Skandapurana 6.3.209

Glorious Mārkaṇḍeya said:
Right after that, O son of Pṛthā, is the excellent Puṣkalī Sacred Ford.
Having bathed in that sacred ford, a man obtains the fruit of an horse sacrifice.

Then one should go to Kṣamānātha, a sacred ford renowned in the three worlds,
frequented by dānavas, gandharvas, and apsarases.

There abides the lord of gods, manifest Rudra, Maheśvara.
Born with a great burden, he is remembered as Bhārabhūti.

Yudhiṣṭhira said:
I wish to hear, O best of vipras, about that sacred ford renowned as Bhārabhūti,
endowed with all virtues, for great indeed is my curiosity.

Glorious Mārkaṇḍeya said:
Listen, O best of the Pāṇḍavas, to the origin of Bhārabhūti
in detail, as it was told of old by the god Śambhu.

In the Kṛta age there was a vipra, well-versed in the Vedas and Vedāṅgas,
renowned as Viṣṇuśarman, who had mastered the meaning of all the śāstras.

Forbearance, self-restraint, compassion, charity, truthfulness, purity, and steadfastness,
learning, wisdom, and faith in the beyond—all were established in him.

Indeed, vipras endowed with such qualities, O best of kings,
rescue their ancestors who have fallen into dreadful hell.

Those vipras who are greedy for sensual pleasures, O best of kings,
deluded by sin, fall into the terrible Raurava hell.

Those who are patient, subdued, whose ears are filled with scripture, who have mastered their senses, who have abstained from slaughtering living beings, / and whose outstretched hands are restrained from accepting gifts—such brahmins are capable of delivering [their ancestors].

A brahmin endowed with such a host of virtues, sustaining his life by the practice of gleaning grains,
dwelt on the bank of the Narmadā together with [other] brahmins.

Knowing such a brahmin, Maheśvara, the god of gods,
assuming the form of a twice-born, went to his hermitage himself.

Seeing him reciting the word-by-word text and padapāṭha together with the brahmins,
he saluted the vipra and was honoured with a welcome.

After a moment, the brahmin, filled with wonder, spoke to him:
'For what purpose, O baṭu, speak! What desired thing of yours may I accomplish?'

The baṭu said:
'Know me as one arrived seeking learning, O best of twice-born.
If you give me knowledge, then I shall stay in your house.'

The brahmin said:
'O baṭu, you are born in the best family of all vipras.
Learning is the highest of gifts—how can it be simply given?

Knowledge becomes fruitful here either through service to the guru,
or through abundant wealth, or through exchange of knowledge.'

The baṭu said:
'Just as the other boys, having bathed, render service day and night,
so shall I serve along with the students; there is no doubt.'

Saying 'So be it,' the best of vipras taught him day by day,
and lived together with his pupils, bringing in gleanings of grain.

Then, after a few days, Īśvara was told by the students:
'O baṭu, perform the cooking and other chores that have come in turn.'

Saying 'So be it,' the lord of gods, having arrived at the village of Bhāra,
meditated on all the lords of the forest and spoke these words:

'Until the vipra returns to the house with the students,
well-prepared food must be made by you while remaining invisible.'

Having spoken thus to them all, Maheśvara, who possesses all forms,
went apart to play, assuming the guise of a baṭu.

Seeing him come there apart in the guise of a baṭu,
they cursed him with harsh words near the mountain:

'All of us, with our throats parched from hunger, having gone to the house,
were to be satisfied by the food prepared by you!

All that was thought in vain; having come here, O twice-born, you have made it so!
Being a breaker of promises, you have acted badly today.'

The baṭu said:
'Do not grieve or express regret for the sake of food, O bulls among twice-born;
go home duly, since it has already been prepared.'

[The students] said:
'With the remainder of the day, our death comes day by day.
Whether it has reached completion or not—all that is uncooked!

What you have proclaimed as cooked is raw for us.
Going there and seeing the falsehood, I shall bind you and throw you into the water!'

The baṭu said:
'Listen, all of you best among the twice-born here, together with your teacher,
to my formidable pledge, hearing which there will be astonishment:

If all this food is cooked in the guru's hermitage,
you all are to be bound by me and thrown into the waters of the Narmadā!

Or, if the food should not be cooked, then, bound fast by you with tight bonds
while the guru looks on, I must be thrown into the deep pool of the Narmadā!'

Having agreed 'So be it' in the presence of the guru,
they bathed according to the rules of japa and then went to the settlement.

Seeing the spread of food and delicacies of six tastes, they were struck with wonder, O best of kings,
and they ate and offered oblations individually.

Then, joyful and satisfied, the best of the twice-born spoke these words:
'I grant you a boon, child; choose whatever pleases you!

The Vedas with their limbs and secondary limbs, and the various śāstras,
shall shine forth to you, O vipra; let this boon be mine to you!'

Bowing, he played at ease with the students.
Then, when the second day arrived, in the waters of the Narmadā...

O Yudhiṣṭhira, they all went to play together with their teacher. / Then, recalling their wager, having duly made them recite,

the god, bowing with folded hands, then said to the teacher: / 'O lord, today I shall cast into the water those students who broke their vow.'

Hearing that word of the god, those students fled, O king, / running in the ten directions while the teacher looked on, O king.

They were gathered up from all sides by the god with the speed of the wind; / and tying all the students into a bundle, O lord of men,

the god, bestower of curses and favors, threw them into the water as if [throwing them] into a house. / Then, seeing them in the waters of the Narmadā, he was filled with dejection;

and the student was addressed by the teacher: 'What rash deed has been done? / These boys have mothers and fathers, and women at home;

if they ask, where have the boys gone, what shall I say? / This being the case, O illustrious one, if any of them dies,

then you must restore him with your own life. / If those brahmins die, I will not live; it is certain that I will die.

And many sins of killing brahmins will accrue to you if I die. / Merely by binding a twice-born, hell is certain.

From [their] death, to what state of existence you will go, I do not know, O lowest of the twice-born!' / Addressed thus, the god of gods, Maheśvara, smiled;

and at the sacred ford Bhārabhūteśvara, he lifted the twice-born from the water. / The god released the load and covered those twice-born,

and a liṅga was installed there, renowned as Bhārabhūta. / Seeing those twice-born dead [and then restored], the sin of killing brahmins was dispelled;

five hundred sins of killing brahmins were indeed seen to be removed. / Then the teacher, filled with wonder at seeing those boys,

[thought:] 'No one else could have such power, except Īśvara.' / Knowing him to be the god, the lord of gods, the twice-born bowed down [saying]:

'Whatever I said out of ignorance, O supreme lord, / whatever displeasure I caused, all that must be forgiven by you, my lord.'

The god said: / 'Revered sir, you are my guru, you are a god, you are my grandfather. / O Vedagarbha, salutations to you! There has been no transgression at all.

The progenitor, the initiator, the one who imparts learning, / the giver of food, and the protector from fear—these five are remembered as fathers.'

Having spoken thus, the Lord of the Universe, bowing to Viṣṇuśarman / at that sacred ford, went quickly to Mount Kailāsa.

From that time forward, that sacred ford has been renowned as Bhārabhūti, / celebrated in all the worlds, destroyer of great heinous sins.

I shall tell you another historical narrative that took place at that sacred ford, / divine, removing all sins; listen to it attentively.

Long ago, in the beginning of the Kṛta age, there was a noble-minded merchant / known as Sukeśa; he had a very righteous son,

renowned as Somaśarman, large-eyed. [When his father] died, / he made a friend of a certain poor merchant's son

known as Sudeva, who was skilled in all kinds of work. / Once, he contemplated business together with him:

'O friend, let us go by sea-voyage with auspicious crossing-vessels, / taking much merchandise for our accumulation of wealth;

we will go to the other shore, and our profit shall be equal.' / Having thus conferred with each other, like a secret counsel, on their desired purpose,

taking all their provisions, they embarked upon the salt ocean. / Having gone there and sold that merchandise in the city at that time,

they obtained much gold and various jewels. / Having readied the boat, they then boarded it.

Seeing the boat laden with gold in the midst of the water at midnight, / and seeing Somaśarman with his head resting on his lap,

sleeping full of trust, Sahadeva thought: / 'He has succumbed to sleep, having entrusted his very life to me;

all this wealth and jewel-store without remainder is under his control. / After going there, he may give me half the profit or he may not.'

Having thus resolved in his mind, the wicked man with evil intent / threw Somaśarman into the salt ocean.

Disembarking from that vessel, he went taking that wealth. / Then, after a few days, overtaken by the law of time [death],

he went to the terrifying abode of Yama, seized by the servants of Yama. / He was led along that path where the sun burns intensely,

multiplying itself twelvefold as if at the arrival of universal dissolution; / where there are very sharp thorns, where there are ferocious dogs,

sharp-fanged great serpents, tigers, and great wolves; / where the sand is scorching hot, and there is hunger, thirst, and dense darkness;

where there is no mention of water, no shade, nor any resting place anywhere; / and whatever food with drink is given turns out to be poison;

for those seeking shade, fire blazes violently. / Burned by these repeatedly, they lament again and again:

'Alas, brother! Mother! Son!'—and they fall swooning upon the path. / Along such a path was he brought by the servants of Yama

to where Yama, the lord of gods, the restrainer of creatures, resides. / Leaving him at the entrance, the servants of Yama said:

'Having bound this murderer of a friend by a noose around his neck, he sits here. / Take notice, O lord of gods, and determine what should follow next.'

Yama said: / 'Never before have I looked upon the face of betrayers of trust. / As for those wicked ones who harm their friends, what punishment should there be?

The wise seers appointed for deliberation are present here; / cast him wherever they say—do not hesitate.'

Having been spoken to thus, those swift-moving servants, taking him, / presented him by Yama's order and spoke to the great sages there.

"O brahmins, by him his own friend, who was asleep at night
and full of trust, was slain out of greed for wealth. What shall his punishment be?"

The sages said:
"Never before have we seen the face of murderers of friends.
Having put him behind a screen, let them hear his destination."

Then, having deliberated among themselves over the scriptures,
those seers, foremost among brahmins, summoned the messengers of Yama and said:

"The scriptures have been examined—the Vedas along with their limbs, the Smṛtis,
the Purāṇas, and the Mīmāṃsā—and this has been seen by us here:

For a slayer of a brahmin, for a drinker of liquor, for theft, and for violation of the guru's bed,
an expiation is prescribed in scripture; for the ungrateful, there is no expiation.

For those who murder women, who murder gurus, and who murder children and brahmins,
an expiation is prescribed in scripture; for the ungrateful, there is no expiation.

Those sinners who breach cisterns, wells, and tanks,
and those wicked people who fell gardens and groves;

and those who kindle forest fires, those who constantly slay living beings,
those who steal deposits, poisoners, and deceivers of their master;

those who abandon their mother, father, and gurus, and cast blame upon them;
the woman intent on deceiving her husband, and she who destroys an embryo;

the woman devoid of discrimination, she who is devoted to eating without having bathed,
and likewise those devoted to eating twice on the day of Viṣṇu—

for such women a destination is seen, but not for betrayers of trust.
For men who betray trust and who commit treason against friends,

their destination is not [found] in the Vedas—what need to speak of the Purāṇas?
Thus among established sins, no destination is found for these.

No other destination has been heard by us for the slaying of a friend and the killing of one who trusted.
Taking this betrayer of trust from here, O messengers of Yama,

for more than a hundred crore kalpas, in turn, one by one,
across all the hells numbering thirty crores,

let this slayer of a friend be cast! Let there be no hesitation!"
Having heard their word, the servants seized him, and

went from there to cast him where those terrible hells are.
Taking him, into that dreadful hell called Raurava

they threw that most wicked man. When he was thrown, a great cry arose
among the beings residing in the hell: "This evildoer must not be released!

From his very touch our torment would become a hundredfold!
Just as pain arises from firebrands of wood ablaze with fire,

so it happens from touching him! What has this polluted wretch done?
Just as a good person suffers degradation from contact with the wicked,

so from his proximity it is like pouring salt onto a wound!
Show mercy quickly! Let him be taken elsewhere in hell!"

Having been spoken to thus by them, they went toward the Impure Hell.
There those denizens of hell were, and they too cried out just as before.

In this manner all those servants wandered through the realm of hells;
even in hell there was no place for that evil-minded sinner.

Then they all, taking him, went into the presence of Yama,
and reported all that had been said by the people of hell:
"Tell us, what should be done with him who has no place in hell?"

Yama said:
"Indeed, let this most sinful one go into a womb frequented by beasts.
For the period of time indicated by the sages, let him be cast into an animal womb."

When that word was spoken by the Restrainer of Creatures,
that sinner became a worm, successively in various excrements.

Then having gone through [the states of] gadflies, mosquitoes, born as ants,
and full of lice and bedbugs, he attained the state of a bird.

Afterward he attained the state of an immobile plant, and after that the state of a stone;
then serpents, pythons, boars, deer, elephants,

wolves, dogs, donkeys, camels, and village sows,
having attained the womb of a mule and likewise born of a buffalo—

these and many other wombs he indeed attained in succession.
Having passed through those wombs, he became a draft animal carrying loads.

In the house of a righteous and renowned king,
that best of kings, having seen that the full-moon day of Kārttika had arrived, once

summoned his family priest and many brahmins, [saying:]
"One should not observe the Kārttika full-moon at home; this has been heard by me many times.

Where shall we go together? Speak, O best of brahmins!
Whoever spends the Kārttika full-moon at home, devoid of bathing, gifting, and the like,

falls outside the religious merit accrued over a year, so says the Veda.
Therefore, with every effort, to a sacred ford endowed with all virtues

let us go together, to bathe and to give according to our capacity."
When that statement was made by the king, the best of brahmins

said, "O best of monarchs, upon the northern bank of the Revā
is the sacred ford of liberation renowned as Bhāreśvara, O foremost of kings.

Let us all go there; it brings about the destruction of all sins."
Being addressed thus, that king took abundant wealth,

and made ready a cart to which was yoked that draft ox
who, having committed the murder of a friend, had entered the bovine womb.

Thus he arrived at the excellent sacred ford on the bank of the Narmadā.
Having gone on the fourteenth day, seizing the moment to fast,

having gone to the bank of the Narmadā, remembering the name 'Rudra',
let clay from a pure spot be taken with this mantra:

"You were lifted up by the Boar, by Rudra of a hundred arms;
I too shall lift [you] up, with offspring and with restraint."

Having thus taken that clay and placed it on the northern bank,
he then looked upon the sun and touched it with this mantra:

"O earth trodden by horses, trodden by chariots, trodden by Viṣṇu!
O clay, remove my sin accumulated over a hundred crore births!"

Then, having thus entered the waters, one should utter this mantra:
'O Narmadā of holy waters, your water arose from Śaṅkara.

May it take away the sin accumulated by me as I perform my ritual ablution today.'
Having bathed according to this rule and satiated the ancestors and deities,

he then went to the temple accompanied by offerings.
Having with devotion meditated upon Śaṅkara, the benefactor of the world, in his presence,

he began the worship according to the rite prescribed in the Purāṇas.
Four worships are enjoined on Śivarātri, O goddess:

Having bathed Śaṅkara with the five products of the cow in the first watch,
the filling with clarified butter was then performed by the excellent king.

And having offered incense, lamps, food offerings, and the rest according to rule,
[he worshipped] Śaṅkara, the lord of gods, with this water offering and this mantra:

'Homage to you, O lord of the gods of gods, O Śambhu, O supreme cause!
Accept this water offering, O God, and remove the sin of cyclic existence.'

Gold was given according to his wealth, consecrated with mantras.
For all the gods are fire, and gold comes from the fire-eater.

Therefore, through the gift of gold, all the deities become pleased.
May Śaṅkara be pleased with the giver of that water offering forever.

According to this rule, Śiva was worshipped by him in the first watch.
In the second watch, however, he should again proceed according to the aforementioned rule.

He bathed the destroyer of Tripura with cow’s milk.
Then the filling of the liṅga of the trident-bearer was performed with rice grains.

Having performed the aforementioned rite, a pair of white garments was offered,
because a pair of white garments is extremely dear to Śaṅkara.

Śambhu indeed becomes pleased by the offering of white clothing.
Seeing the third watch arrive, the best of kings,

having bathed the God with honey, performed the filling with sesame seeds.
And one should make the donation of a droṇa of sesame seeds while uttering the mantra:

'Sesame seeds are white, sesame seeds are black, sesame seeds remove all sins.
By the offering of a droṇa of sesame seeds, may my cyclic existence be severed.'

By this rule, the king carried out the worship for the watches of the night,
passing the vigil pleasantly with the loud recitation of the Vedas.

He performed the worship of Śambhu, which accomplishes great merit.
Those who remain devoted to Śiva during the vigil of the Three-eyed One on Śivarātri—

the state that they attain, O Pārtha, sacrificers do not attain.
Whatever sins there may be, even if accumulated across tens of millions of births,

perish in the vigil of [those who] bathe Hara and Keśava.
As many moments as there are for men who keep awake in the night,

at every moment, O King, the fruit of a horse sacrifice is certain
for those devoted to fasting and dwelling in the temple of the God,

listening to the righteous narration and meditating on Hara and Keśava.
They could not attain that state even by a sacrifice with abundant gold.

The lunar day of Śivarātri is meritorious, and especially that of Kārttika,
[and so is] the northern bank of the Revā and the shore called Bhāreśvara.

When one has kept vigil with great exertion, how will sin not leave [him]?
Having thus kept the vigil on Śivarātri, the lord of men,

went at pure dawn to the excellent bank of the Narmadā.
All those mounts, elephants and the rest, were bathed by him.

'By which mounts I came to the sacred ford, having bathed, I bathe them.'
Bathed while standing in their midst, the merchant was released from [his] animal condition.

He gave a gift on their behalf, a little according to his ability;
by that, a man becomes freed from the fault caused by mounts.

Otherwise, that benefit that is acquired goes to them.
Having bathed it, the king then bathed himself according to rule.

And having satiated the ancestors and gods, having performed the śrāddha according to rule,
and having made rice balls for the ancestors, he released a bull marked with auspicious signs.

Then, having gone to the temple, having bathed the God with water from the sacred ford,
with the five products of the cow, and then with the five nectars,

with water containing all medicinal herbs, and then with pure water,
and having anointed Śaṅkara with fragrant sandalwood paste,

with saffron and camphor, and likewise with various scents,
and with heaps of intensely fragrant flowers, the fourth filling of the liṅga

was performed here by the excellent king carrying out the previous rite.
And the gift of a cow was made afterwards through the rite seen in the rules:

'O cow, you are of the form of Rudra, fashioned by Rudra;
lift me up, who am falling into this bottomless cyclic existence.'

He should then give a well-adorned cow according to this rule.
Having begged pardon of the lord of the gods of gods, he should feed many brahmins.

He should honor them with six kinds of meals, foods to chew, and garments;
having worshipped them with various gifts, he should ask their forgiveness.

He himself ate afterwards accompanied by his retinue.
The lord of the earth resided there for that very night.

As he was residing there in this manner, at midnight, O lord of men,
he heard uttered in the sky a celestial voice.

The voice said:
'O King, equal fruit now arises in the world
for the evil-minded fallen here into the ocean of cyclic existence.

If by mere presence [alone] the fruit is proclaimed there, how [can it be]?
If for the lineage of Śaṃtanu it should cause intoxication there,

this bearer in your house, who carries exceedingly heavy loads—
by him, the sin of slaying a friend, the betrayal of trust,

was committed in a past previous life a thousand births ago.
Departing with his sin, his dwelling was in hells.

Then his path was in thousands of animal wombs.
Having reached the womb of cattle, that wicked-minded one was in your house.

And he was bathed by you at this sacred ford upon this festive gathering;
seeing the worship arranged by you, the act of keeping vigil was performed.'

By that he has become free of blemish. Leaving his body before you, / he will go today to heaven, seated in an aerial chariot, O king.

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya said: / Having spoken thus, the draft-ox fell and was separated from his vital breaths. / In that very instant he was seen mounted on an excellent aerial chariot.

Having bowed to that best of kings, he spoke as if smiling: 209.168

The bull said: / O best of noble kings! Excellent is the māhātmya of this sacred ford, / the sacred ford where even a man like me is freed from sins. / I have understood it completely; there is no sinner equal to me.

Beyond this, what further praise of the sacred ford can I proclaim? / You are my mother, you are my brother, and you are my grandfather.

I must be forgiven; I bow to you today. In the sacred ford where people like me / attain such an exalted state, I do not know what state awaits you,

having propitiated Maheśāna and worshipped him according to rule. / What state could be spoken of for you? Grant me permission, O lord.

These attendants residing in heaven are urging me along out of affection. / May good betide you; I shall depart.' Having said this, he vanished in a moment.

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya said: / And when he had vanished from sight there, that king, filled with wonder, / returned to his city, describing the peerless māhātmya of the sacred ford.

Such indeed is that sacred ford situated on the Narmadā, / destroying all sins, banishing all sorrow, supreme.

Minor sins are destroyed merely by a ritual ablution, O Bhārata. / Intent on fasting on the fourteenth day of Kārttika,

one should fill the liṅga fourfold; hear the fruit of that merit: / Killing a brahmin, drinking alcohol, theft, intercourse with the teacher's wife—

these four great sins are destroyed by the four [fillings]. / He obtains the excellent fruit of a horse sacrifice.

Having fasted on the fourteenth day of the bright fortnight of Kārttika, / through the gift of gold at that sacred ford, one obtains the fruit of a sacrifice.

Or on the eighth or the fourteenth in the month of Vaiśākha, as before, / having made a lamp of dough, one delivers all the ancestors.

Whatever gift is given there, even the measure of the tip of a hair, / all of it has imperishable fruit; thus spoke Maheśvara.

For men of cultivated minds who die at Bhārabhūti, / there is a non-returning state from the world of Śiva forever, O king.

Or if he desires to go to the mortal world for the sake of worldly conduct, / he is born in the pure lineage of brahmins who know the Vedas with their auxiliary limbs.

Endowed with wealth and grain, furnished with Vedic knowledge, / freed from all disease, he may live a hundred autumns.

Reaching that sacred ford once again, he surely attains the imperishable abode. 209.185

This meritorious [account] which removes sin has been told to you, O best of kings, / O Bhārata. Now hear the great narrative that comes after this.

Thus ends the two hundred and ninth chapter, named 'Description of the Māhātmya of the Bhārabhūti Sacred Ford', in the Revākhaṇḍa of the fifth section, the Āvantyakhaṇḍa, in the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa, a compendium of eighty-one thousand verses.