Skandapurana 5.277

Sūta said: / And the other suns that are there, O best of brahmins, / in the sacred field born of Hāṭakeśvara, established by Yājñavalkya: 1

he who worships them with devotion, holding his desires in his heart, / on every seventh day [of the fortnight], obtains them; there is no doubt in this. 2

The seers said:
Only a single sun is seen staying in the sky. / How then were these twelve consecrated in that sacred field? / At what time, in what rite, and for what purpose, O son of Sūta? (3)

Sūta said:
Formerly, there was one named Kṛti, born from Śunaḥśepa. (4)

His son was Śunaḥputra, best of sages; / his son was Cārāyaṇa, best of sages. (5)

Then, after some time, Brahmā, the grandfather of the worlds, / burned by the curse of Sāvitrī, descended to the surface of the earth. (6)

When, O brahmins, Gāyatrī was taken by him as a wife in a sacrificial rite, / having set aside the one who stood before, in the assembly of all the gods, / so that there would be no lapse of proper time while the arrival of Sāvitrī was awaited, (7)

then, by his command, the cowherd girl Gāyatrī, / endowed with divine marks, was brought there by Śakra. (8)

And knowing her to be a cowherd girl, the lotus-born [Brahmā] made her enter through the mouth of a cow, / and pulled her out from its anus thereafter. (9)

For the lineage of brahmins and cows is one, divided in two: / in one place reside the mantras, in the other resides the oblation. (10)

Having thus made her a brahmin woman, the grandfather, standing right before them, / then took her hand according to the rite prescribed in the domestic manuals. (11)

Then, O best of twice-born, as she was seated in the wife's pavilion, / Sāvitrī arrived, surrounded by the wives of the gods. (12)

Then, seeing her adorned with the girdle, / [Sāvitrī] fell into the distress of misfortune and then cursed Vidhi [Brahmā]: (13)

Sāvitrī said:
Because I, who am innocent, have been abandoned by you, O Grandfather, / you shall indeed be my grandfather from this day forth in union! (14)

The taking of another woman is the practice of mortals; / because this was done by you, you shall become a mortal, (15)

and afflicted by lust in particular, without a doubt, by my word! (16)

Having spoken thus, Sāvitrī left that sacrificial pavilion, / climbed the peak of a mountain, and then performed great austerity. (17)

The Grandfather too, because of that curse, descended onto the surface of the earth / in the dwelling of Cārāyaṇa after a long time. (18)

When he attained mortal youth, having lived [there] previously, / he was tormented more and more by the fever arising from lust. (19)

Then, whenever he saw a woman, whether an unmarried girl or an ascetic woman, / his mind devoid of discretion, proud of his beauty and charm, he pursued her. (20)

Then, seeing him afflicted by this vice, the sage Cārāyaṇa / himself drove him out in great anger from his own hermitage. (21)

Abandoned by his father, wandering here and there, / he reached Camatkārapura, where Śākalya resided— (22)

an eminent brahmin by that name, an inhabitant of Nagara, completely versed in the Vedas, / surrounded by a thousand pupils, propagating the Vedic lore. (23)

Then, having bowed deeply to him, he entered into discipleship, / and after a long time he became accomplished in the study of the Vedas. (24)

At that very time, the king of Ānarta himself / came and stayed where Hari himself reclines upon the waters. (25)

The vow of the four monsoon months was then undertaken by him before Him; / then, O brahmins, Śākalya was requested by that king: (26)

"A daily rite for peace and prosperity must be performed by you in my dwelling, / as long as I remain here; let this favor be granted." (27)

Saying "So be it," out of courtesy, O best of twice-born, / he sent his pupils one by one to his palace. (28)

Having performed the pacification rite and given blessings to the king, / and having received a priestly gift from him, [each pupil] would return to that twice-born. (29)

And giving that priestly gift to Śākalya, he would go to his own room. / In this way the regular practice was maintained every day. (30)

When another day arrived, Yājñavalkya was dispatched / by Śākalya to the palace of the king for the pacification rite. (31)

That king had an amorous woman, rich in beauty, [named] Mantharā; / and during the night she, a passionate woman, was loved by him who was full of passion. (32)

Through postures taught by Vātsyāyana, preceded by embraces, / he had been scratched by her with various marks, such as the peacock's foot, / on his body and his lower lip, and likewise with teeth-bites. (33)

As soon as he arrived in the presence of Śākalya for the purpose of study, / he was sent by him to the palace of the king for the pacification rite. (34)

Dispatched by him, he went to the palace of that king / and then performed the pacification rite according to the prescribed rule, O twice-born. (35)

At the conclusion of the pacification rite, he took up the water of the pitcher, / prepared with the five accessories and personally consecrated with the Rudra mantras; (36)

taking it along with unbroken rice grains and flowers, he went from there / to where the king of Ānarta was staying, engaged in his vow. (37)

Reciting the mantra "dyāmālekhī" in accordance with the injunction, / along with the meter and the seer, as he was about to cast it upon his head, / just then he was observed by him, cut with nail-scratches (38)

and with his lower lip bitten; thereupon the king became displeased. (39)

Seeing him looking like a rake and wearing soiled clothes, / he laughed aloud and said to him: "O brahmin, offer the handful of unbroken grains (40)

to this post that is seen standing in the stable." / Seeing this, Yājñavalkya rushed at him in anger; (41)

having thrown that water with the unbroken grains there, O brahmins, he returned home, / without taking the usual priestly gift from that king. (42)

In the meantime, on all sides of that dry post of dhava wood, / various branches came forth, adorned with sprouts. (43)

Seeing that, the king, the lord of Ānarta, was astonished / and felt great remorse: "Woe! What have I done! (44)

"He was surely some god who came in the form of a brahmin, / by whom such power was present in that mantra!" (45)

“If I had received the water consecrated by his mantra, / then I would have been free from old age and death; of this there is no doubt.”

As he thus reflected, filled with amazement, O best of brahmins, / that day seemed to the king like a hundred years.

When the day had somehow passed for the king, / the autumnal night seemed never to come to an end.

Then at daybreak, rising up, the king / summoned Śākalya through his trusted messengers.

Then, standing with palms joined, he said with respect and humility: / “That disciple of yours who came to me yesterday morning,

he must be sent again today, O best of brahmins, to perform the rite of pacification. / Supreme devotion toward him alone has now arisen in me.”

Consenting with “So be it,” he went to his own abode / and spoke to Yājñavalkya with gentle words for the sake of the pacification rite:

“Go, my child, this very day to the king’s palace; / for the pacification rite, you alone have been invited again swiftly by him.”

Yājñavalkya said: / “I will not go to his palace for the pacification rite, O foremost of brahmins. / I was treated with disrespect, and my blessing was not accepted.

It was poured upon a piece of wood at his command, without a doubt. / Therefore, O Guru, send another discerning disciple, / one endowed with wisdom who will please the king of Ānarta.”

Śākalya said: / “A king's command must always be carried out by men living in his realm / for the sake of securing well-being and purely for benefit.

Whoever is hostile to kings, that dull-witted man— / no happiness comes to him by any means, O best of brahmins.

For those who, out of great pride in birth and the like, do not serve kings, / begging until death is prescribed as their expiation.”

While the teacher and pupil were thus disputing, / messengers sent by the king arrived there once again.

Standing with palms joined, they spoke in haste to Śākalya: / “Send that disciple quickly; the king awaits on the path.”

When he would not go, though urged repeatedly, / he then dispatched Uddālaka Āruṇi,

his disciple endowed with humility, who stood with palms joined: / “Go now, my child, by my command to the king’s palace.

Having performed the rite of pacification, do your daily Vedic recitation after that.”

Consenting with “So be it,” he went to the king’s dwelling / and performed the rite of pacification according to the prescribed rules.

Then, taking the water from the pitcher with unbroken rice and flowers, / he went over to where the king was stationed.

The king said: / “Bestow the consecration by the power of your mantra, sir, / upon this piece of wood that stands erect before you, O brahmin.”

Then, having recited the auspicious mantra and sprinkled the desired water / himself upon that wood, he then returned to his own home.

Seeing that wood remain in its same state, the king of Ānarta, / filled with dejection and overcome with remorse,

then sent another clever messenger for the sake of Yājñavalkya / to Śākalya’s brahmin hermitage, [saying]:

“Pain resides in my body, O best of brahmins; / quickly send that disciple who was invited earlier for the pacification rite.

Disrespect was shown to him by me yesterday morning, O best of brahmins; / because of not desiring his blessing, this disease suddenly came upon me.

Therefore, send him to me swiftly so that I may be restored to health.” / When he would not go, though urged repeatedly,

Yājñavalkya then spoke respectfully to another disciple; / then he sent Madhuka Paigya to his house.

He too did just as Uddālaka had done; / the blessing intended for the king was poured upon that piece of wood.

Seeing that piece of wood remain unchanged, the king again / dispatched another man for the sake of Yājñavalkya.

When Yājñavalkya would not go, though urged repeatedly, / he then commanded another disciple possessing many virtues:

Pracūḍa Bhāgavitti. He too went, as before, / and performed the rite of pacification just as it had been done earlier by those two.

Then he sprinkled the pacification water with mantras upon that wood; / yet even so, it remained in its same state.

Then the king himself went to Śākalya’s dwelling, / filled with remorse, for the sake of Yājñavalkya’s mantra.

Bowing to Śākalya, the foremost of brahmins, that best of the twice-born said: / “For the sake of pacification in my palace, instruct that disciple of yesterday, / so that peace may come to my body, O best of brahmins.”

Then Śākalya spoke to Yājñavalkya, O best of brahmins, / in the hearing of the king of Ānarta once again:

“Yājñavalkya, go quickly at my command to the king’s palace; / perform the rite of pacification to destroy this king's illness, my son.”

Yājñavalkya said: / “I will not go there, O Guru; do not speak thus to me! / Insult was shown to me, O Guru, by this ruler of the earth.”

Hearing his words, he fell into supreme wrath, / and scolding Yājñavalkya, he said further to him:

“If a guru communicates even a single syllable to a disciple, / there exists no wealth on earth by giving which he could be free of debt.

Since you, being a disciple, do not obey my word, / therefore I shall now afflict you with a brahmin’s curse.”

Yājñavalkya said: / “If indeed you grant me a curse unjustly, O Guru, / I too shall immediately utter a counter-curse against you.”

"Even of a guru who is conceited, ignorant of what ought and ought not to be done, / and walking on a wrong path, abandonment is ordained. 88

Therefore, you are indeed abandoned by me; now you are no longer my guru, / since you give an order indiscriminately for the sake of [other] pupils. 89

As many pupils as you have, in that many days / I shall carry out your command; otherwise, I will go far away." 90

Śākalya said: / "If you go elsewhere, then give up the knowledge / which you were taught by me, O sinful one; go afterwards, O bad disciple! 91

Drink the water consecrated by me with mantras, produced from a razor-sheath; / by its power you will very quickly expel / from your belly my knowledge which was studied by you formerly." 92

Having spoken thus, that excellent twice-born, consecrating water with Atharvan mantras, / gave it to him to drink so that he might vomit. 93

Yājñavalkya too, having drunk that water consecrated by him, / vomited along with food and abandoned that knowledge. 94

Then, having fallen into ignorance, he went to the auspicious pool of Viśvāmitra; / having bathed according to the rules, purified and focused in mind, 95

he made images of the sun, twelve in number, with devotion; / then, having installed them all, he worshipped them devotedly: 96

Dhātṛ, Mitra, Aryaman, Śakra, Varuṇa, and Sāmba, / Bhaga, Vivasvat, and Pūṣan, and Savitṛ is the tenth, / likewise the eleventh is Tvaṣṭṛ, and Viṣṇu is said to be the twelfth. 97

Thus the sun was installed here in twelve forms by that wise man, / and then worshipped continually with perfumes, flowers, and unguents. 98

Then, after a long time, the sun, having become visible, / affectionately spoke this charming speech to the sage: 99

"Yājñavalkya, I am well-pleased with you, O best of brahmins! / I grant what you desire; tell me whatever you wish for now." 100

Yājñavalkya said: / "If you grant me a boon, engage me in the recitation of the Vedas, / O Lord, so that I may become your disciple right now." 101 / Āditya said: / "Wandering must constantly be done by me, O best of the twice-born, / in order to circumambulate Meru and to create light and darkness for the worlds, O twice-born. 102

Then how can I engage you in the recitation of the Vedas, O twice-born?" 103

"Therefore, having assumed lightness, / stand in the ear of my principal horse at my word; and by my splendor, 104

you will not be burned, O fortunate one; staying there, pursue your studies." / Having assented saying, "So be it," and having entered the horse of Āditya, 105

he then studied the four Vedas in its ear from his mouth, / along with their auxiliary and secondary limbs, accompanied by the supplementary texts. 106

Then, upon completion, he said: "O Lord, make a request of me; / I shall give you today your fee for a guru, without a doubt." 107

Āditya said: / "The hymns that are mine in the Ṛgveda, O best of the twice-born, / the Sāvana [mantras] in the Yajurveda, and the Samans in the third, 108

and those taught in the ritual manuals in the fourth—all those on the earth / must be propagated by you after composing an excellent commentary. 109

Those twice-born who will recite all of them before me / shall all be freed from sin and will go to the realm of heaven. 110

Moreover, those devoted to my bhakti who will explain them, / those twice-born will attain liberation; this truth is spoken by me." 111

Sūta said: / Thus having studied the Vedas and having given the fee for a guru / to the sun, he returned again toward Camatkārapura. 112

Then, approaching Śākalya, [he said:] "You stood previously as my guru; / make a request, O fortunate one, and I will give you the fee for a guru. 113

An elder brother, a father, a mother, and likewise a guru, / even if they behave with hostility, O best of the twice-born, / are nevertheless to be honored by a man, without a doubt. 114

The four Vedas along with their limbs and secondary limbs have been studied by me; / they have been studied, and the meaning of all of them has been comprehended. 115

Therefore, say, O fortunate one, what fee shall I give you?" 116

Śākalya said: / "Those secrets of the Vedas which were told to you by the sun, 117

by which, when explained and recited, there would be destruction of sin— / recite those to me quickly; this is my fee for a guru." 118

Yājñavalkya said: / "Then come with me to where the suns are installed / by me, the twelve of them, and I will recite [them] before them." 119

Hearing that, Śākalya, together with his pupils and those good twice-born / pupils, [went where] the suns installed by him stood. 120

Then, standing before them, he recited that explanation / of all the Upaniṣads as previously declared by the sun. 121

And at the conclusion of them, Yājñavalkya was congratulated / by the brahmins who were knowers of the Upaniṣads, born in the four quarters: 122

"By your grace we have become knowers of the Upaniṣads, / endowed with learning and study; ask for your fee as a guru!" 123

Yājñavalkya said: / "Before these suns of mine, O twice-born, / whichever brahmins shall recite [them], by your grace / may there be the attainment of heaven for those brahmins; this is my fee as a guru. 124

Moreover, those who, endowed with devotion, reflect upon them, / for them let there be the fourth state, which is devoid of old age and death." 125

The brahmins said: / "In the Kali age, the twice-born will be plagued with a wretched condition; / they will not be capable of reciting, to say nothing of explaining! 126

Therefore, speak the essence belonging to Sarasvatī of the Vedas, O best of the twice-born, / by which even those afflicted with distress may recite them." 127

Yājñavalkya said: / The hymn beginning 'They yoke the chariot,' which is the first, having the characteristic of wisdom, / and the first hymn [beginning] 'Triṣṭubh,' O best of brahmins,

and likewise another [hymn] beloved to him, [beginning] 'Wonderful [is the face] of the gods,' / and said to be after that, bestowing great joy, [the hymn beginning] 'The swan dwelling in purity;'

and the hymn to Pavamāna—those Rigvedic brahmins who will recite [them], / having this [hymn] as the beginning, will go to the highest state.

And the twenty-one Sāman chants which are dear to the sun— / the Sāmaveda chanters remaining here, pure, who will recite [them],

and those who, having formed the highest resolve, will praise the Sun-god, / they too, piercing the orb of the sun, will depart from here [to that highest realm].

And the Kṣurikāsaṃpuṭa and the Sūryakalpa, / accompanied by the Śāntikalpa—the twice-born who will recite [them],

those reciters of the Atharvaveda also will go to the highest state. / Even fools, having come together when Sunday has arrived,

who will make obeisance endowed with supreme faith, / those twice-born will attain liberation from the sin committed over seven nights.

Sūta said: / When it was agreed thus ('So be it') by those brahmins born in the four quarters, / Yājñavalkya was recognized in some way or another.

Then the lord of men [arrived] from Videha, for the sake of hearing [the teachings], / along with the earth-ruler named Ratna, to hear all the Upaniṣads.

And he, having also understood the māhātmya originating from the sun, / then established the sun in that place, O best of brahmins.

And that person who beholds it on a Sunday / is freed from sin committed over seven nights; there is no doubt about this.

All this māhātmya originating from the sun has been recounted to you. / A person who listens with devotion would obtain the fruit of a horse-sacrifice.

Whatever fruit [is obtained] by giving a gift at a solstice or by hearing [it] on Sunday, / he fully obtains that fruit having heard the supreme māhātmya.

Thus ends the two hundred and seventy-eighth chapter, named 'Description of the Account of Yājñavalkya, in the Māhātmya of the Origin of the Twelve Suns and the Origin of Ratnāditya, in the Māhātmya of the Sacred Field of Holy Hāṭakeśvara,' in the sixth [section], the Nāgarakhaṇḍa, in the great Purāṇa of Skanda consisting of eighty-one thousand verses.