Skandapurana 7.4

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Chapters 31–40

Sanatkumāra said:
Meanwhile, the god said to the goddess, the daughter of the king of mountains:
“Let us go, O lovely lady, to bestow a boon upon the yakṣa, my devotee.
He is my devotee, O fair-hipped lady, whose sins have been consumed by austerity.
He is worthy, O mistress of the universe, to receive a boon from us.”
Having spoken thus, the lord of the world, together with the goddess,
went to where the yakṣa was sitting, emaciated and covered with veins.
And he granted him divine sight, by which he beheld Śaṃkara.
Sanatkumāra said:
Then the yakṣa, O Vyāsa, slowly opening his eyes,
beheld the god accompanied by his retinue, seated on the bull-bannered [vehicle].
The god of gods said:
“I grant you a boon first: darśana throughout the three worlds,
and solidity of body; behold me, free from torment.”
Sanatkumāra said:
Then, having obtained the boon and a body free from injury,
he bowed at his feet and stood with palms joined upon his head.
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128 māpurante - gha. 1 aho - gha. 2 labdhamasmatto - gha. 3 ttasmai - gha. 4 vṛṣaṃ śvetamapāśritam - gha. 5 dadāni - gha. 6 […]ṇekṣitena ca - gha.
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And he spoke then, urged by the lord saying, “I am the giver of boons”:
“O Lord, bestow upon me undistracted and undivided devotion toward you,
and the providing of food to the worlds, as well as imperishable leadership of the gaṇas,
so that I may always dwell in your abode, Avimukta.
O Lord of gods, I desire this supreme boon to be granted.”
The god of gods said:
“Freed from old age and death, completely devoid of all grief,
you will become the leader of the gaṇas, a granter of boons, worshipped by all,
unconquerable by all, endowed with the sovereign power of yoga,
and a provider of food to the worlds; you will become the guardian of the sacred field (Kṣetrapāla),
mighty, of great sattva, devoted to brahmins, and dear to me.

Also three-eyed, staff-in-hand (Daṇḍapāṇi), and a great yogin.
Udbhrama and Saṃbhrama shall be your two attendant gaṇas;
by your command, they will cause wandering and perplexity to the world.”
Sanatkumāra said:
Having thus made the yakṣa the lord of the gaṇas, O Vyāsa,
the divine Lord, the lord of gods, returned to his abode along with him.
Then, looking at the goddess, the god of gods whose emblem is the bull,
spoke in order to grant a boon to Mandara, who was performing austerity.
The god of gods said:
“O goddess with eyes like blossoming lotuses, O slender-waisted lady, I shall go
to Mandara, the foremost of mountains, wishing to confer the boon of grace.
Together with his wife, his sons, and his friends,
Mandara, the best of mountains, the foremost of ascetics, has taken refuge in me.
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7 tadā tena - gha. 8 […]tvayi nāthe - gha. 9 sonapatyaṃ - gha. 10 paśyeyaṃ - gha. 11 […]dicchāmi - gha. 12 lokavivājitaḥ - gha. 13 arthadaścāpi - gha. 14 mama ca - gha. 15 vāmadeveśa - ka. gha. 16 nareśvaraḥ - gha. 17 prasanna - ka. 18 tapasāṃ - gha., tapatāṃ? .
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For five thousand divine years up to today, O Pārvatī,
the best of ascetics has practiced austerity toward me with his whole being.”
The goddess said:
“Take me too, O Lord of gods, to Mandara with its beautiful caves.
O god, without you, O Lord of the whole world, I shall find no delight.”
Then the god, the Supreme Lord, laughed and said to her:
“Avimukta must not be abandoned; how do you wish to go?”
The goddess said:
“I shall dwell right here and I shall also go to Mandara;
thus this abode, O god, will remain unabandoned (Avimukta).”
The god of gods said:
“It is just so, O fair-hipped lady, as you say, O Pārvatī.”

"Indeed, through divine power you go everywhere, O goddess, just as I do in all directions."
Sanatkumāra said:
Then the blessed god Hara, mounting his bull that goes everywhere,
went to Mandara along with Umā, with Nandī, and with his retinue.
Having gone there, the Lord of the universe saw Mandara
performing supreme austerities, and having seen him, said:
"I am the giver of boons, O lord of mountains; I am exceedingly pleased with your tapas.
Choose whatever boon you desire; I grant all that to you."
Sanatkumāra said:
Addressed thus by Śarva, having seen the Lord of the three worlds
accompanied by Umā and Nandī, and having bowed to him whose mount is the bull,
having gazed again and again upon Hara, and again and again upon the Goddess,
he bowed again and again to the retinue and to Nandī.
Seeing him so overwhelmed, his eyes blurred with tears born of joy,
Hara once more gratified the mountain with a boon.
The God of gods said:
"Choose a boon; may it be well with you! O mountain, I am your granter of boons.
I wish to grant whatever you desire; choose a boon, O support of the earth!"
Mandara said:
"O Blessed One, if you are pleased, O God of gods, O Lord of the universe,
I desire your dwelling upon me, together with Umā and along with your retinue.
I desire, O Lord of the gods of gods, by the touch of your feet always,

that myself be purified together with Umā and along with your retinue.
I desire no other boon from you here, O God, teacher of the universe!
Let this very boon be granted to me, O Lord of the universe!"
Sanatkumāra said:
"May it be so," the giver of boons then said to Mandara.
"With Nandī and together with the Goddess, I shall dwell always upon you.
And you, best of mountains, free from old age and death,
and impenetrable even to the thunderbolt, shall become so by my grace;
and charming to all living beings, adorned with gold and jewels,
thronged with hosts of apsarases, frequented by gods and siddhas."
Sanatkumāra said:
Then he created a great mansion there, made of Jāmbūnada gold,
surpassing thought in excellence, O Vyāsa; nowhere is there anything equal to it.
Even Brahmā has nothing like it, how much less anyone else!
Renowned by the name of Vṛṣa for its splendor, stature, and beauty.
Vyāsa said:
"O Blessed One, son of Brahmā, lord of all masters of yoga,
there is no satiety in me as the deeds of the God of gods are recounted by you.
How did that mighty bull, so beloved of great-souled Maheśa,
resounding loudly, attain the status of his mount?
Whose son was he? Whose grandson? And how was he born?
What was his tapas, and what its fruit? This I desire to know.
Formerly, a cloud was the mount beloved of Rudra;

having abandoned that, why did he set his mind on a bull?"
Sanatkumāra said:
"Long ago, the Veda was born as the first wondrous son of Brahmā,
and Yajña was born as the second, and they employed him in the world.
He, making the world flourish, employed by Brahmā himself
who wished to increase offspring, did not cause them to increase completely.
[…]
Yajña said:
'O Blessed One, I was employed by the Self-born for the welfare of the world,
but I do not possess such vigor; I seek another […] of yours.'
The God of gods said:
'Become a cloud of the worlds; your success will be achieved.
Then you will nurture the worlds with nectar-like waters.'
Yajña said:
'If being a cloud brings auspicious welfare to the world,
may I bear you, the abode of lightning, upon my back.'
[…]
[…]
Then, realizing that he was not exceedingly radiant, Yajña, unswerving,
performed very great and exceedingly severe tapas, O Vyāsa.
Then the god Śarva, pleased with Yajña, O faithful one,
said, 'I am the giver of boons'; he chose a boon from the boon-giver:
'Just as I bear you through the nature of sacrifice, O Lord of great splendor,'

"In the same manner, even in the state of being a cloud, I shall bear you, the imperishable one." / Sanatkumāra said: / Saying "So be it," the Lord appointed as his mount, / O Vyāsa, the cloud, which was the sacrifice incarnate and exceedingly brilliant. / But when, O Vyāsa, of the noble-souled Dakṣa performing sacrifice, / the head of that sacrifice of immeasurable splendour was severed swiftly with an arrow, / then, because it had become headless, he dismissed that sacrifice from being his mount.

Vyāsa said: / Why did the Lord strike Dakṣa's auspicious sacrifice? / And what was the cause here, O brahmin, by which the Lord destroyed it? / Sanatkumāra said: / The curse was previously narrated, which was the cause, O best of sages. / And listen to this ancient account from me once more in detail: / Long ago, indeed, as Brahmā sneezed, there came forth from his mouth / [a man] with arm-guards and finger-protectors bound on, bearing arrows, a quiver, and a bow,

wielding a sword, adorned with a crown and garlands, wearing earrings and armour, / broad-chested, of great fortitude, a man with the brilliance of gold.

Brahmā himself addressed him by the very name of Kṣupa. / Indra chose him as a king on earth, a world-protector. / He said: "If you give me your own weapon, the thunderbolt, / then I might be king on earth; otherwise it does not please me." / Indra said: / "As soon as it is thought of, this thunderbolt will come to your hand, not otherwise. / So be it; bless you! Become a king devoted to the welfare of your subjects." / Sanatkumāra said: / Thus addressed, that radiant one became a king on earth. / And Cyāvana's son Dadhīca then became his friend.

Having met with him, seated comfortably on an excellent throne, / he, delighted, repeatedly engaged in discourses on diverse subjects.

Then, O Vyāsa, there arose between the two of them a passion born of caste: / "Is the warrior caste superior or not? Is the priestly caste superior or not?"

Kṣupa said, "The warrior caste," while Dadhīca said, "The priestly caste." / Then both of them stated their arguments, and neither would yield. / Then, through sharp temper, superior austerity, / the pre-eminence of brahminhood, and by the power of fate, / enraged, O Vyāsa, Dadhīca struck him on the head with his left hand, / and of great splendour, he struck back with the thunderbolt.

Severed into two pieces by the thunderbolt, that imperishable one invoked Śakra. / He said: "You possess great yoga; you are capable of uniting yourself."

By his yogic power Dadhīca rejoined his own body that had become so, / and went to Śarva for refuge. / Having propitiated the Lord of gods, he obtained supreme invulnerability, / bones as hard as a thunderbolt, impenetrability, and freedom from old age from Śaṅkara, / compassion for all beings, and great yogic power. / He returned to see Kṣupa, and friendship arose between the two again. / And the passion born of caste arose just as before: / that Kṣupa struck him with his left foot. / And taking the thunderbolt again, he struck him then. / But that thunderbolt caused him neither distress nor pain, O sage. / Then, realizing the invulnerability of that great-souled one, / Kṣupa approached Nārāyaṇa and propitiated him for a boon.

Addressed by the pleased Viṣṇu, who said, “I grant boons,” / that high-minded king bowed to Viṣṇu and spoke these words, O Vyāsa: / Kṣupa said: / “The brahmin seer named Dadhīca is invulnerable and imperishable. / He is my friend, O Hṛṣīkeśa, and he always says to me: / ‘I do not fear any god, rākṣasa, or asura, / piśāca, yakṣa, bird, or mortal.’ / You should act in such a way that he might say, ‘I am afraid.’ ” / Addressed in this way by the ruler of men, Viṣṇu, the creator of the worlds, / said to him, “So be it,” and went to Dadhīca's hermitage. / Having entered the hermitage, O Vyāsa, being honoured by Dadhīca,

having bowed and placed his hands palm to palm, he said this to Dadhīca: / “O venerable one, best of brahmins, radiant as the Grandfather [Brahmā]! / I ask for one boon; you should grant that to me. / I have been propitiated, O prince of brahmins, by Kṣupa of auspicious deeds.

Told by me, ‘I grant boons,’ he chose a boon, O great sage: / ‘Let it be spoken by you, “I am afraid”; say that out of grace toward me.’

Freedom from fear of all beings belongs to a brahmin, without a doubt; / and endowed with the power of great yoga, he is invulnerable to all.

You are fearless, yet today speak that for my sake, O lord!” / And Dadhīca, though addressed sweetly by Viṣṇu then,

said again and again to Janārdana, “I am not afraid! / I will not say, ‘I am afraid’; it has not been said, nor will it be said by me.” / Sanatkumāra said: / Addressed thus, the discus-wielder [Viṣṇu], overwhelmed by anger toward Cyāvana's son, / raised his discus, striking fear into him, and said: / “Indeed, those must be treated thus who, having become stronger, / speak out of affection to a weak person as if they were not their master!

If you do not say, ‘I am afraid,’ then this discus / shall take your well-nosed head and cast it to the earth!”

Dadhīci said: / “Why do you, lifting your discus in vain, O Viṣṇu, seek trouble? / I am not accessible to your discus, by the grace of Tryambaka.

Yet, out of curiosity, I go to seek refuge with the guardians of the world. / Finding them powerless to act, I shall then go to Śaṃkara.”

Having spoken thus, the son of Cyavana ran toward Varuṇa; / and when he took refuge in him, the powerful lord granted him freedom from fear.

There, a terrible and frightful battle took place / between the god Viṣṇu and the wise Varuṇa for many years.

When Varuṇa was defeated, the son of Cyavana approached Yama. / He too granted him freedom from fear, [but] was defeated in battle by Viṣṇu.

Then he approached Agni, O Vyāsa; he too was utterly vanquished by him. / Then, taking a handful of kuśa grass, that son of Cyavana,

returned to his hermitage and cried out, “Stand! Stand! / For the sake of inquiry, I went for refuge to the guardians of the world.

They are all powerless; supreme strength resides in me alone! / Today your pride, arrogance, and whatever wondrous power you possess— / I will destroy all that! Stand now, O Janārdana!”

Sanatkumāra said: / Then a tumultuous, hair-raising battle took place / between Nārāyaṇa and the great-souled son of Cyavana, O Vyāsa.

Whatever weapons and arrows were discharged from Nārāyaṇa's hand, / that Dadhīca placed into a fistful of kuśa grass by his yoga. / Then, by the power of Viṣṇu's yoga, from his limbs were born / the gods, all armored, who fought alongside Viṣṇu. / All of them without exception, along with their weapons and mounts, / he, deeply enraged, put into the fistful of kuśa grass, sparing Viṣṇu.

Then, O Vyāsa, after all the immortals had been placed into the fistful of kuśa grass / by the high-souled Dadhīca through his yoga and fiery energy,

Brahmā himself came there and spoke these words / to Viṣṇu, who was distressed and bewildered by the onset of fury: / 'Govinda, what is gained by this effort of yours against this true twice-born, / made against Dadhīca, who has obtained a boon from Śarva? / Do you not know that, by the supreme Lord's grace, / invulnerability, supreme yoga, the sovereignty of virtues, / and adamantine bone strength were obtained by him from Īśvara himself? / Persons of your stature, O god, do not act with hostility against brahmins. / Therefore withdraw at once and appease this best of the twice-born.' / Then, hearing Brahmā's words, Viṣṇu, the fashioner of the worlds,

and realizing by yoga the power of the high-souled Dadhīca, / pacified the lord of vipras and went back to his own dwelling. / Brahmā too, the lord of the three worlds, consoled that seer and honored him, / and then, O Vyāsa, vanished together with all the immortals.

Dadhīca too, endowed with great fiery energy, performed austerity in his own hermitage, / terrible [tapas] consuming only air and water to win Mahādeva's favor. / Then, as he who had the brilliance of the sun was engaged in austerity, / the three-eyed Lord was pleased, and, being pleased, spoke thus: / The God of gods said: / 'O Cyāvana, O observer of vows, I am pleased by this austerity of yours. / Speak what you desire; it is already accomplished by me.' / Dadhīca said: / 'O Lord, if you are pleased and if a boon is to be given to me, / I wish for all the gods along with Viṣṇu to be conquered by you.' / Sanatkumāra said: / Then Hara, who dispels the distress of the bowed, the giver of boons, laughed / and said to Dadhīca, the best of seers: 'So be it.' / When that auspicious boon was granted by the three-eyed Lord, / the seer considered the enmity with Kṣupa to be ended.

Seeing him thus contemplating, the Lord whose banner bears the bull / said: 'Speak another boon, O vipra, and I will grant it to you.'

Dadhīca said: / 'Since this enmity has ended because of your granting of a boon, O Lord, / therefore let your place here be known by this name, O unborn one.'

The God of gods said: / 'This excellent place shall be renowned by the name Sthāneśvara, / extending for a krośa and filled with various flowers and creepers. / Whoever worships me here, having undertaken the supreme vow, / having fasted for three nights and properly bathed in the river, / and, endowed with righteousness, having fed a brahmin with oblation rice, / shall be freed from all sins and attain my world.

And this shall also be the Sthāṇutīrtha, destroying sin; / having bathed here, one obtains the abundant fruit of an Aśvamedha sacrifice. / And also this glorious banyan tree, where I am now standing / to grant the boon, bearing my name, shall be the great tree named Sthāṇuvaṭa.'

[This] will come to pass, of that there is no doubt; hear also from me the fruit of this.
Whoever should stay here day and night, self-controlled and eating regulated food,
by him the unsurpassed vow of Sthāṇu will have been personally observed.
Freed from all sin, he will become an attendant-chief of mine,
named Akampana, mighty and endowed with the power of great yoga.
And whatever human being, practicing self-restraint or indeed disciplined,

should abandon his vital breaths [here], great is his fruit of merit:
freed from all sin and released from all fetters,
he becomes a lord of attendants equal to Nandin, capable of going everywhere.
Moreover, whoever, having stayed here at Sthāneśvara for one night, should consume [his sins] without remainder,
his mind completely freed from all sin, he shall become a most terrifying lord of attendants of mine.”
Thus ends the thirty-first chapter, named “The Dispute between Kṣupa and Dadhīca,” in the Skandapurāṇa.

Sanatkumāra said:
“At that very time, O Vyāsa, King Dakṣa Prajāpati,
the son of the Pracetases, performed a horse sacrifice.
There, impelled by mantras, the fire carrying the offerings
was then conveying the portions everywhere for the hosts of gods.
And the goddess, the daughter of the best of mountains, saw him conveying [them],
remembering that enmity and the cause of the curse.
And the mountain-born [goddess], prompting the ancient one, spoke to him
fittingly in sweet words, accompanied by reason:
‘You are the god of all the gods, their refuge and their shelter.
Without you, how does a sacrifice proceed, O protector of all gods?
This fire, O Bhava, is conveying the portions of the gods;
he is not [conveying] yours, O Maheśāna of great splendor! What is the reason?
An aim is not achieved through conciliation without prowess, O Lord!
This king, the son of the Pracetases, is foolish and arrogant;
remembering previous enmity, he will never give [your share] unless he is chastised.
Moreover, a boon was given by you to Dadhīca at that time, O Lord;
the time for that has come—let [action] be taken for that purpose!’”

Sanatkumāra said:
“Addressed thus, O Vyāsa, the blessed Lord who bears the bull upon his banner
smiled and spoke to the goddess: ‘O lady of bright smiles, your father
in a previous birth, O fair-hipped, auspicious one, was the son of Prajāpati.
Testing my disposition, O goddess, do you speak [thus]?
For no passionate woman wishes sorrow upon her father in this world.’
Spoken to thus at that time, O Vyāsa, by the pure-souled god,
the goddess of wide eyes then knit her brows upon her forehead,
and in anger the brightly smiling one rubbed the tip of her nose with her hand.
As that nose was being rubbed, a woman of great radiance
was born, with a frown on her face, four fangs, and three eyes,
wearing armguards of leather and finger-protectors, clad in armor, wearing a girded belt,
having a sword, a bow, quivers, and a banner,
twelve-faced, ten-armed, slender-waisted, dark as gloom,
with firm breasts, broad hips, thighs like elephant trunks, imperishable.
The goddess with a lovely face addressed that goddess as Bhadrakālī.
Then she spoke to the god: ‘She has been created by me, O Lord;
you also create another suitable attendant. Homage be to you!’
Then the god looked upon his own radiant shoulder;
from it was born a divine man, as if burning up the three worlds,
his face adorned with knitted brows, equipped with leather armguards and finger-protectors,”

Armored, with quiver bound, holding arrows, sword, and bow, / three-eyed and four-armed, a youth of adamantine frame— / having been created, he bowed down, the troop-lord named Hari, / and with cupped hands addressed the God of gods together with Umā: / “Command, O Lord of gods, what I am to do, O pervasive Lord.” / Then the Blessed One spoke to Hari, the commander of the troops: / “Go, destroy this sacrifice of the son of Pracētas. / Together with Bhadrakālī, swiftly carry out this deed, O lord of the troops.” / Then the blessed god, wise, created lords of troops / of multifaceted shapes from his own limbs, able to assume any form at will. / He touched his arm properly, and from it were born mighty ones. / There were ninety hundred crores [of them] born of the Lord. / The Blessed One said to them: “O sinless ones, destroy the sacrifice!” / Sanatkumāra said:

Then the two, surrounded by that vast army, / went forth with roars like the ocean and rumblings like clouds and thunderbolts. / And the god, together with Pārvatī, staying near the hermitage of Raibhya, / watched that work of destroying the sacrifice by the troop-lords. / Sanatkumāra said: / The trees of Kanakhala stood near the gate of the Gaṅgā, / and there was a mountain with golden peaks resembling Mount Meru. / In that region, Dakṣa's sacrifice was taking place. / And the formidable army of the troop-lords arrived, led by Kālī. / Having arrived, all those exalted ones, radiant as blazing fire, / spoke to the patron of the sacrifice, the officiating priests, the sages, and the gods: / “We are indeed all followers of Śarva, the Supreme Self. / We have come here desiring shares; bestow the desired shares! / By austerity, by strength, or by restraint are [people] worthy of sacrificial shares, / or by majesty, or by yoga—by whatever means before you. / All of that is indeed in us as well; we too are share-takers. / If the gods are masters, and therefore have attained worthiness of shares— / in mastery, strength or austerity is the cause, no doubt of this; / both of those reside in us alone, and therefore our mastery is superior. / But if this is someone's command, O best of sages and gods: / ‘A share must be given to you [gods], but not to us,’ let it be stated! / Tell us who commands this, and then we will know.”

Thus addressed by Hari, all of them, led by the gods, / said: “The mantras are the authority regarding your share, O troop-lords.” / And the mantras said to the gods: “Your minds are overpowered by darkness, / since you did not offer sacrifice to Maheśvara, who is worthy of the first share.” / When, even though being addressed by the mantras, they still did not give shares, / the mantras then departed from there to the eternal realm of Brahmā. / Then the gods, Śakra and others, said to the troop-lords: / “[…] / having advanced, we will strike down in battle all of you who have come!” / Hearing their arrogant words, Hari, the vanquisher of foes, / laughing, spoke to all of them these forceful words: / “The mantras have not been accepted as authority by you who are arrogant with power; / because you acted violently, today I will destroy you who roar [in pride]. / Prompted together with the sacrifice, the officiating priests, and the shares, / and whatever power you possess, all of that will I destroy.” / Having spoken thus, the radiant, glorious Haribhadra / and the furious Bhadrakālī rushed against the gods. / And the enraged troop-lords, tearing up the sacrificial posts, hurled them away. / The troop-lords, all angered, seized the *hotṛ* priest along with the *prasthātṛ*, / and the horse, and hurled them into the current of the Gaṅgā; / and having bound the patron of the sacrifice with a snare, they led him away at their pleasure. / Others [seized] the altar, others the *kuśa* grass, others the ladles, and others the cups.