Skandapurana 6.3.171

6.3.171.p1

adhyāya 171

6.3.171.1

śrīmārkaṇḍeya uvāca -
kathitaṃ brāhmaṇaṃ draṣṭuṃ śūle kṣiptaṃ tapodhanaiḥ .
nārāyaṇasamīpe tu gatāḥ sarve maharṣayaḥ .. 171.1 ..

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya said: / It having been told by ascetics that the brahmin had been cast upon a stake, / all the great seers went to the vicinity of Nārāyaṇa to see [him]:

6.3.171.2

nārado devalo raibhyo yamaḥ śātātapo'ṅgirāḥ .
vasiṣṭho jamadagniśca yājñavalkyo bṛhaspatiḥ .. 171.2 ..

Nārada, Devala, Raibhya, Yama, Śātātapa, Aṅgiras, / Vasiṣṭha, Jamadagni, Yājñavalkya, Bṛhaspati,

6.3.171.3

kaśyapo'trirbharadvājo viśvāmitro'ruṇirmuniḥ .
vālakhilyādayo'nye ca sarve'pyṛṣigaṇānvayāḥ .. 171.3 ..

Kaśyapa, Atri, Bharadvāja, Viśvāmitra, the sage Aruṇi, / the Vālakhilyas and others, all of the lineage of the host of seers.

6.3.171.4

dadṛśuḥ śūlamārūḍhaṃ māṇḍavyamṛṣipuṃgavāḥ .
procurnārāyaṇaṃ vipraṃ kiṃ kurmastava cepsitam .. 171.4 ..

Those foremost among seers saw Māṇḍavya mounted on the stake. / They said to the brahmin Nārāyaṇa: 'What wish of yours shall we fulfill?'

6.3.171.5

sarve te tatra sāṃnidhyānmāṇḍavyasya mahātmanaḥ .
saṃbhrāntā āgatā ūcuḥ kiṃ mṛtaḥ kiṃ nu jīvati .. 171.5 ..

All of them, having come in haste to that vicinity of the great-souled Māṇḍavya, / said: 'Is he dead, or is he indeed alive?'

6.3.171.6

avasthāṃ tasya te dṛṣṭvā viṣādamagamanparam .
asahitvā tu tadduḥkhaṃ sarve te manasā dvijāḥ .. 171.6 ..

Seeing his condition, they fell into deep sorrow. / All those twice-born, unable to bear that sorrow in their minds,

6.3.171.7

pṛcchayatāṃ yadi manyeta rājānaṃ bhasmasātkuru .
teṣāṃ tadvacanaṃ śrutvā vākyaṃ nārāyaṇo'bravīt .. 171.7 ..

[said:] 'Let him be asked; if he thinks [fit], reduce the king to ashes.' / Hearing their words, Nārāyaṇa spoke these words:

6.3.171.8

mayi jīvati madbhrātā hyavasthāmīdṛśīṃ gataḥ .
dhigjīvitaṃ ca me kiṃtu tapaso vidyate phalam .. 171.8 ..

'While I am alive, my brother has come to such a state! / Fie upon my life! Yet, what is the fruit of austerity?'

6.3.171.9

dṛṣṭvā śūlasthitaṃ jyeṣṭhaṃ manmano nu vidīryate .
paraṃ kiṃ tu kariṣyāmi yena rāṣṭraṃ sarājakam .. 171.9 ..

"Seeing my eldest [brother] fixed upon a stake, my mind is indeed torn apart. / But what else shall I do, whereby the kingdom along with its king .. 171.9 ..

6.3.171.10

bhasmasācca karomyadya bhavadbhiḥ kṣamyatāmiha .
evamuktvā gṛhītvāsau karasthamabhimantrayet .. 171.10 ..

I may turn to ashes this very day? Forgive me here!" / Having spoken thus, he took [water] in his hand and consecrated it with a mantra. .. 171.10 ..

6.3.171.11

krodhena paśyate yāvattāvaddhuṃkārako'bhavat .
tena huṅkāraśabdena ṛṣayo vismitāstadā .. 171.11 ..

As he looked on in wrath, a roaring sound of "huṃ" arose. / Hearing that sound of "huṃ", the seers were astonished then. .. 171.11 ..

6.3.171.12

māṇḍavyasya samīpe tu hyapṛcchaṃste dvijottamāḥ .
nivārayasi kiṃ vipra śāpaṃ nṛpajighāṃsanam .. 171.12 ..

Those best of brahmins approached Māṇḍavya and asked: / "Why, O brahmin, do you avert the curse that would slay the king, .. 171.12 ..

6.3.171.13

apāpasya tu yeneha kṛtamasya jighāṃsanam .
ṛṣīṇāṃ vacanaṃ śrutvā kṛcchrānmāṇḍavyako'bravīt .. 171.13 ..

by whom an attempt to slay this sinless one was made here?" / Hearing the words of the seers, Māṇḍavya spoke with difficulty: .. 171.13 ..

6.3.171.14

abhivandāmi vo mūrdhnā svāgataṃ ṛṣayaḥ sadā .
arghyasanmānapūjārhāḥ sarve'tropaviśantu te .. 171.14 ..

"I bow to you with my head; welcome always, O seers! / Worthy of water offering, respect, and worship, let all of you sit down here." .. 171.14 ..

6.3.171.15

niviṣṭaikāgramanasā sarvānmāṇḍavyako'bravīt .. 171.15 ..

With an intent and concentrated mind, Māṇḍavya spoke to all: .. 171.15 ..

6.3.171.16

prāptaṃ duḥkhaṃ mayā ghoraṃ pūrvajanmārjitaṃ phalam .
mā viṣādaṃ kurudhvaṃ bhoḥ kṛtaṃ pāpaṃ tu bhujyate .. 171.16 ..

"Terrible suffering has been met by me, the fruit earned in a previous life. / Do not despair, good sirs; the sin that was committed is being experienced! .. 171.16 ..

6.3.171.17

ṛṣaya ūcuḥ .
kena karmavipākena iha jātyantaraṃ vrajet .
dānadharmaphalenaiva kena svargaṃ ca gacchati .. 171.17 ..

The seers said: / 'By what ripening of karma does one go to another birth here? / And by what fruit of the dharma of giving does one go to heaven?' .. 171.17 ..

6.3.171.18

māṇḍavya uvāca -
adattadānā jāyante parabhāgyopajīvinaḥ .
na snānaṃ na japo homo nātithyaṃ na surārcanam .. 171.18 ..

Māṇḍavya said: / 'Those who do not give gifts are born dependent on another's fortune; / [those who perform] no ritual ablution, no recitation, no oblation, no hospitality, no worship of the gods, .. 171.18 ..

6.3.171.19

na parvaṇi pitṛśrāddhaṃ na dānaṃ dvijasattamāḥ .
vrajanti narake ghore yānti te tvantyajāṃ gatim .. 171.19 ..

no ancestral rites on festival days, and no gift-giving, O best of brahmins, / go to a terrible hell, and they attain the station of outcasts. .. 171.19 ..

6.3.171.20

punardaridrāḥ punareva pāpāḥ pāpaprabhāvānnarake vasanti .
tenaiva saṃsariṇi martyaloke jīvādibhūte kṛmayaḥ pataṅgāḥ .. 171.20 ..

Again poor, again sinful, by the power of sin they dwell in hell; / by that very [sin], in the transmigratory mortal world, living as worms and flying insects. .. 171.20 ..

6.3.171.21

ye snānaśīlā dvijadevabhaktā jitendriyā jīvadayānuśīlāḥ .
te devalokeṣu vasanti hṛṣṭā ye dharmaśīlā jitamānaroṣāḥ .. 171.21 ..

Those who are devoted to ritual ablution, devoted to brahmins and gods, with senses subdued, practicing compassion for living beings, / those who are devoted to righteousness, having conquered pride and anger, dwell rejoicing in the worlds of the gods. .. 171.21 ..

6.3.171.22

vidyāvinītā na paropatāpinaḥ svadāratuṣṭāḥ paradāravarjitāḥ .
teṣāṃ na loke bhayamasti kiṃcitsvabhāvaśuddhā gatakalmaṣā hi te .. 171.22 ..

Disciplined by knowledge, not tormenting others, content with their own wives, abstaining from others' wives, / they have no fear whatsoever in the world; pure by nature, they are indeed free from blemish.' .. 171.22 ..

6.3.171.23

ṛṣaya ūcuḥ .
pūrvajanmani viprendra kiṃ tvayā duṣkṛtaṃ kṛtam .
yena kaṣṭamidaṃ prāptaṃ sandhānaṃ śūlagarhitam .. 171.23 ..

The seers said: / 'O best of brahmins, what misdeed was done by you in a previous birth, / whereby this painful placement, reviled upon the stake, has been attained? .. 171.23 ..

6.3.171.24

śūlasthaṃ tvāṃ samālakṣya hyāgatāḥ sarva eva hi .
jīvantaṃ tvāṃ prapaśyāma tvantarannavatārayan .
rujāsaṃtāpajaṃ duḥkhaṃ soḍhvāpi tvamavedanaḥ .. 171.24 ..

Observing you fixed upon the stake, all of us indeed came here. / We see you living, yet we cannot take you down; / though enduring suffering born of affliction and torment, you are without pain.' .. 171.24 ..

6.3.171.25

māṇḍavya uvāca -
svayameva kṛtaṃ karma svayamevopabhujyate .
sukṛtaṃ duṣkṛtaṃ pūrve nānye bhuñjanti karhicit .. 171.25 ..

Māṇḍavya said: / 'The action performed by oneself is experienced by oneself alone; / good deeds and evil deeds done formerly, others never experience. .. 171.25 ..

6.3.171.26

yathā dhenusahasreṣu vatso vindati mātaram .
tathā pūrvakṛtaṃ karma kartāramupagacchati .. 171.26 ..

Just as a calf finds its mother among a thousand cows, / so previously performed karma finds its agent. .. 171.26 ..

6.3.171.27

na mātā na pitā bhrātā na bhāryā na sutāḥ suhṛt .
na kasya karmaṇāṃ lepaḥ svayamevopabhujyate .. 171.27 ..

Neither mother, nor father, nor brother, nor wife, nor sons, nor friend [shares in it]; / there is no clinging of one's actions [to another]; it is experienced by oneself alone. .. 171.27 ..

6.3.171.28

śrūyatāṃ mama vākyaṃ ca bhavadbhiḥ pṛcchito hyaham .
pūrve vayasi bho viprā malasnānakṛtakṣaṇaḥ .. 171.28 ..

Listen to my words, since I have been questioned by you. / In my early youth, O brahmins, while taking the occasion of an oil-bath, .. 171.28 ..

6.3.171.29

ajñānādbālabhāvena yūkā kaṇṭe'dhiropitā .
tailābhyaktaśirogātre mayā yūkā ghṛtā na hi .. 171.29 ..

out of ignorance, in the manner of a child, a louse was mounted onto a thorn. / When head and limbs were anointed with oil, the louse was not spared by me. .. 171.29 ..

6.3.171.30

kaṅkatīṃ ropya keśeṣu sāsā kaṇṭe'dhiropitā .
teṣu pāpaṃ kṛtaṃ sadyaḥ phalametanmamābhavat .. 171.30 ..

Passing a comb through the hair, it was pierced upon a thorn. / That sin was committed against them; immediately this fruit has come to me. .. 171.30 ..

6.3.171.31

kiṃcitkālaṃ kṣapitvāhaṃ prāpsye mokṣaṃ nirāmayam .
bhavantastviha santāpaṃ māṃ kurudhvaṃ maharṣayaḥ .. 171.31 ..

Having spent a short time [here], I shall attain painless liberation. / Do not make grief for me here, O great seers! .. 171.31 ..

6.3.171.32

imāmavasthāṃ bhuktvāhaṃ kaṃcicchape na coccare .
ahani katicicchūle kṣapayiṣyāmi kilbiṣam .. 171.32 ..

Having experienced this condition, I curse no one, nor do I cry out. / In a few days on the stake, I will exhaust my sin. .. 171.32 ..

6.3.171.33

prāktanaṃ karma bhuñjāmi yanmayā saṃcitaṃ dvijāḥ .
kṣantavyamasya rājño'tha kopaścaiva visarjyatām .. 171.33 ..

I am experiencing the past karma that was accumulated by me, O brahmins. / This king must be forgiven, and anger must be cast away.' .. 171.33 ..

6.3.171.34

śrutvā tu tasya tadvākyaṃ māṇḍavyasya maharṣayaḥ .
praharṣamatulaṃ labdhvā sādhu sādhvityapūjayan .. 171.34 ..

Having heard those words of Māṇḍavya, the great seers / attained matchless joy and praised him, saying, 'Well done! Well done!' .. 171.34 ..

6.3.171.35

nārāyaṇa uvāca -
idaṃ jalaṃ mantrapūtaṃ kasminsthāne kṣipāmyaham .
yena rājā bhavedbhasma sarāṣṭraḥ sapurohitaḥ .. 171.35 ..

Nārāyaṇa said: / 'Where shall I throw this water sanctified by mantra, / so that the king, along with his kingdom and domestic priest, will be reduced to ashes?' .. 171.35 ..

6.3.171.36

māṇḍavya uvāca -
idaṃ jalaṃ ca rakṣasva kālakūṭaviṣopamam .
samudre kṣipayiṣyāmi devakāryaṃ samutthitam .. 171.36 ..

Māṇḍavya said: / 'Protect this water, which is like the kālakūṭa poison. / I shall have it cast into the ocean when a deed for the gods arises.' .. 171.36 ..

6.3.171.37

atha te munayaḥ sarve māṇḍavyaṃ praṇipatya ca .
āmantrayitvā harṣācca kaśyapādyā gṛhānyayuḥ .. 171.37 ..

Then all those sages, having bowed down to Māṇḍavya / and taken their leave with joy, Kaśyapa and the others went to their homes. .. 171.37 ..

6.3.171.38

gacchamānāstu te coktāḥ pañcame'hani tāpasāḥ .
āgantavyaṃ bhavadbhiśca matsakāśaṃ pratijñayā .. 171.38 ..

As they were departing, those ascetics were told: 'On the fifth day, / you must come to my presence by your promise.' .. 171.38 ..

6.3.171.39

tatheti te pratijñāya nāradādyā adarśanam .
gateṣu vipramukhyeṣu śāṇḍilī ca tapodhanā .. 171.39 ..

Agreeing, saying 'So be it,' Nārada and the others vanished from sight. / When the eminent brahmins had departed, Śāṇḍilī, rich in austerity, .. 171.39 ..

6.3.171.40

dvitīye'hni samāyātā na tu buddhvātha taṃ ṛṣim .
bhartāraṃ śirasā dhārya rātrau paryaṭate sma sā .. 171.40 ..

arrived on the second day, without noticing that seer. / Carrying her husband upon her head, she wandered in the night. .. 171.40 ..

6.3.171.41

na dṛṣṭaḥ śūlake vipro bharākrāntyā yudhiṣṭhira .
skhalitā tasya jānubhyāṃ śūlasthasya pativratā .. 171.41 ..

The brahmin on the stake was not seen, weighed down as she was by the burden, O Yudhiṣṭhira. / That devoted wife stumbled against the knees of him who was fixed on the stake. .. 171.41 ..

6.3.171.42

sarvāṅgeṣu vyathā jātā tasyāḥ praskhalanānmuneḥ .
īdṛśīṃ vartamānāṃ ca hyavasthāṃ pūrvadaivikīm .. 171.42 ..

Pain arose in all the limbs of the sage due to her stumbling; / and [enduring] such an ongoing condition brought about by past fate, .. 171.42 ..

6.3.171.43

punaḥ pāpaphalaṃ kiṃciddhā kaṣṭaṃ mama vartate .
vyathito'haṃ tvayā pāpe kimarthaṃ sūnakarmaṇi .. 171.43 ..

[he thought,] 'Again some fruit of sin has come! Alas, my affliction continues! / By you I have been afflicted, O wicked woman; for what purpose [is this] slaughterous deed? .. 171.43 ..

6.3.171.44

svairiṇīṃ tvāṃ prapaśyāmi rākṣasī taskarī nu kim .
evamuktvā kṣaṇaṃ mohātkrandamāno muhurmuhuḥ .. 171.44 ..

I see you as an unchaste woman, or are you a demoness or a thief?' / Having spoken thus, crying out again and again from fainting agony for a moment, .. 171.44 ..

6.3.171.45

tapasvino'tha ṛṣayaḥ sarve saṃtrastamānasāḥ .
paśyamānā muneḥ kaṣṭaṃ pṛcchante te yudhiṣṭhira .. 171.45 ..

then the ascetic seers, their minds all terrified, / seeing the misery of the sage, asked [her], O Yudhiṣṭhira: .. 171.45 ..

6.3.171.46

paryaṭase kimarthaṃ tvaṃ niśīye vahanaṃ nu kim .
kṣiptaṃ tu jholikābhāraṃ kiṃvāgamanakāraṇam .
vyathāmutpādya ṛṣaye duḥkhādduḥkhavilāsini .. 171.46 ..

'Why do you wander at midnight, carrying what conveyance? / You have thrown the load of a cloth bag—what is the reason for your coming, / causing pain to the seer, O woman revelling in misery upon misery?' .. 171.46 ..

6.3.171.47

śāṇḍilyuvāca -
nāsurīṃ na ca gandharvīṃ na piśācīṃ na rākṣasīm .
pativratāṃ tu māṃ sarve jānantu tapasi sthitām .. 171.47 ..

Śāṇḍilī said: / 'Let all know me to be neither an asura woman, nor a gandharva woman, nor a piśāca woman, nor a demoness, / but a devoted wife steadfast in austerity. .. 171.47 ..

6.3.171.48

na me kāmo na me krodho na vairaṃ na ca matsaraḥ .
ajñānāddṛṣṭimāndyācca skhalanaṃ kṣantumarhatha .. 171.48 ..

In me there is no lust, no anger, no enmity, and no malice. / Through ignorance and dimness of sight [I stumbled]; you ought to forgive my stumbling.' .. 171.48 ..

6.3.171.49

vahanaṃ bhartṛsaukhyāya divā sampīḍyate rujā .
ayaṃ bhartā vijānītha jholikāsaṃsthitaḥ sadā .. 171.49 ..

[My] carrying [him] is for my husband's comfort; by day he is tormented with pain. / Know that this is my husband, who always remains in this sling.

6.3.171.50

bharaṇaṃ pānaṃ vastraṃ ca dadāmyetasya rogiṇaḥ .
ṛṣiḥ śaunakamukhyo'sau śāṇḍilīṃ māṃ vijānata .. 171.50 ..

I provide nourishment, drink, and clothing for this sick man. / He is a seer, foremost among the Śaunakas; know me to be Śāṇḍilī.

6.3.171.51

svabhartṛdharmiṇīṃ kopaṃ mā kuruṣvātithiṃ kuru .
satāṃ samīpaṃ samprāptāṃ sarvaṃ me kṣantumarhatha .. 171.51 ..

Do not be angry with one who observes her duty to her husband; treat [me] as a guest. / You ought to forgive everything of me, who have approached good men.

6.3.171.52

ṛṣaya ūcuḥ .
paravyathāṃ na jānīṣe vyacarantī yadṛcchayā .
prabhāte'bhyudite sūrye tava bhartā mariṣyati .. 171.52 ..

The seers said: / "You do not recognise the suffering of another as you wander about at will. / At dawn, when the sun rises, your husband shall die.

6.3.171.53

ātmaduḥkhātparaṃ duḥkhaṃ na jānāsi kulādhame .
tena vākyena ghoreṇa śāṇḍilī vimanābhavat .. 171.53 ..

You know no sorrow beyond your own, O lowest of your family!" / At these harsh words, Śāṇḍilī became dismayed.

6.3.171.54

paraṃ viṣādamāpannā kṣaṇaṃ dhyātvābravīdvacaḥ .
kopātsaṃraktanayanā nirīkṣantī munīṃstadā .. 171.54 ..

Plunged into profound dejection, she reflected for a moment and spoke these words, / her eyes reddened with rage as she looked at the sages:

6.3.171.55

satāṃ gehe kila prāptā bhavatāṃ cāpakāriṇī .
sāmenātithipūjāyāṃ śiṣṭe ca gṛhamāgate .. 171.55 ..

"I indeed came to the house of the virtuous, yet you harm me. / In my hospitality to guests, when an exemplary person came to my home,

6.3.171.56

bhavadbhirīdṛgātithyaṃ kṛtaṃ caiva mamaiva tu .
svargāpavargadharmaśca bhavadbhirna nirīkṣitam .. 171.56 ..

such hospitality was shown to me by you! / And you have had no regard for the virtue that leads to heaven and liberation.

6.3.171.57

prājāpatyāmimāṃ dṛṣṭvā māṃ yathā prākṛtāḥ striyaḥ .
bhavantaḥ strībalaṃ me'dya paśyantu divi devatāḥ .. 171.57 ..

Seeing me, a devoted wife, like ordinary women— / let you and the gods in heaven behold the power of a woman today!

6.3.171.58

mariṣyati na me bhartā hyādityo nodayiṣyati .
andhakāraṃ jagatsarvaṃ kṣīyate nādya śarvarī .. 171.58 ..

My husband shall not die, for the sun shall not rise! / The entire world shall become dark; night shall not end today!"

6.3.171.59

evamukte tayā vākye stambhite'rke tamomayam .
na ca prajāyate sarvaṃ nirvaṣaṭkārasatkriyam .. 171.59 ..

When these words were spoken by her and the sun was arrested, filled with darkness, / nothing produced offspring, and holy rites with the vaṣaṭ-call ceased.

6.3.171.60

svāhākāraḥ svadhākāraḥ pañcayajñavidhirnahi .
snānaṃ dānaṃ japo nāsti sandhyālopavyatikramaḥ .
ṣaṇmāsaṃ ca tadā pārtha luptapiṇḍodakakriyam .. 171.60 ..

There was no uttering of svāhā, no uttering of svadhā, no performance of the five great sacrifices; / there was no ritual ablution, no charity, no recitation of prayers, and the omission of twilight rites was an infraction. / For six months, O Pārtha, the offering of funeral cakes and libations of water was interrupted.

6.3.171.60_2

.. iti śrīskānde mahāpurāṇa ekāśītisāhasryāṃ saṃhitāyāṃ pañcama āvantyakhaṇḍe revākhaṇḍe śāṇḍilīṛṣisaṃvādavarṇanaṃ nāmaikasaptatyuttaraśatatamo'dhyāyaḥ ..

Thus ends the one hundred and seventy-first chapter, entitled 'The Account of the Dialogue between Śāṇḍilī and the Seers', in the Revākhaṇḍa of the fifth section, the Āvantyakhaṇḍa, in the Skandamahāpurāṇa of eighty-one thousand verses.