla, and sāla trees; (8)

resembling an aerial city with its betel-nut trees, truly blessed with bilva fruits,

endowed with great beauty by its agallochum trees, tawny like monkeys with monkey-fruit trees; (9)

charming with lakuca fruits resembling the breasts of the forest's beauty,

illuminated by plantain trees providing fruits sweet as nectar; (10)

displaying beauty like a courtly pavilion with vibrant orange trees,

abundantly filled with reeds, lemons, and pomegranates; (11)

where the wind-swayed kaṅkola vines seemed to dance a hallīsaka dance,

a veritable abode of playful dancing with the delicate grace of lavalī creepers; (12)

as if beckoning weary travelers to rest

by gestures of gently swaying leaves of camphor-banana plants; (13)

as if, like an eminent man, with sprout-like fingers of punnāga branches

gently touching the breast-like cluster of trembling jasmine flowers; (14)

revealing its impassioned heart with split pomegranates,

as if embracing the mādhavī creeper in the form of a husband in the woods; (15)

with sky-reaching cluster fig trees garlanded with countless fruits,

resembling the serpent Ananta bearing millions of cosmic eggs on every side; (16)

covered with jackfruit trees resembling forest snouts, parrot-beaked trees, and palāśa trees,

as if shedding their leaves out of sympathy for separated lovers starved of food; (17)

as if bristling with goosebumps upon seeing the nīpa trees that rival the kadamba...

shining on all sides with clusters of kadamba trees,

adorned with nameru trees like the high peaks of Meru,

and with rājādana and madana trees, as if with the dwellings of lovers,

covered on every slope with lofty cloth-like tents formed by dense banyan trees,

resplendent with clusters of kuṭaja blossoms, as if occupied by herons,

with karamarda, karīra, karaja, and karambaka plants,

shining like the thousand-rayed [sun] with its hands extended toward suppliants,

as if lustrated with lamps by blazing campaka buds,

and surpassing the beauty of lotus ponds with flowering silk-cotton trees,

in some places with tall pīpal trees, in others with golden ketaka blossoms,

and adorned here and there with kṛtamāla and naktamāla trees,

beautified with karkandhu, bandhujīva, and putrajīva trees,

with tinduka, ingudī, and karuṇa trees—an abode of compassion— / as if constantly worshipping Hara, who bears the form of the earth,

with pearls dropped from his own hands in the form of falling madhūka blossoms,

as if fanned by fans with sarja, arjuna, añjana, and bījaka trees,

as if holding up an umbrella in the sky with coconut and date palms,

with abundant neem trees, with mandāras and kovidāras,

with pāṭalā, tamarind, ghoṇṭā, śākhoṭa, and karahāṭaka trees,

with tall śehuṇḍas, castors, and guḍapuṣpas,

and with bakula and tilaka trees, its summit marked as if with a sectarian mark,

with akṣa, plakṣa, and śallakī trees, and with deodar and pine trees,

resplendent with trees and creepers that are ever fruit-bearing and ever flowering,

covered with groves of cardamom, cloves, black pepper, and kulañjana,

extolled for its rose-apples, hog-plums, marking-nuts, śelu, and śrīparṇī trees,

delightful with woods of teak and sandalwood, with white sandalwood and red sandalwood,

adorned with groves of myrobalan, karṇikāra, and āmlakī,

overspread with hundreds of grapevines, betel vines, and long-pepper creepers,

fragrant with jasmine, yūthikā, kunda, and madayantī,

adorned with mālatī flowers having swarms of bees hovering about,

like Kṛṣṇa who came under the guise of a black bee to sport many times with the gopīs,

crowded with various herds of wild beasts, resonant with diverse birds,

surrounded everywhere by varied rivers, lakes, streams, and ponds,

inhabited by hosts of various gods who, having abandoned the celestial realms of meager splendour,

had come, as it were, out of a desire for all-around enjoyment,

as if offering water of welcome on all sides with leaves and flowers,

and greeting him from afar, as it were, with the cries of peacocks.

Then, having seen Nārada, who possessed the splendor of a hundred suns / and illuminated the sky in the firmament,

the mountain went forward from afar to meet him.

The darkness in his caves was dispelled by the radiance of the son of Brahmā's body;

seeing him approach, he cast away the darkness of his mind.

His trepidation was born from Brahmā's radiance; he offered virtuous hospitality:

though hard, he cast off [hardness] and truly assumed softness.

Seeing his softness, despite his double nature, Nārada

rejoiced exceedingly; the minds of the virtuous are won over by humble deference.

Seeing one come to his home, whether a venerable elder or not an elder,

he who, not being heavy, displays humility is truly great; the heavy one is not great.

Toward him, though his peak was high, he lowered his neck,

and the mountain, touching the earth with his head, bowed to the great sage.

Raising him up with both hands and greeting him with blessings,

[Nārada] sat upon the seat indicated by him, exalted even beyond the mind.

With curd, honey, clarified butter, water, unbroken wet barley grains, and dūrvā grass,

with sesamum, kuśa grass, and blossoms, he worshipped him with the eightfold offering of water.

Having received the offering of water, seeing that he was tired, [and making him] relieved of fatigue / by massaging his feet and other services,

the mountain, bowing low, then spoke:

“Today, in an instant, the dust [of my passion] has been removed by the dust of your feet,

and internal darkness too has been swiftly removed by the splendor clinging to your body.

Today my prosperity has borne fruit, and today is an auspicious day for me, O sage;

today fruit has been borne by the meritorious deeds performed and accumulated by me long ago.

Today my status as a mountain will become respected by the wielder of the thunderbolt.”

Hearing this, the sage then paused a little, drawing a deep breath.

Again the best of mountains spoke, his mind seized by agitation:

“O brahmin, skilled in every matter, tell me the cause of your sigh. / 49

Is there anything desired in the three worlds that has not been seen by you?

If you have compassion for me here, let it be told; I bow to you. / 4.1.1.50

My difficult roaring [is quieted] by the masses of joy born of your arrival;

it is not enough to speak repeatedly, yet I shall say one thing. / 51

The capacity to bear the earth in Meru and the rest is praised by ancient men

collectively; but I bear the earth all alone. / 52

Himavān, because of Gaurī's fatherhood, because of being the lord of mountains,

and through his kinship with Paśupati, is the only one respected by the good. / 53

Meru is considered worthy of respect somewhere in my opinion, because he is filled with gold, or because his peaks are jewels,

or even because he is the abode of the gods. / 54

Are there not more than a hundred mountains whose sport is sustaining the earth?

Here they are respected by the good, but they are respected only in their own lands. / 55

Udaya is sustained merely by the mercy of the rising [sun], because of doubt concerning the bodies of the Mandehas;

Niṣadha does not bear medicinal herbs, and Asta too has its light extinguished. / 56

Nīla is a dwelling of indigo; Mandara has dim eyes;

Malaya is filled with impurity, an abode of snakes; Raivata does not understand wealth. / 57

Those beginning with Hemakūṭa and Trikūṭa have the word kūṭa ['falsehood' or 'peak'] at the end;

those beginning with Kiṣkindha, Krauñca, and Sahya are unable to endure the burden of the earth. / 58 /”

Hearing these words of Vindhya, Nārada thought in his heart:

“Contact with enormous pride does not lead to greatness. / 59

Are there not mountains here possessing spotless splendor, beginning with Śrīśaila,

the mere sight of whose peaks leads to the liberation of the good? / 4.1.1.60

Having reflected, 'Today his strength must be seen,' the sage said:

“Indeed, what you have spoken is true as you disclose the strength of the mountains. / 61

Yet among the mountains, Meru, the lord of mountains, despises you.

It was this that I sighed about, and now it has been disclosed to you. / 62

Or rather, what concern is this to great-souled persons like me?”

Saying, “May it be well with you,” he went along the path of the sky. / 63

When the sage had gone, with an exceedingly agitated mind he blamed himself;

Vindhya, his desires rendered futile, fell into great anxiety. / 64

Vindhya said:

“Fie on the life of one devoid of the arts and sciences! Fie on the life of one devoid of exertion!

Fie on the life of one defeated by a kinsman! Fie on the life of one whose desires are frustrated! / 65

How does he eat by day, alas, how does he sleep at night?

How can there be secret joy for him whose humiliation comes from an enemy? / 66

Ah, the scorching heat of a forest fire does not torment me so

as the continuous burning of anxiety torments my mind! / 67

It was rightly said by the knowers of antiquity: the form of anxiety is very cruel;

it is not alleviated by medicines, nor by fasting, nor by any other means. / 68

The fever of anxiety steals away men's hunger, sleep, and strength,

their beauty, enthusiasm, intellect, fortune, and life, without a doubt. / 69

When six days have passed, a fever here is called a chronic fever;

this fierce fever of anxiety becomes fresh day after day. / 4.1.1.70

The blessed Dhanvantari is not here, nor does Caraka wander here;

even the two Nāsatyas are not effective here against this fever of anxiety. / 71

What shall I do? Where shall I go? How shall I conquer Meru?

Shall I leap up and fall upon his head? I cannot fall [upon it] from here. / 72

Formerly, when someone of our lineage angered Śakra,

he was stripped of wings; fie on the exertion of one who is wingless! / 73

Or else, how can that Meru rival me so proudly?

Those who bear the burden of the earth generally become the grounds of delusion. / 74

Or how could falsehood be imagined in Nārada,

a celibate student, a knower of the Vedas, a resident of Satyaloka? / 75

Is deliberation on what is proper and improper suitable for someone like me?

The mind of those powerless in acts of valor plunges into deliberation. / 76

Or rather, what is the use of these futile anxieties? To the Creator of the universe,

the Lord of the Universe, I shall go for refuge; he will grant me wisdom. / 77

For Viśvanātha is praised as the protector of all the lordless.

Having reflected in his mind for a moment: "It must doubtlessly be so.

I shall do just this; delay of time is not desirable.

A rival and a disease that are growing must not be neglected by the wise.

The sun circumambulates Meru daily indeed,

together with the host of planets and lunar mansions, surely considering him superior in strength."

Having so resolved, the Vindhya mountain, his sight set on battle, grew tall

with peaks that seemed to reach the very end of the boundless sky.

Hostility should never be engaged with anyone, by any person anywhere;

but if it must be done, [it should be done] with effort, so that people do not mock.

Having blocked the sun’s path, the king of mountains felt as though he had achieved his purpose;

he remained at ease, for the future of living beings is subject to fate.

[He thought:] "Whomsoever this creator of restraint curbs today, he will proceed southwards.

He of noble birth, he of fortune, he who is great—he too is honored.

As long as one, though capable, never displays his own power,

so long can he be transgressed by all, like fire concealed in wood."

Thus abandoning the great burden of worry, firm in his enterprise, he stood

awaiting the rising of the sun, like a brahmin.

Thus ends the first chapter, named 'The Growth of Vindhya', in the first half of the Kāśīkhaṇḍa, in the glorious Skandapurāṇa, the Mahāpurāṇa consisting of eighty-one thousand verses. // 1