Skandapurana 6.3.35

6.3.35.p1

adhyāya 35

6.3.35.1

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca -
jalamadhye mahādevaḥ kena tiṣṭhati hetunā .
uttaraṃ dakṣiṇaṃ kūlaṃ varjayitvā dvijottama .. 35.1 ..

Yudhiṣṭhira said: / 'For what reason does Mahādeva stay in the midst of the water, / leaving aside the northern and southern banks, O best of twice-born?' / 35.1

6.3.35.2

śrīmārkaṇḍeya uvāca -
etadākhyānamatulaṃ puṇyaṃ śrutimukhāvaham .
purāṇe yacchrutaṃ tāta tatte vakṣyāmyaśeṣataḥ .. 35.2 ..

The glorious Mārkaṇḍeya said: / 'This narrative is peerless, meritorious, and brings joy to the ears; / what was heard in the Purāṇa, my dear one, that I shall declare to you in its entirety.' / 35.2

6.3.35.3

tretāyuge mahābhāga rāvaṇo devakaṇṭakaḥ .
trailokyavijayī raudraḥ surāsurabhayaṃkaraḥ .. 35.3 ..

'In the Tretāyuga, O highly fortunate one, Rāvaṇa was a thorn to the gods, / conqueror of the three worlds, fierce, and terrifying to gods and demons.' / 35.3

6.3.35.4

devadānavagandharvairṛṣibhiśca tapodhanaiḥ .
avadhyo'tha vimānena yāvatparyaṭate mahīm .. 35.4 ..

'He was invulnerable to gods, dānavas, gandharvas, and seers rich in austerity; / then, while he wandered the earth in his aerial chariot,' / 35.4

6.3.35.5

tāvaddhindhyagirermadhye dānavo baladarpitaḥ .
mayo nāmeti vikhyāto guhāvāsī tapaścaran .. 35.5 ..

'at that time, in the midst of the Vindhya mountain, a dānava proud of his strength, / famed by the name of Maya, was practicing austerity, dwelling in a cave.' / 35.5

6.3.35.6

tasya pārśvagato rakṣo vinayādavaniṃ gataḥ .
pūjito dānasanmānairidaṃ vacanamabravīt .. 35.6 ..

'Approaching him, the rākṣasa descended to the earth out of modesty; / honored with gifts and respect, he spoke these words:' / 35.6

6.3.35.7

kasyeyaṃ padmapatrākṣī pūrṇacandranibhānanā .
kiṃnāmadheyā tapati tapa ugraṃ kathaṃ vibho .. 35.7 ..

'"Whose is this lotus-petal-eyed maiden, whose face resembles the full moon? / What is her name, and why does she practice severe austerity, O lord?"' / 35.7

6.3.35.8

maya uvāca -
dānavānāṃ patiḥ śreṣṭho mayo'haṃ nāma nāmataḥ .
bhāryā tejovatī nāma tasyāstu tanayā śubhā .. 35.8 ..

Maya said: / 'I am the chief lord of the dānavas, Maya by name; / my wife is named Tejovatī, and she has an auspicious daughter,' / 35.8

6.3.35.9

mandodarīti vikhyātā tapate bhartṛkāraṇāt .
ārādhayantī bhartāramumāyā dayitaṃ śubham .. 35.9 ..

'celebrated as Mandodarī, who performs austerity for the sake of a husband, / propitiating Umā’s auspicious beloved as her lord.' / 35.9

6.3.35.10

tacchrutvā vacanaṃ tasya rāvaṇo madamohitaḥ .
prasṛtaḥ praṇato bhūtvā mayaṃ vacanamabravīt .. 35.10 ..

Hearing those words of his, Rāvaṇa, infatuated with passion, / stepped forward and, bowing down, spoke these words to Maya: / 35.10

6.3.35.11

paulastyānvayasaṃjāto devadānavadarpahā .
prārthayāmi mahābhāga sutāṃ tvaṃ dātumarhasi .. 35.11 ..

'"I was born in the lineage of Pulastya, the destroyer of the pride of gods and dānavas; / I make a request, O highly fortunate one: you ought to give me your daughter."' / 35.11

6.3.35.12

jñātvā paitāmahaṃ vṛttaṃ mayenāpi mahātmanā .
rāvaṇāya sutā dattā pūjayitvā vidhānataḥ .. 35.12 ..

Knowing his paternal grandfather’s lineage, the great-souled Maya also, / having honored Rāvaṇa according to the rules, gave him his daughter. / 35.12

6.3.35.13

gṛhītvā tāṃ tadā rakṣo'bhyarcyamāno niśācaraiḥ .
devodyāne vimānaiśca krīḍate sa tayā saha .. 35.13 ..

Taking her then, that rākṣasa, being praised by the night-stalkers, / disported with her in aerial chariots in the pleasure-garden of the gods. / 35.13

6.3.35.14

kenacittvatha kālena rāvaṇo lokarāvaṇaḥ .
putraṃ putravatāṃ śreṣṭho janayāmāsa bhārata .. 35.14 ..

After some time, Rāvaṇa, who made the worlds cry out, / the foremost among those possessing sons, fathered a son, O descendant of Bharata. / 35.14

6.3.35.15

tenaiva jātamātreṇa rāvo mukto mahātmanā .
saṃvartakasya meghasya tena lokā jaḍīkṛtāḥ .. 35.15 ..

As soon as he was born, a roar was uttered by that great-souled child, / like that of a Saṃvartaka cloud, by which the worlds were stunned. / 35.15

6.3.35.16

śrutvā tannarditaṃ ghoraṃ brahmā lokapitāmahaḥ .
nāma cakre tadā tasya meghanādo bhaviṣyati .. 35.16 ..

Hearing that terrible roar, Brahmā, the grandfather of the worlds, / then named him: 'He shall be Meghanāda.' / 35.16

6.3.35.17

evaṃnāmā kṛtaḥ so'pi paramaṃ vratamāsthitaḥ .
toṣayāmāsa deveśamumayā saha śaṅkaram .. 35.17 ..

Having been given this name, he too, having undertaken a supreme vow, / pleased Śaṃkara, the lord of gods, along with Umā. / 35.17

6.3.35.18

vratairniyamadānaiśca homajāpyavidhānataḥ .
kṛcchracāndrāyaṇairnityaṃ kṛśaṃ kurvankalevaram .. 35.18 ..

Constantly emaciating his body through vows, observances, and gifts, / according to the rules of fire oblations and muttered prayers, and through kṛcchra and cāndrāyaṇa penances,

6.3.35.19

evamanyaddine tāta kailāsaṃ dharaṇīdharam .
gatvā liṅgadvayaṃ gṛhya prasthito dakṣiṇāmukhaḥ .. 35.19 ..

in this way on another day, dear one, he went to Mount Kailāsa, / took two liṅgas, and set out facing south.

6.3.35.20

narmadātaṭamāśritya snātukāmo mahābalaḥ .
nikṣipya pūjayan devaṃ kṛtajāpyo nareśvara .. 35.20 ..

Reaching the bank of the Narmadā, wishing to bathe, the mighty one / put them down and worshipped the god, having performed his muttered prayer, O lord of men.

6.3.35.21

tatrāyatanāvāsena snāto hutahutāśanaḥ .
kṛtakṛtyamivātmānaṃ mānayitvā niśācaraḥ .. 35.21 ..

Having bathed there by dwelling at the shrine and offered into the sacred fire, / the night-roamer [Rāvaṇa], considering himself to have achieved his purpose,

6.3.35.22

gantukāmaḥ paraṃ mārgaṃ laṅkāyāṃ nṛpasattama .
ekamuddharato liṅgaṃ praṇataḥ savyapāṇinā .. 35.22 ..

wished to take the further road toward Laṅkā, O best of kings. / Bowing low, as he lifted one liṅga with his left hand,

6.3.35.23

dvitīyaṃ tu dvitīyena bhaktyā paulastyanandanaḥ .
tāvadeva mahāliṅgaṃ patitaṃ narmadāṃbhasi .. 35.23 ..

and the second with his second [hand] in devotion, the son of Paulastya, / just then the great liṅga fell into the waters of the Narmadā.

6.3.35.24

yāhi yāhīti cetyuktvā jalamadhye pratiṣṭhitaḥ .
namitvā rāvaṇistasya devasya parameṣṭhinaḥ .. 35.24 ..

Saying, “Go! Go!”, it became established in the middle of the water. / The son of Rāvaṇa bowed down to that god, the supreme lord,

6.3.35.25

jagāmākāśamāviśya pūjyamāno niśācaraiḥ .
tadā prabhṛti tattīrthaṃ meghanādeti viśrutam .. 35.25 ..

and entered the sky, moving on, worshipped by the night-roamers. / From that time on, that sacred ford became celebrated as Meghanāda.

6.3.35.26

pūrvaṃ tu garjanaṃ nāma sarvapāpakṣayaṃkaram .
tasmiṃstīrthe tu rājendra yastu snānaṃ samācaret .. 35.26 ..

Formerly its name was Garjana, destroying all sins. / Whoever performs a ritual ablution at that sacred ford, O king of kings,

6.3.35.27

ahorātroṣito bhūtvā aśvamedhaphalaṃ labhet .
piṇḍadānaṃ tu yaḥ kuryāttasmiṃstīrthe narādhipa .. 35.27 ..

having fasted for a day and night, obtains the fruit of a horse sacrifice. / And whoever performs the offering of rice-balls at that sacred ford, O king,

6.3.35.28

yatphalaṃ sattrayajñena tadbhavennātra saṃśayaḥ .
tena dvādaśavarṣāṇi pitaraḥ saṃpratarpitāḥ .. 35.28 ..

the fruit that comes from a sacrificial session will be his; there is no doubt in this. / By that, the ancestors remain fully satisfied for twelve years.

6.3.35.29

yastu bhojayate vipraṃ ṣaḍrasātrena bhārata .
akṣayapuṇyamāpnoti tatra tīrthe narottama .. 35.29 ..

And whoever feeds a brahmin with food of the six tastes, O Bhārata, / attains imperishable merit at that sacred ford, O best of men.

6.3.35.30

prāṇatyāgaṃ tu yaḥ kuryādbhāvito bhāvitātmanā .
sa vasecchāṅkare loke yāvadā bhūtasamplavam .. 35.30 ..

And whoever casts off his life-breaths, concentrated with a purified mind, / dwells in the world of Śaṅkara until the dissolution of all beings.

6.3.35.31

eṣā te naraśārdūla garjanotpattiruttamā .
kathitā snehabandhena sarvapāpakṣayakarī .. 35.31 ..

This excellent origin of Garjana, destroying all sins, / has thus been related to you out of affection, O tiger among men.

6.3.35.31_2

.. iti śrīskānde mahāpurāṇa ekāśītisāhasryāṃ saṃhitāyāṃ pañcama āvantyakhaṇḍe revākhaṇḍe meghanādatīrthamāhātmyavarṇanaṃ nāma pañcatriṃśo'dhyāyaḥ ..

Thus ends the thirty-fifth chapter, entitled “Description of the Māhātmya of the Meghanādatīrtha,” in the Revākhaṇḍa of the Avantī section in the glorious Skandapurāṇa, a compendium of eighty-one thousand verses.