Skandapurana 3.1.12

The venerable Sūta said:

Having bathed in the greatly holy Sītākuṇḍa, O best of brahmins,

a man should then, with concentrated mind, approach the Maṅgala sacred ford,

where Kamalā [Lakṣmī], beloved of Viṣṇu, is ever present,

and to which lake indeed the gods,

all headed by Śatakratu [Indra], constantly go to ward off misfortune.

Concerning this sacred ford that purifies the worlds, O seers,

I shall narrate a holy story that destroys sins.

Formerly, a king named Manojava, born in the Lunar dynasty,

protected in accordance with righteousness the earth girdled by the oceans.

He worshipped the gods with sacrifices, and the brahmins with mounds of food;

every year he gratified the ancestral gods with sacrificial offerings.

He studied the triple Veda constantly, and recited the treatises with understanding;

he conquered enemies through valor, and bowed down to Śiva and Keśava [Viṣṇu].

He delighted in the manuals of statecraft, and likewise recited the great mantras.

In this way, according to righteousness, the king protected the earth.

As he ruled, all obstacles were eradicated from the king's realm.

Arrogance arose in him, which destroys sons and wealth.

Where arrogance is present, there also arise greed and intoxication;

desire, anger, violence, and deluding malice—

these, O best of brahmins, are the causes of the destruction of fortune.

In whatever man these are present, he perishes

in an instant, along with his sons, grandsons, and all his wealth.

Malice arose in him, constantly bearing hatred toward people.

His mind agitated by malice, vainly arrogant,

greedy, and corrupted by desire, his mind was turned thus:

He resolved, “I will collect taxes from the villages of the brahmins.”

Having decided thus in his mind then, the king did so;

out of greed, he indeed seized the money and grain of the brahmins.

Out of passion, he took the wealth of the gods beginning with Śiva and Viṣṇu,

and of the great-souled vipras, / and of the gods beginning with Śiva and Viṣṇu.

His mind bewildered by egotism, he seized their sacred fields.

When he had thus become unjust, an enemy to gods and twice-born,

by the ripening of his evil deeds, O best of the twice-born, a cruel,

powerful enemy, the ruler of another country, besieged his city.

Equipped with a fourfold army, O chiefs of vipras, [a king] named Golabha—

there was a battle lasting six months with Golabha by the wicked-souled,

arrogance-loving king Manojava.

Then, defeated in battle by Golabha, fallen from his kingdom,

that Manojava went into the forest together with his son and wife.

Golabha remained ruling for a long time in Manojava's city.

Possessed of a fourfold army, having expelled him in battle, the mighty one [remained].

Manojava too, O chiefs of vipras, grieving, accompanied by his wife and son,

emaciated by hunger and constantly stumbling, entered the great forest,

resounding with swarms of crickets, terrifying with tigers and beasts of prey,

filled with the trumpeting of elephants, crowded with boars and buffaloes.

In that most dreadful forest, afflicted by hunger,

the child, Manojava's son, begged his father for food:

"Mother, give me food! Hunger oppresses me greatly!"

Thus the young boy pleaded with his mother as well.

Hearing their son's words there, his mother and father,

overwhelmed by grief, suddenly fell into despair.

Then the king addressed his wife, whose name was Sumitrā,

he himself fainting again and again, his throat, lips, and palate parched:

"O Sumitrā, what shall I do? Where shall I go? What recourse is there?

Afflicted by hunger, this son of mine will soon die.

For what reason, O beloved, did the Creator fashion me in vain, an unfortunate man?

Or who will release me from this sorrow born of my wicked deeds?

Neither Śambhu nor Hari was worshipped by me in previous births,

nor other deities, O beloved, headed by Sūrya and Agni.

And on account of that sin, today in this life, O fair one,

overcome by egotism, I seized the lands of brahmins,

and the wealth of the gods beginning with Śiva and Viṣṇu was stolen by me.

Thus, through the abundance of evil deeds, defeated by Golabha,

I have gone to the lonely forest along with you and our son.

Destitute of food, penniless, miserable, hungry, and thirsty,

how shall I give food to my hungry son?

No food was given by me to the brahmins, O sweet-smiling one,

nor was Śambhu or Viṣṇu or any other deity worshipped by me.

On account of that sin, this sorrow has befallen me today.

I did not offer oblations into the fire formerly, nor did I visit any tīrtha.

The funeral ceremony for mother or father on the day of their death,

neither by the rite for a single ancestor nor by that for the group of ancestors, O beloved,

was performed by me, O good lady, nor even an abundant feast.

On account of that sin, this sorrow has befallen me today.

In the month of Caitra, under the constellation Citrā, O beloved, cooling drink,

delicious jackfruit, or plantain fruits,

likewise a parasol with its handle, a beautiful pair of sandals,

betel leaves, flowers, and sandalwood ointment—

were never given to knowers of the Veda for the satisfaction of Citragupta.

On account of that sin, this sorrow has befallen me today.

Neither an aśvattha tree, nor a mango tree, nor a banyan, nor a tamarind,

nor a neem tree, nor a wood-apple, nor an āmalakī tree,

nor a coconut tree was planted [by me] for the relief of travelers.

On account of that sin, this sorrow has befallen me today.

No sweeping was done by me in a shrine of Śiva or Viṣṇu,

nor was a reservoir dug, nor a well, nor a pool;

no flower garden was planted, nor a grove of tulasī,

nor was a shrine to Śiva or Viṣṇu built by me, O beloved."

Because of that sin, this suffering has come upon me today.

During the ancestral month, O fair lady, for the sake of the ancestors,

I performed neither the Mahālaya śrāddha nor the Aṣṭakā śrāddha;

nor the daily śrāddha, the optional śrāddha, or the occasional śrāddha, my dear;

nor did I perform sacrifices in accordance with rule, with lavish priestly fees.

I did not keep the month-long fast, nor fasting on the Ekādaśī day;

nor during the Dhanur month at dawn, having worshipped in accordance with rule

the deities beginning with Śambhu and Viṣṇu, O auspicious lady, was an offering of food presented by me.

Because of that sin, this suffering has come upon me today.

I did not chant the names of Hari and Śaṃkara;

nor was smearing [with ashes] or the tripuṇḍra made with the seven [mantras] declared in the Jābāla,

worn with sacred ash, O auspicious lady, nor was a rudrākṣa worn by me.

Nor the recitation of the Rudrasūktas, nor the recitation of the five-syllable mantra,

nor indeed the recitation of the Puruṣasūkta or of the eight-syllable mantra

was performed by me, O auspicious lady; nor any other accumulation of merit.

Because of that sin, this suffering has come upon me today."

Lamenting thus, having spoken to his wife, that king of afflicted mind

fell into a faint, O brahmins, and collapsed onto the surface of the earth.

Seeing her husband fallen, that woman, his wife Sumitrā,

embracing him, then wailed with her son, intensely grief-stricken:

"O my lord, great king, bearer of the yoke of the Lunar dynasty!

Leaving me, where have you gone in this desolate forest together with our son,

abandoning me, helpless, who followed you like a doe terrified of a lion?

If you are dead, O king of kings, then I too swiftly

shall follow you; as a widow I will not remain even for a moment!

Look at your father fallen on the earth, O son Candrakānta!"

Thus addressed, Candrakānta too, the son of the king, afflicted by hunger,

embraced his father and wept silently.

In the meantime, O brahmins, clad in matted hair and bark garments,

all his limbs smeared with sacred ash, his forehead marked with the tripuṇḍra,

adorned with a necklace of rudrākṣas, wearing a white sacred thread,

a sage named Parāśara arrived by chance.

Heading toward that sound, he who was esteemed by the virtuous and good,

then Sumitrā, seeing that Parāśara had approached,

bowed down at his feet together with her son, that faithful wife.

Then this Sumitrā was consoled by Parāśara

and comforted by the sage: "Do not grieve, O noble lady!"

Then the great sage, the son of Śakti, inquired of Sumitrā:

Parāśara said:

"Who are you, O shapely lady, and who is this man who has fallen in front of you?

And who is this child to you? Tell me truly, O auspicious lady."

Thus questioned by the sage, the virtuous woman said to that great sage:

Sumitrā said:

"This is my husband, and I am his wife, O best of sages.

And this is the son begotten by us two, named Candrakānta.

This is a king born of the Lunar lineage, named Manojava,

son of Vikramāḍhya, equal to Viṣṇu in valour, mighty.

I am named Sumitrā, his wife devoted to her husband.

Defeated in battle by Golabha, King Manojava,

deprived of his kingdom, destitute, accompanied by me and his son,

entered the forest terrifying with cruel beasts, O brahmin seer.

Afflicted by hunger, our son begged food from us both.

Having no food, the king, distraught on seeing his son tormented by hunger,

his mind overwhelmed with grief, O brahmin, fainted and collapsed onto the ground."

Hearing those words of hers, choked with grief,

the sage, the son of Śakti, addressed that faithful wife Sumitrā,

the wife of King Manojava, who was like a flame of fire:

Parāśara said:

"O wife of Manojava, let there be no fear in you in any way!

Truly, the misfortune of you all shall come to an end before long.

Forsaking his swoon, O auspicious lady, your husband will rise in a moment.”

Then the brahmin Parāśara, with his hand, [touched] that lord of men;

meditating upon the three-eyed god, chanting a mantra, he touched [him].

Then King Manojava, touched by the hand of the great sage,

suddenly arose there, casting off the swoon born of darkness.

Then, bowing down to the sage Parāśara, the ruler of the earth,

exceedingly pleased, spoke to the best of brahmins with joined palms.

Manojava said:

“O sage Parāśara, today, through service to your lotus feet,

my swoon has vanished instantly and my sin has been destroyed.

The sight of you is never attained by those devoid of merit.

Protect me with a glance of compassion, driven out as I am from my city by enemies.”

Thus addressed, that sage said to that king Manojava:

Parāśara said:

“I shall tell you a means, O king, for the conquest of your enemies.

At the highly sacred Rāmasetu, on the Gandhamādana mountain, / there exists an auspicious sacred ford that grants all sovereignty.

For the benefit of all the worlds, in that pool, Raghava

is ever present with Lakṣmī as Sītā, O best of kings.

Having gone there together with your son and wife, having bathed with devotion,

perform also the śrāddha of the sacred field and other rites upon its shore, O king.

When this is done by you, O king, ill fortune that causes distress

will undoubtedly be destroyed by the power of that sacred ford.

And you will attain all auspicious things before long, O king;

having conquered your enemies in battle, you will regain your land.

Therefore, together with your wife and son, O Manojava,

go to that Maṅgalatīrtha on the Gandhamādana mountain.

I too shall come, desiring to grant you favor.”

Having spoken thus, Parāśara, along with the three royal figures,

set out towards the bridge to bathe in Maṅgalatīrtha.

Together with the king and others, crossing various forests,

woodland regions, and numerous villages of robbers,

the sage went to the auspicious sacred ford on the Gandhamādana mountain.

Making the formal resolve there according to rule, that bull among sages bathed;

he also had the king and the others bathe according to rule.

And there the king performed a śrāddha to gratify the ancestors.

There the king, his wife, and his son bathed for three months;

then the sage Parāśara bathed according to observance.

Thus for three months the bull among sages bathed with them

in the highly sacred ford named Maṅgala, which destroys all inauspiciousness.

Then, at the end of that, the sage Parāśara imparted

the single-syllable mantra of Rāma, which destroys all misfortunes.

For forty days there, the single-syllable mantra

that king muttered at that sacred ford, precisely along the path spoken by the sage.

As he was reciting the single-syllable mantra in this way, O brahmins,

by the grace of the sage, a strong bow appeared before him,

and two inexhaustible quivers, two swords with golden hilts,

one shield, one mace, and an excellent pestle-club,

one conch of loud sound, a chariot yoked with horses,

with a charioteer and a banner, arose before him from the sacred ford. / Golden armor, radiant as fire,

manifested from that sacred ford by the grace of the sage;

ornaments such as necklaces, armlets, a diadem, and bracelets