Skandapurana 5.164

Sūta said:
From that time onward, on the auspicious bank of the Sarasvatī, / a very great abode was formed for the outer Nāgaras, 1

who had increased with sons, grandsons, and daughters' sons, O best of the twice-born, / before Camatkārapura, which became renowned for learning and riches. 2

Then, after some time, by the wise Viśvāmitra / the Sarasvatī was cursed in anger and made into a river of blood. 3

Then she was frequented day and night by delighted rākṣasas, / and by other bhūtas, pretas, and piśācas intent on singing and dancing. 4

Then those outer Nāgaras abandoned her and stayed far away; / fleeing in all directions, being devoured by rākṣasas, they went from there / to the sacred bank of the Narmadā, near the hermitage of Mārkaṇḍa. 5

The seers said:
Why was the Sarasvatī cursed by the wise Viśvāmitra? / What offense was committed against him by that great river? 6

Sūta said:
Formerly there was a great enmity between Viśvāmitra and Vasiṣṭha / for the sake of brahminhood, O brahmins, causing a great destruction of life. / That Viśvāmitra was addressed as a great sage by all the brahmins, 7

even though he was a kṣatriya, placing the god of gods, the Grandfather [Brahmā], at the forefront; / but not by Vasiṣṭha alone; because of this, that enmity was stirred up. 8

The seers said:
Even though a kṣatriya, how did Viśvāmitra become a brahmin, O noble-minded one? / Why was he, who was proclaimed by Brahmā himself, not spoken to [as such] by Vasiṣṭha? 9

Tell us all of this; a supreme curiosity has arisen in us. 10

Sūta said:
Formerly there was a great sage named Ṛcīka, the son of Bhṛgu, / endowed with vows and Vedic study, a true ascetic of great renown. 11

In the course of a pilgrimage to sacred fords, that lord of sages once / arrived at the place named Bhojakaṭa, belonging to King Gādhi, / where that river named Kauśikī flows, famous throughout the three worlds. 12

Having bathed in it, as the best of the twice-born stood on the bank / absorbed in contemplation, performing recitation and offering libations to the ancestors and gods, 13

just then an exceedingly beautiful princess arrived there, / complete in all auspicious marks and endowed with all good qualities. 14

As he looked upon her, beautiful in every limb, / he was pierced by the arrows of love and could not determine what ought to be done. 15

Then, having regained consciousness with difficulty, he asked the people: / 'Whose virtuous maiden is this, and for what purpose has she come here? 16

Where will the beautiful-hipped maiden go? Tell me everything, O people!' 17

The people said:
'She is known as the daughter of Gādhi, the beauty of the three worlds; / she has come from the inner quarters, eager to worship Gaurī, 18

wishing for a good husband endowed with all virtues. / This very large temple that stands here on the river bank, 19

here resides Umā, worshipped by all the gods. / Having bathed her and having worshipped her in due order, 20

and having offered various food offerings, she will after that perform / a mere diversion with the lute, delightful to the path of the ear. 21

Then, as the sun grows dim, she will go to her palace.' / Having heard that speech of the people, Ṛcīka, 22

tormented by the arrows of love, went quickly to the house of Gādhi. / Seeing that Ṛcīka, the best of the Bhṛgus, had suddenly arrived, / Gādhi, the best of kings, swiftly went forward to meet him. 23

And having performed hospitality according to the rule prescribed in the household ritual manuals, / he then joined his palms in reverence and spoke this word: 24

"O brahmin, though you are free from desires, what is the reason for your coming? / Tell me all of that, so that I may grant you everything." // 25

Ṛcīka said: / "O lord of kings, you have an excellent maiden worthy of a bridegroom, of fair complexion. / Bestow her upon me, O ruler of the earth, according to the rite of the Brāhma marriage. // 26

For this purpose I have arrived at your house, tormented by love. / She was seen by me, O king, when she had come to worship Gaurī." // 27

Sūta said: / Having heard that, Gādhi, the best of kings, was terrified with fear; / considering him of a different caste, impoverished, and also old, / but afraid of a curse if he did not give [her], he then spoke an excuse: // 28

"Among us there is a bride-price for the giving of a maiden, O best of the twice-born. / If you give that, I will give you that maiden without a doubt." // 29

Ṛcīka said: / "Speak to me quickly, O tiger among kings, what the bride-price for the maiden is, / so that I may grant you all of it, even if it should be very difficult to obtain." // 30

Gādhi said: / "Seven hundred horses with the speed of the wind, / each dark-eared on one side and white everywhere else, O best of brahmins: // 31

Whoever brings and gives [them] to me, to him I shall give the maiden." // 32

Sūta said: / Having promised, 'So be it,' Ṛcīka, the best of sages, / reached Kānyakubja and entered the bank of the Gaṅgā. // 33

Thereupon he performed the recitation of the hymn, 'The horse being led...', born of the sixty-fourth [sūkta], / complete with meter, seer, and deity, // 34

directing the ritual application for the horses that had been proclaimed by Gādhi. / Then those horses emerged from the water, O twice-born ones: // 35

all white, very swift, with one ear dark, / seven hundred in number, accompanied by as many men. // 36

From then on, it became renowned on the earth as Aśvatīrtha, / near Kānyakubja on the auspicious and holy bank of the Gaṅgā, / bathing in which a mortal attains the fruit of a horse-sacrifice. // 37

Thus ends the one hundred and sixty-fifth chapter, named 'The Description of the Origin of Aśvatīrtha,' in the Māhātmya of the Hāṭakeśvara Sacred Field, in the Nāgarakhaṇḍa, the sixth [part] of the auspicious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa, a collection of eighty-one thousand [verses]. // 165